“Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also.” 1 John 2:22-23 KJB
One of the most important doctrines in all of scripture is the deity of Jesus Christ. If Jesus was not God in the flesh, then his perfect life, his death and resurrection could not save men from their sins. While it would certainly be supernatural (see, Lazarus), it would not have the power of God unto salvation. Only the blood of God can save us from sin, death and hell. Only God himself can conquer Satan (his creation), and deliver us from the eternal wrath we deserve. God did exactly that, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Islam says Jesus was merely a prophet. The New Age claims that Jesus was an ascended master. Jehovah’s Witnesses and Seventh Day Adventists claim that he was nothing more than an archangel (probably Michael). Therefore, as an evangelist, I need every single scripture that clearly and directly states that Jesus is God.
The men who deleted those key verses, Westcott & Hort, wrote the Greek text that ALL new version Bibles use as their New Testament foundation. Unfortunately, they neither liked nor believed the Bible (according to their letters published by their children after their deaths). They were hardcore Catholics (and proud occultists), who dedicated their lives to turning the Anglican Church to Rome via the Oxford Movement, and destroying the true biblical text, which happens to be the oldest and the best, despite the lies and half truths of most seminaries. See, The Tale of Two Greeks, a Brief History of the War Over God’s Eternal Word
Unfortunately, the Greek text used by the new version bibles (the 1881 “critical” Greek text and its progeny) along with the Greek Old Testament text (the corrupt Egyptian Septuagint), delete or neuter at least 6 excellent verses proving the deity of Christ. All of the verses I will comment on below are from either the ESV, which used the 1881 “critical” Greek text, which hails from Egypt, and the KJB, which used the Syrian “Textus Receptus” Greek text along with the Masoretic Hebrew text for the Old Testament. The two manuscripts used by the KJB were also used by every non-Catholic Bible on earth until the 1881, when Westcott & Hort’s critical Greek text was published…and the corrupt Revised Version soon followed.
As I mentioned, the deity of Christ was attacked even in the Old Testament. In the KJB, we see a clear prophecy of Jesus in Micah 5:2. It unambiguously established that a future “ruler,” (meaning the messiah), who will come from Bethlehem, is eternal, meaning that He is God:
“But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” Micah 5:2 KJB
In the ESV, while the coming messiah is prophesied to be REALLY old, ancient even, he is NOT eternal. That implies that Jesus is merely a created being, and thus, cannot be God:
“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.” Micah 5:2 ESV
The new version edit to 1 Timothy 3:16 is an excellent example of how textual critics operate. In that verse (below), despite the fact that 253 of the 254 extant Greek manuscripts of 1 Timothy, have the word “God,” rather than the generic “he,” Westcott & Hort, the UBS, and Nestles Aland, reject it. Why would they do this? The answer: the original textual critics, Westcott & Hort, neither liked nor believed the Bible. Hort called the Textus Receptus vile and villainous. They didn’t believe in Eden, the flood, heaven, hell, and the blood atonement. They did however, worship Mary, took part in seances and believed in baptismal regeneration. That is why, in their eyes, one Egyptian/Catholic manuscript can trump 253 Syrian manuscripts:
“And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.” 1 Timothy 3:16 KJV
“Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.” 1 Timothy 3:16 ESV
As we can clearly see, “He” obliterates THE most important point made in a massive portion of the existing manuscripts: the one who was manifested in the flesh wasn’t just a “he.” He was God.
In the passage below, the reference to Jesus as God is clear but can be missed with a quick reading. In Revelation 1:6, Jesus is specifically called God, and then God the Father is named separately. It is one of the best and least cited deity of Christ verses in scripture. In fact, I’ve never seen it listed in any of the vast resources I have on the Bible version issue. There are two more like it, which I will address as well. There was no reason to rephrase any of these verses other than for the purpose of editing out the references to Jesus Christ as God (parentheses and emphasis below are my own):
“and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God (obviously Jesus) AND his Father (two separate persons); to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” Revelation 1:5-6 KJB
In the ESV, Revelation 1:6 does not put any separation between the reference to God and the Father, making the verse, which originally established the deity of Christ, now only about the Father. The reference to Jesus as God was erased:
“and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.” Revelation 1:5-6 ESV
A similar nullification of Jesus as God is found in Galatians 1:4. Once again the separation between Jesus and the Father, which is in the Textus Receptus Greek, and thus, the KJB, is edited out.
“who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,” Galatians 1:4 ESV
The phrase “our God AND Father” is, like in Revelation 1:6, pointing to a singular being, God the Father, while the KJB (below) unequivocally points to God AND the Father.
“who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God(Jesus) and our Father:” Galatians 1:4 KJB
A third verse that does this exact same thing is found in James 1:27
“Pure religion and undefiled before God AND the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” James 1:27 KJB
“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” James 1:27 ESV
Again, the only logical explanation for the extreme rephrasing in the three verses above is to nullify the references to Jesus as God. Knowing the character and beliefs of Westcott & Hort, it really shouldn’t be a surprise.
There is not a verse in the Bible that has faced more scrutiny than 1 John 5:7, as it is rendered in all 7 of the reformation bibles, including the Geneva, Tyndale and King James bibles. Not only is it an excellent deity of Christ verse, but it also illustrates the Trinity like no other verse in scripture. I believe that is why it is so often maligned.
Because this verse, as rendered in the aforementioned bibles, doesn’t show up in a Greek manuscript until the 15th century, it is dismissed out of hand by textual critics. However, is it in the three oldest existing bibles, which pre date the oldest critical Greek manuscripts by almost 200 years. These are: the Vetus Latina (aka, the original Latin Vulgate, (circa 148-420 AD), the Syrian Peshitta (circa 158 AD), and the Italla Bible (circa 159AD). In order for that verse to be in those bibles, there had to have been even earlier Greek manuscripts with it as well.
Furthermore, there are multiple quotations from early church leaders (Tertullian, Cyprian and Priscillian), which confirm its authenticity and antiquity. If it didn’t exist, they obviously wouldn’t quote it or even refer to it. I would love to write a long, detailed and vigorous defense of what is known as the Johannine Comma, but will save that for a future article.
Below is the rendering of 1 John 5:7 in the KJB, and the other previously mentioned Textus Receptus bibles:
“For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 1 John 5:7 KJB
Here is the verse, as rendered in the new versions, beginning with the 1881 Revised Version, which was translated in conjunction with Westcott & Hort’s 1881 critical Greek text verse 8 is included as well in order to show what was put in its place:
7”For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree.” 1 John 5:7-8 ESV
This means exactly…nothing. I have no idea what the point of that verse, as rendered, is. The spirit, water and blood testify – and agree?? How exactly do water and blood do that? So, while this verse destroys perfect references to both the trinity and deity of Jesus Christ, it also transforms it into nothing more than nonsense.
Epilogue
I could go on and on about many more of the horrific corruptions in the new version bibles thanks to the fraudulent Greek text they ALL use. Because this issue is so fundamental to our faith and understanding of God, I have written six articles about it (see below). Verses on repentance, false teachers, believer’s baptism, the blood of Christ, dealing with heretics, withdrawing from those who equate godliness with financial gain, the compassion of Jesus, a warning on false science (like evolution), and of course, the deity of Christ have been edited in a way that weakens them in terms of their intended repetition, or they are simply destroyed altogether.
If this topic interests you, I’d encourage you to read the first article below, one that I’ve spent 13 years researching, writing and updating. I actually began my extensive examination of the Bible version issue while I was still a long-time NIV lover. I did not want to switch to the KJB, but the evidence for the Textus Receptus Greek was absolutely incontrovertible. All the arguments against it contains either lies, half truths or critical omissions. Jesus said “thy word is truth,” but not if it’s been intentionally corrupted by proud and notorious heretics.
“When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.” Acts 11:18 KJV
The act of repentance, meaning turning one’s heart to God and away from sin at the moment of salvation, is not a “work.” However, it is a integral part of a saving, heart-faith per Romans 10:9-10. Merely assenting to a set of historical facts about Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection, saved no one, including me. I believed those facts (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) for most of my life. However, until I believed, with my heart, that I was a wretched sinner deserving of hell, who desperately needed to receive the mercy of Jesus Christ and the pardon for sin He freely offers the world, I could not be saved.
It continues to shock me that many professing Christians and even pastors, teach that simply agreeing with the facts of the gospel is enough to save a soul. Even demons believe the facts about salvation. James made that point for a reason(James 2:19). He knew that false teachers would infiltrate the church, minimizing sin and neutering the gospel, while maximizing the temporary material blessings of this dying world.
Just like every other verse in scripture, the verses that say something to the affect of: believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved, must be measured against the whole counsel of God, which includes all the other verses that tie repentance to salvation.
“Repentance unto salvation” is NOT the same thing as sanctification. Sanctification is a completely different concept, one that involves growing in Christ over time, as we read his word, pray and fellowship with others. That process will never be complete until we are safe in heaven with the Lord. We will not be free from the stain of sin as long as we wear this cloak of flesh.
Unfortunately, some people who are truly saved might not change their behavior. However, that should be VERY rare since Jesus made it crystal clear that his children will be known by their fruits(Mathew 7:20; 12:33). Paul teaches us that those saved people who simply bury their gift and don’t seek to honor Christ with their lives, will be saved…but as by fire, with no rewards to enjoy for eternity (1 Corinthians 3:15).
Below is a list of some of the clearest verses describing what scripture says is required for salvation. I’m not dealing with the verses that state that we are saved solely by grace through faith, not of works. That is, of course, a critical concept, but here I’m simply focusing on what is required from the heart of a prospective believer in order to be saved.
“and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” Mark 1:15 KJV
”I came not to call the righteous, but sinners… to repentance.“ Luke 5:32 KJV (see also, Matt. 9:13, and Mark 2:17)
Jesus says this – twice! “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.” Luke 13:3, 5 KJV
”I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance. Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.“ Luke 15:7, and 10 KJV
“The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.” Acts 5:30-31 KJV
The words of Jesus as he instructed the apostles what to preach when he’s gone:
”and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.“ Luke 24:47 KJV
”When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.“ Acts 11:18 KJV
”And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:“ Acts 17:30 KJV
”testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.“ Acts 20:21 KJV
”For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.“ 2 Corinthians 7:10 KJV
”but shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judæa, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, AND do works meet for repentance.“ Acts 26:20 KJV
“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 KJV
“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;” Acts 3:19 KJV
“and (Jesus) said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:3 KJV
In the above verse, being “converted” and becoming like a little child is neither a dispensational matter nor a shallow belief in the gospel. Jesus is speaking of a change of heart…a turning away from the love of sin to seeking forgiveness from God at the very moment of salvation. As previously noted, sanctification is a completely different, life-long process of spiritual growth that has nothing to do with salvation. We will wrestle with sin until the day we die.
However, all salvation requires is a humble heart, joyfully receiving the free gift of grace by faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on that cold, bloody cross. It is not a shallow intellectual belief in a set of ancient facts. It is a sincere belief deep in the heart of a new believer(see, Romans 10:9-10 below):
“that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Romans 10:9-10 KJV
EPILOGUE
When I read the Old Testament, especially the first 10 or so books, God makes it clear that what he really desires from his children when we fail, is a broken and contrite heart. Although David was long saved, he understood, even in Old Testament times, the kind of brokenness and humility God wants from the hearts of his children. While this passage(below) has nothing to do with salvation it is a powerful illustration of a broken heart, full of contrition, grieving over the selfishness and foolishness of sin. As we grow in the knowledge and wisdom of God, the depth of our understanding and remorse over sin should continue to deepen just as it did in David’s life:
“Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: According unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, And cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: And my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: That thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; And in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: And in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Create in me a clean heart, O God; And renew a right spirit within me. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: Thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: A broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” Psalm 51:1-7, 10, 16-17 KJV
“For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: BUT…we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;“ 1 Corinthians 1:22-23 KJB
My initial approach to resolving the issue of whether or not the so-called sign gifts of the Spirit continue today, revolved around determining what exactly these verses in 1 Corinthians 13 mean:
”Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away…But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.“. 1 Corinthians 13:8,10 KJB
The primary question that needed to be answered was: what does “perfect” mean in this context? While I loathe going to the Greek to correct my Bible, I do not mind digging deep into my interlinear in order to determine the meaning of an ambiguous or confusing word or phrase. “Perfect” is clearly in need of clarification in this critical verse. Does it mean Jesus, who of course is, was, and always will be perfect, or is there something else that might be a better, or more accurate fit in this context?
“Perfect” is translated from the Greek word “telios” (G5406,Strong’s), which is a neuter word. Jesus is not neuter in scripture – ever. He’s always masculine in the Bible – every single time He is mentioned, either by name or by pronoun. That means, without any ambiguity, that “perfect,” in this context, cannot mean Jesus Christ. It must mean something else…something else that, like Jesus, is perfect. I could (and have before, on this blog) lay out the manifold scriptures which state that the written word of God is perfect, but because most Christians are aware of this critical fact, I will instead leave us with this one, short passage:
”The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.“ Psalm 19:7-10 KJB
God’s point via Paul, in 1 Corinthians 13, is that we won’t need sign gifts, or even more spiritual knowledge, once we have God’s actual (and perfect) words in our hands. Paul alludes to the transition away from the sign gifts (which were required by the Jews in order to prove that a prophet was from God:Moses,Elijah,Elisha, etc.)to the scriptures in 1 Corinthians 1:22-23, when he states:
“For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: BUT we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;“1Cor.1:22-23KJB).
Despite the lies of the great Bible destroyers in Rome, the canon of New Testament scripture was generally accepted in Bible believing churches by 126AD (per researcher and author of more than 100 books on Bible and Christian history, David Cloud). Long before that, Paul’s letters (and the gospels) were being copied feverishly and transmitted throughout the Christianized world and beyond. For more detailed information on the early church and the spread of scripture, see, Bill Cooper (1947-2021), a relentless researcher and prolific writer on the validity, historicity, and authenticity of both the Old and New Testament canons, and regarding the dissemination of New Testament manuscripts early in the second half of the first century. His research on Cave 7, Qumran, Dead Sea Scrolls, is unparalleled regarding evidence of pre-68 AD dates for Mark, Acts, Romans, 1 Timothy, James and 2 Peter. (Please contact Guillon’s Christian supply in Statesville and King, N.C., for information about his books).
Now that we have the complete and final word of God via scripture, and have been warned multiple times in the Bible not to add or take away even a single letter (Deuteronomy 4:2, 12:32; Proverbs 30:5-6; Revelation 22:18-19) we most certainly don’t need (and shouldn’t want) vain men pretending to have super powers telling us what God is allegedly saying now. We already have the actual, verified words of God in scripture- words that Peter declared were even more certain than the audible voice of God the Father, spoken from a cloud at the transfiguration (2 Peter 1:16-21)…and we have ALL of them.
HEALING
Not one soul on earth has the gift of healing today, not a single one. While many claim to have the personal power to heal, and then blame the victim’s alleged lack of faith when they aren’t actually healed, only God can heal today, and at His will not ours. If anyone truly had that gift, then the Holy Spirit of God would compel them to clear out all the children’s hospitals in America. Paul couldn’t even heal Timothy, Trophimus or Epaphroditus later in his ministry, as we will see below. If Paul can’t, then no man today can either:
“Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake and thine often infirmities.“1 Timothy 5:23.
”Yet I supposed it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, and companion in labour, and fellowsoldier, but your messenger, and he that ministered to my wants. For he longed after you all, and was full of heaviness, because that ye had heard that he had been sick. For indeed he was sick nigh unto death: but God had mercy on him; and not on him only, but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.“ Philippians 2:25-27 KJB
”Erastus abode at Corinth: but Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick.“ 2 Timothy 4:20 KJB
Obviously Paul would have healed his beloved disciple and son in the faith, Timothy, if he could have, especially given the constancy of his illnesses. Epaphroditus and Trophimus were also his dear friends and fellow ministers of the gospel, but we think Paul callously left them sick and dying?? It defies common sense and is contrary to his character for Paul to have left his beloved brethren suffering. He would have healed them immediately and perfectly if he could have. Therefore, we can know with great certainty that healing rests solely with God, not men.
PROPHECY
Peter does an excellent job of explaining what prophecy was, and what we have from God today in its stead…a more sure (certain) word of prophecy, the holy and perfect scriptures:
”For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount. We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.“ 2 Peter 1:16-21 KJV
Peter makes the point that, in the days of the true prophetic, the holy men of God who gave us true prophecies, received them directly from God and they were always 100% correct. If they were not 100% accurate, this is what God said should happen to them:
”But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die.“ Deuteronomy 18:20 KJB
Despite that clear and deadly prescription for false prophecies in the day of actual God-ordained prophets, we still have the Bill Johnson’s (Bethel Church, Redding Ca.), and his protégés, claiming that their prophecies are only correct around 50% of the time! Yet millions of biblically illiterate thrill seekers from around the world make pilgrimages to Bethel just to hear the kind of foolishness and guesswork that Jeremiah warned us about. The passage below is long, but is the perfect indictment against the NAR and its perverse leaders who claim to be modern day apostles:
”Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the LORD. They say still unto them that despise me, The LORD hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you. I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed. How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart; which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour, as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal. Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces? Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour. Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He saith. Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD. And the burden of the LORD shall ye mention no more: for every man’s word shall be his burden; for ye have perverted the words of the living God, of the LORD of hosts our God.“ Jeremiah 23:16-17, 25-27, 29-32, 36 KJB
It’s much easier to listen to a man with a large and charismatic personality up on grand stage flooded with lights, prophesying pleasant nonsense, then it is to study the actual words of God in scripture with pen and paper, as 2 Timothy 2:15 KJB exhorts us to do:
”Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.“ 2 Timothy 2:15-16 KJB (“study” is deleted out of the new versions btw).
As Peter taught us, the scriptures are even more certain than the voice of God the Father speaking from a cloud at the transfiguration! If I have those perfect words on my phone and by my bed, why would I ever even want some vain and proud man claiming to be a prophet, tell me anything about God’s will or my future? The scriptures contain all things necessary for life and godliness. ALL things. See, 2 Peter 1:2-4.
EPILOGUE
I could have gone on and on about how the Holy Spirit NEVER testifies about Himself, but only about Jesus (John 15:26), how the spirit of prophecy isn’t fortune telling but the testimony of Jesus (Revelation 19:10), and how no apostle ever taught us to call on the Holy Spirit to come to us or fall on us. If we are saved, He is in our hearts…forever! (Ephesians 1:13). But I’ve been deceived too….
When I attended a charismatic church as a pre teen, I faked speaking in tongues just like everyone else in that church did. We were told to open our mouths and just start blabbering. That we did – and it was sort of fun, feeling exceptionally spiritual at age 10, even though I had a haunting feeling that it was all fake. It turns out that several in leadership at that little church outside of Charlottesville, Virginia, including the founder, dumped their families for lives of wanton homosexuality. Child abuse and neglect were also rampant in that church. Sexual sin is not a stranger to these churches and ministries. (See, Kathryn Kuhlman, Todd Bentley, Bob Jones (NAR guy), Amy McPherson, IHOP, Benny Hinn, the Crouches (TBN TV) and many, many, more).
Looking back, the sin issues in my charismatic church doesn’t surprise me it all. We were taught little to no Bible doctrine, and every church service or prayer meeting felt like a crazed emotional roller coaster … up and down, up and down, based not on the movement of Holy Spirit of God, but based on the rising and falling of the music, and the cadence of the “pastor’s” voice. He knew well how to manipulate, not just a ten your old boy, but a congregation of 60 – 70 adults, many of whom pretended to get slain in the spirit, a wholly unbiblical concept.
Unfortunately, I attended other similar churches in two different states. They all had the exact same emotional, manipulative, fleshly feel, clearly controlled by a spirit, but definitely not a holy one.
I encourage everyone who reads this article to cease from the words of men, and to flee from emotion, to the perfect words of the living God.
”Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.“ Jeremiah 17:5-8 KJB
For an excellent analysis of what “tongues” was, please listen to the sermon below by pastor Jim Blalock:
I am still shocked by how often, while reading something in scripture for perhaps the 100th time, I discover an entirely new, infinitely more potent and even life-altering meaning. The scripture below is one of those for me. Please read it slowly and carefully:
16″ For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.17 For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.18 And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” 2 Peter 1:16-21
Peter is teaching us, as clearly as is possible, that not only was he an eye witness to the life, death and return to glory of Jesus Christ, but he was also on the Mount of Transfiguration and actually heard the voice of God the Father praising His beloved son. Peter then goes on to state one of the most profound things I’ve ever read in God’s word: that Bible we have on our phones, on our computers and in our hands…is an even more sure word of prophecythan the divine voice of God speaking out of heaven itself. That…is stunning, and is an incredible truth that should silence every voice that attempts to minimize or marginalize scripture. The word of God is even more certain that God the Father speaking out of a cloud from heaven!! What more could we ever want in terms of direction and guidance?? Not a thing. What this world desperately needs is what Peter describes as a light from God himself, shining brightly and boldly through the thick and heavy darkness of sin…until Jesus returns for His own.
This passage should forever end our desire to listen to the teaching of clever, eloquent and even scholarly men, who, in their vanity, slowly and subtly slip away from the clear words of God, written directly to ALL of us in the holy scriptures. It should also neuter our lust for any type personal “prophecy” or “word of knowledge” from a human being, since God himself has given us the most certain of prophecies via his written word. May we, like the Berean’s, not only learn the scriptures, in full, for ourselves, but also be willing to test those pastors and teachers we love and trust, with the piercing two-edged sword of God’s eternal word. If Paul didn’t mind being examined with scripture, then neither should they. I for one, am blessed to have a pastor who strays neither to the right nor to the left of the words of the living God. I pray that you find may find one as well, but if not, never forget that what you have in your own hands is:”…a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts….” 2 Peter 1:19 Oh, how I long for that day!
EPILOGUE
A commentator suggested that it seems as if Peter is denigrating God the Father’s voice by his comments in the passage above. Certainly not. Peter is simply making the point, via the same type of hyperbole that Jesus often used, that scripture is as certain as God’s voice…because it is God’s voice.
BONUS SCRIPTURE: Everything we need for life and godliness
Earlier in this very same chapter (2 Peter 1), Peter sets up the passage quoted in the above article, by telling us:
2 “Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” 2 Peter 1:2-4
How, precisely, do we get grace and peace in our lives? There is only one way: through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. How do we obtain that knowledge? Verse 3 tells us that God, by His divine power, has already given us ALL things pertaining to life and godliness. Then, Peter speaks of the precious promises of God(which we only know through His word), and assures us that the scriptures are more trustworthy than the audible voice of the Father…so we know EXACTLY where our eyes and hearts must go, and it isn’t to flesh:
23 “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.” 1 Peter 1:23-25
**I encourage every single person who reads these two thoughts on the certainty and value of scripture to ask yourself – do you truly believe, in your heart, what Peter is teaching us? To summarize, Peter says:
The scriptures are more certain than anything else on earth, superceding even the audible voice of the Father from a cloud, and
In those scriptures, there is grace, peace and every single thing we need for life and godliness? We truly have been given everything we need to get through this life, by the knowledge of Jesus Christ as He is in his word. Believe it. Pray it. Live it.
Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;2 By which also ye are saved…For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures….”1 Corinthians 15:1-4
A strong warning to those who pervert the gospel of Jesus Christ:
6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed…unto another gospel:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed….So say I …again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. Galatians 1:6-9
The gospel of Jesus Christ, which we as believers are called to preach and teach, is a specific doctrine, and that doctrine is the very foundation of our Christian lives since it alone is “the power of God unto salvation” (Romans 1:16). Therefore, we MUST get it right. The gospel is not a general Christian platitude, such as “Jesus loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life,” and it is not a message created by man. In Galatians 2:11-12, Paul states:
11 “But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
The true gospel of Jesus, given to us by Christ through Paul, teaches us that God, through His Son, died in our stead in order to pay the price God requires for our sins to be forgiven. The gospel also instructs us that Jesus was buried, and, in accordance with Old Testament scriptures (Ps. 16:10; Ps.22:1-18), rose again three days later. This is the gospel that we must teach, and this is the truth in which we must stand. The gospel, as Paul lays it out for us, is the divine message, which sets those who believe on the only path to salvation. There is no other gospel.
I have heard people say that this popular mega-church or that well-known pastor preaches the gospel, but from what I’ve seen and heard, it is highly unlikely that many (if any) of these money-centered churches today, actually call people to repent, and believe that Jesus died, was buried and rose again, in order to pay a debt in blood, that we could never, ever pay ourselves. Instead, what they usually seem to preach is what Paul calls “another gospel,” or “another Jesus,” meaning a fake, non-biblical Jesus – one which tickles our itching ears by failing to teach the hard but beautiful truth of the grace of God that leads to salvation (See, Titus 2:11-15). Instead, they tend to teach a type of worldly, man-centered philosophy, packaged in Christian terminology, which sadly, is what most people want to hear (2 Corinthians 11:4; 2 Tim. 4:3).
Because of what seems to be the omnipresence of these false teachers (in bookstores and on TV), many of those who consider themselves Christians today have been conditioned to love the false, man-centered Jesus, and will only accept a weak, temporal gospel, which fuels our fleshly desires for happiness and worldly success, but in truth, is no gospel at all. Any call to turn to Jesus from the sin that so easily entangles, and believe, in the deep places of our hearts, that Jesus suffered on that cross to redeem us from the eternal flames of hell we so richly deserve, is either considered passé, legalistic, or just isn’t the kind of “negativity” that people want to hear in church.
We should not attend church: to hear a message about Jesus blessing us financially, in order to find a spouse, or in an attempt to have some type of emotional worship experience. The purpose of church is to hear the soul-saving message of the cross, and to learn, with the guidance of the scriptures, how to walk before God and men in love, truth and holiness. Jesus is a God of love, mercy and grace…but he is also a God who administers justice…and at the appointed time, his vengeance will come against those who reject the true gospel, with a fury never seen before on the face of this earth…and never to be seen again. Revelation 19 is an important chapter for understanding the final judgment of God against the wickedness of man. (See, also The Wrath of Almighty God).
I recently attended a Bible study where the leader informed us that he had a new perspective on the gospel, one which he had only recently learned. He called it the “gospel of the kingdom,” per Matthew 4:17. Jesus referred to it several times as he preached to the Jewish people PRIOR to his death on the cross to redeem us from the consequences of our sin. This “gospel,” as taught in this Bible study, is allegedly for today, and lines up with the outrageously false “word of faith” doctrine, and turns present-day believers into super-apostles, with the same powers and abilities that Jesus had, including the ability to heal, raise the dead and forgive sins. According to this teaching, the reason why we are all struggling along in our miserable little Christian lives is because we haven’t yet unlocked our God-power.
This doctrine sounds very much like new age teaching shrouded in Christian language, and reminds me of the most destructive lie ever told- the one Satan whispered to Eve in the garden: “Eat this …and you shall be as gods.” We all know how that ended. As the former long-time occultist, turned brilliant apologist, Warren B. Smith said in response to this type of teaching, “Be still and know that you are NOT God.”
While Paul and the other apostles clearly had the authority to heal, and even raise the dead early in their ministries, that power seemed to wane as Christianity became established. In 1 Timothy 5:23, Paul doesn’t heal his beloved Timothy, but instead tells him to drink a little wine for his “frequent illnesses.” He also left his Christian brother, Trophemus, sick at Miletus (2 Timothy 4:20), while Epaphroditus, a dear friend and the pastor of the Philippian church, was so sick that he nearly died. Ultimately, GOD (not man) intervened, and healed him, to the great joy and relief of Paul (Philippians 2:25-27). As for forgiving the sins of others, Paul teaches that there is only ONE mediator between God and man…and that mediator isn’t Paul, and most certainly isn’t you or me (1 Timothy 2:5).
James, the brother of Jesus, teaches that not many of us should seek to be pastors or overseers, because those who do will face a higher standard of judgment (James 3:1). I believe that this clear warning is something all of us should consider carefully as we seek to influence those around us with what we consider to be the truth of God. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the very power of God unto salvation, and Paul tells us exactly what that gospel is in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 (quoted at the top of the page). In case there are any doubts that this is the one true gospel for the post-resurrection world, Paul affirms that it is the gospel which he received by direct revelation from Jesus Christ, and it is the gospel in which he stands. There is none other, and anyone (including an angel) who preaches a different, more socially relevant “gospel,” does so at their own great peril (Galatians 1:6-10).
My answer to this teacher as to how we become equipped to grow in Christ, gaining hope, wisdom, joy and confidence in this life also comes from Paul in his first letter to his dear son in the faith, Timothy:
14 But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
It may not sound particularly exciting or insightful, but the sharp two-edged sword of the word is all we need to grow in knowledge, wisdom and strength in Christ. I don’t want super-powers. I don’t want secret insight. I want Jesus Christ, crucified for my sin, risen from the dead, and seated at the right hand of God the Father, to rule and reign in my life…and I simply want to be His obedient servant. Lord Jesus, please help that goal to be realized in me more and more each day!
We are all tempted to preach ourselves (our insight and wisdom), instead of the biblical Jesus Christ. We must fight that urge, and instead teach and preach the blood of the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world, for He alone is our peace. Jesus redeemed us from the consequences of the sin we used to love, and as I often note, He did it in humiliation, and in indescribable agony…cold and naked on a wooden cross.
There is only one gospel, and if it is not being preached by those who claim to be Christian leaders, then, as Paul challenged Peter publicly in Galatians 2 when he was in grave error, so should we gently but firmly challenge those who are leading our Christian brothers and sisters astray. The stakes are high and Satan is moving to build his kingdom here on earth through a false one-world religion (See, Revelation 17:1-18). Please…do not be a part of that church, either out of willful ignorance or a desire for some type of false unity under a different, more socially acceptable Jesus (and gospel)….and do not be afraid to contend vigorously for the truth, no matter the cost. The fate of countless souls, precious to our great God…are at stake.
2 Timothy 4:2-4
“Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.”
1 Corinthians 1:17-18, 22-24
“For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.”
3″ I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish….“ Luke 13:3, 5
19″ Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.” Acts 3:19
30 “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent….” Acts 17:30
13 “But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Matthew 9:13
In my experience, it has been very rare to attend a church that consistently teaches the narrow road to Jesus Christ…the road that travels through his blood, shed freely for our sins on a cold hard cross. I recently attended a church where the pastor teaches frequently and powerfully against the false, broad-road, happy-go-lucky Jesus, which is so prevalent today. This man, without equivocation, states that the road to heaven is narrow and that few find it. He boldly teaches that the only Jesus who saves us from the consequences of our sin is the one described for us solely in the Bible, and that Jesus is full of love, grace, and mercy…but also unmitigated vengeance in His time. Hell and the Wrath of God Despite the fact that this pastor uses my former longtime-love, the NIV 84, I was able to sit through a few of his sermons, since the substance of the messages were not affected by the textual differences between translations. However, in a recent sermon, this changed, and the truth of God was greatly, and horrifically obscured due to a serious doctrinal change from the Textus Receptus to the newer, critical Greek text, reflected in the differences between the KJV and the NIV/NASB/ESV, et al. The Bible Version Controversy Explained
The sermon in question was on Matthew 9:9-13, and the parallel passage in Luke 5:27-32. The substance of these passages centers around the fact that Jesus surrounded himself with publicans and sinners, and frequently ate and drank with them. In Luke 5:29, the text states that Matthew, who had just been called by Jesus, held a feast in his honor at his own house. However, the pastor, while using Luke to expound on the nature of the dinner (a feast vs. a quiet gathering) focused on the passage in Matthew and noted that, when questioned by the legalistic religious leaders as to why he would spend time with such undesirables, Jesus answered:
13 “But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Matthew 9:13 NIV
I believe that this verse is critical for understanding the heart of Jesus Christ towards mankind. It even explains why he left the glory of heaven …”to call sinners….” Yet the critical Greek Text, which is followed closely by the NIV and all of the other new Bible versions, deletes out THE key phrase at the end of verse 13. Jesus did not just “call sinners” to come and party with him, as so many megachurch preachers want us to believe – and justifiably so using the NIV/NASB. Jesus Christ did come to earth did to call sinners, and he called them to repentance.
In the KJV, and in it’s underlying Greek Text, the Textus Receptus, the Greek word “metanoia” is present at the end of of verse 13, and that word completes this important passage perfectly. Below is Matthew 13:9 in the King James Bible:
“But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”(emphasis added). Matthew 9:13 KJV
Jesus did not call the unrighteous to further unrighteousness or to simply to “hangout” with him, as the passage without the repentance language could easily imply to: a new believer, a pastor interested in attracting people with a worldly “gospel,’ or to an antinomian (hypergrace proponent). Instead, the God of heaven and earth called the sinners, tax collectors and publicans he loved so dearly, not to fulfill their fleshly lusts, but to turn to him from the wickedness of their sins, via repentance. The celebration with Jesus and his disciples was not a time of gluttony and drunkenness. It was a time of true joy – the kind of joy that comes when we know that we are safely hidden in the shadow of God…resting in the freedom and peace that accompanies a broken and contrite heart towards God as a result of an awareness of and hatred for our sin. Sin, Repentance and the Cross
The deletion of repentance in Matthew 9:13 (and in Mark 2:17) brought to my mind another well-known passage, this one addressing those who though they were saved but, shockingly (to them), were not. “Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.” Luke 13:26-27 KJV
I have always wondered who those people were (in the passage above) and why they were so deeply deceived about something as important as their eternal destiny. I think I now understand. They were those who chose to spend time with Jesus, eating, drinking, and perhaps even sitting under his teaching on occasion…yet they refused to turn their hearts away from sin to him via repentance. In other words, they viewed Jesus just as the NIV and most other new Bible versions do…as a cool God/man who really just wants us to follow his ways and hang out with him…no judgement, no pricking of our consciences, no repentance…just chill with Jesus and his posse, and maybe debate some theology over a craft beer or two. After all, isn’t that how Jesus rolled?? Sadly, that Jesus is a fake one, manufactured by our own lustful desire to cling to our sin…and even our Bibles and many of our “churches” affirm that Jesus.
Another oft-quoted verse that, in the NIV appears to justify unmitigated sin, is the famed Romans 8:1:
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus…” NIV
A few years ago I had an unmarried Christian brother quote this verse to me after nights of skinny dipping and heavy drinking. His point to me, when I was attempting to encourage him gently to flee from sin to the Jesus of the Bible was that, “I’m saved, so don’t even talk to me about repenting and turning my heart away from my sin. There is no condemnation no matter what I do.”
Well, the King James Bible tells a different story. It states:
“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” Romans 8:1 KJV
The point is not that one has to be perfect to walk uncondemned before Jesus Christ. Instead, the extra clause emphasizes the fact that, if we are truly in Christ Jesus, while we will stumble and fall as we make our way through this wicked world, we, as lovers of Jesus Christ and his precious blood, hate our sin and seek, with all of our hearts to walk not according to our fleshly lusts but according to the spirit. Paul said it best to Titus when he described what should happen when we truly understand the grace of God:
11 “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ….15 These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.” Titus 2:11-13,15
I could go on and on quoting important doctrinal changes to new version Bibles via the underlying critical Greek text, but for the purposes of this article I am simply illustrating how the new versions can absolutely corrupt ones understanding of God’s grace…even when a solid pastor is preaching. If we truly believe with our hearts (per Romans 10:9-10), that Jesus Christ paid for our sins with his blood, free of charge, than we will seek to turn to him from our sin, and honor him…not as works unto salvation, but as love. Jesus himself states:
21 “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.22 Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.24 He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.” John 14:21-24
We must all, as disciples of Jesus Christ, desire only the pure milk of the word, and thus, cast off all of our adulterated Bible versions, no matter how easy they are to read and no matter who accuses us of being legalistic. The evidence in favor of the KJV and it’s Greek foundation are overwhelming. See, The Bible Version Controversy Explained . We are told by Jude to contend vigorously for the faith, but how can we do that if we are quoting watered down Bible versions that delete out the clarion call to repentance, a call given by Jesus himself twice in a row in Luke 13 (see the top of the page)? Even Muslims I meet on the streets when I am evangelizing point to the fact that Christians have over a hundred different Bible versions, all of which say different things, while they only have one Quran. Therefore, they cannot even consider trusting the Bible or Christianity. What a brilliant scheme by Satan to easily convince 2 billion Muslims that Christianity has to be false since their holy book contradicts itself in hundreds of places! While I gladly inform them that only one English Bible is actually true, and I note that I would be glad to explain to them the history of the Textus Receptus and KJV, they simply laugh and say that the KJV is only one of hundreds of Bibles, and why should they believe me. Such is the brilliance of satan’s handiwork….
EPILOGUE
I loved the NIV and NKJV for 25 years, and I believed what was taught in seminaries and bible colleges about the superiority of the Greek foundation for the new versions (the critical Greek text, whose primary components are Codex Siniaticus and Codex Vaticanus). However, after my wife (like me, an NIV’er at the time), raised serious questions as to why the KJV was so different doctrinally than modern Bibles (after reading straight through six different versions), I decided to dig beyond what I had, like a sheep, been fed. So…I studied the issue for myself and found well over a hundred serious doctrinal changes, many of which lined up with catholic church doctrine (Acts 8:37, 1 Cor. 1:18, 2 Tim. 2:15, James 5:16 are a few off of the top of my head). My previous in-depth article (linked in the previous paragraph) lays out my findings in much greater detail.
I care about one thing and one thing only – that people escape satan’s wicked lies and pass from death to life via repentance through the blood of Jesus Christ. I have no other agenda than that, and this goal can only be accomplished if we are ALL teaching, exhorting and rebuking with an accurate Bible, a Bible that demands more than that sinners simply follow Jesus. Instead we must use a Bible that repeats over and over and over again the call by both Jesus and his apostles that all men everywhere must repent for the remission of sins.
15 “These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.” Titus 2:15
“Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he approveth.” Romans 14:22b
**The mark of the beast does not appear until 3.5 years after the rapture, so the church will not have to deal with the antichrist or the mark of the beast. Unfortunately, those saved during the tribulation will. My hope is that some will see this article or learn about the issue before it’s too late. (See, Revelation chapters 13-14). An internal chip is not the same thing as a tattoo, obviously.
More information on the timing of the rapture, the tribulation, the mark, and the second coming can be found here:The Timing of the Mark of the Beast
As the readers of this blog know, the Bible version issue, which I once considered ridiculous, is now dear to me, and one that I approach with a great measure of seriousness, since the Bible is God’s voice to his beloved children. We cannot afford to listen to and teach from an adulterated Bible. As I studied this issue in great depth over a period of many years,, I was shocked to see the stark, substantive differences between the new versions (ESV, NIV, NASB, etc.) and the King James Bible (KJV), a version I had dismissed entirely some 25 years earlier as antiquated and unnecessary.
The new versions and the KJV flow from two entirely different streams of Greek manuscripts, which I have written about in some detail here: The Bible Version Controversy . That article also contains links at the end, which show specific departures (deletions and additions) from the Majority Greek text (which is the Greek text used by the KJ, Luther, Tyndale and Geneva Bibles), by the ESV, NIV and NKJV. I encourage anyone who wants to understand this issue in more depth to read my article, and then review the links at the end.
It has recently come to my attention that all of the new versions state, in Revelation 13:16, that the mark of the beast will be “on” our right hand, while the KJV(and the Geneva Bible) says that it will be “in” our right hand. “On” and “in” are NOT the same thing, and based on my research into the Bible Version issue (see link above), I believe that this critical, eternity-affecting difference is intentional, and will be used to deceive thousands and perhaps millions into taking the mark of the beast. The ESV, NIV, NASB, et al. will be used to prove to those alive during that horrific season, who are concerned about the mark, that they can and should take it in their right hand…since “in” after all is not “on,” and how could the ESV possibly be wrong since so many of the men I respect love it??
Based on technology readily available today, and already in use in some places in Europe, I believe that it is highly likely that the “in” referred to in the KJV means an RFID chip. In Europe for instance, RFID chips encased in silicate glass have been inserted into the right hands of some in order to store medical and contact information, while in Sweden an inserted chip has been, in at least one case, used to open locked doors without a keycard at an office building. I certainly wouldn’t swear by this or say that this definitively will be the mark, but it is highly suspicious given the fact that these chips can store banking information and other personal details and are injected with a needle…in to one’s right hand.
My challenge to all Bible believers is to contemplate this” on”/”in” difference and review the Bible version issue again, carefully. The Bible is God’s voice to us and we need his authentic word now more than ever with all of the charasmatic false teachers rising up, and the dark opposition to the biblical Jesus that we are seeing wax stronger every day in our sick and godless society. The version issue is especially important in the context of the mark since an eternity in heaven vs. an eternity…on fire…in hell…is at stake. While we may or may not be here when the mark is unveiled, those we have influenced will be…and if the Bible we taught from and praised, is used to dupe those we love into taking the mark, it will not go well for us at the judgement seat of Christ – and as for those deceived into taking the mark: “The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the lamb…and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever; and they shall have no rest day and night….” Revelation 14:6-11. I want no part of leading anyone into that horrific fate.
Paul tells us in Romans 14, that, blessed is that the man who is not condemned by what he approves. Romans 14:22b. May we not condemn ourselves by teaching and even using a Bible that, among many other things, is working to seduce people into taking the mark of the beast, lest you, by ignorance, pride, the fear of man or hard-heartedness, lead others off the cliff and into the fiery pit where the worm never dies and the fire is never, ever quenched.** We are all watchmen…..
Ezekiel 3:17- 21
“17 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.18 When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.19 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.20 Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling-block before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand.21 Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul.”
** I was ignorant of the Bible versions issue for 25 years, and was a huge NIV 84 and NKJV fan. However, when my wife, after reading through 6 different versions, noticed huge, substantive differences between the KJV and others…I didn’t want to hear it. I debated her hard-heartedly for about 8 months…but ultimately the great weight of the evidence was so overwhelmingly in favor of the Greek text used by the KJV Bible (the Textus Receptus/Majority Text/Byzantine Text), that I knew my beloved NIV belonged in only one place…the trash.
9 And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; 10 That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ. Philippians 1:9-10 kjv
24 Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment. John 7:24 kjv
21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 1 Thessalonians 5:21 kjv
8 Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee. Proverbs 9:8 kjv
16 Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth? Galatians 4:16 kjv
One of the most profound and destructive lies spouted by both Christians and non-Christians alike, is that believers in Jesus Christ are not to ever judge anyone or anything. We are simply told to live and let live, as our culture and even our Christian friends disintegrate before our eyes…falling into apostasy, and away from all that is true and right before our great God.
In Matthew 7:1-5, the passage most often quoted when the issue of judgment arises, Jesus Christ makes it clear that “judging” others is wrong…if the person doing the judging is guilty of the very same thing they are pointing out to the recipient of the judgment:
1 Judge not, that ye be not judged. 2For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. 3And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? 4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold a beam is in thine own eye? 5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
Based on the above passage (and John 7:24, quoted at the top of the article), it is clear that Jesus is not rejecting all judgment, but is only condemning hypocritical judgment. He even instructs his audience at the end of this passage, that once they have removed the plank from their own eyes, they are free to help their brothers deal with their own sin as well. A few verses later, Jesus goes even further, warning the people to be on guard for false prophets, whom they will recognize by their fruit, thus, making it clear that we must not only evaluate (aka judge) the fruit of others, but we must also have a clear standard by which to test that fruit. That standard is truth. What is truth? According to Jesus, Christ while he is praying to his Father, “Thy word is truth,” (John 17:17b), and the Bereans knew that well….
In Acts 17, the Bereans were noted to be more noble than other believers because they tested every single thing they heard from their teachers, with scripture. They used the word of the Lord as it should be used – as a sharp two-edged sword, separating truth from error, judging the thoughts and attitudes of the heart and laying bear everything before the one to whom we must all give an account (Hebrews 4:12-13). The Bereans, even with their lack of resources compared to today, relentlessly used the word to ensure that they weren’t ingesting false teaching shrouded in charisma, the wisdom of the world or sweet-tasting lies.
Jesus made several other statements about his own judgments, which explain why they were truly righteous, rather than being sanctimonious or hypocritical. In John 5:30, Jesus stated that his judgments were “just” because he sought not his own will, but instead sought only the will of his Father. In John 7:18, Jesus reminded the Jews gathered outside the temple that he was not on earth to seek his own glory but instead was seeking only the glory of his Father who sent him. The eternal truths of God are the only things that matter when exercising biblically sound judgment.
As Philippians 2:5-11 states so eloquently (see the entire passage at the end of this article), the humble and obedient attitude Jesus had toward his Father during his earthly life, must be our attitude when making scripturally mandated judgments. Humility, biblical truth and obedience to the unambiguous teachings of Jesus Christ are the measuring stick we must use when testing our hearts for jealousy, pride or anger, as we both give and receive reproof, encouragement and exhortation to and from those we love and respect in the body of Christ. The only way we can be certain that our judgments are “right” is if they line up perfectly with the word of God, and if they are spoken in gentleness and love.
An excellent example of a “right” judgment is found in Galatians 2:9-21, when Paul, very publicly and without equivocation, rebuked Peter for his hypocrisy and fear of man, which was leading others astray. After an unidentified friend of James started influencing the brethren for the worse by encouraging them to turn back to elements of the Jewish law, Peter began to withdraw from his Gentile brothers during meals. It became such a problem that even Barnabas was deceived (vs. 13) into believing that the grace of God was not enough, and that believers must still honor certain Jewish customs and traditions in order to maintain their salvation.
When Paul saw that Peter and the others, “walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel,”(vs. 14) he called Peter out and reminded all of the gathered brothers that they were saved by grace alone and not by works of the law. While the passage does not explain how the situation was resolved, I am certain that Peter humbled himself and repented, gladly turning away from his metastasizing sin, so that no one else would be led astray. The truth of Jesus Christ was Paul’s only goal in bringing this issue up publicly. He was not concerned with the short-term embarrassment this confrontation caused, even to a much-beloved personal friend of Jesus, such as Peter.
Paul clearly loved Peter, but he was no respecter of persons when it came to contending for the truth of the gospel. We too shouldn’t place men above the clear truth of the word (1 Cor. 4:6), meaning that we must never be afraid to challenge our brothers in Christ who are teaching (or practicing) that which is manifestly false according to the scriptures. Paul revered the saving gospel message and knew that Jesus Christ alone bore his sins in his body on a cold, hard cross, broken and bleeding in the presence of his enemies. Therefore, he did not shrink back from a brief, but necessary moment of disunity among the brethren. Instead, he fixed his eyes firmly on the truth of Jesus, pressing on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of him (Philippians 3:7-16).
Paul also made the point in 2 Corinthians 10:12,18, that we are not to measure ourselves by our brothers or sisters in the Lord. Other fallible men are never our standard. As Paul said, those who measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves to themselves are not wise. It is not those who commend themselves who are approved by God, but it is those whom God commends. We must never test ourselves or others by what men think or say…even men we love and respect. Instead, we must judge rightly by using the penetrating blade of the word of God as we test everything…prove everything. Men can and often do become idols, and can subtly replace the truth of God in our lives. Let us do as the Bereans and test, first ourselves, and then our brothers, with the eternal scriptures, not to criticize or wound, but to prepare each other to meet the Lord face to face. As Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:11, “Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men.”
As Jesus noted in John 3:19, men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil. Most of us don’t want the truth, so when our entrenched ways are tested by those who dare to love us enough to challenge us with the word of God, we fling it back in their face imploring them not to judge. Paul pointed out this problem when he rhetorically asked the Galatians if he had now become their enemy by telling them the truth (Galatians 4:16). Don’t we, as servants of the living God want truth, even the sharp, soul-piercing truth of the word of God? I pray that myself first, and then everyone else who longs for the glorious appearing of our Lord and Savior, will speak and receive life altering biblical truths in gentleness, meekness and love.
EPILOGUE
God’s judgments are always right, and he has given us a sharp two-edged sword with which to rightly cut away the clever and wicked deceptions of this age from his pure and everlasting message. We MUST wield this sword in power and grace, not only to protect ourselves, but also to protect his precious little flock from the sweet sounding lies of western “Christianity” which lead down the broad and primrose path of eternal destruction. Jude tells us, in no uncertain terms, to earnestly contend for this great faith, given to us by Jesus Christ and his Father. We honor that command by growing in love, knowledge and judgment, so that we are able to approve that which is excellent and praiseworthy (Phil. 1:9-10kjv). The only way we are able to mature in Christ is to eat, drink and breathe the everlasting word of God…not as taught by fallible men, but as taught by the Holy Spirit (1 John 2:27). May we all invest our hearts in the things of eternity as the clock of time…winds down.
***BONUS KJV SCRIPTURE***
Revelation 2:2 This…is what God loves, and why he commended the church at Ephesus:
2I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars….
Romans 16:17-18
17 Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
18 For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.
Titus 1:13
…Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith….
Titus 2:15
These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.
Titus 3:10
A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject….
2 Timothy 4:2
Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine.
1 Timothy 4:16
16 Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.
1 Timothy 5:20
Them that sin, rebuke before all, that others also may fear.
Philippians 2:5-11
5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
“ The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.Thou shalt keep them, O Lord, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.” Psalm 12:6-7
“And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.” Luke 4:4 (check your new version Bible to see what is curiously deleted from this verse)
“Yea, hath God said…?” Satan to Eve, and the textual critics to the world. The most destructive lie ever told…lives on. Genesis 3:1b
I used to dismiss the King James Version of the Bible entirely. I thought of it as a ridiculous and outdated translation – an anachronism at best. I viewed it as a shabby antique – one that belonged under a half-inch of dust in my grandmother’s attic….but then I studied the history of current English Bible translations in great detail, and realized that ALL of the new versions use corrupt and purposely adulterated Greek manuscripts, which water down the eternal word of the living God…every last one of them. That Greek your pastor often refers to in church? It flows from corrupt Greek manuscripts first edited by the gnostic, self-castrating “scholar” Origen (and a student of his work, Eusebius), who believed in purgatory, universalism, that all human souls have existed from eternity past, that satan (and demons) would eventually be redeemed, and that Jesus did not actually return to earth in the flesh after his resurrection.
The manuscripts Origen(a well known gnostic) compiled and edited in Alexandria, Egypt in the 200’s, form the two primary Greek New Testament manuscripts (Codex Vaticanus, and Codex Siniaticus) used by Westcott & Hort, Nestles & Aland and the United Bible Society to make ALL of the modern English Bible versions. These manuscripts were more or less hidden from view from the late 300’s until the 1400’s (1800’s in the case of Siniaticus, when it was found in a trash bin at the St. Catherine’s monastery in Egypt where it was allegedly about to be burned)…hardly making them the word of the Lord preserved from generation to generation per Psalm 12 (see above). The fact that these two foundational manuscripts conflict with each other in over 3,000 places in the gospels alone, and are missing multiple books of the Bible while containing extra, gnostic books, does not help their credibility. For all you M.Divs and Thds out there, I bet you weren’t taught any of that in seminary.
(*Codex Siniaticus, aka Aleph, has 23,000 edit marks[per the British Library, where it resides], has at least 11 different scribes over many centuries making those 23,000 correction marks. It is missing the last 9 verses of Mark, the story of the woman at the well, a significant portion of the Lord’s Prayer, and key verses on believer’s baptism and the trinity. Many other important portions of scripture are either edited or deleted, including two of the strongest verses establishing the deity of Christ. While the book of Revelation is missing, it does contain the Apocrypha, the gnostic Epistle of Barnabas and the bizarre Shepherd of Hermas – yet it is still considered THE ancient biblical manuscript, by the scholarly world, and it lit the fuse of the Bible destroying pseudo-science known as textual criticism.)
(**Codex Vaticanus (aka B), was likely written after the council of Florence in the mid 1440’s because both its style and substanceseem to be influenced by the Latin biblical text that was introduced at that council. Both Erasmus and Hort held that position on its genesis, as does the curator of ancientmanuscripts at the British Library, Dr. Scot Mckendrick. He states, withabsolute certainty, that the ornamentation and high quality vellum B was written on, indicate a date no later than the earlyto mid 1400’s. It wasn’t even cataloged in the Vatican Library until 1481, more then 1000 years after it was allegedly written. That…makes no sense. Furthermore, there is no record of anyone even suggesting an early date for B until the 1800’s when the German higher critics were desperate to dethrone the Textus Receptus. B is tragically flawed and should hardlybe considered reliableas a foundational Bible manuscript given that it is missing: the first 46 chapters of Genesis, 32 Psalms, multiple verses in the gospels, 1st and 2nd Timothy, Titus, a huge portion of Hebrews, and all of Revelation. It does, however, contain the non-Hebrew, catholic apocrypha, The Epistle of Barnabas and the Shepard of Hermes. B also disagrees with its supposed twin, Aleph, over 3000 times in the gospels alone. It is missing 1491 words, phrases or clauses in the gospels[per Dean John Burgon] and there are spelling and grammatical errors on almost every page. The Old Testament portion of B was written in Greek instead of Hebrew, the actual language the Jewish Masorites used when writing and preserving their ancient scriptures.)
In the 1800’s, Westcott & Hort, two Anglican clergy men and open occultists, whose own letters expose their veneration of Darwin and the Catholic Church, their love of seances and their total disregard for Eden, heaven, the flood and the redemptive work of Jesus on the cross, made their own Greek New Testament manuscript (the so-called “critical Greek” text). This new Greek manuscript cleverly deleted out, added in or simply rephrased whatever scriptures they thought they could get away with without causing a furor …verses and passages that lined up with their “enlightened” thinking and, not surprisingly to anyone who has studied the Bible version issue, their changes almost always lined up with catholic doctrine(Acts 8:37, 1 Cor. 1:18, 2 Tim 2:15,James 5:16, etc.)
Westcott & Hort did expect some push back on their changes even back then…but they heard hardly a peep (Dean John Burgon’s vigorous dissent was an exception). Leading men loved these brilliant, iconoclastic lies shrouded in the dense and deceiving fog of “scholarship.” Did we really not have a true Greek New Testament until the late 1800’s?? That is exactly what the textual critics/new version advocates are saying.
It is important to note that all of this information regarding Westcott & Hort’s core beliefs is gleaned exclusively from their personal correspondence, published by their children after their deaths. That is the only way we know these key facts about their non-literal view of the Bible, their reverence for Darwin, Rome and the occult, and their motives for changing the scriptures…and we are all reading and teaching from their Bibles.
The first English translation to flow from Westcott & Hort’s so-called “critical”Greek text was the 1881 Revised Version. Subsequently, their Greek manuscript (with additional changes made by the Nestles and Åland committee and the UBS, also using Siniaticus and Vaticanus) was used as the foundation for EVERY single new version. It is deeply corrupt, and if one examines charts with the actual departures from the Textus Receptus Greek(TR), which was used by the Tyndale, the Great, the Mathew’s, the Bishop’s, the Geneva and the King James Bibles (I have added links to charts at the end of my article), I can assure you that he or she will see through this brilliant plan to weaken God’s unchanging word, and turn eternal concepts into temporal ones (the famed Jeremiah 29:11 is but one example of a spiritual promise turned into a temporal one in the NIV). I, personally, was both shocked and disgusted by the numerous substantive changes to my Bible, yet… I do concede that the modern versions are a bit easier to read and understand due to more familiar language. The new version translators (and satan) knew all too well that this generation would take ease of reading and the lofty and pretentious claims of scholarship over the sharp two-edged sword of truth. I did for over 25 years.
The KJB detractors, and there are many, attempt to denigrate the 54 scholars (or 47, since 7 died during the translation process) who jointly worked on the KJB, with their subjective and pseudo-intellectual textual criticism. The translators were all considered brilliant scholars, and were chosen by the King due to sterling, easily verifiable academic backgrounds (I have seen many of their CV’s)…men such as Lancelot Andrews, George Abbot, John Aglionby, and the head of the OT committee, Dr.John Bois, who was reading and writing in Hebrew at age 6. These men worked in 6 separate groups (two at Oxford, two at Cambridge and two at Westminister), each of which translated the entire New Testament independently, after which time the groups came together, using fourteen translation principles, to determine the final reading. Furthermore, each portion of New Testament scripture had been independently translated between 14 and 17 times by the committee, ensuring accuracy and thoroughness.
All of the criticism of the KJB on intellectual grounds is pseudo-academic nonsense. The KJB is hated because it stands as the preserved word of God, starting in Antioch and then spreading all over the world, only to be gathered together by the brilliant Pope-defying, Catholic scholar Erasmus(the Reformation had not happened yet) in the 1500’s. Luther, Tyndale, Coverdale, the Geneva Bible translators, the Great Bible translators, the ancient Wessex Gospels translators, and many more Bibles all over the world, used the same Greek manuscript family as Erasmus (known as the Textus Receptus, Byzantine Text, Majority Text or Traditional Text), and since satan couldn’t burn all of the copies…he decided to change the Bible from the inside, using proud men, far too “enlightened” to believe many of the “superstitions” of God’s word. Noted theosophist(a blending of all the world’s major religions with philosophy) Helena Blavatsky (a favorite of 19th century intellectuals, and publisher of the periodical “Lucifer”), along with her disciple Alice Bailey (revered by occultists, theosophists and new agers), have openly discussed satan’s ultimate plan to infiltrate the church from the inside…and the Bible was a perfect place to start(See Paul’s warnings, Acts 20:29-31;2 Corinthians 2:17).
I understand that the language of the KJB is old fashioned at times, and most seminarians and Bible college graduates will have a dismissive attitude towards it. Why? Because the vast majority of seminaries and Bible schools are part of the ecumenical, watered-down gospel machine. Yes…Satan, the father of pride, works everywhere – but especially in academia. Men love to know better than other men because they went to this school or that school and studied under this professor or that one. Satan was and is counting on the pride of men to weaken God’s word by imparting to them limited, but “scholarly” knowledge, in order to proliferate his altered Greek manuscripts and thus, his modern Bible versions. The apostle Paul specifically noted that he was well aware of satan’s clever schemes to deceive men (2 Corinthians 2:11),and he warned the church specifically about those who were already corrupting the word of God in his day(2 Corinthians 2:17).
As for the new versions having older manuscripts…that is technically true in a general sense, because the Alexandrian manuscripts were written on higher quality papyri/vellum at their well-funded gnostic schools, and because they weren’t frequently handled for over a thousand years…since almost no one took them seriously outside of Vatican City until the 1800’s. The early Antiochan manuscripts (Textus Receptus/TR) were true to the teachings of Jesus Christ and the apostles, yet were on lower quality papyri, because the early church wasn’t wealthy – and because they were sent all over the world by foot and by ship, which exposed them to the elements. They were also worn down due to constant usage and thus, were recopied time and time again…unlike the gnostic manuscripts, which were hardly used at all.
Despite those facts, the earliest surviving Bible today is actually a Textus Receptus Latin Bible called the Vetus Latina, circa 147 – 1000AD, which obviously necessitates an even earlier TR Greek manuscript from which it was translated. There are several thousand (perhaps over 10,000 per one researcher) still in existence today, along with similarly dated Coptic, Bohairic, Armenian, Slavic and Gothic TR Bibles. A well known Syrian translation called the Peshitta, and the famed TR “Itala” Bible also date to the late 150’s AD.
I recently discovered that manuscript fragments from the Gospel of Mark, Acts, Romans, 1 Timothy, James and 2 Peter were found in cave 7, Qumran, Dead Sea. These caves were sealed by the Essenes no later than 68 AD, as the Roman legions approached, confirming an astoundingly early date to significant portions of the Syrian Greek text (TR) used by the KJB. See, New Testament Manuscripts, Cave 7, Qumran, dated to 68AD This evidence, and the aforementioned early Latin and Syriac Bibles, prove that even the “oldest biblical text/manuscript” argument, often used to support the corrupt Alexandrian Greek texts, fails, miserably.
Kurt Aland, co-author of several late editions of the Nestles & Aland Greek New Testament text, and a vigorous KJB detractor, admits that early copies of Textus Receptus(TR) manuscripts are almost non-existant (again,the very early Syrian Peshitta, Old Latin, and Itala Bible versions did survive) because they were intentionally destroyed by Rome during the brutal Diocletian persecution(303-311 AD), along with unfavorable weather conditions in Asia Minor and Greece. However, once the Roman persecution of the church ended circa 311 AD, there was, naturally, an explosion of new Textus Receptus manuscript copies inside the Roman Empire, prepared by actual Bible believing christians, and proliferated through the centuries by brave communities such as the Itala Church in Italy, the Donatists in North Africa, The Paulicians/Albigenses/Bogomiles/Cathars, etc. throughout Europe the Balkans and even into Asia. Groups such as the Waldenses in the Italian and French Alps, the Gallic church in France, Ulfilas in Northern Europe (who translated the Bible into Gothic), the Vaudois in Switzerland, the Anabaptists, and the Huguenots also worked vigorously to translate and maintain the true biblical text, unmarred by Rome.
The Itala church and Waldenses/Vallenses/Vaudois were two of the communities of faith that worked feverishly in the early 300’s to reproduce TR Bibles in order to make up for all of the copies which had been burned by Diocletian. This easily explains the concern textual critics have with the sudden appearance of a large number of Textus Receptus manuscripts in the 4th Century, and beyond. The Waldenses were known to memorize entire books of the Bible and even as much of the New Testament as they had, and head out into the world as far as they could go, translating the Bible for the people groups they met along the way. Some made it as Far East as the Parthian empire, known today as Iran.
It’s funny – I often hear the question:”Where was the KJB before 1611??” Well, that question should be reversed. Where, exactly, was the critical Greek text before 1881? The answer: in caves in the Egyptian desert, and of course, in the Vatican. Meanwhile, as I have noted above, the source text for the KJB had spread all over the world – from Antioch to Ethiopia to the British Isles to Armenia and to The mountains of western Europe, beginning in the 1st century.
Even KJB rejecting scholars agree that well over 98% of all ancient Greek manuscript evidence agrees with the KJB, while less than 2% agree with the new versions (the last official count I have seen was 5,702 to 44, which is more like 99% to 1%). Any claim that the new versions are superior is patently false from both a spiritual and scholarly standpoint. Yes, they are easy to read, but they have many deep heresies intended to draw mankind away from many of the simple yet profound truths of God. As Jesus said to his Father in John 17, “Thy word is truth” – but not if his eternal word has been edited by wicked and deceitful heretics, who, like Satan in the garden, boldly and proudly cast doubt on God’s voice to mankind by proclaiming to the world – “yea hath God said?” The question is: Are you believing that very same lie today?
EPILOGUE
This is by far the most divisive topic I have ever written about because we all love our modern Bibles, and cannot possibly believe that so many people have it wrong. My beloved seminary professor is wrong?? My distinguished and learned pastor?? My youth group leader?? Yes…even him – or her. Everyone talks about this issue as if they understand it, but usually they just understand one side…the anti-KJB side, the side I was once steadfastly on. It took a trusted friend about 8 months to finally shake me out of my NIV 84 stupor with hard, raw evidence. Then I decided to take the time to study the history of the Greek and Latin manuscripts (that form the foundation of our Bibles) for myself. Once I had a grasp of manuscript history, and reviewed many of the specific changes(deletions and additions) in the actual biblical text…I was done with all of my new versions forever (A few of the hundreds of passages with substantive changes: The removal of the compassion of Jesus four times in Matthew(NIV 84),Genesis 30:27, Jeremiah 29:11(NIV 84), Matthew 9:13, Mark 9:44,46,48 and 10:24, Luke 4:4, Luke 9:55-56, John 7:8-10{is Jesus a liar??},Acts 8:37, 1 Corinthians 1:18, Galatians 5:12(did Paul really want his enemies to castrate themselves??), Colossians 1:14, Romans 8:1b, 1 Timothy 3:16, 1 Timothy 6:5,20(warning about prosperity preachers and false science), James 5:16, 1 John 5:7, and Revelation 1: 6, 8, 11). Sadly, I discovered that my dear NIV – even the one written back in 1984 – was the worst of the lot (the Message doesn’t count because it cannot seriously be called a Bible due to multiple ridiculous and even occultic additions). It was hard to read the KJB at first…but I prayed for help from the Holy Spirit…and now I can’t live without it.
I am not one of those people who believe that one can only be saved via the KJB Bible, or that the KJB is perfectly written(I believe it is perfect in substance but not necessarily in form). I simply believe that the KJB, whose Greek foundation lines up with approximately 98% of all ancient manuscripts, according to the most recent studies, is the preserved word of God for this English speaking generation per Psalm 12:6-7. That passage, which I have quoted at the top of this article, was (not surprisingly) edited heavily in the new versions (Septuagint Greek), so that it’s meaning is entirely different. Did God truly say in Psalm 12 that his word would be preserved forever?? Not according to your new version(check that verse in your Bible).
After much study (hoping desperately that I would come to a conclusion that allowed me to keep my NIV, my NKJV or even my brand new MEV), I determined, along with countless other men and women far smarter than I am, that the only legitimate Greek manuscript used as a foundation for a Bible is the Textus Receptus – and despite the claims of the NKJV and MEV editors, the only true Textus Receptus Bible in English is the KJB.
Unlike the new versions’ Egyptian/gnostic roots, the Textus Receptus flows from the spirit-fed spring of the early believers in Antioch…all the way to London in the 1600’s. Do the new versions have many things right? Of course. What satan does best is weave darkness and light together, so that the two cannot be distinguished. He has done a brilliant job with the new Bible versions…yet with an open heart and mind, along with a willingness to exchange comfort and familiarity for truth, his scheme can be defeated. I challenge everyone who reads this, to study the actual textual changes for themselves, in context, ignoring ad hominem attacks on those who have exposed this scheme…for there are many, and they are often nasty. John 15:18-19 warned us that if we were of Jesus Christ, the world would hate us…and nowhere is that more evident than in the battle for God’s eternal voice to mankind. The very truth of His preserved word to this and every succeeding generation is at stake. Yea hath God said? Yes. He did actually, and you can read his words to the world, preserved for eternity, in your King James Bible.
Revelation 22:18-19
18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
***The new Reina Valera Gómez (RVG) is a true Spanish Textus Receptus Bible(unlike the other Reina Valeria’s, which mix TR and Alexandrian texts).
***Please remember that if you look up the changed/corrupted verses in the Greek online, chances are very high that the only Greek you can find is the Westcott & Hort/Nestles & Aland/UBS Greek, which is where the corrupted verses originated and metastisized. Unless you check the verses in a verifiable Textus Receptus (TR) Greek (and several people who have dedicated their lives to study this issue say that there are few true TR’s online) you are using the corrupt Westcott & Hort/Nestles & Aland Greek. Even some of the supposed online TR manuscripts have been intentionally altered, as has the new supposed TR Bible, The Modern English Version (and the New King James for that matter). Now why would anyone try trick good Christian men and women into reading a Bible that we thought was based on the TR but really isn’t? As Paul said in a verse I cited above, we are not unaware of satan’s devices.
****Why is your ESV different then your NASB, which is different than your NIV? The answer…is ca$h. In order to receive a copyright on a new version, the law requires that it be 20% different than all other versions. So, the editors of the new versions simply grab a thesaurus and go to work, changing whatever words they can (is the Holy Spirit really a “helper??” My hamburger needs helper but I need a Comforter!) and rephrasing other passages. Do we really need all of these new versions? Of course not – but the editors and publishers want your money and are more than happy to nip, tuck and carve up God’s eternal word to get it…and the plan seems to be working well.
If one studies the history of the KJV’s translation process, it is clear that prayer played a very large role. Furthermore, the translators never profited from its sale.
***Mark of the Beast Issue***
The ESV, NIV, NASB, etc. all say that the mark of the beast will be “on” your hand, like a scannable tattoo (See, Revelation 13:16). The KJV, however, says that the mark is “in” your right hand or forehead. “In” and “on” are not the same things, and thus, someone is lying to us. I believe that the ESV etc. will be used to try and prove to people that the implantable chip we will all be required to have, is not the mark…when actually it is. The smoke of the torment of those who are tricked into taking the mark…will ascend forever. Throw away your new versions and tell everyone you know to do the same. I wrote a brief article on this issue: The Mark of the Beast: A Warning, and on how the new versions delete key words regarding repentance and sin:Repentance, Salvation and the new Bible versions: Yes, it really does matter
The Trinitarian Bible Society, Dr. Edward Hills, Dr. David Otis Fuller, Dr. Jack Moorman, Dr. Mickey Carter, Dr. Hayes Minnick, Dr. William Grady, Dr. D. A. Waite, David Cloud, Dr. Douglas D. Stauffer, Dr. Al Lacy, and Dean John William Burgon(1813-1888).
The Underground Christian Network has excellent podcasts on this issue, which can be found via a search inside your Iphone or smart phone’s podcast app., and I recommend Dr. David Otis Fuller’s book Which Bible?; Chick Publications, Look What’s Missing; Dr. Stauffer’s book One Book Stands Alone; Dr. Sam Gipp’s The Answer Book; Dr. Edward Hills’ The King James Version Defended; and Dr. William Grady’s Final Authority.
David Cloud’s www.wayoflife.org website also has helpful resources on this issue (including a well-researched downloadable book), as does D.A. Waite’s excellent scholarly book Burgon’sWarnings on Revisions of Textus Receptus and the King James Bible. The Burgon Society’s website is: www.deanburgonsociety.org. Dean Burgon’s, The Revision Revised, is a brilliant critical, and often incisive analysis of Westcott & Hort’s Greek manuscript by one of their contemporaries.
Dr. Douglas D. Stauffer has several first-rate presentations on youtube on the NKJV and how it masquerades as a TR Bible – and on the NIV. Below is his EXCELLENT presentation on some of the NIV’s most glaring errors, especially those edited or omitted to conform to catholic doctrine: https://youtu.be/OQFtvmVHBb4
…And another video from Dr. Stauffer showing NIV changes which affect New Testament doctrine of salvation: https://youtu.be/T0o2yKJgvnA
One of my all-time favorite scriptures is 1 Peter 2:21-24, which so beautifully and powerfully captures the essence of who Jesus Christ was while he was on this earth:
“For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”
This passage speaks to my heart about the supreme greatness of Jesus because it illustrates his perfect obedience to the Father, and his unwavering humility, even in the midst of the most horrific of suffering. As our magnificent saviour hung on a cold wooden cross, iron spikes protruding from his hands and feet, all in the presence of his gloating and triumphant enemies…he did not retaliate, speak a word in his defense, or even threaten his tormentors with what was going to happen to them at death. Instead he silently entrusted himself to the one who judges justly…his Father.
Jesus knew that in obedience to God and as an example for us, he must endure unfathomable suffering and humiliation at the hands of his most bitter enemies…and so must we…so must I.
The primary lesson I absorb from this passage is that, for me to truly be Christ-like, I must be willing to quietly endure even the pettiest of rejections I face as a follower of the biblical Jesus. Really – anything I suffer for his name is petty compared to what he went through on our behalf – yet sadly, it is difficult and even agonizing at times not to defend myself. My pride rises in my throat as I seek to defend my name, my reputation. But wasn’t Jesus of no reputation? Didn’t he allow himself to be mocked and even abused for the very same sin that rises in my wicked heart as I speak his truth?? As Paul said so eloquently: oh what a wretched man am I! Who will rescue me from this body of death? …
…Jesus Christ. He alone bore my sin in his body on the cross so that I might die to sin and live for righteousness. By his wounds I have been healed. I believe Lord and I am so thankful for who you are and what you did for foolish, prideful me. I forgive those who have hurt me…help me to per-fect that forgiveness in my heart just as you so willingly forgave me while I was yet a sinner. Do not let my love grow cold but help me to fix my eyes on you as you truly are in your word, as I speak your scriptural truths in gentleness and love, and as I run this race with endurance, hand in hand with you, my saviour and my Lord.
Thy Word Alone is Truth: Examining All Things in the Refining Furnace of Scripture 