History Series: King James Bible

History of the King James Bible

Over 400 Years of the Authorized Version?

Title page to the 1611 first edition of the authorized version of the Bible

Four hundred fourteen years ago, on May 2, 1611, marked the publishing, at the request of the Anglican clergy, of what would become the Authorized Version of the Bible to wide acclaim.

But there are at least three problems with that statement.

While it is true that the King James Bible was published in 1611 and eventually became the most influential Bible in the English-speaking world, if not the most printed book of all time:

1. The Anglican clergy did not request it, at least not by the conformist Episcopalian ministers.
2. Nor did it subsequently become officially authorized by the King.
3. Finally, those who initially requested it, the Puritans, refused to read it, instead using the English-language Geneva Bible.

The details of how the King James Bible came to be are rather more complex. While May 2 is the date that the publication is celebrated, the actual printing date is not known with certainty.

Origin of the King James Bible

It was the heyday of William Shakespeare and good manners. The Tudor dynasty came to an end with…