The many Bible versions published today do have differences among them. Some people feel the differences are not important. They usually select the version that is the easiest to read. Others will read only one specific version and believe the other versions have been corrupted by men. Many believe the 1611 Authorized King James Version (AV) is the only version which represents the inspired word of God, while others believe it was not translated from the oldest text. The KJV-only readers have rejected the more modern language of the New King James Version. This study is a history of the different source manuscripts that brought us our modern Bibles. History proves that the Greek Textus Receptus or Received Text as edited by Desiderius Erasmus from the Holy Greek Byzantine Manuscripts is the inspired word of God. This work was not a translation since all of the original manuscripts and the resultant new printed Bible were in the Greek language. Only the King James Version and the New King James Version were translated into English from the Greek Textus Receptus. This study will show that all other versions have been corrupted and should be rejected.

Byzantine New Testament Manuscripts

The Eastern Orthodox Greek Church has preserved more than 5,000 Greek copies of our Bible. The Old Testament was translated from Hebrew into Greek and is called the Septuagint that dates back to 3rd to 2nd centuries BCE. The New Testament Scriptures were originally written in Greek and required no translation. They are referred to as the Byzantine Text or Byzantine Manuscripts. There are a few slight differences among these 5,000 copies. Hundreds of manuscripts have been traced to texts existing at the end of the 2nd century A.D. However, no manuscript even relatively complete in form comes from that period.

Byzantium is the name given to both the state and the culture of the Eastern Roman Empire in the middle ages. Both the state and the inhabitants always called themselves Romans as did most of their neighbors. Western Europeans, who had their own Roman Empire, called them Orientals or Greeks and later, following the example of the great French scholar DuCange, Byzantines, after the former name of the Empire's capital city, Constantinople. The Byzantine Christians have become the current Greek Orthodox Church.

The major doctrines of the Bible were severely neglected and distorted during the Dark Ages (476 AD - 1100 AD), "600 years of degenerate, godless, inhuman behavior." These doctrines are available today only because of the 5,000 Greek manuscripts that survived. Today's Christian churches continue to distort, neglect, and ignore these doctrines.

Unfortunately, both the Authorized King James Version 1611 and the New King James Version by Thomas Nelson, Inc., depend on the Masoretic Text for the Old Testament with some Septuagint influences. The Masoretic Text was written between the 7th and 10th centuries CE versus the older Septuagint used by the Eastern Orthodox Christian Churches.

Vulgate

The Roman Catholic Church has preserved more than 8,000 copies of the Bible written in Latin and called the Vulgate, which was originally translated from Greek and Hebrew to Latin by Saint Jerome. Jerome (347-420) was born to Christian parents in Stridon near modern-day Rijeka, Croatia, and was given a fine classical education. He spent three years (379-382) in Constantinople (present-day Istanbul), where he studied Greek and the Bible under the Eastern Church father, Saint Gregory of Nazianzus. Jerome was ordained a priest. At the age of 37 he was appointed secretary to Pope Damasus I and became an influential figure. Damasus selected Jerome to create a new Latin Bible which was badly needed by the Church. Jerome was close to a Roman widow named Paula and her daughter. He traveled to Bethlehem in 386 to study Hebrew under Jewish scholars and was accompanied by Paula (later Saint Paula) and her daughter. At first Jerome used the Greek Septuagint for his Old Testament translation. Later he consulted the original Hebrew texts. Jerome was a contemporary of Saint Augustine (354-430), the leading figure in the Church in North Africa, and they were known to have met or corresponded. It may have been through this contact that Jerome obtained his Alexandrian manuscripts (common in North Africa) from which he translated the New Testament portion of the Latin Vulgate. The Vulgate shows that Jerome did not use Byzantine manuscripts from the Eastern Church. Through the next twelve centuries, the text of the Vulgate was transmitted with less and less accuracy or was deliberately revised. The Council of Trent (1545-1563) recognized the need for an authentic Latin text and authorized a revision of the extant corrupt editions. This revision is the basic Latin text still used by the Roman Catholic Church and scholars.

Several works were translated from the Latin Vulgate into English. These include the Wycliffe Bible (1395) by John Wycliffe, Matthew's Bible (1537) by the English martyr John Rogers, Taverner's Bible (1538) by Richard Taverner, and The Great Bible (1539) by Miles Coverdale. These translations did not gain the respect needed to continue in popularity because their source was the Vulgate from the Roman Catholic Church. The Vulgate was unreliable because of the many changes made over the years.

The printing press had been invented no later that 1456, but it would be many years before a Greek New Testament would be printed. The Protestants broke from the Roman Catholic Church in what was called the Reformation. The leaders of the Reformation and those in the Greek Church desired to have copies of the Scriptures more readily available to the people.

Catholic Cardinal Ximenes prepared the Greek and Latin editions of a new Bible called the Complutensian Polyglot Bible. First published at the University of Alcala, Spain, it includes parallel texts in Hebrew, Latin, Greek and Chaldean. The New Testament portion was printed in 1514, but the entire Bible was not published until 1520 and not circulated until 1522. News of Ximenes' work drew the attention of others who hoped to produce their own versions of the Bible.

Textus Receptus

The rush was on to produce printed copies of the Scriptures for the populace. Printer John Froben of Basle contacted Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam (1466-1536) to prepare a Greek New Testament manuscript for printing. Erasmus was a Roman Catholic who was highly critical of his own Church. He wanted to change the Church from within and was in disagreement with the Reformers over their harsh methods. He was in a struggle between the two and at times at odds with both. Erasmus' theology was more in agreement with the Eastern Greek Church than either the Roman Catholic Church or the Reformers such as Martin Luther.

Erasmus combined native genius, classical and biblical learning, lively imagination, keen wit, and refined taste. He was the most cultivated man of his age and the admired leader of scholastic Europe from Germany to Italy and Spain, from England to Hungary. He was treated like a prince. Scholars, bishops, cardinals, kings, and popes paid him homage, sent him presents, or gave him pensions. All thought it a great honor to be in his presence. The humanists were loudest in their praise and almost worshiped him. To receive a personal letter from Erasmus was considered a great privilege, as he was a prolific writer with many friends.

Erasmus used approximately six copies of the Greek Byzantine manuscripts as his source for the new Bible, rejecting copies of the Alexandrian text available in the Roman Catholic Church. The first printing of the new Greek Bible was in February 1516 and contained Greek text parallel to his own Latin version. The work was a huge success and in great demand even though the hurried work left many typographical errors. The second edition was printed in 1519 and the third in 1522. This work became known as the Textus Receptus or Received Text. Erasmus' work came under criticism because of a few small differences not found in a majority of the Greek Byzantine manuscripts. The verse giving a good description of the Trinity (1 John 5:7 in the KJV and NKJV) was inserted in his third edition. However, this was not an addition by Erasmus because the same text can be found in four of the older Greek manuscripts. Of the Greek manuscripts used by Erasmus, only one is said to have contained the book of Revelation but was missing the last page. He is believed to have translated the last six verses from the Latin Vulgate into Greek. Even so, these verses translated today from other Greek manuscripts give the same English rendering. The critics of the Textus Receptus tend to focus on these minor occurrences in the work in order to divert the reader from the real status of the work. The Textus Receptus is the Holy Inspired Word of God.

In Defense of Erasmus by Dr. John Cereghin

Defense of the Textus Receptus

"The Textus Receptus was defended by John William Burgon in his The Revision Revised (1881), and also by Edward Miller in A Guide to the Textual Criticism of the New Testament (1886). Burgon supported his arguments with the opinion that the Codex Alexandrinus and Codex Ephraemi, were older than the Sinaiticus and Vaticanus; and also that the Peshitta translation into Syriac (which supports the Byzantine Text), originated in the 2nd century. Miller's arguments in favour of readings in the Textus Receptus were of the same kind.^[17] However, both Burgon and Miller believed that, although the Textus Receptus was to be preferred to the Alexandrian Text, nevertheless it still required to be corrected in certain readings against the manuscript tradition of the Byzantine text. In this judgement they have been criticised by Edward F. Hills. Hills argues that the principle that God provides truth through scriptural revelation, necessarily also implies that God must ensure a preserved transmission of the correct revealed text, continuing into the Reformation era of biblical translation and printing. For Hills, the task of biblical scholarship is to identify the particular line of preserved transmission through which God is acting; a line which he sees in the specific succession of manuscript copying, textual correction and printing, which culminated in the Textus Receptus and the King James Bible. Hills argues that the principle of providentially preserved transmission guarantees that the printed Textus Receptus must be the closest text to the Greek autographs; and consequently he rejects readings in the majority Byzantine text where these are not maintained in the Textus Receptus. He goes so far as to conclude that Erasmus must have been providentially guided when he introduced Latin Vulgate readings into his Greek text;^[18] and even argues for the authenticity of the Comma Johanneum.^[19]

Hence the true text is found not only in the text of the majority of the New Testament manuscripts but more especially in the Textus Receptus and in faithful translations of the Textus Receptus, such as the King James Version. In short, the Textus Receptus represents the God-guided revision of the majority text.^[20]

Hills was the first textual critic to defend Textus Receptus. Although others have defended the TR per se, they are either not acknowledged textual critics (e.g. Theodore Letis, David Hocking) or their works are not on a scholarly level (e.g., Terence H. Brown or D. A. Waite).^[21]"

The printing press not only allowed the Reformers to print their own Bibles for the masses in their own languages (which the Roman Catholic Church did not do), but they began to print volumes of literature assailing Catholicism. The formidable task of suppressing writings considered heretical by the Roman Catholic Church was taken up by Pope Paul IV (1476-1559) in 1559. His Index of Prohibited Books condemned all Protestant translations of the Bible as well as the works of Erasmus. After the Council of Trent, Pope Pius IV (1499-1565) published a new index that absolutely prohibited acquiring the writings of Reformers Zwingli, Luther, and Calvin. Bibles and literature were collected and burned. This took place in the middle of the Roman Inquisition, during which those convicted of heresy were burned at the stake. The Papal Inquisition was reorganized by Pope Paul II in 1542 as The Congregation of the Holy Office. With relentless zeal, the Papists sought to stamp out Protestant "heretics."

The Protestants were also guilty of burning innocent people at the stake, but they persecuted opponents on a much smaller scale than the Roman Catholic Church. John Calvin became the Church-State leader in Geneva (present-day Geneva, Switzerland) in 1536, and the citizens were forced to accept his theology under the threat of death. Jacques Gruet, a known opponent of Calvin, was arrested, tortured for a month and beheaded on July 26, 1547, for placing a letter calling him a hypocrite in Calvin's pulpit. Gruet's book was later found and burned along with his house. Michael Servetus, a Spaniard, was Calvin's longtime friend in their earlier resistance against the Roman Catholic Church. Servetus, while living in Vienne (historic city in southeastern France), angered Calvin by returning a copy of Calvin's writings, Institutes, with critical comments in the margins. Servetus was arrested by the Roman Catholic authorities on April 4 but escaped on April 7, 1553. He traveled to Geneva, where he attended Calvin's Sunday preaching service on August 13. Calvin promptly had Servetus arrested and charged with heresy for his disagreement with Calvin's theology. Servetus was burned at the stake on October 27, 1553. Calvin wrote much in following years in an attempt to justify his burning of Servetus.

In 1550 Robert Stephanus produced the next great edition of the Textus Receptus. In his fourth edition of 1551, he added the verse numbers which are still used in all modern editions. This refutes the Calvinists' claim that their Geneva Bible, first published in 1560, was the first with verse numbers. Stephanus followed the wording in Erasmus' later editions of the Textus Receptus closely. Stephanus' fourth and fifth editions are named the Textus Receptus.

Martin Luther, the initiator of the Reformation movement, translated his German version of the Bible from the Textus Receptus and other Byzantine Greek manuscripts. Although he was a Catholic, he did not use the Catholic Vulgate.

Theodore de Beza (1519-1605) was the Protestant Reformer who succeeded John Calvin. Beza published the Geneva Bible in English between 1560 and 1611. William Whittingham, who was married to John Calvin's sister, is believed to have assisted by translating most of the New Testament. He has been accused of having a theological bias and making other random changes in the translation. The source manuscripts for the work appear to have been the Textus Receptus and other Byzantine Greek manuscripts. The most disturbing feature of the Geneva Bible was the extensive commentary notes placed in the margins written by John Calvin, John Knox, Miles Coverdale, William Whittingham, Theodore Beza and Anthony Gilby. The marginal notes give an allegorical or philosophical explanation of Scripture rather than a literal explanation of the text. The Roman Catholic Church was enraged, because the notes deemed the act of confession of sin to men, the Catholic Bishops, as contrary to the Holy Scripture.

The Geneva Bible and the doctrines of John Calvin spread across Europe as church leaders used the marginal notes for the basis of their lectures and preaching. King James I (1566-1625) was opposed to Calvinistic Presbyterianism, and some claim he was infuriated by the Geneva Bible, because the marginal notes allowed disobedience to the King. This claim can be largely dismissed, because Calvin ruled as King of Geneva and allowed absolutely no disobedience. In the famous Hampton Court Conference, Dr. John Reynolds, a Puritan, requested that King James authorize the printing of a new Bible without the marginal notes. King James agreed. He authorized work to begin on the new Bible in 1604 with a team of fifty-four theologians and scholars, and it was printed in 1611. The Bible was to be a new translation from the Greek. The King James Version of the Bible was prepared from the Textus Receptus as well as many of the other 5,000 Greek manuscripts. It is known as the 1611 Authorized King James Version and held by many as the only "Inspired Word of God."

Verse Numbering Was Added to a Latin New Testament Version by Printer Robert Estienne in 1551

Robert I Estienne (French: [etjɛn]; 1503 – 7 September 1559), known as Robertus Stephanus in Latin, was a printer in France who was the first to add verse numbers to the New Testament in his 1551 printing of a Latin translation of the Greek Textus Receptus that had been edited by Erasmus. It is intuitively obvious that Mr. Estienne (Stephanus) believed the demand was good for a Latin translation from Erasmus' Greek Textus Receptus in competition with the Roman Catholic Latin translations that were derived from the corrupted Egyptian manuscripts described below. Protestants who read Latin would have naturally shunned the Roman Catholic Bible, and for very good reasons.

"Of more importance are his four editions of the Greek New Testament, 1546, 1549, 1550, and 1551, the last in Geneva. The first two are among the neatest Greek texts known, and are called O mirificam; the third is a splendid masterpiece of typographical skill, and is known as the Editio Regia; the edition of 1551 contains the Latin translation of Erasmus and the Vulgate, is not nearly as fine as the other three, and is exceedingly rare. It was in this edition that the division of the New Testament into verses was for the first time introduced."

Egyptian New Testament Manuscripts

Codex Sinaiticus (Sin.) was discovered in the library at the Monastery of St. Catherine at the foot of Mt. Sinai in 1859 by German theologian and Biblical scholar Count Konstantin von Tischendorf (1815-1874). Some of the Old Testament is missing; however, the whole 4th-century New Testament is preserved, with the Letter of Barnabas and most of the Shepherd of Hermas at the end. It was taken to St. Petersburg (Leningrad, Russia) and in 1933 sold by the Soviet regime to the British Museum Library in London for only 100,000 British Pounds Sterling. It is a partial manuscript believed to be dated about 350 A.D. as shown in the table below. Later revisions representing attempts to alter the text to a different standard probably were made about the 6th or 7th century at Caesarea.

Codex Vaticanus (B) was discovered in the Vatican Library, where it remains and is believed to have been since before 1475 A.D. It is a partial manuscript believed to be dated about 300 A.D. as shown in the table below. The New Testament is missing Hebrews from Chapter 9, verse 14, Philemon, and Revelation. The text type is mostly of the Alexandrian group.

Codex Alexandrinus (A) was discovered in the patriarchal library at Alexandria in the seventeenth century and taken to the British Museum Library in London as well. It contains most of the New Testament but with lacunae (gaps) in Matthew, John and II Corinthians, and also contains the extracanonical books of I and II Clement. In the Gospels the text is of the Byzantine type, but in the rest of the New Testament it is Alexandrian. It is believed to be dated about 450 A.D. as shown in the table below.

Beatty Papyri (P) were made available in the period between 1930 and 1960 from two wealthy book collectors, Chester Beatty and Martin Bodmer. These fragments of papyri were mainly found preserved in the dry sands of Egypt. They are all Alexandrian text type. The various papyri fragments are now located in Dublin, Ireland; Ann Arbor, Michigan; Cologny, Switzerland; Vatican, Rome; and Vienna, Austria. These fragments are partial manuscripts with the Gospel of John 18:31-33 and 18:37-38 (manuscript P52) being the oldest, dating to about 130-140 A.D. P52 is now in the John Rylands Library in Manchester, England. The others are believed to be dated about 200 to 250 A.D. as shown in the table below.

Books / ca. A.D.	135	200	250	300	350	450
Matthew			P45	B	Sin.
Mark			P45	B	Sin.	A
Luke			P4, P45, P75	B	Sin.	A
John	P52	P66	P45, P75	B	Sin.	A
Acts			P45	B	Sin.	A
Romans-Hebrews		P46		B	Sin.	A
James-Jude				B, P72	Sin.	A
Revelation			P47		Sin.	A

The dating of these manuscripts is possible because in 1895, a German pastor by the name of Adolf Deissmann published a rather innocent-sounding book titled Bible Studies. Deissmann was reading scraps of papyrus found in 2,000-year old Egyptian garbage dumps. These papyri did not contain Scripture but were private letters, business transactions, receipts, and marriage contracts that were dated. The grammar and vocabulary contained in the papyri had unique features that were compared and matched with the undated Scripture papyri.

All of the Egyptian manuscripts above are of poor quality with scribal errors of all sorts. They are poor copies with more than 5,000 changes compared to the Byzantine manuscripts. Most of these changes are deletions, with verses and entire books missing. Many verses are modified, and the reading does not make a complete thought or simple logic. The only writing from the Apostle Paul is the book of Romans. There are more than 3,000 variants in the Gospels between the Codex Alexandrinus (A) and the Codex Vaticanus (B). Their lack of agreement reduces their reliability even further. One Bible text researcher has called this difference "the 3,000 lies."

These manuscripts are believed to have been saved because they were stored away or discarded by the Gnostics, who were later purged from the Roman Catholic Church in the 2nd century. The first anti-Gnostic writer was St. Justin Martyr (AD 100–165). The full purging took place over many centuries until the Roman Catholic Church declared Gnosticism as heresy. The older Egyptian manuscripts are not necessarily in agreement with the original Scriptures. Nobody knows. A manuscript cannot be declared more accurate simply because of its age. This is a common error made by students of Christian history. On the other hand, the Byzantine Greek manuscripts were in constant use as the early Christian church grew. Older Byzantine manuscripts were discarded because of wear and replaced with new copies.

Gnosticism was an esoteric religious movement that flourished and spread to Egypt during the 2nd and 3rd centuries A.D. It presented a major challenge to orthodox Christianity. Most Gnostic sects professed Christianity, but their beliefs sharply diverged from those of the majority of Christians in the early church. It is believed that the Gnostics butchered the Greek text with these 5,000 changes, which are mostly deletions. The Gnostics can be identified because the deletions match their theology. The Gnostics did not believe:

• That Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin.

• That Jesus was the Son of God.

• That Jesus' death on the cross removed the sins of all mankind.

• That Jesus was resurrected from the dead.

• That Jesus ascended to Heaven.

• That Jesus was the Creator.

Gnostics also believed that mankind was wholly evil, and some sects even renounced marriage and procreation. They also believed in two gods, one evil god and one good god. Their teachings are believed to have influenced Saint Augustine in the development of his theology of "total depravity" of mankind and concept of God. For nine years St. Augustine adhered to Manichaeism, a Persian dualistic philosophy proclaimed by Mani (AD 216-276?) in southern Babylonia (Iraq) that taught a doctrine of "total depravity" and the claim that they were the "elect." He then turned to skepticism. Next, Augustine was attracted to the philosophy of Neoplatonism. He blended these beliefs with his later Gnostic Christian teachings. His teachings were in turn passed on to John Calvin in his extensive study of Augustine's writings, the most popular of which was his book, Confessions. It is very easy to follow the trail of John Calvin's theology from the pagan religion of Mani in Babylonia to his writings in France and Geneva.

In 1945 an Egyptian peasant found 12 codices containing more than 50 Coptic Gnostic writings near Naj'Hammadi, Egypt. It has been determined that these codices were copied in the 4th century in the monasteries of the region. It is not known whether the monks were Gnostics, were attracted by the ascetic nature of the writings, or had assembled the writings as a study in heresy. The evidence is clear that the Gnostics had a major influence in writing the Alexandrian manuscripts of the Egyptian region.

By the 2nd century, Christian Gnostic teachers had synthesized their mythology with Platonic metaphysical speculation and certain heretical Christian traditions. The most prominent Christian Gnostics were Valentinus and his disciple Ptolemaeus, who during the 2nd century were influential members in the Roman Church. By the end of the 3rd century, Gnosticism as a distinct movement seems to have largely disappeared.

In 1881 two-British scholars, Brook Foss Westcott and Fenton John Anthony Hort, published a Greek New Testament which was based on these manuscripts. Westcott and Hort taught that the Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus should be the basis for the Bible. These men did not accept creation but rather believed Charles Darwin's "new" theory of evolution. They also believed in Mary worship. Their successful promotion of the two Codex texts still continues. Today many Christian denominations, as well as the Roman Catholic Church, use translations based on these texts. Their personal letters have shown positively that they believed the same heresy as the Gnostics. Wescott and Hort did not believe:

• That Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin.

• That Jesus was the Son of God.

• That Jesus' death on the cross removed the sins of all mankind.

• That Jesus was resurrected from the dead.

• That Jesus ascended to Heaven.

• That Jesus was the Creator.

Major Doctrinal Differences

The King James Version and the New King James Version have as their source the Textus Receptus as well as many of the 5,000 Greek Byzantine manuscripts. Essentially, all other modern translations are based on the corrupted Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus which were promoted by Westcott and Hort. The Amplified Bible shows both texts with the major differences in italics and states that the italicized Byzantine text was not in the "original text." The other versions generally provide no source information but simply refer to their version as being translated from the "original or older text."

The New King James Version of the New Open Bible has a good description of the different sources in the Preface section. In addition, the differences are noted at the bottom of each page. You can easily check the differences by comparing the different versions. The versions using the corrupted Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus texts are: New International Version (NIV), Revised Standard Version (RSV), New American Standard Bible (NASB), The Living Bible (TLB), New Living Translation (NLT), New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), and New American Bible (NAB - Catholic).

The reasons for the attacks on the Textus Receptus, King James Version and the New King James Version by professing Christians are difficult to understand aside from ignorance, lack of the facts, or lack of wisdom. These texts contain only orthodox Christianity, and the printing or translating difficulties of the past did not introduce any new doctrine or remove or weaken any existing doctrine.

Theological Seminaries Are Centers for Higher Brainwashing.

Many people claim the modern King James Version (KJV) is the only true word of God as refer to themselves as believing the KJV only. Others revert back to the original old English 1611 King James Authorized Version (AV) as the only true word of God and do not accept the modern KVJ or any other version. These claim is erroneous. As stated above, the Greek Textus Receptus is the inerrant Inspired Word of God. I would not criticize the modern KJV or the 1611 AV except for the fact that some people are worshipping the modern KJV and 1611 AV book instead of the Author. Seven examples to prove the modern KJV and 1611 AV are translations with errors are:

• Romans 5:11 in the 1611 AV incorrectly translates the word "katallage" as "atonement," but the Greek Textus Receptus uses the word "katallage" as "reconciliation" as it also does twice in Romans 5:10. The New King James Version is correct in this verse. Atonement or "kaphar" is an Old Testament doctrine that does not appear at all in the New Testament. The atonement was an animal sacrifice for past sins that had to be done over and over by the Israelite people. The Greek word "kaphar" in the Old Testament means to cover or patch over. Jesus' death on the cross reconciled all people to God by reversing the enmity between God and man as a result of Adam's disobedience. Jesus did not cover or patch over our sins. He took away the sins of the entire world once and for all. People who believe Jesus atoned for our sins do not understand the gospel correctly.

• It appears that the Greek word "eimi" <1510> in Romans 7:14 should have been translated as the past tense verb "was" as in Luke 19:22. Making this change is consistent with the usage in Luke 19:22 and makes the interpretation of Romans 7 consistent with all other Scriptures. Paul could not have meant that he was "carnal, sold under sin" as a senior servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. He explains in Romans 8:6-7 that being carnally minded is death, and the carnal mind is an enemy of God. Paul has clearly explained that a carnal person is an unregenerate (lost) person who is a slave to sin. Paul was not making a confession that he was a lost person as does the interpretation presented by the heretics.

• Acts 12:4 in the 1611 AV uses the word "Easter," but the Greek Textus Receptus uses a word that is always translated "Passover." Jesus observed the Passover as did all people in Israel. The Passover meal celebrated by Jesus was on Thursday. The word "Easter" is a pagan term that crept into the Church to replace the true words "Resurrection Day" as the day we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. Christians celebrate the Resurrection Day on Sunday. People continue to call it Easter Sunday but never refer to Passover Thursday as Easter.

• Colossians 1:12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: 13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated [us] into the kingdom of his dear Son: {his...: Gr. the Son of his love} 14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, [even] the forgiveness of sins: 15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:" The word "which in verse 1:12 should have been translated as "who" as is properly shown in the New King James Version.

• Colossians 2:20  " Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, {rudiments: or, elements}  21  (Touch not; taste not; handle not;  22  Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men? (KJV)" The word "which" in verse 22 should have been translated as "who" from the Greek word hos. " Verse 22 should read, "Who all are to perish with the using."

• Jude 15 "To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard [speeches] which ungodly sinners have spoken against him." The word "convince" should have been translated as "convict" since to execute judgment is to convict. The word "convince" would be used to persuade someone, not as in a judgment.

• The Apocrypha consists of 15 books of Jewish literature written during the period between the Old Testament and New Testament that were taken from the Roman Catholic Bible by the King James translators. The Apocrypha was also incorporated into most English bibles prior to the translation of the 1611 King James Authorized Version. The inclusion of the Apocrypha into the 1611 King James Authorized Version is unfortunate because the Apocrypha is not Holy Scripture. The inclusion means that the 1611 King James Authorized Version is less than perfect. The Apocrypha must be rejected.

King James only Christians often use the word "hell" as being more accurate than Hades and Sheol found in the New King James Version. Actually, the use of Sheol in the Old Testament of the NKJV  is a more accurate translation directly from the Hebrew, and the word Hades in the New Testament of the NKJV is a more accurate translation directly from the Greek. We can easily say that the modern KJV as well as the 1611 AV are incorrect in having Hades and Sheol translated as hell in several places.

The Greek Textus Receptus, modern King James Version, 1611 King James Authorized Version, and New King James Version are the true Word of God. Any and all can be read with complete assurance of the accuracy of doctrine.

On the other hand, all other Bible versions are based on the corrupted Codex Sinaiticus, Codex Vaticanus and Codex Alexandrinus. Many verses in these texts openly refute or weaken the solid foundation of the orthodox Christian faith. They can easily be classified as heretical. The following tables shows some of the major Christian doctrines with a few of the many representative verses which are omitted or changed in most versions but shown correctly in the King James Version (KJV) and the New King James Version (NKJV). The other versions represented in the tables below are: Revised Standard Version (RSV), New American Standard Bible (NASB), New International Version (NIV) and New American Bible (NAB - Catholic).  These other versions contain numerous verses pertaining to numerous foundational Christian doctrines that clearly blaspheme the Holy Spirit in the direct reading. The definition of "blasphemy against the Holy Spirit" is to speak against Jesus Christ or to weaken the doctrinal attributes of Jesus Christ. People who blasphemy against the Holy Spirit have committed the "unpardonable sin."

The attributes of Jesus Christ are:

• That Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin.

• That Jesus was the Son of God.

• That Jesus' death on the cross removed the sins of all mankind.

• That Jesus was resurrected from the dead.

• That Jesus ascended to Heaven.

• That Jesus was the Creator.

To strip Jesus of His Divine attributes is " blasphemy against the Holy Spirit" of the most serious degree. This constitutes having committed the unpardonable sin for which no one can have eternal life as clearly explained in Matthew 12:31. To deny Jesus' Godly attributes is contrary to many positive witnesses (verses) such as 2 Timothy 3:16 which clearly states, "Jesus was God manifested in the flesh." Again, the heretical versions translate this verse incorrectly as well in an attempt to strip Jesus of His deity. The heretical versions read, "Jesus was manifested in the flesh," "He was manifested in the flesh," or "Who was manifested in the flesh." This is blasphemy. It strips Jesus of His Deity and destroys the most important doctrine in the Bible. Every person is manifested in the flesh. My cat is manifested in the flesh.

Matthew 12:31 "Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy [against] the Spirit will not be forgiven men." 32 "Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the [age] to come."

People who deliberately promote the heretical doctrines in the Revised Standard Version (RSV), New American Standard Bible (NASB), New International Version (NIV) and New American Bible (NAB - Catholic) have committed the unpardonable sin. People who read these versions out of ignorance of the heretical wording are at high risk because believing the direct wording of many verses constitutes blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Some Christian teachers take the position that the version read does not make much difference. This is a very dangerous attitude. Others claim that the preferred references are actually those that are listed here as being the heretical versions. This claim is even worse than ignorance as it promoted blasphemous versions. The following tables identify the correct versions and clearly show the errors and deficiencies in the heretical versions.

Jesus is the subject in 1 Timothy 3:16, and it is clearly stated in the KJV and NKJV that God was manifested in the flesh in Jesus. Other versions say "He was manifested in the flesh," but that reduces Jesus' deity to that of any common man or creature. I am manifested in the flesh and so is my cat. The message in the other versions is pure nonsense and blasphemous heresy. The Gnostics did not believe in the Deity of Jesus and could not accept the holy Byzantine Greek scriptures that Jesus was God manifested in the flesh.

Some Bible teachers attempt to destroy the Deity of Jesus by claiming He gave up His attributes of omniscience, omnipresence, and omnipotence when He came to Earth in the likeness of men. This false teaching originated in the heretical Bible translations such as the New American Standard Bible, American Standard Version, Revised Standard Version, Revised Version, J. N. Darby Version, and Modern Language Bible version. The King James Version and New King James Version as presented below are correct.

Philippians 2:5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, [and] coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to [the] [point] [of] death, even the death of the cross. 9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and [that] every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ [is] Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

The heretical versions translate verse 7 to read "emptied Himself" in place of "made Himself of no reputation." Jesus did not empty Himself of anything. He "poured" Himself into the likeness of men. He did not pour His Divine attributes onto the ground as claimed by false teachers. He did not have the visual " reputation" of God as stated in the Philippians 2:7 above. People could not visually discern that Jesus was God manifested in the flesh. Jesus was God cloaked or veiled in a human body, or as correctly stated in the lyrics of the infamous hymn Hark the Herald Angels Sing which reads, "Veiled in flesh the Godhead see, Hail the incarnate Deity." The King James Version and New King James Version both have a very good translation of the Greek Textus Receptus. False teachers quickly grasped the heretical versions to blaspheme God by trying to reduce Jesus' deity to only that of a good, personal, relational, kind, and loving man. The following web pages and book give a full explanation of why Jesus had all of the attributes of God the Father and the Holy Spirit.

Kenosis - Christ "emptied Himself" (Philippians 2:7)

The Problematic Translation of "emptied himself" as found in Philippians 2.7

Amazon.com: God, I don't Understand by Kenneth Boa

Hark the Herald Angels Sing - by Charles Wesley

"Christ by highest heav'n adored
Christ the everlasting Lord!
Late in time behold Him come
Offspring of a Virgin's womb
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see
Hail the incarnate Deity
Pleased as man with man to dwell
Jesus, our Emmanuel
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!""

The orthodox Christian Church has always held to the doctrine of the Trinity as clearly stated in 1 John 5:7 in the KJV and NKJV. Other versions omit this verse and divide 1 John 5:6 into two parts to make 1 John 5:6 and 7.

In Mark 2:17 the KJV and NKJV are clear that Jesus is calling sinners to repentance. All other versions leave the word "repentance" out. They give no explanation why He is calling them. In John 6:47 Jesus called people to believe in Him. Other versions don't explain what they are asked to believe. The Gnostics revised the holy Byzantine Greek scriptures because they did not believe that Jesus took upon Himself our sins.

In Luke 2:33 and 2:43 of the KJV and NKJV Joseph is not called Jesus' father, but Joseph is called Jesus' father in all other versions. This brings into question the virgin birth, the role of the Holy Spirit in His conception and His divine nature. In John 9:35 the KJV and NKJV call Jesus the Son of God, but other versions call Jesus the Son of man or Man. The Gnostics revised the holy Byzantine Greek scriptures because they did not believe Jesus was the Son of God.

The KJV and NKJV say Jesus Christ gave us redemption through His blood. He was broken for us. Other versions leave out the reason He suffered. The Gnostics did not believe Jesus took our sins upon Himself.

The KJV and NKJV clearly present the resurrection of Jesus Christ in Mark 16:9-20. The other versions which use the corrupted Gnostic text give the verses but add a footnote disclaimer stating the verses should not be there. The KJV, NKJV and Greek Byzantine manuscripts clearly support the resurrection of Jesus Christ, while other versions seriously weaken the doctrine as can be seen in the verses below. The disclaimer footnotes are blasphemy. The Gnostics did not believe the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

John 6:47 in the KJV and NKJV reads that salvation is by faith in Jesus Christ. Other versions do not identify what or in whom their faith is to be. The Gnostics revised the Scriptures because they did not believe Jesus was the Son of God and did not believe that faith in Christ resulted in salvation.

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. 10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life (resurrection).

Romans 10:9 If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes to righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made to salvation.

The Gnostics revised the Scriptures because they did not believe the holy Byzantine Greek Scriptures were the word of God.

The Gnostics revised the Scriptures because they did not believe in sanctification of the believer.

The Gnostics deleted parts of the holy Byzantine Greek Scriptures because they did not believe that Jesus was resurrected and would return at the second coming at the end of the great tribulation.

The Gnostics revised the holy Byzantine Greek Scriptures because they did not believe in the deity of Jesus and His involvement in the creation. The RSV, NASB, NIV, and NAB Bible versions could more accurately be described as the Bible of the Gnostic Religion, not Christianity.

These verses also give absolute proof that the 1599 Geneva Bible published by the Calvinists and revered by them to this day was translated into English from the Greek Textus Receptus and Byzantine Greek manuscripts into English. All of the test verses listed in the above tables are identical in the 1599 Geneva Bible and the King James Version. Yet, modern day Calvinists generally assault the Textus Receptus, King James Version and New King James Version in books, publications, articles and websites. This fact gives a twist to the history of the Bible which is almost humorous except for the seriousness of the subject. Calvinists continue to assault and insult the King James Version because of the man, King James of England who published it in 1611 without John Calvin's margin notes.

Many other Bible versions were translated from the Greek Textus Receptus in the 16th and 17th centuries. They are listed by Dr. John Cereghin on the following web page.

In Defense of Erasmus by Dr. John Cereghin

"Translations from Erasmus:

1. John Tyndale (1)

2. Martin Luther used Erasmus' second edition. (2)

3. All English Bibles of the 16^th and 17^th century were based on Erasmus; text. (3)

4. French versions of Lefevre and Olivetan 1534 and 1535

5. Dutch version by Biestkens 1558

6. Swedish Uppsala Bible by Laurentius 1541

7. Spanish Bible by Cassiodoro de Reyna in 1569

8. Danish Bible by Christian III in 1550

9. Czech version of 1602

10. Italian version by Diodati in 1607 (4)

11. Welsh New Testament of 1563 (5)

Footnotes"

In 1982 Zane C. Hodges and Arthur L. Farstad published The Greek New Testament According to the Majority Text in an attempt to replace the Textus Receptus as the preferred manuscript for the translation of our modern English Bibles. However, the majority of the Greek Byzantine manuscripts which support a particular text does not necessarily insure that it matches the original text. The differences between the Majority Text and the Textus Receptus are not very important because there are no doctrinal changes.

Other web sites that have more information on the Bible version controversy can be found at:

In Defense of Erasmus by Dr. John Cereghin

Textus Receptus - Which is the real Word of God?

The Attack on the Bible by Terry Wilkins

A study of the Byzantine history, culture and society is available at:

Byzantium: The Byzantine Studies Page

A photocopy of the 1599 Geneva Bible is available from L. L. Brown Publishing below. It is a copy of the original which includes the margin notes. The original type is very small and difficult to read because of the poor quality and old English spelling. However, it is nicely bound on good paper. Their site is:

The 1599 Geneva Bible original photocopy by L. L. Brown Publishing

The following 1599 Geneva Study Bible online is NOT identical to the photocopy of the original 1599 Geneva Bible listed above. The first two examples checked were missing: Verse 1 John 5:8 and many verses in Luke 2.

Read the 1599 Geneva Study Bible online with margin notes

Read the KJV Bible online --- The Bible Gateway

Read the NIV Bible online --- The Bible Gateway

Read the New American Bible online - Catholic

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Brainwashing, Mind Control, Indoctrination, Oppression, Coercion, Intimidation, Legalism, False Teaching, and Bondage in the Modern Christian Church

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