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400th Anniversary of the KJV

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Jeff Wrangler:
The year 2011 will mark the 400th anniversary of the publication of what we know as the "King James Version" of the Bible. Seven years in preparation, the version "authorized" by King James I of England was finally published in 1611.

It is generally acknowledged that for 300 years, the KJV had enormous influence on the development and usage of the English language. In the U.S. its influence and echoes can be heard in such important documents as the Declaration of Independence and Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.

For anyone who might be interested in learning more about how this monumentally influential book came about I can recommend the following from personal experience (that is to say, I've read them both):

Adam Nicolson, God's Secretaries: The Making of the King James Bible (HarperCollins, 2003)

Alister McGrath, In the Beginning: The Story of the King James Bible and How It Changed a Nation, a Language, and a Culture (Anchor Books/Random House, 2002)

Neither is a "religious book." They are studies of the KJV as an historical and cultural document.

Shakesthecoffecan:
Hmmm, how about a big cake in the shape of an open book with numeral candles on it that say "400" instead of 400 individual candles because a) it would be impossible to light all of them at once and; b) If one did, it would look like you were burning the book, and that would be bad karma.

Funny how that started out to be a question and then there was no place for a question mark.

Seriously, I think in the English speaking work it will be the standard for the foreseeable generations. I remember reading that earlier attempts to translate the Bible from Latin ended in death for several people. I say good for King James, he opened a pandora's box in a way, but a lot of people learned to read just so they could know what it said.

Front-Ranger:
I was listening to an interesting show on NPR about all the phrases from KJB that have made it into common vernacular, such as "do not cast your pearls before swine."

Jeff Wrangler:

--- Quote from: Front-Ranger on December 29, 2010, 08:13:28 pm ---I was listening to an interesting show on NPR about all the phrases from KJB that have made it into common vernacular, such as "do not cast your pearls before swine."

--- End quote ---

The McGrath book has a chapter on the Bible and the shaping of modern English that includes a list of phrases from the KJV that have been absorbed into common, everyday usage, such as "sour grapes" (Ezekiel 18:2), "to see the handwriting on the wall (Daniel 5:5), "the salt of the earth" (Matthew 5:13), "a thorn in the flesh" (2 Corinthians 12:7), and "the powers that be" (Romans 13:1).

Shakesthecoffecan:
The other night I watched The Big Gay Musical on DVD and they referred to the "Breeders Imformational Book of Living Examples", or B.I.B.L.E. for short.

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