THE GRACE OF GOD DESTROYED Many Christians have been deluded into thinking that the new Bible versions flooding the market today teach the same things with updated words. In this brief study, we shall examine some verses found in the Old Testament. In the King James Bible they are precious verses which teach sound doctrine concerning the truly amazing grace of our loving Father towards His children. These precious truths have been distorted and even denied in the new versions- which include the NKJV, NASB, ESV, Holman Christian Standard, and the NIV. Numbers 23:21 In the book of Numbers chapters 22 - 24, the false prophet Balaam had been called by Balak the king of Moab to curse Israel. God allowed Balaam to go with Balak, but rather than cursing the people of God, Balaam was compelled to bless them instead. In Numbers 23:19-21 we read these beautiful truths: “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it.” The next verse, 21, expresses a great truth in the KJB, but this is where the error of the new versions occurs. Verse 21: “He hath NOT BEHELD INIQUITY in Jacob, NEITHER HATH HE SEEN PERVERSENESS in Israel: the LORD his God is with him, and the shout of a king is among them”. God has always dealt with His people according to the everlasting covenant of grace revealed to Abraham and his spiritual seed, confirmed to them and fulfilled in Christ. Galatians 3:12-29. “And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” God had redeemed His people out of Egypt (Exodus 6:6) and forgiven their sins, even though they were a stiffnecked people (Num. 14: 19, 20). Just as God sees us as blameless, holy, and without spot (Eph. 1:4; I Cor. 1:8), not because of our own obedience or righteousness, but because we are covered with the righteousness of Christ, so too, were His people in the wilderness. But see how this truth has been lost in the NASB, ESV, Holman Standard and the NIV “bibles”. The NASB, RSV, ESV say: “He has not observed MISFORTUNE in Jacob; Nor has He seen TROUBLE in Israel.” The NIV has: “No MISFORTUNE is seen in Jacob, no MISERY observed in Israel.” There had been misery and misfortune in Israel, as well as sin and rebellion. The Holman Standard has: He considers NO DISASTER for Jacob; He sees NO TROUBLE for Israel. (Yet the footnote gives the correct meaning as found in the King James Bible). The Catholic versions are their usual confused mess of contradictions. The older Douay-Rheims and the Douay of 1950 read like no others with: There is NO IDOL in Jacob, neither is there AN IMAGE GOD to be seen in Israel. The 1970 St. Joseph New American Bible is closest to the other Vatican Versions like the ESV, NIV, NASB in that it says: MISFORTUNE is not observed in Jacob, nor MISERY seen in Israel. But the 1985 New Jerusalem bible is much closer to the truth as found in the King James Bible with: I have perceived NO GUILT in Jacob, have seen NO PERVERSITY in Israel. But then again the latest Catholic version, the 2009 Public Domain Version has gone back to something along the lines of the previous Douay saying: There is NO SOOTHSAYING in Jacob, NOR ANY DIVINATION in Israel. But in this section of Holy Scripture here in Numbers 23-24 God is speaking a blessing through Balaam upon His redeemed people and stating how He sees them because they are His own peculiar people. “Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.” Romans 8:33. This truth of great comfort is lost in the ESV, NASB and NIV . I personally do not believe any other English bible contains all of God’s perfect, preserved, inspired words except the King James Bible. But frequently, the new version proponents like to gang up on the KJB, as though it were the only Bible to read a certain way. Other versions which agree with the KJB here are the Hebrew into English versions of 1917 JPS (Jewish Publication Society) - None hath beheld INIQUITY in Jacob, neither hath one seen PERVERSENESS in Israel; the LORD his God is with him, 1936 Jewish Publication Society of America, the Revised Version 1881, the ASV of 1901, Geneva Bible 1587, Young’s translation, Darby 1890, Hebrew Names Bible, the NKJV 1982, and the Amplified Bible 1987. The Jewish translation of 2004 called the Judaica Press Tanach reads like the KJB with He does not look at evil in Jacob, and has seen no perversity in Israel. Other English Bibles that read like the King James Bible in Numbers 23:21 are The Word of Yah 1993, the Revised Websters Bible 1995, Sacred Scriptures Family of Yah 2001, the Context Group Version 2007 - not beheld INIQUITY neither seen PERVERSENESS in Israel, Bond Slave Version 2009, the Hebraic Transliteration Scripture 2010 - He has not beheld INIQUITY in Yaakov, neither has he seen PERVERSENESS in Yisrael, Biblos Interlinear Bible 2011 - He has not beheld INIQUITY in Jacob, neither has he seen PERVERSENESS in Israel, Conservative Bible 2011, and The World English Bible 2012 and The Holy Bible, Modern English Version 2014 - “He has NOT SEEN INIQUITY in Jacob. NEITHER HAS HE SEEN PERVERSENESS IN ISRAEL.” The Natural Israelite Bible 2012 - “He has not observed INIQUITY in Jacob, Nor has He seen WICKEDNESS in Israel.” Foreign Language Bibles Among foreign language bibles that have the same meaning as the KJB are the Spanish Cipriano de Valera 1602, and Reina Valera 1909 - 2011 -No ha notado INIQUIDAD en Jacob, Ni ha visto PERVERSIDAD en Israel., the French Martin 1744 and French Ostervald 1998 -Il na point aperçu dINIQUITE en Jacob, ni vu de PERVERSITE en Israël, the Portuguese Almeida Corregida 2009 - Näo viu INIQUIDADE em Israel, nem contemplou MALDADE em Jacó and the Italian Diodati 1649 and the Italian Nuova Riveduta 2006, and La Nuova Diodati 1991 - Egli non ha scorto INIQUITA in Giacobbe e non ha visto PERVERSITA in Israele. The King James Bible is right, as always, and it consistently reveals and magnifies the saving grace of God towards His people. The false versions pervert these doctrines to varying degrees. If you want a good example of this, see the study on Revelation 19:8 KJB - The fine linen is the righteousness of saints or ESV (NKJV, NIV, NASB) - the fine linen is THE RIGHTEOUS ACTS of the saints? brandplucked.webs/rev198finelinen.htm
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 05:08:38 +0000
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