The Unbound Scriptures a Review of Kjv-only Claims and Publications Rick Norris

One of the first book reviews I wrote before in my web publishing career for my other website was chosen The Unbound Scriptures: A Review of KJV-Just Claims and Publications written by Rick Norris.  I was a KJV-Onlyists for about the first x years or so of my life as a Christian, due primarily to some bad instruction I received from some respected friends.  I chronicle my break from KJV-Onlyism with this commodity if anyone is interested.

Anyway, by the time I read Rick's book I had abandoned my KJV-But sympathies, but his work was an excellent resource for dealing with some pernicious internet KJV-Only apologists who trolled on some forum boards where I frequented at the time.  Rick discovered my review and wrote me to thank me for it and he occasionally would send me additional textile he was working on via email.

He wrote me recently to tell me he has a new website hosting some of his work:

The Unbound Scriptures

Along with plugging his site, I idea I would post an edited version of my original review.

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The Unbound Scriptures: A Review of KJV-Only Claims and Publications

Rick Norris

During the course of my personal reading I will occasionally come across a book that is similar an aromatic cup of warm coffee: it is both delightful to the gustatory modality and warming to the soul. Rick Norris has written such a book with The Unbound Scriptures: A Review of KJV-only Claims and Publications. This book is a delight, considering Mr. Norris has addressed a topic that is close to me: I was once a rabid King James Merely proponent.

For nearly a decade I believed the but English Bible accurately representing the true Words of God was independent in the 1611 translation of the Rex James Bible. It was my sincere conviction that the KJV was based upon the all-time Hebrew and Greek texts that had preserved every "jot and tittle" of Holy Scripture.  Furthermore, I believed the KJV had been translated by the godliest and most capable scholars the Christian globe has ever known. I would argue that any of the modern, English translations like the New International Version, New American Standard Version and English Standard Version, were based upon junior Hebrew and Greek texts. I would telephone call them "modernistic perversions" considering I believed heretics had corrupted the original manuscripts these translations were based upon by stealthily injecting cultic doctrines past omitting a key word here or adding a slightly dissimilar phrase in that location.

Additionally, modern versions were translated by men who were unbelievers; individuals who held to unorthodox behavior and denied essential Christian doctrine similar the virgin birth and the deity of Jesus Christ. Any Christian who read and studied these modern versions, in my opinion, was only receiving a portion of what God really said, and even worse, believers were being brainwashed to unwittingly take false doctrine. Moreover, any person who really defended the use of modern versions and had the brazenness to challenge the pure, inerrant translation contained in the King James Bible was in my mind a Bible rejecter and corrector, and this person was setting himself up as the final authority rather than submitting to God'southward Word. I was, in all sense of the term, a King James Only advocate, and I would add, I rather obnoxious one.

In order to defend my KJV convictions I appealed to an arsenal of supposed arguments that are promoted in the myriad of publications produced by KJV just advocates.  I would oftentimes utilize those arguments in club to defend what I believed to be God'south unalterable Word. It is these arguments that Rick Norris has dared to challenge in his book.

Only offering a claiming is of utmost importance because Rex James But advocates refuse to have the key presuppositions of their behavior examined by any meaningful critique.  Rick Norris, even so, has provided  such a meaningful examination in his 500 plus page book and it is both thorough and devastating to the KJV but system. I would further point out that his challenge is at the risk of having his personal character viciously smeared and his research ridiculed past the KJV but advocates in their monthly newspapers, internet bulletin boards, and other publications. Yet, with all of the bombast which may billow forth from the KJV only crowd, Mr. Norris's work is sure to withstand the ridiculous scrutiny it is going to receive.

Mr. Norris has documented his case well against the KJV only arguments by wading through literally hundreds of KJV only books, tracts, pamphlets and other like materials. That alone is a daunting task.  Information technology takes steeled backbone to sift through page subsequently folio of erroneous nonsense.  Yet, his bibliography covers 48 pages, so information technology is clear he has done his homework and is informed when he writes. He interacts with all of the regulars from the King James Only camp. Men like Samuel Gipp, David Deject, D.A. Waite, Thomas Kingdom of the netherlands, Jack Moorman, and of course the grand patriarch, Peter Ruckman, who is the loudest and most fell of all the King James Only proponents.  Mr. Norris basically puts all of their various arguments defending the KJV on trial and subjects them to a barrage of questions and the proper citing of historical fact that exposes those arguments equally outright fallacious and admittedly without any merit.

I am particularly pleased with the extensive research Mr. Norris provides in the area of pre-KJV English translations. He has comb through translations like Tyndale's Bible, Coverdale's Bible, Matthew's Bible, the Bishop's Bible, and the Geneva Bible to provide some original citations that are usually inaccessible to the average laymen. This is a significant study for a couple of reasons:

Outset, KJV simply advocates will argue the Male monarch James translation is the merely Bible to be used by Christians considering it is the final, purified seven times translation in the line of seven English translations that God blessed. This "purification," argue the KJV advocates, establishes the KJV as the crowning authority of God's Discussion. They attempt to build their argumentation for the "line of good Bibles" from the pages of Scripture by misapplying Psalm 12:6, a verse they horribly abuse and wrestle out of context, which states, The words of the LORD are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Mr. Norris demonstrates how this argumentation is seriously flawed, and he uses his study in pre-KJV translations to demonstrate this error. He states:

If this line of skilful Bibles gives any valid evidence for the KJV-just view, all the Bibles must be inspired and inerrant similar they claim the KJV is. Otherwise, if any errors (errancy) or corruption enters their line, how does that prove the KJV-only claim that an inerrant KJV must issue? (p. 206).

In other words, all of the Bibles listed in the line of 7 must take God's hand of blessing upon them, protecting them from the encroachment of error into the translational process. If a textual, theological, or translational fault enters into the stream at any point, then any subsequent Bible would be polluted and the KJV abet'due south claim to a pure line of Bibles resulting in the crowning achievement of the King James is ruined. As Mr. Norris points out, "Can a stream ascension higher that its sources?"

One amusing fact Mr. Norris shows us in his research is that no two KJV advocates can agree as to which biblical translations belong in the list leading up to the King James. For case, Peter Ruckman's good tree chart found in his book The Bible Babel omits the 1568 Bishop'south Bible, but information technology is included amongst the list found in KJV merely advocate J.J. Ray's book, God Merely Wrote One Bible (p. 207).  KJV just advocate, William Bradley, has a list of Bibles in one of his publications that consists of Wycliffe's, Tyndale's, Coverdale'southward, Matthew'southward, The Great Bible, the Geneva, so the Rex James, while omitting the Bishop's Bible, of which the KJV was officially a revision,  yet in a later publication, he reinserts it his line of seven skilful Bibles: Wycliffe's, Tyndale's, Coverdale'southward, Matthew'due south, The Great Bible, the Geneva, the Bishops's so the Male monarch James, which would then make the King James the eighth in the line of proficient Bibles, not the seventh (p. 236). Such inconsistency illustrates the absurdity of holding to a mystical notion of God blessing a specific translational stream resulting in the purified King James published in 1611. Mr. Norris rightly observes:

What consistent criteria was used to determine considerately which translations to include? It seems that the KJV-merely advocates cannot agree on which Bibles to include on their lists and on which Bibles to leave off. Practice they showtime with the supposition that the KJV has to be the seventh one and and then subjectively pick out vi others to make their count work? If believers were to take the erroneous claim that men can purify God'due south word in a series of translations, on whose authority practice we base the claim that the KJV is the seventh and final purification? (p. 236, 237)

A second area of importance addressed with Mr. Norris's written report of pre-KJV English Bibles is the rendering of specific phrases as well as unique translations that are found in earlier English language versions KJV only advocates condemn when the same renderings and translations announced in modern translations. For example, all of the KJV only advocates I have ever read in my pro-KJV only days would cite Luke 2:33 as proof of how modern translations corrupt God's Word by altering specific doctrines like the Virgin Nascence of Christ. In the KJV, Luke 2:33 reads, And Joseph and his mother marveled at those things which were spoken of him. Take note of the phrase "Joseph and his female parent." However, the New American Standard translates the poesy equally, And his father and mother…, and the New International Version translates it every bit, And the kid'due south father and female parent…. Both of these modernistic translations modify the phrase "Joseph and his mother" to "his father and female parent." King James Only advocates love to point out how the Virgin Birth of Christ is denied with these ii modern translations. D.A. Waite, one of the more "scholarly" Rex James Advocates and president of the Dean Burgon Society, writes in his book called Defending the KJV concerning this translational difference:

After eliminating "Joseph," they substitute the words, "the child's father," thus possibly calling Joseph, Christ's literal "father," thereby denying His virgin birth. This is certainly a matter of doctrine and theology. At this point, these Greek texts and these English versions are theologically scarce, whereas the Textus Receptus and the Rex JAMES BIBLE are theologically superior .

His argumentation does sound convincing, peculiarly to anyone who is untrained in textual criticism and translation methods.  Mr. Waite, however, in his "heresy" hunt against modern translations, failed to have notice that several pre-KJV translations contain the words, "his male parent and female parent." Mr. Norris shows u.s.a. how the phrase "his father" has been translated in at least six of the pre-KJV translations that make up the supposed "adept line of Bibles:" Wycliffe'south, Tyndale'due south, Coverdale's, Matthew'southward, the Great Bible, and the Bishop'due south. On top of that, both the Luther's High german NT translation and the Castilian Enzinas NT translation have "male parent" translated in their respective languages at Luke 2:33 (p. 246). The average churched Christian could be easily swayed by KJV merely arguments, just Mr. Norris'south inquiry into the earlier English language translations does a valuable service to dispel the exaggerated examples KJV merely advocates often use in their polemics. One can just wish KJV only advocates would exist so honest in their research.

I was besides encouraged by Mr. Norris's biographical study of the Male monarch James translators.  King James Just advocates practically deify the men who translated the KJV by claiming they were scholars of superior intelligence, qualified both academically and spiritually for the task of translating the Bible, as compared to those men who translated the modern versions.

Oddly, every bit Mr. Norris points out in his opening remarks in this biographical chapter, many KJV only proponents volition vilify scholarship and knowledge, just inconsistently appeal to information technology to defend their beloved KJV translators. The writings of KJV just advocates gush with nauseating praise of how these men are the best translators the world has ever known, the godliest men the church has ever known, and their final translation is a piece of work that should never be questioned. They are in essence raised to a level of infallibility. Yet, Mr. Norris's research into their lives shows us that they were only ordinary men, and fifty-fifty though they were for the most part skillful and decent translators of the original languages, they were not with out their foibles, nor did they rise above the fleshly sins that plague all of God'south people here in this life. For example, the King James translator'due south were Anglicans that were doing their translational work for the state church of England. They translated the KJV more for the political reasons of the country rather than out of some compelling love to give God's people a "final authority" in a Bible.  King James hated the Puritans, a movement within the Anglican Church, and the Puritans favored the popular Geneva Bible. James wanted to unseat it as the one Bible commonly used past most of his subjects, thus he allowed for a new translation, an update of the Bishop's Bible, to be produced.

Too, several of the KJV translators were notorious for their state sponsored persecutions of those Christians who would dissent from the Church of England. Mr. Norris points out that both George Abbot and Lancelot Andrewes, ii of the central translators of the KJV, urged the burning at the pale of Bartholomew Legate in March of 1611. "George Abbot," writes Norris, "even presided over the proceedings" (p. 53). In addition to these persecutions, the Baptist church in England likewise suffered severe persecutions. It is ironic that KJV only advocates, key Baptist in conviction, would be so eager to defend a Bible translated by men who persecuted their Baptist forefathers.

Unbound Scriptures is an outstanding written report of the various KJV arguments, and the hundreds of questions Mr. Norris asks of the fundamental beliefs that brand up KJV onlyism reveal that information technology is an apologetic organisation congenital upon the proverbial foundation of sand.  Even so, even though this is an fantabulous work, I would be awry not to offer a couple of thoughts of constructive criticism I hope would merely help improve such a tremendous book.

First, the book is privately published (see contact information below), and considering of that fact, information technology runs the take a chance of quickly going abroad and not having a wide distribution. Discussion of mouth and positive reviews volition plainly serve Mr. Norris'south volume well, just it would exist a blessing to see a known publishing business firm have up the task of producing and marketing Unbound Scriptures to a larger Christian audience. Many pastors and laymen who have to deal with a vociferous KJV only advocate disrupting the fellowship of their congregation or home Bible report may never exist aware such a fine work exists to counter and silence KJV only claims. The Christian Church at large would benefit profoundly from the material contained in this book.

Second, the table of contents could exist better organized so as to be more useful for the reader. Mr. Norris cleverly titles each ane of his chapters with a biblical verse taken directly from the King James translation that highlights specific subjects of KJV simply argumentation. For instance, chapter 2 is entitled, Understandst thou what thou readest, and is an examination of the KJV only statement that the King James is not copyrighted. Chapter xv is chosen, Give an account of thy stewardship, and examines the KJV but claims concerning variation between the original language manuscripts of the Bible. The chapter titles are catchy, only also ambiguous. They do not tell the reader what is necessarily being discussed. A helpful comeback for the table of contents would be to maintain the chapter titles, but then provide the sub-titles that indicate the subject field of each chapter and listing them under each of the chapter title headings. That would not only help inform the reader of the subjects addressed in the volume, but would besides provide a quicker reference for locating a specific subject.

Thankfully, those minor issues do non detract from the over all excellence of this piece of work and should not deter whatever Christian from enjoying it. I am really looking forward to reading diverse KJV only critiques of this book. I am eager to run across how they attempt to answer his research, because the questions Mr. Norris raises against KJV only claims are so penetrating that KJV only advocates are sure to industry more conspiracy theories and re-write more Church history in social club to make excuses for what is at the foundation, an indefensible organisation of belief. May Unbound Scriptures serve the people of God for years to come up.

To obtain a copy of Unbound Scriptures, you can contact the writer, Rick Norris, at the following email address:

Email: rick1560@juno.com

berkboashe.blogspot.com

Source: https://hipandthigh.wordpress.com/2010/08/25/the-unbound-scriptures-a-review/

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