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Home / About Us / What We Contend For / The Authorised Version

The Authorised Version

The Authorised (King James) Version of the Bible is used exclusively throughout the English-speaking congregations of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland. This is based on the belief that it is the most accurate and faithful version of God’s Word available in the English language today.Bible

Two essential and fundamental principles undergird the Authorised Version:

  1. It is translated from the right Greek and Hebrew manuscripts, the ones providentially preserved by the God who inspired them.
  2. It is translated according to the right principle, that of formal equivalence, whereby the words of the original languages are translated into English as literally as possible.

Most Bible translations today reject either or (more usually) both of these principles.

Further reading

The following articles make for much interesting reading, and support the position that in the English language only the Authorised Version should be used.

The Authorised Version: The Enduring Legacy. This paper was given by Rev Hugh M Cartwright in Glasgow in 30 July 2011, to mark the 400th anniversary of the Authorised Version. In it he made six vital points:

  • In the Authorised Version we have a translation which originated in an environment still conditioned by the Reformation attitude to Scripture and to theology in general.
  • In the Authorised Version we have the translation of an original text on which we can rely.
  • In the Authorised Version we have a translation made on principles which give us confidence that it accurately reflects the very words which God spoke.
  • In the Authorised Version we have a translation which in its simplicity and dignity corresponds with the character of the Scriptures as originally written.
  • In the Authorised Version we have a translation especially suited to memorising and to reading aloud in the context of worship.
  • In the Authorised Version we have a translation which originated in the church, which provided the English-speaking churches and peoples with a common Bible and which has been much used in the salvation of sinners and edification of saints and in promoting a sense of the authority of Scripture.

The Importance of the Authorised Version for the Church in Britain. This interesting article, which maintains that “the choice of a Bible version is as much a spiritual matter as a rational one”, demonstrates the disadvantageous effects of moving away from the the Authorised Version:

  • Abandoning the Authorised Version is associated with, and in part contributes to, declension in worship, conduct and doctrine.
  • Abandoning the Authorised Version opens the door, not to the use of one replacement version, but to many different versions, with all the drawbacks that brings.
  • Abandoning the Authorised Version marks a departure from, and rejection of, the Protestant heritage of Britain.

 

The 2015 Synod passed a resolution on Versions of the Bible which can be found at this link.

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About Us

  • Who We Are
    • The Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland – Why It Exists Today
    • The Free Presbyterian Church Catechism
      • A Catechism of the History and Principles of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland – PDF
      • 1. Origins of the Free Presbyterian Church (1-13)
      • 2. The Westminster Confession of Faith (14–22)
      • 3. The Declaratory Act and the Free Church (23–53)
      • 4. The Infallibility of Scripture (54-67)
      • 5. Erroneous Doctrines (68-77)
      • 6. Innovations in Worship (78-93)
      • 7. Church and State (94-104)
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      • 11. Modern Religious Cults (150-159)
      • 12. Modern Errors (160-170)
      • 13. Evolution (171-175)
      • 14. Christ’s Second Coming (176-179)
      • Appendix 1. Deed of Separation 1893
      • Appendix 2. Free Church of Scotland Declaratory Act 1892
      • Appendix 3. FP Synod Resolutions
      • Appendix 4. Questions put to Office-bearers and Formula to be signed by them
      • Appendix 5. Memorandum on the Church of Scotland Enabling Bill 1920
    • The Declaratory Act Controversy
      • Declaratory Act – Reasons for Separation
      • How the Declaratory Act changed the Constitution of the Free Church
      • Explanatory Criticism of the Declaratory Act
      • The Consequences of the Declaratory Act
      • The Declaratory Act and Admission into Office in the Free Church
      • The Constitutional Aspects of the Declaratory Act
      • A Brief History of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland
  • What We Contend For
    • Our Free Presbyterian Heritage
    • The Authorised Version
      • The Importance of the Authorised Version for the Church in Britain
      • 2015 Synod Resolution on Versions of the Bible
    • Evangelical or Reformed
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      • The Pope and the Constitution of the United Kingdom
      • The Pope as the Head of a False Religion
      • Papal Infallibility
      • The Pope in Scripture
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      • Accusations Levelled against a Church Exercising Discipline
    • Baptism
      • Subjects of Baptism – by Rev. William MacIntyre
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      • Should Infants be Baptised?
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      • Family worship – a recent address to young people
      • Family worship – a convicting appeal from C H Spurgeon
      • Family worship – a wartime appeal from more than a century ago
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      • Family worship – another wartime appeal
      • Family worship – an illustration of its power
    • Distinctions between Male and Female
      • Men and Women Equal in Value
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      • Can women lead in public prayer?
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      • Long hair for women and short hair for men
  • What We Believe
  • How We Worship
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      • Standing for Prayer
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      • Does the Bible tell us how we are to Worship?
      • The Importance of the Regulative Principle for Today
      • The Regulative Principle as defined by the Scottish Reformers and others
    • Exclusive Psalmody
      • Does the Bible tell us What to Sing?
      • Why Psalms Only
    • No Musical Instruments
      • Musical Instruments in Worship
    • No Christian “Festivals”
      • Should Christians Celebrate Christmas?
  • How We Are Organised
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    • Scripture does teach the right form of Church Government
    • The Apostolic Church – Which Is It?
      • Statement of the Question
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      • The First Principle
      • The Second Principle
      • The Third Principle
      • The Fourth Principle
      • The Fifth Principle
      • The Sixth Principle
      • Application of the Test
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  • Important Documents
    • The Scots Confession
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    • The Westminster Confession of Faith
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    • The Claim Declaration and Protest
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    • The Deed of Separation 1893
  • Frequently Asked Questions

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