Authorized

The Use & Misuse of the King James Bible

By: Mark Ward

Narrated by: Mark Ward

Length: 4 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

The King James Version (KJV) has shaped the church, our worship, and our mother tongue for over 400 years. But what should we do with it today?

The KJV beautifully rendered the Scriptures into the language of turn-of-the-17th-century England. Even today, the King James version is the most widely read Bible in the United States. The rich cadence of its Elizabethan English is recognized even by non-Christians. But English has changed a great deal over the last 400 years and in subtle ways that very few modern readers or listeners will recognize. In Authorized, Mark L. Ward, Jr. shows what people who exclusively pursue the KJV are missing as they read God's word.

In their introduction to the King James Bible, the translators tell us that Christians must "hear Christ speaking unto them in their mother tongue." In Authorized, Mark Ward builds a case for the KJV translators' view that English Bible translations should be readable by what they called "the very vulgar" and what we would call "the man on the street".

©2018 Mark Ward (P)2019 Mark Ward

A balanced presentation

I appreciated that Mark began with praise and explanation of his background with the king James translation of the Bible. I appreciate the balance in which he pleads for understanding.
It is well worth reading, regardless of your favoritism toward one translation or another.

Fantastic resource

What an amazing critique of the KJV. The author doesn’t recommend eliminating the usage of the KJV, but recommends that all user will consider adding additional versions. He also recommends against giving the KJV to new believers. After hearing his arguments, this former KJV-only guys has been convinced.

Outstanding! Well-balanced & gracious.

A great exhortation for believers & Christian institutions! The organization, arguments, & audio reading are excellent. Thank you Mark!

Graceful and Informative

For a subject that's often an intense topic and full of spirited arguments, Mark Ward is possibly the most gracious author I've read on this subject. He never takes pot shots at any group or translation, and holds the King James Bible in high regard. This is a very high quality summary of the ever changing language of English and how it affects the Holy Scriptures we daily read

Intelligent illumination to a Clouded Conflict

As someone who has been wounded in the conflict over Bible translation disputes because of my innate suspicion (as opposed to academic assurance), this book was enlightening. Although highly educated, Dr. Ward made easily accessible arguments that are extremely difficult to refute. At the same time, Mark maintains a delightful combination of winsomeness, respect, and grace dealing with a subject that is infamous for generating a whole lot of heat and very little light.
As far as the production of the audio version of this book, I was thrilled with Dr. Ward's wide range of voice inflection and first person speaking presence. His wit and humor, which could be detected in reading the book, was taken to a whole new level! I belly laughed at some of the remarks that only make a chuckle in the books reading. I eagerly await listening to his next audio book!

Very practical and thought-provoking book.

Very practical and thought-provoking book, regardless of your viewpoint or which translation you use.

also, it's really cool to have a book written and read by the same person because you get to hear him read it exactly how he thought it in his mind!

Loved it!

Authorized made a complex subject easy for public consumption. I was both informed and entertained. The delivery was well worth extra cost for the audio. But I also recommended the text version for review.

A Pleasure to Read

As someone who was brought up to be KJV only and has begun to challenge these teachings in my own life this book makes you
1. Realize the barriers created by time in the understanding of the KJV
2. Equips you with knowledge to enable you to use the KJV in an appropriate way. While comparing with other versions as well as other study resources.

I love that Mark Ward does not try to demean or belittle the translation of the KJV but rather helps the reader to understand the roadblocks in the way of proper interpretation.

To anyone wanting to learn to properly exegete scripture I recommend this book to you. I absolutely loved it!

So fun to listen to and very enlightening!

I'm so glad I bought the audio version of this book. it was so fun to listen to. The author uses several accents when quoting people from the past. You can tell this was well researched and carefully and graciously written. thank you for your work!

Excellent Resource!

This book is not only enjoyable to listen to, but will make an invaluable resource to Everyday Christians curious about Bible Translation and the need for intelligibility when it comes to God’s Word. Highly recommend this to any Bible teacher or reader.