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How to teach your children to read and understand the King James Version of the Bible
Fr. John Whiteford's News, Comments, & Reflections ^ | 06-09-2017 | Fr. John Whiteford

Posted on 06/25/2017 7:13:19 PM PDT by NRx

How to teach your children to read and understand the King James Version of the Bible



Why?

Before getting into the question of how you can teach your children to read and understand the King James Version, we should probably first discuss why you should want to do so.

If you are an English speaker, even if you are an atheist you should want your child to be familiar with the great works in the history of the English Language, and the King James Version is certainly close to the top of the list, if not at the very top.

Even some of the greatest skeptics were of this opinion:
“It is the most beautiful of all translations of the Bible; indeed it is probably the most beautiful piece of writing in all the literature of the world.”  -H. L. Mencken 
“The translation was extraordinarily well done because to the translators what they were translating was not merely a curious collection of ancient books written by different authors in different stages of culture, but the Word of God divinely revealed through His chosen and expressly inspired scribes.  In this conviction they carried out their work with boundless reverence and care and achieved a beautifully artistic result.” –George Bernard Shaw
"It is written in the noblest and purest English, and abounds in exquisite beauties of mere literary form."  -Aldous Huxley 
The influence of the King James Version on the English language has been huge, and there aren't many other texts that would be comparable in that regard.

It also happens to be a very fine translation. It is not perfect, but it has many advantages over most other options. See: An Orthodox Look at English Translations of the Bible.

Isn't it too hard?

For many centuries, even poorly educated people read and understood the King James Bible, because they made the effort to do so. For the most part, the King James Version is perfectly understandable for a modern reader. There are perhaps a hundred words or so that one would have to acquaint themselves with, if they were not already familiar with them. All of these words are found in a standard dictionary, and the intended meaning of the word in question will usually be listed as the primary or secondary meaning. There are also some handy guides online and in print that provide quick definitions with these words. And you could always look up a difficult text in the New King James Version, for clarification.

How?

First off, you have to teach them how to read, and teach them to love reading.

My wife and I home schooled our children, and the single best text we used was a book entitled "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons," by Siegfried Engelmann. It provides a parent with simple and clear instructions as to how to use the text, and it effectively teaches a child how to read phonetically, and also how to understand the many quirks we have in English spelling (something that is often not taught in public schools in our times). Most importantly, it works. I started teaching both of my children how to read with this text when they were three, and had them reading on a basic level within a few months.

The first books I had my children read were in a series of Bible story booklets from Concordia Press that are designed for beginning readers -- the closest thing that they have to what we used in print now is in a series called "Hear Me Read.".

You should regularly read to your children. For very young children, I found reading them stories that rhymed got their attention, and so I read them rhyming Bible stories. Concordia Press has a large collection of short Bible stories that rhyme -- many of which I remember from my own childhood.

As they got a bit older, I read them a comic book collection of Bible Stories (The Picture Bible), and as their reading improved, they would read it on their own. This gave them an overall understanding of the Bible in broad strokes, and helped to improve their own reading.

In addition to reading books directly connected to the Bible, reading other classic texts to your children helps to develop a love for reading.

We did not have our children read much of Shakespeare, because Shakespeare's plays were not meant to be read -- they were meant to be watched. We had them watch all of his major plays -- some in multiple versions, and they enjoyed them. And this helped to familiarize them with Elizabethan English, and in a way that was not at all tedious.

Finally, when their reading level got to the point that they could begin to do it, I had them read the Bible to me. This helped their reading and pronunciation, and it also gave me a chance to explain any words that were obscure, and to discuss the meaning of the text. We started with Genesis, and stuck to the narrative portions of the Law and the Historical books. We eventually brought in the Wisdom books, the prophets, and also the Gospels and Epistles.

A very important help to this whole process was to get an edition of the King James that had modern spelling, punctuation, and paragraphing -- and to have the same edition in everyone's hand, so we were literally all on the same page. At the time, we used the Third Millennium Bible, but what I would recommend now is using the Cambridge New Paragraph Bible with the "Apocrypha". This edition is laid out in a way that is much easier for contemporary readers, and the more I use it myself, the more I have come to like it.

One other thing I did was to have my children memorize the names and order of the books of the Bible, and then we would do something which I learned from Sunday School as a child -- "Sword drills". When we finished reading the Bible, I would call out random Scripture references, and we would see which child could find it first. This taught them how to navigate their way around the Bible.

For more information:

An Orthodox Look at English Translations of the Bible

A Simple Approach to Reading the Entire Bible

King James English and Orthodox Worship


TOPICS: General Discusssion; Orthodox Christian
KEYWORDS: children; childrenkjv; kjv; kjvchildren; pointless; reading
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To: Ruy Dias de Bivar

.
The Apocrypha is available online, if it is not in your Bible.

The Maccabees books are the main value of the apocrypha. They contain intensely important history of the rebellion that ended what little Greek language use there might have been by Hebrew people in Israel centuries before Yeshua was born.
.


21 posted on 06/25/2017 9:01:56 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: editor-surveyor

‘The KJV is definitely the most accurate English translation of the Bible that exists.’

Sorry, no. Read One Bible Many Versions by Brunn. Other contemporary versions have a higher translation integrity score. Examples, NASB, ESV, HCSB.

The KJV is a great translation, but objectivity is crucial.


22 posted on 06/25/2017 9:04:32 PM PDT by lurk
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To: lurk

.
>> “To help your child understand the KJV, give her a copy of the ESV, NASB or NIV.” <<

Absolute nonsense!

The KJV is easier for kids to read, because it doesn’t use the obscure vocabulary found in the ESV, NASB and NIV.

The conniptions that the publishers had to go through to make the new Bibles copy writable are stumbling blocks for most.
.


23 posted on 06/25/2017 9:07:11 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: lurk

Have you compared it with the Vulgate?

With Douay-Rheims?

Even with the RSV or Revised NAB?

How many books in the kjv? Not all of them............


24 posted on 06/25/2017 9:09:59 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: fishtank

.
“Itself” is correct, because the spirit requires no genderization.

In the realm of the Father, there is nothing sexual. That is a facet of creation.
.


25 posted on 06/25/2017 9:10:35 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: lurk

.
Total nonsense!

Where they differ with the KJV, they have zero integrity.
.


26 posted on 06/25/2017 9:13:19 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: Salvation

.
>> “How many books in the kjv?” <<

Depends on how old the volume may be.

American Bible Society shortened the KJV in the mid 20th century.
.


27 posted on 06/25/2017 9:16:42 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: editor-surveyor
I've always thought that Luther threw out books.

The Bible - 73 or 66 Books? (Ecumenical Thread)

28 posted on 06/25/2017 9:23:41 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: kalee

For later


29 posted on 06/26/2017 12:21:49 AM PDT by kalee
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To: NRx

Why would a parent want their children learn from a old English bible, when there are easier reading and more literal translations available?


30 posted on 06/26/2017 1:40:49 AM PDT by free_life (If you ask Jesus to forgive you and to save you, He will.)
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To: NRx

bookmark


31 posted on 06/26/2017 3:00:52 AM PDT by GOP Poet
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To: Albion Wilde

The Sword Bible, KFV ER has replaced the obsolete words. Really good job.


32 posted on 06/26/2017 3:30:17 AM PDT by odawg
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To: All

Greek Only!! ;-)

https://www.academic-bible.com/en/online-bibles/novum-testamentum-graece-na-28/read-the-bible-text/


33 posted on 06/26/2017 4:01:00 AM PDT by Drago
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To: NRx

I thought the Orthodox didn’t use a Protestant Bible which has 7 less books in it.


34 posted on 06/26/2017 4:45:04 AM PDT by piusv (Pray for a return to the pre-Vatican II (Catholic) Faith)
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To: Salvation

If you can rationally explain why so many Catholics believe that Martin Luther had anything to do with the King James Bible, I’d appreciate hearing it.


35 posted on 06/26/2017 4:52:29 AM PDT by RegulatorCountry
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To: NRx

bkmk


36 posted on 06/26/2017 7:11:33 AM PDT by Faith65 (Isaiah 40:31)
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To: NRx

Maybe they should be encouraged to “learn” what is in the bible by using an easier to read and more accurate version like NIV.

If it were still 1611 or people spoke like they did in 1611 using the KJV would make sense. Doing that now, makes no sense.

The main reason for “King James Only” is for memorization people. This is why KJV only has been forced on some churches.

Memorization without understanding is USELESS. The message/meaning is what is important, not rote memorization.


37 posted on 06/26/2017 7:13:29 AM PDT by faucetman (Just the facts, ma'am, Just the facts)
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To: Salvation

.
What makes you think Luther threw out anything?

And what effect would it have on the KJV, which sprang from the work of Tyndall?
.


38 posted on 06/26/2017 7:22:08 AM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: Salvation

.
What makes you think Luther threw out anything?

And what effect would it have on the KJV, which sprang from the work of Tyndall?
.


39 posted on 06/26/2017 7:22:48 AM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: editor-surveyor

Did you read the linked article?

It mentions Luther.


40 posted on 06/26/2017 7:32:55 AM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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