Report to subscribers of the New Matthew Bible Project

January 30, 2015

To all my subscribers, with a special welcome to the new ones.
Grace be with you, and peace, from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Acts and 1 Peter are now completed, leaving only 2 Peter, James, Jude, and the book
of Revelation to be done of the New Testament, which should be completed by the end
of 2015. Then it is a matter of deciding how publication of the New Testament should
proceed.
As always, a comparison of bible versions for interests sake, considering 1 Peter 1:13
Here, Tyndale had (with context from the Matthew Bible):
13

Wherefore gird up the loins of your minds, be sober, and trust perfectly
on the grace that is brought unto you, by the declaring of Jesus Christ,
14
as obedient children, not fashioning yourselves unto your old lusts of
15
ignorance: but as he which called you is holy, even so be ye holy in all
16
manner of conversation, because it is written. Be ye holy, for I am holy.

In Tyndale, the grace we are to trust on is a present grace that is brought to us by the
declaring, or revelation, of Jesus Christ. However with the KJV came a moving of the
grace that we are to trust on to the future. Modern versions followed suit. A comparison
of bible versions shows this (old English partially updated):
1 Peter 1:13:
Wycliffe 1380: hope ye into the grace that is proffered to you by the showing of
Jesus Christ
Cranmer 1539: trust perfectly on the grace that is brought unto you (by the declaring of
Jesus Christ)
Geneva 1557: trust perfectly on the grace that is brought unto you, by the revelation of
Jesus Christ
Rheims 1582 trust perfectly in that grace which is offered you, in the revelation of
Jesus Christ
KJV 1611: hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the
revelation of Jesus Christ
RSV 1946: set your hope fully upon the grace that is coming to you at the revelation of
Jesus Christ.
Jerusalem Bible 1968: put your trust in nothing but the grace that will be given you
when Jesus Christ is revealed.
NEB 1970: Fix your hopes on the gift of grace which is to be yours when Jesus Christ
is revealed.
Living Bible 1971: So now you can look forward soberly and intelligently to more of
Gods kindness to you when Jesus Christ returns.
NIV 1973: set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is
revealed.

The implications of this difference in translation may not be great for our walk with the
Lord. However the older bibles acknowledge the present grace that comes to those
who believe by the revelation of Christ to them through the Gospel. We, when we
believe the Gospel, come to know Him, and learn to love Him, and to love His name;
He is thus revealed to us here and now. This is a present grace, through which we
maintain our future hope and upon which we rely for maintaining obedience and
holiness in our pilgrimage in this life. Of course, it is a grace, a revelation, that only
those who are genuinely in the faith can know.
Without commenting on the accuracy of either translation, I personally find Tyndales
rendering (and that of the pre-KJV Bibles) more satisfying, and also consistent with
true Christian experience.
The New Matthew Bible will follow Tyndale, keeping the reference to present grace:
New Matthew Bible: trust perfectly on the grace that is brought to you by the
declaring of Jesus Christ.
Kind regards, and wishes for many blessings to all my subscribers,
R Magnusson Davis
New Matthew Bible Project:
www.newmatthewbible.org
True to His Ways:
www.truetohisways.com