400th anniversary of the King James Version of the Bible

One of Elliot's primary purposes as a missionary to Oklahoma is to share the message of the mission of Jesus Christ, as contained in the Bible: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."  (John 3:16.) 

This past week marked the 400th anniversary of the first publication of the King James Version of the Bible.  The King James Version gets its name from the English King who commissioned a new translation of the Bible, a translation that has become the most widely used English Bible and is the official English language version of the Church.

A story from the Church Newsroom reports:

Like other Christian denominations, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes the Bible to be the word of God, and members are encouraged to study it and follow its teachings. In a 2007 general conference address titled “The Miracle of the Holy Bible,” Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said:

It is not by chance or coincidence that we have the Bible today. Righteous individuals were prompted by the Spirit to record both the sacred things they saw and the inspired words they heard and spoke. Other devoted people were prompted to protect and preserve these records. Men like John Wycliffe, the courageous William Tyndale, and Johannes Gutenberg (pictured) were prompted against much opposition to translate the Bible into language people could understand and to publish it in books people could read. I believe even the scholars of King James had spiritual promptings in their translation work.

For those who would like a free copy of the Bible, the Church makes them available here.

And here is a link to a documentary that describes the Church's effort to publish a Latter-day Saint edition of the King James Bible. Included in the publication were new chapter headings, cross-referencing footnotes linking all of the standard works, a topical guide or subject index, an improved bible dictionary, a gazetteer, and color maps. Selections from the Joseph Smith Inspired translation of the Bible were also included.