Featured The reason I don't read the Bible that much.

Have you tried other versions?

 

I am honestly not anti-KJV, but I would suggest that you switch to maybe the NKJV. I studied Shakespeare and even Chaucer at school, but I have found it hard to profit from reading the KJV. I think that is partly because I was subconsciously translating the KJV into modern English and partly that the KJV, like other early translations, was made to be read aloud. The other thing is to read first thing in the morning when your mind is fresh.
The other thing I would do is to choose a short book of the Bible, maybe Colossians, buy yourself a good conservative commentary and study just a few verses of that each day in addition to (not instead of) your regular reading. You could do that maybe in the evening.
That way you are not only gaining a familiarity with the continuity of the whole Bible, but also getting to grips with the doctrine.

 

I recommend getting a New King James Version to use along with your KJV. You also might look into a parallel Bible with the KJV too. Online you could use Blueletterbible.org or a similar web site.

 

That book that you mentioned by James White is excellent. It will help you to understand some things and put the whole subject into perspective.

 

I pray for: knowledge, wisdom, understanding, discernment, and patience.

I am near constantly in contemplation/meditation on God's Word.

The Holy Spirit brings the recall and guides me into understanding the Precepts of God and their application to the times.

And I use the KJV.

Works for me.

 

The NKJV is based on the same texts as the KJV used.

 

Mostly. There are a few places where they missed a word. I have not keep notes when I came across a reference. I didn't even mark it in my NKJV. The NKJV followed the Majority text in the NT without a footnote I believe in those cases. Those were the mistakes. Then there are a few translation choices I did not like - one reason I stopped using the NKJV as my main Bible. As a modern English Bible it is the only one I recommend.

 

I'm not saying you're wrong, but I'm not aware of this. I'll be interested to have an example if one comes to mind.

It's not perfect, but IMO it's more accurate than the KJV.

 

KJV, Luke 1:35, "And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."

The NKJV and Majority Text omits "of thee."

KJV, Colossians 1:15, "Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:"

The NKJV follows the NIV changing the genitive case "of" to "over."

 

Outlines. Pictures. Dramatized audio. Repetition. Let someone explain it to you.

Step 1. Before reading, Read an outline. If you mark your Bible, mark the divisions of the outline onto the text. I only use a mechanical pencil, and mark very sparingly, but others use a lot of color, even if it bleeds through the pages. If I am going to color code something, I will print out the outline and color code and scribble on that.

Step 2. Before reading look at pictures. Pictures are interpretation, so some people won't use them. I find them critical to use along with the KJV for some students.

I really like the 1 page pictures at the end of the binders for Bible Study Guide for all Ages. Most, but not all the Bible is covered in these 4 binders. Be careful of buying used copies, as the ISBN# is used for all editions. The oldest versions have inferior pictures. You can buy the pdfs fairly cheaply and print a page that covers a chapter or so of text. The binders were written to be used with the KJV and the NIV 1984, back before there were all these new translations. I only use the pictures in the back of the pdf version of the binders. Nothing else.
Unit Teacher’s Guide - The Original Bible Study Guide For All Ages



I am not sure what might have been updated, but I have the middle grade teacher manual for the Grapevine Stick Figure Bible Curriculum. I only use the pictures to draw a lesson on a blackboard or whiteboard, and have students copy me. My pdf curriculum says it was written for the NKJV and I have had no trouble using the pictures for the KJV. I only use the pictures in the teacher manual. Nothing else.
Middle School Archives - Grapevine Studies
New Testament Stick Figure Bible Study : Half a Hundred Acre Wood



I like the pictures in the Good News Bible, even if I don't use the text. BBC NEWS | UK | Magazine | The best-selling artist of all time



Kids story bibles can be used for the pictures and you can ignore the text.

Step 3. Find a DRAMATIZED audio Bible. Just let the narrator read to you. Read along in your Bible, or just lay in bed and close your eyes and rest.

Step 4. Repetition. Don't try and understand it all the first time. Be like a small child that is content to let mommy read to him, and does not feel any pressure to do it "right" or understand it all. Children love to listen to the same book over and over, because each time, it gets clearer and clearer. Children are exhausted by all the new and all the hard. Every time you listen again, it will get easier.

Step 5. Let someone explain it to you. Vernon McGee is a mess sometimes, but he covers the whole KJV Bible, and makes it understandable. I have a solar powered Bible Bus. When it gets windy and the power surges rip through my neighborhood, I unplug everything and lay in the dark and listen to my Bible Bus.


Solar Bible Bus purchase page
Thru the Bible

Listen online for free
Thru the Bible with Dr. J. Vernon McGee | Home

The Bible IDEAS are difficult to understand, no matter what version is used. At least they are for some of us. I give myself permission to understand at the level of a child. Sometimes I just listen to the audio Bible and color in a Bible coloring book while my thoughts wander to all my worries, and truthfully I am understanding very little. But I am participating in a "family" activity, and I hear SOMETHING.

 

No translation is perfect, but many are trustworthy, such as along with the Kjv, would be NKJV, Nas and Esv!

 

And the NIV, CSB and NLT.

 

I support you in whatever version that you choose to read. Read what feels right for now, and in the future read what feels right then. It is okay to change your mind along the way. It is okay to focus on the here and now, and the conditions that exist here. And it is okay to adjust as they change.

Years ago, I learned that the strongest churches have often been in places that had the worst translated Bibles. These churches often only had portions of scripture translated by a missionary directly from his primary language and not the original languages.

Because of copyright issues and cost and consistency and compatibility, I choose the KJV most of the time. But I am just finishing up several online courses on the Pentateuch in which the professor used the NKJV. I just used that so I could focus better on the learning opportunity that was given to me. I might be taking a course on the book of Matthew next, and the professor uses the 1995 NASB. I ordered a cheap paperback copy from betterworldbooks.com and I will use that for the course if I sign up for it.

When I get tired of the reality of my brother and sisters, the church, I climb in my bed and pray to the Father. Sometimes I have to put all books aside for a bit, even the Bible. More study and working harder is not always the answer. Be gentle with yourself. Give yourself permission to be His child, and to act like one when you get tired.

 

Prefer formal/literal versions for serious studies though!