Table Of Content

NKJV_CSLPB_001_i-viii_SL_FM.indd 1 9/21/09 4:12:53 PM NKJV_CSLPB_001_i-viii_SL_FM.indd 2 9/21/09 4:12:53 PM the Charles F. stanley liFe PrinCiPles BiBle NKJV_CSLPB_001_i-viii_SL_FM.indd 3 9/21/09 4:12:53 PM NKJV_CSLPB_001_i-viii_SL_FM.indd 4 9/21/09 4:12:53 PM the Charles F. stanley liFe PrinCiPles BiBle Charles F. stanley General editor NKJV_CSLPB_001_i-viii_SL_FM.indd 5 9/21/09 4:12:55 PM 1S R 1L THE CHARLES F. STANLEY LIFE PRINCIPLES BIBLE Copyright © 2009 by Charles F. Stanley Holy Bible, New King James Version, copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The text of the New King James Version® (NKJV®) may be quoted or reprinted without prior written permission with the following qualifications: (1) up to and including 1,000 verses may be quoted in printed form as long as the verses quoted amount to less than 50% of a complete book of the Bible and make up less than 50% of the total work in which they are quoted; (2) all NKJV quotations must conform accurately to the NKJV text. Any use of the NKJV text must include a proper acknowledgement as follows: Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. However, when quotations from the NKJV text are used in church bulletins, orders of service, Sunday school lessons, church newsletters, and similar works in the course of religious instruction or services at a place of worship or other religious assembly, the following notice may be used at the end of each quotation: NKJV. For quotation requests not covered by the above guidelines, write to Thomas Nelson, Inc., Attention: Bible Rights and Permissions, P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, TN 37214-1000. Printed in the United States of America 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 – 15 14 13 12 11 10 09 NKJV_CSLPB_001_i-viii_SL_FM.indd 6 9/21/09 4:12:55 PM vii T a b l e o f C o n T e n T s Introduction from Charles F. Stanley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix Preface to the New King James Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi Life Principles Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xvii Promises Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxxix Genesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Exodus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Leviticus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150 Deuteronomy . . . . . . . . . 198 Joshua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244 Judges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277 Ruth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309 1 Samuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316 2 Samuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361 1 Kings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397 2 Kings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436 1 Chronicles . . . . . . . . . . 474 2 Chronicles . . . . . . . . . . 508 Ezra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 552 Nehemiah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 566 Esther . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 586 Job . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 598 Psalms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 637 Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 739 Ecclesiastes . . . . . . . . . . . . 773 Song of Solomon . . . . 787 Isaiah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 797 Jeremiah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 872 Lamentations . . . . . . . . . 946 Ezekiel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 955 Daniel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1013 Hosea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1036 Joel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1053 Amos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1060 Obadiah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1072 Jonah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1075 Micah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1080 Nahum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1088 Habakkuk . . . . . . . . . . . . 1092 Zephaniah . . . . . . . . . . . 1099 Haggai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1104 Zechariah . . . . . . . . . . . . 1109 Malachi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1123 n e w T e s T a m e n T o l d T e s T a m e n T Concordance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Matthew . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1133 Mark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1179 Luke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1207 John . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1254 Acts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1291 Romans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1337 1 Corinthians . . . . . . . 1360 2 Corinthians . . . . . . . 1382 Galatians . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1400 Ephesians . . . . . . . . . . . . 1413 Philippians . . . . . . . . . . . 1426 Colossians. . . . . . . . . . . . 1437 1 Thessalonians . . . . 1445 2 Thessalonians . . . . 1453 1 Timothy . . . . . . . . . . . 1460 2 Timothy . . . . . . . . . . . . 1468 Titus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1477 Philemon . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1481 Hebrews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1484 James . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1506 1 Peter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1517 2 Peter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1525 1 John . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1531 2 John . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1538 3 John . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1539 Jude . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1540 Revelation . . . . . . . . . . . 1543 NKJV_CSLPB_001_i-viii_SL_FM.indd 7 9/21/09 4:12:55 PM viii Book abbreviations used in the notes and articles: OT = Old Testament NT = New Testament 1 Chr. . . . 1 Chronicles . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 474 1 Cor. . . . 1 Corinthians . . . . . . . NT . . 1360 1 John . . 1 John . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1531 1 Kin. . . . 1 Kings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 397 1 Pet.. . . . 1 Peter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1517 1 Sam. . . 1 Samuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 316 1 Thess. . 1 Thessalonians . . . . NT . . 1445 1 Tim. . . . 1 Timothy . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1460 2 Chr. . . 2 Chronicles . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 508 2 Cor. . . 2 Corinthians . . . . . . . NT . . 1382 2 John . . 2 John . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1538 2 Kin. . . . 2 Kings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 436 2 Pet. . . . 2 Peter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1525 2 Sam. . . 2 Samuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 361 2 Thess. . 2 Thessalonians . . . . NT . . 1453 2 Tim. . . 2 Timothy . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1468 3 John . . 3 John . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1539 Acts . . . . . . Acts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1291 Amos . . . . Amos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1060 Col. . . . . . . Colossians . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1437 Dan. . . . . . Daniel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1013 Deut. . . . . Deuteronomy . . . . . . OT . . . . 198 Eccl. . . . . . Ecclesiastes . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 773 Eph. . . . . . Ephesians . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1413 Esth. . . . . . Esther . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 586 Ex. . . . . . . . Exodus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . . . 64 Ezek. . . . . Ezekiel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 955 Ezra . . . . . . Ezra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 552 Gal. . . . . . . Galatians . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1400 Gen. . . . . . Genesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . . . . .1 Hab. . . . . . Habakkuk . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1092 Hag. . . . . . Haggai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1104 Heb. . . . . . Hebrews . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1484 Hos. . . . . . Hosea. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1036 Is. . . . . . . . . Isaiah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 797 James . . . . James . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1506 Jer. . . . . . . . Jeremiah . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 872 Job . . . . . . . Job . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 598 Joel . . . . . . Joel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1053 John . . . . . John . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1254 Jon. . . . . . . Jonah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1075 Josh. . . . . . Joshua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 244 Jude . . . . . Jude . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1540 Judg. . . . . Judges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 277 Lam. . . . . . Lamentations . . . . . . . OT . . . . 946 Lev. . . . . . . Leviticus . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 116 Luke . . . . . Luke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1207 Mal. . . . . . . Malachi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1123 Mark . . . . Mark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1179 Matt. . . . . Matthew . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1133 Mic. . . . . . Micah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1080 Nah. . . . . . Nahum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1088 Neh. . . . . . Nehemiah . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 566 Num. . . . . Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 150 Obad. . . . Obadiah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1072 Phil.. . . . . . Philippians . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1426 Philem. . Philemon . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1481 Prov. . . . . . Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 739 Ps. . . . . . . . . Psalms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 637 Rev. . . . . . . Revelation . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1543 Rom. . . . . Romans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1337 Ruth . . . . . Ruth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . . . 309 Song . . . . . Song of Solomon . OT . . . . 787 Titus . . . . . Titus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NT . . 1477 Zech. . . . . Zechariah . . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1109 Zeph. . . . . Zephaniah . . . . . . . . . . . OT . . 1099 a b b r e v i a T i o n s s y m b o l s A pointer next to the Bible text indicates that there is a corresponding Life Lesson at the foot of the page. ✴  An asterisk next to highlighted Bible text indicates a Bible promise. (Some of these include a Life Lesson.) See the Promises Index on p. xxxix. NKJV_CSLPB_001_i-viii_SL_FM.indd 8 9/21/09 4:12:56 PM Dear Friend, When I was a young man, I had the op- portunity to spend two very important and intensely rich weeks with my grandfather. He was a godly man, who loved the Lord with his whole heart. And though he did not have a formal education, he was tremendously wise and had great insight into the principles of God’s Word. One of the first things he taught me was this: “Obey God and leave the conse- quences to Him. No matter what He tells you to do, do it and trust Him for the out- come.” This is a principle that I have learned to live by each day. There is nothing too great for God. He is above and over all things. He is sovereign, omnipotent, and omnipresent. My greatest needs are all met within Him. The second thing he told me was to read my Bible everyday. After his death, I was given his Bible and knew the moment it was placed in my hands that he had lived what he preached. Every page was well-worn, and most bore the marks of intense Bible study. Over the years, I have come to realize that God’s Word offers the wisdom and insight I need at every turn. I cannot and never will encounter anything that is beyond Him and the principles He has written in Scripture. The Christian life is a wondrous adven- ture, full of twists and turns, good times and also difficult challenges. Through all of it, God’s Word is our greatest resource for insight, wisdom, hope, and guidance. Every problem we face has its solution in the Word of God. Where there is a need for comfort, peace, or courage, He provides it. To find His wisdom, there is simply no substitute for spending time alone with Him in prayer and the study of His Scriptures. Each year, I re- ceive countless letters from people who ask if there is a way for them to know God’s will for their lives. The answer is yes. But before He will reveal this to us, we need to get to know Him—the way He thinks, acts, and demonstrates His love for us. The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible was written to provide powerful insight into the principles written in God’s Word. These lessons are ones that I have learned personally during my fifty years of ministry, and it is my prayer that they will become principles that God will use in your life to teach you more about Himself and to draw you closer to His heart. There is no substitute for a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. This is the very core of God’s message to each one of us. If we want to know Him, we need to get to know His Son. The various features and helps included in this Bible are not designed to be a substitute for personal Bible study. Instead, they are meant to be signposts to help you journey even deeper into God’s Word. You can pray and ask Him to open your heart to His Word so that you will understand His principles and learn to apply them to your life. They are timeless. In this resource, I have highlighted many of the most crucial ones so that you might grow in your faith and learn to trust God in every area of your life. By surrendering our lives to Him and then asking Him to teach us His truths, we can put into practice the life principles He has given us. We also can learn to live a life of spiritual success and avoid the snares and traps that would lead to ineffectiveness, heartache, and disappoint- ment. God’s greatest goals for your life are for you to know Him and then for you to live your life committed to Him. Throughout this Bible you’ll find several features designed to help you get the most out of your time in God’s Word: • Book introductions to each of the 66 books of the Bible offer helpful background information and alert you to some of the most crucial Life Principles found in each book. • Life Principles articles highlight thirty of the Bible’s most critical principles for suc- cessful Christian living. They focus on crucial topics such as building intimacy ix Welcome to The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible ® NKJV_CSLPB_002_ix-xvi_SL_Letter.indd 9 9/21/09 4:16:57 PM with God, prayer, obedience, dealing with adversity, and more. • What the Bible Says About articles bring scriptural insight to bear on a wide variety of topics of special concern to all believers in Christ: the Holy Spirit’s guidance, the process of spiritual growth, experiencing forgiveness, listening to God, and many more. • Answers to Life’s Questions focus on the many challenges we face in our Christian faith as we try to live for God in a world often hostile to our growth in grace. How do we deal with jealousy or bitterness, or how do we gain God’s mind in a tough situation? You’ll find those kinds of questions answered here. • Life Examples briefly consider the lives of scores of God’s choice servants spot- lighted in the Bible, with a special eye toward discerning how their experiences can encourage and help us. • Life Lessons offer more than 2,500 insights into individual Bible verses and passages, emphasizing the practical and personal nature of God’s Word to us. • God’s Promises highlight more than 300 of the Lord’s promises to His people— promises meant to encourage, strengthen, and fill us with hope. • The Life Principles Indexes and the Promises Index, located in the front of the Bible, give you a convenient way to study God’s principles and promises throughout the Old and New Testaments. As you read God’s holy Word, I encourage you to keep a notebook and a pen nearby so you can record the date and time of your interaction with the Lord. As He shows you fresh truths, write them down. If He convicts you of a certain sin or attitude, make a note of it and write your prayer confessing that particular sin. If He gives you a moment of joy, praise Him in writing. If you have questions, write those down as well, and ask the Holy Spirit to teach you God’s truth for every situation. You will also want to use other Bible helps, such as dictionaries and commentaries, to shed light on difficult passages. Don’t try to read large portions of the Bible at one time; sit and meditate on one verse or one portion of a verse. Also, be sure to ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand what that verse means and how to make a practical application of it. If you find a promise, a provision, a re- quirement, or a commandment that you sense He is giving you, record it in your notebook. Doing this faithfully day after day helps you to begin to think the way God thinks. You will start to use “the mind of Christ,” which the Bible says you have (1 Cor. 2:16). You also will begin to see life from His perspec- tive, which will help you understand how you need to live each day. The more you learn about God, the richer your life will become through the knowledge of His Word. By surrendering your life to Him and following His principles of obedience, you will be on the road to great blessing and reward. You will have the ability to live a liberated life—free from sin and full of God’s goodness, grace, and mercy. When you obey Him, you can anticipate that He will reveal exciting new things to you. Never forget that the key to crossing any bridge successfully is faith and obedience. Jesus said, “He who has My com- mandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and mani- fest Myself to him” (John 14:21). The act of understanding His Word and obeying Him comes from personal growth and intimacy with the Lord. The closer you draw to Him, the more you will know about Him. This is what makes the journey into His truth so exciting. You have the guarantee that the Lord will reveal more of Himself and His goodness to you as you mature in your relationship with Him. He also will pour out His blessings on your live until it overflows with joy, peace, and goodness; and I believe that as you put into practice His principles, you will enjoy the abundant life that Jesus so earnestly desires to give to you (John l0:10). It is my prayer that you will not only discover the treasure of His infinite love and truth, but that you will walk in the light of His goodness each and every day. There is only one way to do this, and it is by knowing God through prayer and the study of His Word. Charles F. Stanley x NKJV_CSLPB_002_ix-xvi_SL_Letter.indd 10 9/21/09 4:16:58 PM xi xi Preface to the New King James Version ® n the preface to the 1611 edition, the translators of the Authorized Version, known popularly as the King James Bible, state that it was not their purpose “to make a new translation . . . but to make a good one better.” Indebted to the earlier work of William Tyndale and others, they saw their best contribution to con- sist in revising and enhancing the excel- lence of the English versions which had sprung from the Reformation of the six- teenth century. In harmony with the purpose of the King James scholars, the translators and editors of the present work have not pursued a goal of innova- tion. They have perceived the Holy Bible, New King James Version, as a continuation of the labors of the earlier translators, thus unlocking for today’s readers the spiritual treasures found especially in the Authorized Version of the Holy Scriptures. For nearly four hundred years, and throughout several revisions of its English form, the King James Bible has been deeply revered among the English- speaking peoples of the world. The precision of translation for which it is his- torically renowned, and its majesty of style, have enabled that monumental version of the word of God to become the mainspring of the religion, language, and legal foundations of our civi- lization. Although the Elizabethan period and our own era share in zeal for tech- nical advance, the former period was more aggressively devoted to classical learning. Along with this awakened concern for the classics came a flourishing companion interest in the Scriptures, an interest that was enlivened by the con- viction that the manuscripts were provi- dentially handed down and were a trust- worthy record of the inspired Word of God. The King James translators were committed to producing an English Bible that would be a precise translation, and by no means a paraphrase or a broadly approximate rendering. On the one hand, the scholars were almost as familiar with the original languages of the Bible as with their native English. On the other hand, their reverence for the divine Author and His Word assured a translation of the Scriptures in which only a principle of utmost accuracy could be accepted. In 1786 Catholic scholar Alexander Geddes said of the King James Bible, “If accuracy and strictest attention to the letter of the text be supposed to constitute an excellent version, this is of all versions the most excellent.” George Bernard Shaw became a literary legend in the twentieth century because of his severe and often humorous criticisms of our most cherished values. Surprisingly, however, Shaw pays the following tribute to the scholars commissioned by King James: “The translation was extraordinar- ily 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 convic- tion they carried out their work with boundless reverence and care and achieved a beautifully artistic result.” History agrees with these estimates. Therefore, while seeking to unveil the excellent form of the traditional English Bible, special care has also been taken in the present edition to preserve the work of precision which is the legacy of the 1611 translators. NKJV_CSLPB_002_ix-xvi_SL_Letter.indd 11 9/21/09 4:16:59 PM xii xii Where new translation has been necessary in the New King James Version, the most complete representa- tion of the original has been rendered by considering the history of usage and etymology of words in their contexts. This principle of complete equivalence seeks to preserve all of the information in the text, while presenting it in good literary form. Dynamic equivalence, a recent procedure in Bible translation, commonly results in paraphrasing where a more literal rendering is needed to reflect a specific and vital sense. For example, complete equivalence truly renders the original text in expressions such as “lifted her voice and wept” (Gen. 21:16); “I gave you cleanness of teeth” (Amos 4:6); “Jesus met them, saying, ‘Rejoice!’” (Matt. 28:9); and “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me?” (John 2:4). Complete equivalence translates fully, in order to provide an English text that is both accurate and readable. In keeping with the principle of complete equivalence, it is the policy to translate interjections which are commonly omitted in modern language ren- derings of the Bible. As an example, the interjection behold, in the older King James editions, continues to have a place in English usage, especially in dra- matically calling attention to a spectacu- lar scene, or an event of profound importance such as the Immanuel prophecy of Isaiah 7:14. Consequently, behold is retained for these occasions in the present edition. However, the Hebrew and Greek originals for this word can be translated variously, depending on the circumstances in the passage. Therefore, in addition to behold, words such as indeed, look, see, and surely are also rendered to convey the appropriate sense suggested by the context in each case. In faithfulness to God and to our readers, it was deemed appropriate that all participating scholars sign a statement affirming their belief in the verbal and plenary inspiration of Scripture, and in the inerrancy of the original autographs. The King James scholars readily appreciated the intrinsic beauty of divine revelation. They accordingly disciplined their talents to render well-chosen English words of their time, as well as a graceful, often musical arrangement of language, which has stirred the hearts of Bible readers through the years. The translators, the committees, and the editors of the present edition, while sensi- tive to the late-twentieth-century English idiom, and while adhering faithfully to the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts, have sought to maintain those lyrical and devotional qualities that are so highly regarded in the Authorized Version. This devotional quality is especially apparent in the poetic and prophetic books, although even the relatively plain style of the Gospels and Epistles cannot strictly be likened, as sometimes suggested, to modern newspaper style. The Koine Greek of the New Testament is influenced by the Hebrew background of the writers, for whom even the Gospel narratives were not merely flat utterance, but often song in various degrees of rhythm. Students of the Bible applaud the timeless devotional character of our his- toric Bible. Yet it is also universally understood that our language, like all living languages, has undergone profound change since 1611. Subsequent revisions of the King James Bible have sought to keep abreast of changes in NKJV_CSLPB_002_ix-xvi_SL_Letter.indd 12 9/21/09 4:17:00 PM xiii xiii English speech. The present work is a further step toward this objective. Where obsolescence and other reading difficulties exist, present-day vocabulary, punctuation, and grammar have been carefully integrated. Words representing ancient objects, such as chariot and phy- lactery, have no modern substitutes and are therefore retained. A special feature of the New King James Version is its conformity to the thought flow of the 1611 Bible. The reader discovers that the sequence and selection of words, phrases, and clauses of the new edition, while much clearer, are so close to the traditional that there is remarkable ease in listening to the reading of either edition while following with the other. In the discipline of translating biblical and other ancient languages, a stan- dard method of transliteration, that is, the English spelling of untranslated words, such as names of persons and places, has never been commonly adopted. In keeping with the design of the present work, the King James spelling of untranslated words is retained, although made uniform throughout. For example, instead of the spellings Isaiah and Elijah in the Old Testament, and Esaias and Elias in the New Testament, Isaiah and Elijah now appear in both Testaments. King James doctrinal and theologi- cal terms, for example, propitiation, jus- tification, and sanctification, are gener- ally familiar to English-speaking peoples. Such terms have been retained except where the original language indicates need for a more precise translation. Readers of the Authorized Version will immediately be struck by the absence of several pronouns: thee, thou, and ye are replaced by the simple you, while your and yours are substituted for thy and thine as applicable. Thee, thou, thy and thine were once forms of address to express a special relationship to human as well as divine persons. These pronouns are no longer part of our language. However, reverence for God in the present work is preserved by capitalizing pronouns, including You, Your, and Yours, which refer to Him. Additionally, capitalization of these pronouns benefits the reader by clearly dis- tinguishing divine and human persons referred to in a passage. Without such capitalization the distinction is often obscure, because the antecedent of a pronoun is not always clear in the English translation. In addition to the pronoun usages of the seventeenth century, the -eth and -est verb endings, so familiar in the earlier King James editions, are now obsolete. Unless a speaker is schooled in these verb endings, there is common difficulty in selecting the correct form to be used with a given subject of the verb in vocal prayer. That is, should we use love, loveth, or lovest? do, doeth, doest, or dost? have, hath, or hast? Because these forms are obsolete, contemporary English usage has been substituted for the previous verb endings. In older editions of the King James Version, the frequency of the connective and far exceeded the limits of present English usage. Also, biblical linguists agree that the Hebrew and Greek original words for this conjunction may commonly be translated otherwise, depending on the immediate context. Therefore, instead of and, alternatives such as also, but, however, now, so, then, and thus are accordingly rendered in the present edition, when the original language permits. The real character of the Authorized Version does not reside in its archaic pronouns or verbs or other grammatical forms of the seventeenth century, but rather in the care taken by its scholars to NKJV_CSLPB_002_ix-xvi_SL_Letter.indd 13 9/21/09 4:17:00 PM xiv xiv impart the letter and spirit of the original text in a majestic and reverent style. The Format The format of the New King James Version is designed to enhance the vividness and devotional quality of the Holy Scriptures: • Subject headings assist the reader to identify topics and transitions in the biblical content. • Words or phrases in italics indicate expressions in the original language which require clarification by addi- tional English words, as also done throughout the history of the King James Bible. • Oblique type in the New Testament indicates a quotation from the Old Testament. • Verse numbers in bold type indicate the beginning of a paragraph. • Prose is divided into paragraphs to indicate the structure of thought. • Poetry is structured as contemporary verse to reflect the poetic form and beauty of the passage in the original language. • The covenant name of God was usually translated from the Hebrew as LORD or GOD (using capital letters as shown) in the King James Old Testament. This tradition is maintained. In the present edition the name is so capitalized whenever the covenant name is quoted in the New Testament from a passage in the Old Testament. The Old Testament Text The Hebrew Bible has come down to us through the scrupulous care of ancient scribes who copied the original text in successive generations. By the sixth century A.D. the scribes were suc- ceeded by a group known as the Masoretes, who continued to preserve the sacred Scriptures for another five hundred years in a form known as the Masoretic Text. Babylonia, Palestine, and Tiberias were the main centers of Masoretic activity; but by the tenth century A.D. the Masoretes of Tiberias, led by the family of ben Asher, gained the ascendancy. Through subsequent editions, the ben Asher text became in the twelfth century the only recognized form of the Hebrew Scriptures. Daniel Bomberg printed the first Rabbinic Bible in 1516–17; that work was followed in 1524–25 by a second edition prepared by Jacob ben Chayyim and also published by Bomberg. The text of ben Chayyim was adopted in most subsequent Hebrew Bibles, including those used by the King James translators. The ben Chayyim text was also used for the first two editions of Rudolph Kittel’s Biblia Hebraica of 1906 and 1912. In 1937 Paul Kahle published a third edition of Biblia Hebraica. This edition was based on the oldest dated manuscript of the ben Asher text, the Leningrad Manuscript B19a (A.D. 1008), which Kahle regarded as superior to that used by ben Chayyim. For the New King James Version the text used was the 1967/1977 Stuttgart edition of the Biblia Hebraica, with frequent comparisons being made with the Bomberg edition of 1524–5. The Septuagint (Greek) Version of the Old Testament and the Latin Vulgate also were consulted. In addition to referring to a variety of ancient versions of the Hebrew Scriptures, the New King James Version draws on the resources of relevant manuscripts from the Dead Sea caves. In the few places where the Hebrew was so obscure that the 1611 King James was compelled to follow one of the versions, but where information is now available to resolve the problems, the New King James Version follows the Hebrew text. NKJV_CSLPB_002_ix-xvi_SL_Letter.indd 14 9/21/09 4:17:01 PM