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What Is King James ‘Onlyism’?

The phrase ‘King James Onlyism’ describes the heartfelt conviction of multitudes of Bible-believing Christians. Those who believe that God has preserved his words in English where anyone on the face of the earth can find them and read them maintain that the King James Version—the Authorized Version—is where they are preserved.

Published

15 years ago

February 1, 2011

Geoffrey Grider

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The King James Bible

The phrase “King James Onlyism” describes the heartfelt conviction of multitudes of Bible-believing Christians. Those who believe that God has preserved his words in English where anyone on the face of the earth can find them and read them maintain that the King James Version—the Authorized Version—is where they are preserved. But this phrase also serves as a scornful epithet. Those who believe that God has not preserved his words in English where anyone on the face of the earth can find them and read them maintain that somewhere spread among two hundred different modern English translations is where they might be found, but that one must know Greek and Hebrew or have the help of scholars to know where they are and what they say.

King James Onlyism

There are two ways in which advocates of modern Bible versions use the term “King James Onlyism” as a term of derision: guilt by association and appealing to the King James translators. The first way is by associating the origin of or belief in the “King James Only” position with persons that some Christians consider to be unscholarly, out of the mainstream, or unorthodox. The second way is by saying that since the King James translators were not “King James Only,” then it obviously is not a position that a Christian should take.

It is a little late to use the guilt by association argument, given that the Authorized Version was the only version read for three centuries. And no Bible-believing Christian who knows anything about English Bible history teaches that the King James translators were “King James Only.” What, then, is the origin of “King James Onlyism”? Was it invented by some over-zealous modern defender of the Authorized Version? Hardly, for the origin goes back, not to the beginning of the “King James Only” movement in the twentieth century, but four hundred years earlier to King James (1566- 1625) himself.

Here you will find classic Christian books, commentaries and study guides to help you defend the King James Bible against the perverted modern versions.

To begin with, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth (reigned 1558-1603) there was a “Draft for an Act of Parliament for a New Version of the Bible” that begins: “An act for the reducinge of diversities of Bibles now extant in the Englishe tongue to one setled vulgar translated from the original.” Queen Elizabeth died in 1603 and King James VI of Scotland was crowned King James I of England. It was soon after, at the Hampton Court Conference in January of 1604, that the idea for the Authorized Version was born. On the second day of the conference, the Puritan, Dr. John Rainolds (1549-1607), proposed that a new translation of the Bible be undertaken. According to the “official” account by William Barlow (d. 1613), the dean of Chester, who was at the conference: “After that he [Rainolds] moved his majesty that there might be a new translation of the Bible, because those which were allowed in the reign of king Henry the Eight and Edward the Sixt were corrupt and not answerable to the truth of the original.” The king then “wished that some special paines should be taken in that behalf for one uniform translation, (professing that he could never yet see a Bible well translated in English, but the worst of all his majesty thought the Geneva to be,) and this to be done by the best learned in both the universities; after them to be reviewed by the bishops, and the chief learned of the church; from them to be presented to the privy councel; and lastly, to be ratified by his royal authority. And so this whole church to be bound unto it, and none other.”

Tobie Matthew (1546-1628), the bishop of Durham, wrote a letter while he was in attendance at the Hampton Court Conference to the archbishop of York in which he says that the Puritans insisted on “one only translation of the Bible to be authentical, and read in the church.” In a letter written by the king’s Scottish chaplain, Patrick Galloway (1551-1626), who was also at the Hampton Court Conference, to the presbytery of Edinburgh, written less than a month after the conference, there appears “A note of such things as shall be reformed.” Paragraph two, under the heading “OF DOCTRINE,” reads: “That a translation be made of the whole Bible, as consonant as can be to the original Hebrew and Greek; and this to be set out and printed without any marginal notes, and only to be used in all churches of England in time of divine service.”

In one of the four anonymous accounts of the Hampton Court Conference, supposedly favoring the Puritans, there is mention of the incident when Dr. Rainolds suggested the idea of a new translation to the king: “Secondly, amongst those things which concern purity of doctrine, he wished that the translation might be reformed, and one to stand as warranted for all. . . . Then the King freely gave assent that there should be one translation of the Bible consonant to the original Greek and Hebrew and set forth without note, for that some of them enforce a sense further than the text will bear.” In “A Note of Such Things as Shall be Reformed in the Church,” written soon after the Hampton Court Conference (and thought to be written by the bishop of London, Richard Bancroft [1544-1610]), fifteen items are listed. Number ten concerns the proposed new Bible: “One uniform translation of the Bible to be made, and only to be used in all the churches of England.”

Then, in a list of principal matters to be considered, which was also drawn up soon after the conference, the fourth reads: “That care be taken, that one uniform translation of the Bible be printed, and read in the church: and that without any notes.” After the Authorized Version was published in 1611, there were some things written by the translators that relate to the origin of “King James Onlyism.” In the “Epistle Dedicatorie” to the Authorized Version, the translators recounted the king’s actions at the Hampton Court Conference:

There are infinite arguments of this right Christian and Religious affection in Your MAIESTIE; but none is more forcible to declare it to others, then the vehement and perpetuated desire of the accomplishing and publishing of this Worke, which now with all humilitie we present unto Your MAIESTIE. For when Your Highnesse had once out of deepe judgment apprehended, how convenient it was, That, out of the Originall sacred tongues, together with comparing of the labours, both in our owne and other forreigne Languages, of many worthy men who went before us, there should be one more exact Translation of the holy Scriptures into the English tongue.

In the translators’ preface (“The Translators to the Reader”) they also stated:

Truly (good Christian Reader) we never thought from the beginning, that we should need to make a new Translation, nor yet to make of a bad one a good one, (for then the imputation of Sixtus had bin true in some sort, that our people had bene fed with gall of Dragons in stead of wine, with whey in stead of milke:) but to make a good one better, or out of many good ones, one principal good one, not justly to be excepted against, that hath bene our endeavour, that our marke.

After the publication of the Authorized Version, we can see references to it in the visitation articles issued by the bishops and others in the Church of England exercising ecclesiastical jurisdiction during the early Stuart Church. These references specify that it is the Authorized Version that is to be placed in the churches. The earliest such reference appears to be that found in the visitation articles of John King (1559-1621), who was bishop of London from 1611 to 1621. King refers in his 1612 visitation articles to “a large bible of the last edition.” Similar language can be found in many other sets of visitation articles, including the 1614 articles of Henry Cotton (d. 1615), bishop of Salisbury (“a bible of the largest volume, and last translation”), the 1619 articles of John Overall (1559-1619), bishop of Norwich (“the whole bible of the largest volume, and of the last translation”), the 1622 articles of William Laud (1573-1645), bishop of St. David’s (“the whole bible of the largest volume and latest edition”), and the 1622 articles of the aforementioned translator of the Authorized Version, Miles Smith, bishop of Gloucester (“the whole bible in English, of the largest volume and new translation lately set forth by his maiesties authoritie”). We continue to see the same thing after the death of King James in 1625; for example, the 1628 articles of John Howson (1557-1632), bishop of Oxford (“a bible of the largest volume and latest edition”), the 1635 articles of Matthew Wren (1585-1667), bishop of Hereford (“the whole bible in the largest volume of the last translation”), and the 1637 and 1640 articles of Robert Skinner (1590-1670), bishop of Bristol (“the bible of the new translation, lately set forth by the kings authority”).

The evidence is overwhelming that the origin of ‘King James Onlyism’ is therefore not some over-zealous modern defender of the Authorized Version, it is King James himself.

This article is an abridged version of essay ten in the collection of fifteen essays on the Authorized Version by Laurence M. Vance entitled King James, His Bible, and Its Translators. This book is available directly from Vance Publications. For more information go to www.vancepublications.com

Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

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Please continue to pray for us, and for wisdom for me especially, as we continue taking steps to print the NTEB branded King James Bible for our free Bible and Bibles Behind Bars program. It is exciting and intimidating at the same time. If the Lord has prospered your financially, we ask you to donate to help us continue to send out free Bibles at this level, and even higher than we are at the moment. It takes a lot of prayer, and a lot of resources to do all this. Praise the Lord we are doing it, all of us together, labouring in the Lord’s harvest field. TO THE FIGHT!!!

When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.

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But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORT…TO THE FIGHT!!!

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

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Donald Trump

The Unwillingness Of The Trump Administration To Open An Investigation Into The Epstein Files Is As Great A Crime As What’s In The Files Themselves

Published

2 days ago

February 16, 2026

Geoffrey Grider

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The refusal of the Trump administration to investigate the Epstein Files shows clearly they’re protecting the perpetrators

We are watching something unprecedented unfold from within our government, a crime of such great magnitude that the minds of most people are unable or unwilling to process it. Right now, we have enough released information from the Epstein Files for the Department of Justice to launch an investigation that could bring results in a very short period of time. Yet, they refuse to do it, in fact, all agencies in the Trump administration are refusing to do it. President Trump has said repeatedly it’s time for America to move on to other things.

“When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.” Proverbs 29:2 (KJB)

The Epstein Files show one of the greatest concentrated campaigns to torture and abuse children in modern human history, with more accomplices and conspirators than you could shake a stick at. The deeds listed therein are so vile we can’t even mention most of them to you, and we advise you not to look as it is that bad. But so was the Holocaust, yet somebody thought that the people who did that should be brought to justice and gave us Nuremberg. Where is a Nuremberg-level investigation to the crimes against children in the Epstein Files? Last Saturday, Pam Bondi declared the whole thing was done, and no investigations would be happening. Donald Trump told America that the DOJ needed to be on to other things. Baskets full of evidence and no one is willing to even look at it? How can that be? It’s because they’re protecting the perpetrators. We are watching an active, illegal coverup ordered by Donald Trump himself where not a single person mention in the files has been or will be investigated. Pure wickedness.

LEARNING WITH MUSIC: this snappy little 4-minute song will show you exactly how deep the Epstein Files coverup goes from within the Trump administration, and how Pam Bondi is doing the dirty work of the Devil. Very well done, watch and share. pic.twitter.com/ms7CBI6dU4

— Now The End Begins (@NowTheEndBegins) February 14, 2026

Christian, don’t lose sight of what’s happening here. What we are watching is open and intense demonic activity manifesting before us, this is not politics as usual. This is the Devil walking about freely and openly through the halls of Washington, overseeing some of the most unspeakable acts committed against children in the 250 year history of our nation, and our president has no interest in bringing the guilty to justice? That’s the Devil. Christian, we are to be SALT and LIGHT in a world of darkness, if we don’t call this out no one ever will. If you stay silent, if you don’t speak out, then you are working to enable the coverup of all these crimes against the children in the Epstein Files. America cannot and will not be great again as a nation if we fail to render justice now. Donald Trump is engaging in a vile coverup to protect his billionaire buddies, and betting that he can run out the clock with the dozens of other things he has to distract us with. Don’t let him do it, the voices of those children cry out for justice.

DL Moody said “I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. What I can do, I ought to do, and what I ought to do, by the grace of God I will do”. It’s the valley of decision, Christian, what will you do?

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Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

HOW TO DONATE: Click here to view our WayGiver Funding page

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

Free Bible Program

Chaplain Marshall At The Leon County Detention Facility Says The Need For Bibles Is Urgent As Inmates Are Being Turned Away From Lack Of Supply

Published

4 days ago

February 14, 2026

Geoffrey Grider

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The Leon County Detention Facility in Florida is struggling with an inability to keep their inmates supplied with Bibles as the need is great but the supplies are few

As many of you know, our whole family was hit with the Subclade K super flu this week, and all activity here at NTEB basically stopped. Lori and I want to thank everyone for your fervent and effectual prayer for our recovery. This is why we are a praying people, so thank you, everyone. Well, while I am not yet fully recovered, I thought I had better dust off the keyboard and write about something. Nothing in the news really interested me, and then I saw an email come over from Chaplain Marshall at the Leon County Detention Facility in Florida. What he had to say snapped me right to attention. Time to write.

“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” John 8:36 (KJB)

Dr. Marshall’s email says “We really need your help. We are struggling with constant requests for the bible. We have over 1000 inmates. I am reaching out because we should never have to turn an inmate away who is seeking Gods word. The need is urgent so please send us as many bibles as possible on an ongoing basis. May God Bless You. We can only accept PAPER Bibles.” This is the very reason for which Bibles Behind Bars was raised up for, to send God’s preserved word into as many jail and prison cells as possible. They need a thousand Bibles are quickly as possible, and with your help we can do it. The cost to send these Bibles out is $4,550, please pray about joining with us to get this done. Bibles Behind Bars is the chaplain’s lifeline that allows them to do the work God has called them to do. Help us to keep the gospel supply lines open!

HOW TO DONATE: Click here to view our WayGiver Funding page

If God has prospered you, please take a moment to click on the donate button to help us in this monumental task of providing King James Bibles, New Testaments, scripture portions, gospel tracts as well as Spanish Bibles to inmates in jails and prisons from Florida to Alaska, and every state in between. We need your prayers, we need your generous financial support, and we need you to stand with us in the closing days of the Church Age. Thank you so very much, TO THE FIGHT!!!

NOTE: If you need a 501 C3 Letter of Donation for tax purposes, please send your donation to:

NTEB Ministries
1340 N Great Neck Rd.
Ste. 1272-129
Virginia Beach, VA 23454.

Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

HOW TO DONATE: Click here to view our WayGiver Funding page

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

Headline News

Super Bowl Sunday LX 2026 Is An Excellent Illustration Of The ‘Falling Away’ Complete With Games Played In A Roman Colosseum Under An Egyptian Obelisk

Published

1 week ago

February 8, 2026

Geoffrey Grider

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No matter which Super Bowl LX 60 you pick today, or which Halftime Show you watch, you will be celebrating that which God hates

America is not a Christian nation, and it is filled with professing Christians who know less about Bible doctrine than most industrialized countries. They will go to a stadium and “bang their heads for the Lord” for hours on end, and yet spend not a fraction of that time in God’s preserved word. If you watch any of the Super Bowl XL 2026 proceedings today, and I do not recommend you do, what I am telling you will become instantly apparent if your know your Bible.

“The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” Psalms 19:7-10 (KJB)

We had no Sunday Service this morning due to the fact that the Type A flu has hit me and my family pretty hard, and your prayers for a speedy recovery for all of us is very much appreciated. But after 17 years of reporting on the ‘woke’ Super Bowl and the Christian Nationalist Super Bowl, I would be remiss in my duties if I didn’t once again throw the NTEB end times hat into the ring. Now, the ‘woke’ Super Bowl is sad, pathetic, and instantly connects you to Romans 1 in your King James Bible. The Christian Nationalist Super Bowl, while ideologically better, instantly connects you to Acts 20, 28, and 2 Thessalonians 2:3. This year we have a treat! The NFL is providing a highly LGBTQIA-friendly Halftime show while Turning Point USA gives us the ‘let’s drink whiskey and set stuff on fire for the LORD’ Halftime Show’. We get both. If you think that the choice is an “easy one”, you’d be quite mistaken. They both lead you away from God and away from the Bible, and to the Vanity Fair found in The Pilgrim’s Progress.

“This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.” Matthew 15:8 (KJB)

Before we go further, let’s pull off to the side and see what the NFL and their Super Bowl actually represents. First and foremost, the Super Bowl is played on a Sunday, the day Jesus rose from the dead. Secondly, the players are called “stars” and “idols”, two expressions found in the Bible connected with idol worship. The Lombardi Trophy is an Easter egg on top of an Egyptian obelisk. Come on, now, you knew that the football represents the Easter egg from the Roman Catholic Church and ancient Babylon, right? Why do you think the NFL uses Roman numerals? Why does the NFL show you the Roman Catholic Church in all their marketing? Stay with me now, the water only gets deeper. Third, the hundreds of millions of viewers will be bombarded with just about everything that God hates. Immorality, drugs, alcohol, homosexuality, gambling, and lust just to name a few. Why do you think that the same corporations we claim to hate pay between $8-10 million dollars for a 30-second commercial. You know what that makes you? A sitting duck. You know what that makes your children? Groomed. Everything I just told you will be exactly the same no matter which Super Bowl you watched or which Halftime show you support today.

FUN FACT: Kid Rock is no better than Bad Bunny, he just sins with the stuff the Laodicean Church approves of. All sin is equally offensive and damning in the eyes of God, and requires a payment.

You know why your pastor doesn’t preach against all this, or any of this? They’re afraid of the pushback they would get. Gotta keep that Building Program going, even if it means selling out your congregation to do it. We have forgotten that God, according to the Bible, is not on the side of the great and mighty America. He is on His Side. I am 100% against abortion, but ask yourselves this. If you “stand for the unborn”, which is a good thing, and at the same time go to the bars with Kid Rock, John Rich, Joel Webbon, Doug Wilson, and all the others far too numerous to mention, is God somehow fooled?. Billy Sunday was a great preacher, and many got saved, but Prohibition did nothing but create a massive cash economy for the Mafia. Which destroyed peoples lives for generations and is still doing it. You say that we have to “Make America A Christian Nation Again”, right? Go ahead and try, and all you do is advance the kingdom of the coming Antichrist through the 7 Mountains Mandate.

“For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.” Galatians 5:13

I’m not preaching to the choir, I am preaching to sinners, saved or lost, and calling you to pick a side before it all comes down. You have Christian liberty if you’re saved, but let me suggest you use it to preach the gospel. The LORD is watching, choose carefully.