Pastor Jerry Rockwell
THE DANGER OF CHANGING GOD’S WORD
Revelation 22:18-21
Introduction: By way of explaining this text it is suggested that the exchange between the Devil and Eve in Genesis 3 be explored. The passage to explore is Genesis 3:1-4 to see the major problem with changing the words of God. The “serpent” and “”Eve” provide an excellent example of what God is saying to us in Revelation 22:18-19. Note the process:
- Genesis 3:1. Here the “serpent” begins with Eve “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Immediately the serpent casts doubt on what God said to the two occupants of the Garden. Then he gives Eve a test by stating something that she had heard from God, but Satan leaves some things out.
- Genesis 3:2-3. Here Eve does good with vs. 2, but stumbles with vs. 3. She correctly repeats that God gave them to eat of the fruit of every tree of the Garden part way. She leaves out something that becomes the point of discussion between her and the serpent. God’s instruction to man (Adam) in Genesis 2:16-17 (KJV) And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. Note that He said, “Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat.” Genesis 3:17 does make one exception to eating. They were prohibited from eating of the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” Here is the point the Devil will major in. Look again at Genesis 3:3. Eve makes a translation mistake. She adds something to what God had said, “. . .neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” No, God said that if they eat it, they will die. He said nothing about touching it. Problem number one, is “adding to the word of God.”
- Genesis 3:4-5. Here the serpent casts doubt on what Eve believes and says, “Ye shall not surely die.” God said they would die. The serpent then interprets what God had said. Genesis 3:5 (KJV) For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. The serpent wants the believer to interpret what God said. God did not say this, that is a ploy by the serpent to get Eve to think about what God said. She only had three verses of scripture to keep track of. Genesis 1:28 (KJV) And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. Note that God spoke to “them.” The other two verses are Genesis 2:16-17. That should not be too difficult to remember. Yet, Eve was not sure.
- Genesis 3:6. Eve took the bait. Have you ever wondered why she did not check with Adam about what God said? The verse says, Genesis 3:6 (KJV) And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. In fact, neither one of them sought to check if that was what God said. Genesis 3:7 gives the result of them not paying attention to what God said or going back to God to check out what the serpent was telling them.
The objective of this brief study is to get you to thinking, what did God say? Folks, this is the most significant matter you can consider. What did God say? That is the subject of this study. The two verses under consideration, Revelation 22:18-19 address the significance. You see Adam and Eve took the opinion of the serpent over what God said. This is the way false doctrine and teaching develops. Did God say that? How do you know? That is why we have a verse in the Bible that gives us instruction about the subject at hand. It is dangerous ground to try and alter or change the Bible.
GOD IS SERIOUS ABOUT WHAT HE HAS STATED TO MAN IN HIS WORD
Note the three places God gave this warning:
The following verifies the serious nature of the content of verses 18-19. The warnings found here are primarily about Revelation, yet there are two other warnings like this one. They are Deuteronomy 4:2 (KJV) Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you, and Proverbs 30:6 (KJV) Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar. The Deuteronomy passage is like what is found in Revelation 22:18-19. The point is well taken, you mess with God’s word, and He will mess with you! These three warnings are placed in interesting places. The passage in Deuteronomy is at the beginning part of the Bible, the Pentateuch. It is at the end of the commandments God has given to Israel, that they would be careful not to tamper with what God has said. The one in Proverbs is close to the middle of the Bible and is strategically placed, just in case while reading the Bible the reader had forgotten what was said earlier. The warning in Revelation is at the close of God’s holy book, the Bible, and wants the last thing to be read that a person should not do damage to what God has said. Few consider the seriousness of the written word of God. It is a book of the revelation by God of Himself and what He expects of His people, including the church. The Deuteronomy warning is addressed to the nation of Israel. The Revelation warning is addressed to the church (Rev. 22:16). There is evidence that some of the translators of the “new” Bibles found this passage a bit truer than they considered. Most of the people in this brief essay were probably aware of the ramifications of changing the words of the Bible, and the warnings in the Bible itself. God is not patient with those who alter the word of God. Let me give you some examples of consequences of men who tried this.
KENNETH TAYLOR
Mr. Taylor was the director of Moody Press in Chicago, considered one of the more conservative and fundamental publishing concerns. He would read the Bible with his family after evening meal and have evening prayer. Mr. Taylor had struggled with his children not understanding the King James Bible, mainly because of what he considered archaic English. He began to “paraphrase” the scriptures for his children. His word was eventually published by Tyndale House-Doubleday Publishing. At first, he was not able to gain interest in his work until Billy Graham ordered 50,000 copies in 1965. Once the word began to spread of the easy readability of the “new” edition of the Bible, sales escalated dramatically. One interesting event connected with this new Bible is stated by Time Magazine, July 24, 1972, which says, “Mysteriously, halfway through the paraphrase, Taylor lost his voice, and still speaks only in a hoarse whisper. A psychiatrist who examined him suggested that the voice failure was Taylor's psychological self-punishment for tampering with what he believed to be the word of God.”
OTHERS
B. F. Westcott. There is evidence that others had the same experience. The major leader of the development of the new Greek text in 1882, Brooke Foss Westcott, was almost inaudible to those he spoke to in the convocations he spoke and was “inaudible to many of the boys.”
J. B. Phillips. This man was the translator of The New Testament in Modern English for Schools. This was the result of translating several Bible books because the people of his church had difficulty reading the King James Bible. This culminated in the translation of the entire New Testament. In his autobiography he stated, “I was still doing a fair measure of speaking in schools and churches until the late summer of 1961. And then, quite suddenly, my speaking, writing, and communicating powers stopped.”
Some people might say, this is purely circumstantial. That may be true but, interestingly, God made the statement in Revelation 22:18-19 how serious a matter it was to try and alter God’s word. We believe that the King James Bible is the “preserved” word of God in English (Psalm 12:6-7) and we have a responsibility to not alter it to fit our needs or lifestyle.
SOME EXAMPLES OF GOD’S WORD BEING CHANGED
Here are a few examples of how man has tried to change and delete the words of God.
Colossians 1:14
The bold sections in the passages below have been deleted by the “new” translations.
KJV: Colossians 1:14 (KJV) In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.
ASV: Colossians 1:14 (ASV) in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins. The following translations have the same translation: NIV, ESV, NASB, et al. The NKJV has a note here with this phrase which says, “NU, M omit through His blood.”
1 John 5:7-8
KJV: 1 John 5:7-8 (KJV) 7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one. (Remember, the “Word” is Jesus Christ, John 1:1). This is a clear statement of the Trinity, God, Son, and Holy Ghost. New translations omit it.
ESV: 1 John 5:7–8 (ESV) 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. The two verses in the KJV has 191 words (no spaces), while the ESV has 79 word (no spaces). That is a difference of 112 words missing in the ESV.
Galatians 1:15
KJV: Galatians 1:15 (KJV) But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace.
ESV: Galatians 1:15 (ESV) But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace.
2 Corinthians 10:4
KJV: 2 Corinthians 10:4 (KJV) (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds😉
ESV: 2 Corinthians 10:4 (ESV) For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. [The word “divine” is defined as “relating to a god, especially the Supreme Being” or can mean “a theologian; scholar of religion.” Some organizations use the word “Supreme Being” and it means the one that is your god, i.e., Alcohol Anonymous, et al.
Luke 4:4
KJV: Luke 4:4 (KJV) And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.
ESV: Luke 4:4 (ESV) And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.’” [Note: The KJV in Matthew 4:4 has “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” The ESV has in Matthew 4:4, “But he answered, ‘It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” The new translations seem to have some verses right but the difference in the two passages of the same event causes some confusion.]
Luke 2:33
KJV: Luke 2:33 (KJV) And Joseph and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him.
ESV: Luke 2:33 (ESV) And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. The ESV and others, translation of this verse remove the fact that Jesus was the “Son of God’ meaning he was conceived of the Holy Spirit and was “God in the flesh” (John 1:1, 14, 18; 1 Timothy 3:16). The same is with the next passage.
Luke 2:43
Luke 2:43 (KJV) And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it.
Luke 2:43 (ESV) And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it. This makes Joseph the father of Jesus, thus not God in the flesh, the “Son of God.” No, God was His father (Matthew 1:18, 20; cf. Isaiah 7:14).
Eastland Baptist Church has a doctrinal statement that says that we believe the Bible translated in the King James Bible is the “preserved word of God” (Psalm 12:6-7) for today. The study above demonstrates the difference between two manuscripts of the Greek text, translated into English. The King James Bible was brought to its final form with the Authorized Version of 1611, the King James Bible. It stood for over 371 years (1611-1882) before another translation challenged its authority, the English Revised Version. The New Testament was translated and published in 1882 by a committee who used a Greek text that was not the Textus Receptus (first published in 1516) which was used to translate the Luther Bible in German (1522); The Tyndale Bible in English (1526); the Valera Spanish Bible (1569). These Bibles were translated from the Greek text called the Textus Receptus. There was other translations
The Errors of Mathematics, Revelation 22:18-19. This warning has some serious implications. God talks about “adding” words and “subtraction” which are exercises of math, yet the activity noted has consequences when mistakes are made. We have seen a brief example of this earlier, yet there are some attempts at changing the Word of God, but God is serious about the procedure of making the Bible say or fail to say what God wants mankind to know.
The first sentence of this section should be taken seriously. It says, “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book. . .” One commentator makes an important comment. He says, “. . .every. . .emphasizes the responsibility each individual has who hears this book read.” The Bible is a supernatural book and conveys the spiritual instruction that is necessary for a person, first, gain eternal life, and second, learn to live the life of a believer that honors God and brings glory to Him. We dare not treat the Bible as an ordinary book. It is the words of the Living God, the creator of the universe and man. We should take care with what God has said and not try to alter it to fit our preconceived idea.
THE FITTING BENEDICTION
20 He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.