Is the NIV the Word of God?
COPYRIGHT ©1998 - James M. Frye
All scripture quotations are taken
from the Authorized King James Bible. Any deviations are not intentional. All
underlines, bold and words within brackets are the author's.
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Getting
Started
I would like to begin by saying
that I believe that the Bible is the word of God. The question is,
however, which Bible? To many of you who are reading this article, the answer
to the question "Is the New International Version (NIV) the Word of
God?" may appear to be simple. "Of course the NIV is the word of
God", you might say. "And so are the New American Standard Version
(NASV), the New King James Version (NKJV) and the Living Bible (LB)",
along with a host of other new Bible versions that you might name. But is the
answer to this question as simple as it might first appear? It is the purpose
of this article to answer this question.
It is beyond the scope of this
article to examine all of the various new Bible versions available today. For
the sake of space, I will limit myself to the NIV. As for the rest, we will
reserve them for future articles.
A Look
at the Issue
I used to go to a church where
it was common practice to quote from a variety of Bible translations. The
pastor would often say, "The NIV says ..., the NASV says ... - Who has the
King James?", etc. During church one morning, the
teacher was reading John 5:4. The King James Bible (KJB) says:
For an
angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water:
whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole
of whatsoever disease he had.
And then the teacher made a
statement that caused me to freeze in my tracks (pew). I think my chin must
have hit the floor. He said, "For some reason, the NIV has left this verse
out". I was shocked. I went and checked a copy of the NIV that I had at
home, and sure enough, the verse was missing. This and other similar events
caused me to realize that all Bible versions are not the same.
Up until this time, I had
believed that the only difference between the NIV and the King James Bible was that
the NIV was supposed to be easier to read and to understand. Boy was I wrong. I
knew that I needed to look into the matter further. By the grace of God, I was
able to do just that. The information contained in this article represents some
of the information that resulted from that study.
They
Can’t Both Be Right
It is the purpose of this
section to show that the difference between the Authorized King James Bible
(KJB) and the NIV are irreconcilable. That is, they both can’t be right. For
example, In Isaiah 9:3, the KJB says:
Thou
hast multiplied the nation, and not increased the joy ...
The NIV says:
You
have enlarged the nation and increased their joy
You will notice that the main
difference, apart from the rewording of the text, is that the KJB has the word not
and the NIV doesn’t. So, the KJB says that God has not increased their
joy. The NIV says that God has increased their joy.
You might find yourself saying,
"Is it really that big of a difference? After all, we are only talking
about one word here." I chose this verse to establish a point: They (the
KJB and NIV) say the exact opposite. If one is right, then the other one is
wrong. We can’t possibly say that they are both correct. Did God increase their
joy or not? Which words did God give to the prophet Isaiah? (2 Tim. 3:16; 2
Pet. 1:20-21)
As I stated in the beginning of
this article, many people operate under the false assumption that all Bible
versions are the Word of God - despite the fact that they disagree with each
other. Are we to suppose that God has written more than one Bible and that He
makes statements in one and then disagrees with them in another? - Of course
not. God only wrote one Bible.
I’ve actually shown the
difference in Isaiah 9:3 to people and had them refuse
to admit that they both can’t be right. Please understand that we need to have
an open mind, absolute humility, and a sincere desire for the truth. People may
think, "Well, my church uses the NIV, and if I believe this ...", or
"I just don’t want to make waves." But, understand, to avoid conflict
at all cost is not to be the attitude of a Christian. We should rather stand
for the truth regardless of the conflict that arises from it. (Jude 3; John
15:20; Luke 12:51; 2 Tim. 3:12)
Our attitude toward this matter
should be the same as God’s. Revelation 22:18-19 says:
For I
testify unto every man that heareth the words
of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall
add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
And if
any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God
shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and
from the things which are written in this book.
God is angry with those who
change His words. He promises plagues to those who add to them, and loss from one’s part in the Book of Life for those
who subtract from them. In case you think it is just the book of Revelation
that God is concerned about, God places similar rebukes against changing his
words in Deuteronomy 4:2 and Proverbs 30:6. One rebuke is in the beginning of
the Bible, one in the middle, and one at the end. It is his words that
God is concerned about - not just where they are located. So we should have the
same attitude about this issue as God has.
1 Peter 1:16 says:
... BE
YE HOLY; FOR I AM HOLY.
Surely this applies, not only
to our actions, but also to our attitudes. If God takes the changing of his words
seriously, so then should we. If it angers God, it should anger us. There is a
righteous and an unrighteous anger. (See Mark 3:5 and Eph. 4:26) Sometimes it
is wrong (a sin) not to be angry.
Seeing
It for Yourself
So far, we have looked at just
a few problems with the NIV - a missing word here and a missing verse there.
But the problem is much greater than just a word or a verse.
For starters, try finding the
following verses in the NIV:
Matthew 17:21; 18:11; 23:14.
Mark 7:16; 9:44; 9:46; 11:26;
15:28.
Luke 17:36; 23:17; John 5:4.
Acts 8:37; 15:34; 24:7; 28:29.
Romans 16:24 and 1 John 5:7.
They are not there. They have
been removed entirely. Now I ask you, what kind of Bible is it that leaves out
entire verses? What did these verses say? Among other things, they say that: Jesus
came to save the lost, that hell is a place where their worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched, and that a
person must be a believer in order to be baptized.
In the last verse (1 John 5:7),
the NIV is very deceptive, for it does have a verse 7, but it is really part of
verse 8. Verse 8 has been split into two verses in the NIV (verses 7 and 8) so
that you won’t know that the real verse 7 is missing. 1 John 5:8 (KJB)
says:
And
there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the
blood: and these three agree in one.
The NIV splits this verse into
two verses: In verse 7, it says:
For
there are three that testify (bear witness)
In verse 8, it says:
the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three
are in agreement.
The true verse 7 has been
removed. In the
KJB, verse 7 says:
For
there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy
Ghost: and these three are one.
This is no insignificant verse.
This is the clearest statement of the doctrine of the Trinity in the entire
Bible. Is this verse unimportant? Would God want it removed?
But the problems with the NIV
do not stop there. In addition to the verses that have been omitted entirely,
thousands of verses have partial omissions. Many who
have studied this issue in much greater detail than I, have stated that the
missing words are in excess of 64,000 - not counting the additions.
Remember what God said about those who take away from or add to his words (Rev.
22:18-19)?
Let me give you a few examples
of verses that contain these kinds of omissions. In the KJB, the Lord’s Prayer
reads in Luke 11:2-4 as follows:
Our
Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy
kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. Give
us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive
every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but
deliver us from evil.
The underlined portions are
missing in the NIV. In Matthew 27:35, the KJB says:
And
they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be
fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, THEY PARTED MY GARMENTS AMONG THEM,
AND UPON MY VESTURE DID THEY CAST LOTS.
Again, the underlined portions
are missing in the NIV, hiding the fact that this verse is a fulfillment of
Psalm 22:18. A full 26 words have been omitted this time.
Substantial portions have been
removed from hundreds of verses in addition to these. Many key words have also
been removed. For example, the word "Christ" has been removed dozens
of times. (Rom. 1:16; Acts 16:31; etc.) The word "Jesus" has been
removed dozens of times (Matt. 8:29; 2 Cor. 5:18; etc.). The word
"Lord" has also been removed in a number of places.
Are
There Errors in God’s Word?
John 17:17 says:
Sanctify
them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
In addition to the omissions in
the NIV, one of its most disturbing problems is the fact that it contains many
outright errors. For example, who killed Goliath? I know that the answer to
this question seems obvious - David, right? Well, it’s not so obvious in the
NIV. In 2 Samuel 21:19 the NIV says:
In
another battle with the Philistines at Gob, Elhanan son of Jaare-Oregim the Bethlehemite killed
Goliath the Gittite, who had a spear with a shaft
like a weaver’s rod.
The KJB has the correct
reading, for it says that Elhanan killed Goliath’s brother. This is confirmed
in 1 Chronicles 20:5. The KJB says:
And
there was war again with the Philistines; and Elhanan the son of Jair slew
Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, whose spear staff was like a weaver’s beam.
Once again, the NIV is in
error. It is also seen to conflict with itself, for it says David killed
Goliath in 1 Sam. 21:8-9.
One of the most disturbing
changes occurs in Isaiah 14:12. The KJB says:
How art
thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer ...
This passage records Satan’s
(Lucifer’s) rebellion against God, and how he was cast out of Heaven.
The NIV says:
How you
have fallen from heaven, O morning star ...
In this passage, "Lucifer"
has been changed to "Morning Star". This is frightening
because the Bible defines the Morning Star as Jesus Christ. Revelation 22:16
says:
I Jesus have sent mine angel to
testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the
offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
In the NIV, it is Jesus Christ
(the Morning Star) and not Satan that rebelled against God and was cast out of
heaven. That is outright blasphemy. Satan has pulled off quite a disappearing
act. Not only has he been removed from the text, Jesus Christ has been inserted
in his place.
I think, by this point, many of
you are beginning to see that there are some very serious problems with the
NIV. Let’s look at a few more errors. Matthew 5:22 in the KJB says:
But I
say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause
shall be in danger of the judgment ..
The phrase, without a cause,
has been removed in the NIV. This would make Jesus Christ a sinner in Mark 3:5,
where the Bible says that he was angry. The NIV implies that Jesus is a sinner,
despite the fact that the Bible says that he never sinned and is without sin (2
Cor. 5:21; Heb. 4:15).
We find another error in Mark
1:2. The NIV says:
It is
written in Isaiah the prophet: "I will send my messenger ahead of you, who
will prepare your way"
This is actually a quotation of
Malachi 3:1. The King James has the proper reading, for it says "as it is
written in the prophets". Verse 2 is quoting Malachi, and Verse 3
is quoting Isaiah.
Doctrinal
Differences
Many of the changes in the NIV,
including some that we have already looked at, affect doctrine. For example,
the deity of Christ (the fact that Jesus Christ is God) is attacked in a number
of places. One example is 1 Timothy 3:16.
The KJB says:
And
without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest
in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the
Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
The NIV has changed "God"
to "He". This is a big
difference. In this verse, the KJB clearly states that Jesus Christ is God, and
in the NIV it does not.
Many times I have heard those
who support the NIV say, "No doctrine is affected by the changes in the
new Bible versions." We have just seen that it is. What they really
mean is that no doctrine has been removed entirely. That is, there is still
another verse in the Bible somewhere that teaches the doctrine. So then,
they believe it is perfectly OK to remove a doctrine in one place as long as
they do not obliterate it entirely.
By this same logic, would it be
OK with God if we removed the entire Gospel of Mark? After all, most of the
doctrines taught in Mark are also taught in Matthew or Luke. No. This is faulty
reasoning, and there is no excuse to remove even one word from God’s words.
In the KJB in Luke 4:4,
Jesus says:
... MAN
SHALL NOT LIVE BY BREAD ALONE, BUT BY EVERY WORD OF GOD.
By the way, "BUT BY
EVERY WORD OF GOD" has been removed in the NIV. If you want to have
the words of God, EVERY WORD OF GOD, get a copy of the Authorized King
James Bible.
Summary
So, is the NIV the Word of God?
We have seen omissions ranging from one word to entire verses. We have seen
errors ranging from misquoting a prophet, to the removal of Lucifer (Satan) and
the insertion of Jesus Christ in his place. We have even seen changes affecting
the doctrine of the deity of Christ. After examining the evidence, could you
say that the NIV is the Word of God? Could you call the NIV "HOLY BIBLE?"