(RNS) In the days before spell check, printer errors occasionally crept
into the King James Version of the Bible. Here are some of the most
notable:
-- In a 1612 edition, Psalm 119:161 read "Printers have persecuted
me without cause," instead of "princes." Perhaps a Freudian slip by the
copy editor.
-- A 1631 edition now called the "Wicked Bible" had Exodus 20:14 as
"Thou shall commit adultery." The printers were heavily fined for this
lascivious mistake.
-- In 1653, an edition rendered I Corinthians 6:9 as "Know ye not
that the unrighteous shall inherit the kingdom of God?" They will not,
according to later (corrected) editions.
-- A 1682 KJV refers to the "Parable of the Vinegar," instead of
"vineyard," and was subsequently dubbed the "Vinegar Bible." Sour grapes
either way for the printers.
-- A 1795 edition has Jesus exhorting his followers, "Let the
children first be killed," instead of "filled," that is, fed. Talk about
suffering the little children.
Sources: "In the Beginning," by Alister McGrath, and "Bible: The
Story of the King James Version 1611-2011," by Gordon Campbell.
