Is the KJV Bbible the only real Bible?

The first time my son attempted to eat a banana by himself, he tried to do so with the skin still intact. I showed him how to peel off the inedible skin to get to the food within. What does this have to do with your question?

The original language of the Old Testament is mainly Biblical Hebrew; the New Testament, Greek. Today, the Bible has been translated into several languages. The English Language translation alone has several versions: KJV, NKJV, MSG, AMP, NASB, NIV, RSV, YLT, NLT and so on. Some people won't read any other version but KJV. Me, I was a New King James Version (NKJV) girl for a long, long time and wouldn't read any other. I very much prefer “has" to “hath.”

So let's take a look at some KJV/NKJV “banana skins.” Take Isaiah 53:4 for example. It's a part of Isaiah's prophecy about the suffering of Christ for our sake. The KJV says:

"Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows:.."

The NKJV makes it an easier read for me (has in place of hath):

“Surely He has borne our griefs

And carried our sorrows;”

Anyone reading the KJV or NKJV versions of this verse without the Holy Spirit taking off the "banana skins" might think it has got nothing to do with our physical healing. They make it seem like Christ only took care of our emotional troubles. Not so:

The word "griefs" from the KJV does not do justice to "kholee," the Hebrew word from which it was translated. "Kholee" means "sicknesses." 2483. חֹ֫לִי (choli) -- sickness

Christ bore our sicknesses so that we can have His perfect health.

Likewise the word "sorrows" from the same KJV verse - the Hebrew word it was translated from is "makob" and it means "pain."

4341. מַכְאוֹב (makob) -- pain

Ideally, the verse should read: "Surely our sicknesses he hath borne, And our pains -- he hath carried them,..." YLT.

Also see the Complete Jewish Bible: “In fact, it was our diseases he bore, our pains from which he suffered;”

YLT (Young's Literal Translation), CJB, AMPC and many other versions get it right. KJV and NKJV, not so much.

In addition, in Matthew 8, the Holy Spirit shows us that Isaiah's prophecy in Isaiah 53:4 goes beyond Christ bearing our griefs and sorrows only literally. His work in the context of this verse encompasses our physical healing - Matthew quoted the same Isaiah 53:4 in Matthew 8:17. See the context:

14 When Jesus came into Peter’s house, He saw Peter’s mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever. 15 He touched her hand and the fever left her, and she got up and began to wait on Him. 16 When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to Him, and He drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. 17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:

“He took up our infirmities

 and bore our diseases.”[a]

Many versions include a link [a] that takes you to Isaiah 53:4 where the quote is from.

Also the KJV of the popular Psalms 23. Verse 6 says-

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.”

The word "follow" does not do justice to "radaph," the Hebrew word that it was translated from. Radaph means “to pursue, to set off after someone in order to catch him.” 7291. רָדַף (radaph) -- to pursue, chase, persecute

See Strong's Exhaustive Concordance from the link above:

In the Bible, radaph is frequently used to describe the action of chasing down one's enemies or being chased down by them -like an enemy in hot pursuit! Relentlessly. This is how our Lord Jesus Christ’s goodness and mercy chase after us, actively hunting us down, pursuing us relentlessly through every facet of life, even as we like sheep, unwittingly and actively try to flee or dodge away. The Lord our Shepherd catches us and when He does, He blesses us; everyday!

“Follow" in the KJV and many other Bible versions don't quite convey the force ofthe word radaph. The Complete Jewish Bible (CJB) hits closer to home:

“Goodness and grace will pursue me every day of my life; and I will live in the house of Adonai for years and years to come.”

It's comforting to know that in Christ, God's goodness and mercy are always hunting us down, even as we inadvertently try to dodge and escape from Him:)

There are also instances where the KJV is among the Bible versions that completely reflect the orginal Greek and Hebrew meanings of Bible verses where other versions do not, but this post is getting too long:)

The entire Bible is like a perfect embroidery with no loose ends, all the books, chapters and verses interconnected, making sense and giving life as a whole to all who believe and only through God’s Wisdom for all who believe - Grace Himself: Jesus Christ. Whatever version of God's word rocks your boat, it's just as good as any other version as long as the Holy Spirit is the one giving revelation and understanding.

It doesn't really matter what version of the Bible we are into. What matters is Who is into us- Jesus Christ. So ask our Lord God to open your eyes of understanding to see the truth about how much we are loved, accepted and blessed in Christ in His word. In Him, we have the Holy Spirit to teach us all things, including how take off “banana skins" of imperfect translations and any other issues that we may have with any of the Bible versions that exist.