Understanding the King James Bible Its Mystery & History Letter By Letter

Reviews

New Age Bible Versions Reviews

WHAT others are saying…

“Thanks for your tedious labor of love in producing this monumental book on the New Age versions. We gave the book to folks in strategic positions and will mail out the flyers to intelligent believers. I call the KJV the real NIV – Never Improved Version.”

Leonard Ravenhill

Why Revival Tarries

“We were diehard NIV users for years, but this book convinced us otherwise.”

Mary Pride

Practical Homeschooling Magazine

“A monumental piece of research work! I’ve sent copies to over a dozen skeptics and none have come up with any substantial arguments against Riplinger’s work.”

Dr. Gerardus Bouw

Biblical Astronomer

“[After the Bible] It may be the most important book ever written.”

Texe Marrs

“Riplinger…collated word-for-word contrasts and comparisons between the King James and the new versions.”

Christianity Today

“[We] strongly recommend the purchase of the book New Age Bible Versions.”

Canadian Council of Evangelical Protestant Churches

“Brilliantly written, it reveals a genius of research into the most popular versions of the Bible…a fascinating study, very welcomed…it is hard to put down.”

Sword of the Lord

“A devastating appraisal of the behind the scenes manipulation of the word of God by apostate individuals.”

Christian Media

In Awe of Thy Word Reviews

WHAT others are saying…

Dr. James Sightler, M.D., pediatrician and author, from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, the nations #1 medical school, prompted by his 36 year career observing linguistic development, highly recommends the linguistic and historical research in In Awe of Thy Word. He writes:

My wholehearted endorsement is given to Dr. Gail Riplinger’s new book, In Awe of Thy Word. Its subtitle, Understanding the King James Bible, Its History and Mystery, Letter by Letter, tells us that it is concerned with the smallest elements of language as it is conveyed by the Bible, with the alphabet itself and simple phonemes. The book expounds the use of these in the Bible as no other book has ever done. The very smallest of these elements, letters, vowels, consonants, and syllables, were given to us by God. The nature of the letters and syllables and their arrangement into sequences are crucial to making the meaning of words and passages intelligible to us, so that they stand alone without need of lexicon or commentary.

In this new book Dr. Riplinger ingeniously, with both text and graphics, illustrates many examples of the precise and metrical combination of syllables and words in the King James Bible into poetic orders which naturally capture and hold our attention and are sublime in character. She has shown with many previously unreported quotes exactly what Wycliffe, Tyndale, and Coverdale believed about the vernacular nature and inspiration of the Bible. There is a complete recounting of the true thought of Erasmus, his feelings about vernacular Bibles, and his attitude toward the Roman Church. The breadth of information supplied is truly remarkable, and we are greatly indebted to her for her work.

click here to read the whole testimony

Dr. James Sightler, M.D., pediatrician and author, from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, the nations #1 medical school, prompted by his 36 year career observing linguistic development, highly recommends the linguistic and historical research in In Awe of Thy Word. He writes:

My wholehearted endorsement is given to Dr. Gail Riplinger’s new book, In Awe of Thy Word. Its subtitle, Understanding the King James Bible, Its History and Mystery, Letter by Letter, tells us that it is concerned with the smallest elements of language as it is conveyed by the Bible, with the alphabet itself and simple phonemes. The book expounds the use of these in the Bible as no other book has ever done. The very smallest of these elements, letters, vowels, consonants, and syllables, were given to us by God. The nature of the letters and syllables and their arrangement into sequences are crucial to making the meaning of words and passages intelligible to us, so that they stand alone without need of lexicon or commentary.

There is an important word which applies to these small elements of language and to their combination into understandable syllables and words. That word is prosody. The dictionary definition is “the art of versification and the study of metrical (rhythmic) structure, rhyme, and stanza forms.” The word is from the Middle English, prosodie, and, before that, from an ancient Greek word, prosodi, which means song sung to music and has the connotation of accent. Remember that the entire Old Testament, given in Hebrew in metrical form, was meant to be sung, and that the notation of the singing is specified in the accents embedded in the Hebrew text. The versification of the Old Testament is also embedded in the text. God intended His words to be given to us in a poetic and musical form. Why?

Ordinary prose writing, the dull voice of man’s wisdom, cannot match the richness of speech that we find in preaching or the beauty of poetry and cannot duplicate their effect on our hearts. A speaker can communicate meaning and message by stress, pitch, meter, and pauses, melodic speech if you will. Therefore, in order to achieve, in writing, the richness and full meaning of speech, prosody and meter, which are poetic, must be made intrinsic to the writing. That kind of writing, because it is memorable and naturally suited to our minds, has the power to stabilize and preserve language. The greatest richness, beauty, poetry, and power in all literature is given to us in the inspired King James Bible and only in that singular revelation.

An infant hears its mother speak while it is still in the womb. Its rearing begins before it is placed in its mother’s arms. By at least one month of age the child can recognize the voice of its own mother as different from that of other women. The effortless and natural building of language by infants is made possible by a vocal scaffold. That scaffold is the universal sing-song “baby talk” or “motherese” by which mothers, the world over, with biblical natural affection, speak to their infants. Motherese is characterized by a high pitched voice, trochaic rhythm with accent on the first of two syllables, and an increase in duration of the first syllable. Mothers “speak comfortably unto” their children, in a “soft answer,” and in so doing give them peace and rest. They give them “vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope.” Fathers also do this in a different and more authoritative, but still important, way. Both father and mother are required for successful teaching and rearing of infants.

Prosody in the speech of the mother and father gives cues to the infant which it can recognize and retain, certainly before the age of 9 months. Prosodic cues enable the infant to organize and encode what is heard, and they serve as a basis for later acquisition of syntax, that is, the arrangement of words into phrases and sentences. Upon these prosodic “pegs” are later “hung” the syntax that the infant naturally acquires and the meanings of words and their proper placement in sequence in a phrase or sentence.

God made us, alone among all His creatures, with minds and vocal anatomy meant for language. It develops naturally and without formal teaching. At a very early time, before the age of two years, a child can combine words into meaningful phrases and sentences which are not simply copied but are used properly to express things the child has not heard before.

But even though we grow to maturity and may think ourselves free from needing the simple comforts of prosody and poetry, we still must have them, as much as children and as long as life lasts. We who think ourselves wise must become as little children and be spoken comfortably unto; we also need vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope; we need the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort to heal the brokenhearted.

In this new book Dr. Riplinger ingeniously, with both text and graphics, illustrates many examples of the precise and metrical combination of syllables and words in the King James Bible into poetic orders which naturally capture and hold our attention and are sublime in character. She has shown with many previously unreported quotes exactly what Wycliffe, Tyndale, and Coverdale believed about the vernacular nature and inspiration of the Bible. There is a complete recounting of the true thought of Erasmus, his feelings about vernacular Bibles, and his attitude toward the Roman Church. The breadth of information supplied is truly remarkable, and we are greatly indebted to her for her work.

Greer, South Carolina
July 1, 2004
James H. Sightler, M.D.
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Class of 1968
Diplomate, American Board of Pediatrics

Author, David W. Daniels, has Masters and Bachelors degrees in Linguistics and Theology, with three additional summers studying at the Summer Institute of Linguistics. He reviewed In Awe of the Word saying,

“Riplinger’s new book is a weighty volume and provides more overwhelming evidence of how God went about preserving his words in the KJV….Riplinger’s evidence is powerful, early testimony of the purity of the KJV….Citing hundreds of passages from documents largely ignored by historians, Riplinger proves that a pure version of the scriptures was agreed upon as early as 100 A.D. and copies began to follow trade routes north and west as missionaries took up the great commission.”

Bestselling author and former University of Texas professor, Texe Marrs, writes regarding In Awe of Thy Word:

“This massive encyclopedic work demolishes the false claims of those who oppose and attempt to besmirch the King James Verions of the Holy Bible…In Awe of Thy Word adeptly answers hundreds of questions you may have about the KJV…Like New Age Bible Versions before it, this book, too, will prove to be a classic!”

The world’s largest KJV bookstore is directed by Dwight Gullion. He comments concerning In Awe of Thy Word:

“The new book by G.A. Riplinger is the most unique in this field that I have ever encountered…It must be seen to be believed…Reading this book has given me a greater love, appreciation , and desire for God’s word. It will for you too.”

British and European Parliament member, the venerable Ian Paisley, posted this reader-comment on his website:

“If you haven’t picked up Gail Riplinger’s “In Awe of Thy Word,” it’s one of the best $25.00 I have ever spent. The last half of the book gives research that is invaluable.”

Harvard linguist, translator, and Divinity School graduate, Dr. John Hinton Ph.D., writes:

“In conclusion, In Awe of Thy Word is a valuable contribution to the body of works defending our King James Bible. I, for one, learned a great deal by studying its pages, and expect to make much use of both it and the CD set as a reference sources in the future.” …

click here to read the whole testimony

Harvard linguist, translator, and Divinity School graduate, Dr. John Hinton Ph.D., writes:

A Review of G.A. Riplinger’s In Awe of Thy Word by John Hinton, Ph.D. (Bible Restoration Ministry)

G.A. Riplinger’s most recent book, In Awe of Thy Word, contains close to 1200 pages that are filled with valuable information for anyone interested in gaining a better understanding of the King James Bible issue. It is written in a style that displays the author’s own love of the English language, as well as her love for God’s word. A matter that Riplinger has dealt with in all of her books on the King James Bible, and one with which she may deal better than any other author of which I am aware, is in regard to the spiritual dimensions of understanding the Bible.

Translating the Bible requires three elements: deep knowledge of the source languages, knowledge of the target language, which entails the skills of a wordsmith, and the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Translating with the first two elements alone may produce an accurate translation of many of the verses, however, without the Holy Spirit, the translation will not only foul up a large percentage of them, but it will lack spiritual depth, and it will not work together as a whole unit. In other words, it will be full of contradictions, be confused on important theological issues, and it will fail to reflect the prophetic insight that is inherent in the Bible. As Riplinger points out, this is the reason that the modern versions fall short of being real Bibles. The Bible is a spiritually discerned book, as she has said in more than one place. Her New Age Bible Versions accurately describes the nature of these new version translators.

As a Harvard Divinity School graduate, I can testify that these modern seminaries and biblical studies programs are not only full of apostates, but socialists, abortion supporters, sexual perversion advocates, practicing sodomites and lesbians, radical feminists, witches, New Agers, and atheists. Expecting spiritual discernment from such people would be insanity. Comparing biographies of the new version translators to the biographies of the KJV translators that she provides in In Awe of Thy Word, would make the magnitude of this insanity even more clear. In Awe of Thy Word, Riplinger asserts, quite correctly, that we must look to the Holy Spirit to guide us to an understanding of the words of the Bible, and that the very definition of individual words are to be found within the text itself.

Although I dearly love the Hebrew language, and have some liking for Greek, I strongly concur with Riplinger’s astute observation that our knowledge of Biblical words must come from the King James Bible itself and not from lexicons, dictionaries and commentaries As she states in several places, these manmade reference materials are often the products of corrupt and misguided men, unlike our Holy Bible, which is pure. She does, however, acknowledge the value of using good English dictionaries that reflect the language of King James era English.

The overall structure of In Awe of Thy Word is twofold. First, it presents detailed linguistic discussions concerning the superior readability of King James English and how the word choices, meter, and sentence structure help to improve its understandability, eloquence, and the ease at which it is memorized. Riplinger devotes much attention to linguistic theories concerning the meanings of individual letters, or phonemes, in the English language and how they help define and clarify the words used by the KJV. As a philologist I am not sure that I accept all of the theoretical ramifications of these theories, but she has provided a powerful mnemonic tool for dealing with the language of the KJV. Riplinger has peaked my interest and inspired me to look deeper into the English language and the deeper significance that may be built into its earlier vocabulary.

Riplinger has given the most thorough discussion of the metrical nature of the KJV that I have seen, and has shown how its meter has aided its memorization. She he has shown that the KJV has perfected the work started by earlier English Bible translators in this regard. She also has demonstrated that the modern versions have gone in the opposite direction by ruining the metrical tone of the Bible, thereby making it more difficult to read and memorize.

Second, In Awe of Thy Word traces the history of the English Bible from its earliest stages to its culmination and perfection with the KJV, and she shows how this development was a fulfillment of God’s promise to preserve his word and to purify it seven times (Psalm 12:6). She does not, however, stop with English, but traces the history of God’s word through the ages to counter the attacks of Bible scoffing apostates who ask where the pure word of God was before 1611. The Bibles that developed from the Antioch tradition have general agreement in regard to opposing the variant readings found in the texts of the Alexandrian tradition and ultimately they find their culmination in the Bible of the world’s modern lingua franca, which is English.

She effectively counters the false claim that the Bible was passed down to us through the Latin Vulgate, and shows how it was preserved through the Old Latin Bible, as well as through Bibles in Gothic, Old English, Middle English, and through several other European languages before it found its final culmination in the King James Bible. Having spent many long hours studying Bibles in many early European languages, including Gothic, I am able to judge for myself that her assessments are accurate.

Riplinger presents valuable discussions of the King James Bible translators, King James himself, earlier Bible translators, and Erasmus. The discussion of Erasmus does much to dispel many of the falsehoods that are spread about this great Christian. Riplinger puts great emphasis on the deceitful nature of many of the translations of the works of Erasmus from Latin, which attempt to portray him as a practicing Roman Catholic.

Another valuable section of the book is a lengthy discussion of the name Jehovah and the origins of the false name of God, Yahweh. I have long been irritated by hearing God’s name being perverted by Identity and other New Age cultists when this name was one that was invented by atheists who wished to attack the truth of Scripture. I was delighted to see someone finally address the issue of the “w” in Yahweh. There is no “w” in Hebrew. The so called waw to which so many non-Hebraicists make reference is pronounced vav, and should, in fact, be written that way, and usually is. Yahweh is not even a possible pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton. There are other aspects of the name of God that could have been addressed, but nevertheless, this chapter alone contains enough valuable information to have made my reading of the book worthwhile.

The CD-ROM version of In Awe of Thy Word, in addition to the book itself, contains a fantastic collection of texts that include the Nuremberg Polyglot of 1599, which has parallel translations in 12 different languages, a KJV search program, The Tome of the Paraphrases of Erasmus upon the New Testament, and the complete Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, which is nearly 6,000 pages long. Any one of these alone is worth the price of the CD. If more Christians were to consider Riplinger’s wise words on the issue of accepting the Bible as their final authority, rather than allowing it to be defined by corrupt and depraved men, far fewer would be, “tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive” [Eph 4:14]. Riplinger’s thesis that an understanding of the Bible comes through spiritual discernment and by letting the Bible define its own words is one that all Christians should follow, no matter what their level of education might be.

In conclusion, In Awe of Thy Word is a valuable contribution to the body of works defending our King James Bible. I, for one, learned a great deal by studying its pages, and expect to make much use of both it and the CD set as reference sources in the future.

[Dr. Hinton holds a Masters from Harvard Divinity School in Near Eastern and South Asian Studies, a B.A. in Arabic, Summa cum laude with Honors and Distinction, 2nd major in South Asian Studies, Minor in Persian, with an International Studies Certificate from the Ohio State University. Having been a Ph.D student in the Near Eastern Languages Department of Harvard University, Dr. Hinton is now a professional translator in Arabic, Persian, Hindi, Urdu and other languages for translation companies, attorneys and corporations. He is a scholar in virtually every language relevent to early biblical translation (Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, Samaritan, Coptic, Armenian, Georgian, Gothic, Latin, and Old English, as well as Spanish, French, Italian and German. He completed a “Year In India Program” in Benaris, India, where he studied Hindi, Urdu, Sanskrit and Arabic. He completed the Summer Intensive program in Hindi and Urdu at the University of Wisconsin, as well as a Summer Arabic program at Yarmouk Univeristy in Irbid, Jordan. He currently uses his linquistic training and skills in a linguistic-based ministry devoted to the translation and reprinting of King James equivalent Bibles throughout the world.]

Clemson University (retired English and Latin instructor), Polly Powell, writes regarding In Awe of Thy Word:

“You will find this a ‘hard to put down’ book.”

In Awe of Thy Word is an amazing accumulation, actually a collage of facts on the Authorized Bible (KJV) …

click here to read the whole testimony

Clemson University (retired English and Latin instructor), Polly Powell, writes regarding In Awe of Thy Word:

In Awe of Thy Word is an amazing accumulation, actually a collage of facts on the Authorized Bible (KJV). Passage comparisons with the newer corrupt translations and paraphrases, which are shockingly eye-opening, together with wonderful assurance of the correctness, precision and incomparable beauty of the KJV, are all here, as is an invaluable study of the lives of those responsible for the translation of the Authorized Bible, from Erasmus and James I, through the translators themselves.

The reader can clearly discern the vast differences between the lives of the paraphrasers and translations of the modern corrupt bible versions and those of the spiritual and scholarly giants of the King James Bible who, interestingly, wrote at a time when knowledge of the English language was at its height, who gave us a book timeless, holy, and supernatural, the word of God for the English-speaking people. You will find this a ‘hard to put down’ book.

Scientist, astronomer and Professor at Baldwin-Wallace University, Dr. Gerardus Bouw, Ph.D., reviewed In Awe of Thy Word for the internationally circulated journal, The Biblical Astronomer. His two page review begins by noting that the 1200 page book is certainly, “worthy of your attention.”

He closes his glowing review noting, “Watch the English language and its Holy Bible unfold before your very eyes,” says the advertisement. This is done by showing in red, the letters and sounds which bind the words of each successive Bible from the Gothic, Anglo-Saxon, pre-Wycliffe, Tyndale, Coverdale, Great, Geneva, and Bishops’ to the King James Bible. The book lives up to its hype.”

He adds, “An In Awe of Thy Word CD is also available in a 3 CD set with a searchable version of the book, plus the Nuremberg Polyglot of A.D. 1599, a parallel Bible in Greek, Hebrew, Syriac, Latin, Spanish, French, Italian, Danish, German, English, Polish, and Bohemian. As if that weren’t enough, the set also includes both volumes of the Erasmus commentary on the New Testament, The Tome of the Paraphrase of Erasmus upon the New Testament, with parallel text from the Great Bible of 1540. There is also a copy of the King James Bible, searchable by letter groups, word, or phrase. Finally, there is a copy of The Acts and Monuments by John Foxe, all eight volumes – nearly 6000 pages – of Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, originally written in 1563.”

Missionary to Japan and spearhead of the Japanese Bible Project, Larry Hagen, writes about In Awe of Thy Word:

“The resources, materials and research put into this writing, with the author’s wit, plainness, and labors, has to be the most amazing writing on the King James ever put together…This book will be a blessing to all…It is well worth the investment in purchasing and taking the time to read.”

Amazon.com gives In Awe of Thy Word a 5 star rating, noting the following review:

“God’s ways are far above our ways!, September 10, 2004
Reviewer: Gordon Hammerle “VoiceCrying” (Lebanon, OH USA) –

Wow! That’s what I’ve said on just about every page. When studying the Bible, throw away your dictionary – even the Webster 1828 – and your commentaries. Throw away your bible dictionaries. God built it all in. Compare scripture to scripture. Study the word to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed. This book does an excellent job on explaining how to determine the meaning of words by comparing them to other scriptures and not by looking them up in a dictionary made by human hands. Don’t be lazy – read this book and really learn how to study the word!”

Hazardous Materials Reviews

WHAT others are saying…

“This book takes you to the head of the stream, where you will see the men, standing with sticks in hand, stirring up the mud to cloud the pure water of God’s word, the King James Bible.”

Dr. Norris Belcher

College president and pastor

The Dictionary Inside the King James Bible Reviews

WHAT others are saying…

“Your efforts have certainly helped me greatly to further my understanding of “the scripture of truth” Daniel 10:21…Thank you again for your ground-breaking work… [and] for your extensive clarification of this term [Easter].

Dr. Alan O’Reilly

British University Professor, The Collected Works of Alan O’Reilly

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