Revised English Bible

In 1974, the Joint Committee of the Churches, which had produced the New English Bible, decided to begin a major revision of the text. By this time, there were changes in the composition of the Joint Committee. The Roman Catholic Church, with representatives from the hierarchies of England and Wales, of Scotland, and of Ireland, entered into full membership. The United Reformed Church, which was a recent union of the Presbyterian Church of England and the Congregational Church, was represented. Then representatives of the Salvation Army and the Moravian Church joined the committee.

The best available texts of both Testaments were used. Care was taken to ensure that the style of English used be fluent and of dignity for liturgical use, while maintaining intelligibility for all ages and backgrounds. Complex or technical terms were avoided, where possible. There was care that sentence structure and word order would facilitate congregational reading, without misrepresenting the meaning of the original text. “Thou” in addressing God has been replaced by you. A more inclusive gender reference than the male-oriented language was preferred. A more extensive use of textual sub-headings in italics has been used. These are not to be considered part of the text. The traditional verse numbering of the Authorized Version has been retained. Passages that appear in the manuscripts used for the Authorized Version but left out of the Revised English Bible have been reproduced in footnotes. Some modern equivalents of ancient terms are used.

The Joint Committee commends this version with humility, but with confidence that God has yet new light and truth to break forth from his word. The publishers consider the Revised English Bible to be a radical revision of the New English Bible.

Genesis 1: 1, 2
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was a vast waste, darkness covered the deep, and the Spirit of God hovered over the surface of the water.

John 1: 1 – 3
In the beginning the Word already was. The Word was in God’s presence, and what God was, the Word was. He was with God at the beginning, and through him all things came to be; without him no created thing came into being.

The following comparative studies include this version:

1. Epistle of James
2. From Eternity or From Ancient Times?
3. Falsifying Scribes
4. Fringe on the Borders of a Garment
5. God So Loved the World
6. Hebrew Poetry in the Bible
7. Hebrew Synoptic Gospels
8. Horses from Egypt and Kue
9. Israelites and Baal-Peor
10. Letters of Paul
11. Lord Is My Shepherd: An Anthology
12. Miracle at Cana
13. Offering Sacrifices to the He-Goat
14. Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread
15. Sabbaths and Sundown
16. Scripture Inspired by God
17. Sides of the Court of the Tabernacle
18. Some Variations in the Book of Acts
19. Song of Solomon
20. Speech Problem of Moses
21. Story of the Adultress
22. That Which Will Happen Before the End
23. Those Who Work Iniquity
24. Words with Heathen Origins in the Scriptures