Mark Ward vs. Daniel Haifley: Is the KJV Sufficiently Intelligible for Readers? Debate Review 1 of 2

Mark Ward and Daniel Haifley debated the topic “The King James Version is sufficiently intelligible to contemporary English readers" on October 21, 2024. The debate sponsors were the King James Only school Dayspring Bible College & Seminary and InGrace, ministries of the King James Bible Only Quentin Road Baptist Church of Lake Zurich, IL, pastored by Jim Scudder, Jr. Both Dr. Daniely Haifley and the debate hosts are associated with the King James Bible Research Council. Mark Ward is the author of the book Authorized: The Use & Misuse of the King James Bible, ed. Elliot Ritzema, Lynnea Fraser, and Danielle Thevenaz (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2018).

The debate would be of interest to fundamentalist and evangelical advocates of modern English Bible versions, including graduates of Bob Jones University (BJU), the alma mater of Dr. Mark Ward, as well as to advocates of Confessional Bibliology, the Byzantine or Majority Greek text, and the Textus Receptus, including those who believe it is appropriate to abandon the KJV for the New King James Version (NKJV), and the small number of Christians who have turned away from the Authorized, King James Version for modern versions such as the Modern King James Version (MKJV) or the 21st century King James Version (KJ21). The Ward / Haifley debate is reviewed by Thomas Ross.

This video is a follow-up to the "KJV Debate Preview: Mark Ward vs. Daniel Haifley: Is the KJV Sufficiently Intelligible for Readers?" video on the KJB1611 YouTube and KJBIBLE1611 Rumble channels.

Please also watch the Mark Ward vs. Daniel Haifley: Is the KJV Sufficiently Intelligible for Readers? Debate Review 2 of 2" video.

Dr. Ward’s position that the KJV is not sufficiently intelligible is clearly wrong, but Dr. Haifley preaches a false gospel that takes out Biblical repentance, as does Dayspring Bible College and Seminary and its sponsoring church, Quentin Road “Baptist” Church. Dr. Haifley’s anti-repentance false gospel is contradicted by Scripture and the unanimous testimony of all Baptist confessions.

Neither Dr. Ward nor Dr. Haifley set forth a truly Biblical, objective basis for what makes a translation “sufficiently” intelligible. Mark Ward was allowed to get away with making a lot of bad arguments. Daniel Haifley was embraced as a godly spiritual leader although he corrupts the gospel of Christ. The debate did not present the best arguments for the continued exclusive use of the KJV.

This video, part 1 of 2 of the debate review, covers the opening statements of Dr. Daniel Haifley and Dr. Mark Ward.

Misusing 1 Corinthians 14, Mark Ward claimed both in his book Authorized and in the debate that “For public preaching ministry, for evangelism, for discipleship materials, indeed for most situations outside individual study, using the KJV violates Paul’s instructions in 1 Corinthians 14. … Here’s my real, ultimate COA [call to action]: buy a new Bible. Get a translation you’ve never read before.” (Authorized, pgs. 137, 139). Preaching and evangelism with the KJV do not please God, but are sins, according to Dr. Ward's extreme Multiple Version Onlyism.

Mark Ward claimed that the King James Bible is "not sufficiently intelligible," but he never provided an objective standard of evaluation. In fact, a translation that falls within the parameters of linguistic difficulty found in the Hebrew Old Testament given to the Hebrews and the Greek New Testament God gave to the Greeks and other early Christians is "sufficiently intelligible." Since the King James Bible is not clearly more difficult English than the Old Testament is difficult Hebrew or the New Testament is difficult Greek, the KJV is sufficiently intelligible.

Furthermore, the intuitive argument, the "duh" test, for the KJV’s linguistic level is strong. People intuitively know if they are understanding a text in their own language. They intuitively know, without any argument, that when they read their King James Bibles they are reading English that they understand, while if they open a Latin Vulgate or a Spanish Reina Valera they are not reading their language, and if they read Chaucer's Canterbury Tales or Langland's Piers Plowman they are reading an earlier, archaic version of the English language.

Dr. Ward claimed that nobody speaks KJV English today, but he neglected to point out that nobody, even in 1611, has ever spoken KJV English, because it is both written English and translation English. He also confused a translation that is "in" vernacular spoken language with one that is "comprehensible" to the contemporary English speaker.

Ward's examples of KJV "false friends" were also failures: "study" (2 Timothy 2:15), "mansion" (John 14:2) and "halt" (1 Kings 18:21) are not "false friends. Dr. Ward misuses both the unabridged Oxford English Dictionary and John McWhorter's book Words on the Move.

However, because Dr. Haifley did not refute Ward's false claims, Dr. Ward won the debate, despite advocating a false position.