Have you ever heard someone refer to a particular English version of the Bible as being the "authorized version"? What does that mean?

In the early 17th century, England's King James I was the official head of the Church of England. James was power hungry, and he wanted absolute rule over everything including churches. However one thing stood in his way, the Bible that the people of England were using - the Geneva Bible.

Church historian Ernest Trice Thompson states:

""It [the Geneva Bible] had become the popular version in England, but was detested by James because it had footnotes strongly opposed to the divine right of kings, to which James was committed. James cried that he would have a new Bible."*

When the King James Version was produced, the king outlawed other English versions. As a result, British citizens - including colonists in America - were restricted to using the King James Version.

Today citizens of the USA are no longer under British rule, and so they are free to use whatever version of the Bible that they choose. The expression "authorized version" has no meaning outside of the Church of England.

[*Quote from Ernest Trice Thompson, Through The Ages, A History of the Christian Church (Richmond: The CLC Press, 1965), pp. 212-213.]

The King james bible is the best when it comes to being as closely translated from the original text.It is probably this reason it is also the most popular version.

unknown to almost all of the over two billion people who claim the Bible as their spiritual foundation is that there are several books and two sections missing from all but a few versions of that Bible. Perhaps one of the best kept secrets of the modern Protestant church is that the Bible used by that body is not the original King James Bible. That translation, completed in 1611, and the Bibles published for the use of the clergy and the church members until late in the 19th Century, contained 80 books. Although attempts to remove the 14 books known as the Apocrypha from the Bible began immediately after the King James translation was completed they remained in the Bible until the end of the 19th Century. There is no doubt that the 14 books of the Apocrypha were controversial, but it cannot be denied they were included in the original King James Bible.
you can read the entire text at thelostbooks.com

THE END OF THE VIRGINIA COMPANY
FOR a number of years before 1624 there was definite dissatisfaction with the policies and work of the Virginia Company of London. The movement gained momentum in England and in Virginia. This agitation culminated in the revocation of the company charter in 1624. With this Virginia became a royal colony directly under the Crown. It was on August 26, 1624, that King James I issued a statement setting forth the dissolution. And whereas our Commissioners after much care and paines expended in execucion of our said Commissioners did certifie us that our subjects and people sent to enhabite there and to plant themselves in that Country were most of them by Gods visitacions sicknes of bodie famine and by massacres of them by the native savages of the land dead and deceased and those that were living of them lived in necessitie and want and in danger by the savages but the Country for anie thing that appeared to the said Commissioners to the contr[ar]y they conceaved to be fruitfull and healthfull after our people had bin sometyme there, And that if industry were used it would produce divers good and staple comodities though in the sixteene yeares government past it had yealded fewe or none, And that this neglecte they conceaved must fall on the governors and companie here whoe had power to direct the plantacions . . . But because the said Treasurer and Companie did not submit their charters to be reformed our proceedings therein were stayed for a tyme untill uppon a quo warranto brought and a legall and judiciall proceeding therin by due course of laws the said charters were and nowe are and stand avoyded, and because wee were and are still resolved to proceed unto the perfecting of that worke which wee have begunne for the good of the said plantacion by a newe Charter to be made in such manner as shalbe found most fitt and convenient . . .COMMISSION TO SIR FRANCIS WYATT, GOVERNOR. AUGUST 26, 1624.

The divine right of governors.

The Charter of 1606, also known as the First Charter of Virginia, is a document from King James I of England to the Virginia Company assigning land rights to colonists for the stated purpose of propagating the Christian religion.[1] The land is described as coastal Virginia and islands near to the coast, but the surveying numbers correspond to modern day South Carolina to Canada. The land itself would remain the property of the King, with the London Company as the King's tenant, and the settlers as subtenants. The colony's government at first consisted of a council residing in London. The document designated the London Company as responsible for financing the project, which included recruiting settlers and providing for their transport and supplies.

Sealed Orders from the Virginia Company were opened which named Captain John Smith as a member of the governing Council. Smith had been arrested for mutiny on the voyage over by Christopher Newport, and was incarcerated aboard one of the ships. He had been scheduled to be hanged upon arrival, but was later freed by Captain Newport after the opening of the orders. The same orders also directed them to seek an inland site for their settlement, which would afford protection from enemy ships.

Therefore, the English Colonists re-boarded their three ships and proceeded into the Chesapeake Bay landing again at what is now called Old Point Comfort in the City of Hampton. In the following days, the ships ventured inland upstream along the James River seeking a suitable location for their settlement as defined in their orders. The James River and the initial settlement they sought to establish, Jamestown (originally called "James His Towne") were named in honor of King James I.
[edit] Selecting Jamestown
Sketch of Jamestown c. 1608

Arriving on May 14, 1607, the colonists chose Jamestown Island for their settlement largely because the Virginia Company advised them to select a location that could be easily defended from ocean-going navies of the other European states that were also establishing New World colonies and were periodically at war with England, notably the Dutch Republic, France, and especially Spain. The island fit the criteria, as it had excellent visibility up and down what is today called the James River, and it was far enough inland to minimize the potential of contact and conflict with enemy ships. The water immediately adjacent to the land was deep enough to permit the colonists to anchor their ships yet have an easy and quick departure if necessary. An additional benefit of the site was that the land was not occupied by the Virginia Indians, most of whom in the area were affiliated with the Powhatan Confederacy.

The settlers came ashore, and quickly set about constructing their initial fort. Within a month, James Fort covered an acre on Jamestown Island, although it burned down the following year. The wooden palisaded walls formed a triangle around a storehouse, church, and a number of houses.[4]

The Lord giveth (King James) the Lord trieth to taketh away (King George) blessed be the name of the Lord.

1 Samuel 8:1-5 (New International Version)

1 Samuel 8
Israel Asks for a King
1 When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as judges for Israel. 2 The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. 3 But his sons did not walk in his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.

4 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. 5 They said to him, "You are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint a king to lead [a] us, such as all the other nations have."

The divine right of Kings. Do you think King James really studied the Bible?

And the evidence to support this claim is . . . ?