American Revised Version
Origins in the Revision Movement
The American Revised Version grew out of the international effort to revise the King James Version in the late nineteenth century. In 1870, the Convocation of Canterbury initiated a revision of the KJV, and American scholars were invited to participate. Under the presidency of Philip Schaff, an American Old Testament committee of fifteen scholars and a New Testament committee of sixteen members began their work in October 1872. The American committees reviewed the successive portions of the English revision, offering suggestions and criticisms that the British committees considered during their work.
The Split Between British and American Scholars
The collaboration was productive but not without friction. Many of the American scholars' preferred readings were not adopted by the British committees. As a compromise, unadopted American suggestions were printed as appendices to the English Revised Version when it was published (the New Testament in 1881, the Old Testament in 1885). However, the American committees considered these appendices inadequate. The British committees disbanded after publication, treating their work as final and leaving no mechanism for future changes. The American committees, bound by an agreement not to publish a rival edition for fourteen years, resolved to continue their work independently.
Publication of the American Standard Version
When the fourteen-year restriction expired, the American committees published their own edition. The New Testament appeared in 1900, and the complete Bible was published in 1901 under the title "American Standard Version." The ASV incorporated the readings from the appendices of the English Revised Version plus additional changes that the American scholars had developed during their continued deliberations. The result was a translation that, while closely resembling the English Revised Version in overall character, differed in numerous details.
Distinctive Features
The ASV introduced several notable features that distinguished it from both the KJV and the English Revised Version. It consistently used "Jehovah" instead of "LORD" for the divine name (the Tetragrammaton), a decision that was controversial but reflected the American committee's desire for consistency. It replaced archaic terms and clarified obscure passages. The ASV used paragraph formatting rather than verse-by-verse layout, and it employed quotation marks in dialogue. American spellings replaced British ones throughout, and the language was modernized where the American committee believed greater clarity could be achieved without sacrificing accuracy.
Reception and Influence
The ASV quickly earned a reputation as one of the most literally accurate English translations available. Its word-for-word approach made it especially valuable for detailed Bible study, and it became a favorite among seminary students, pastors, and scholars. However, its wooden literalism sometimes came at the expense of readability, and it never achieved the widespread popular use that the KJV enjoyed. The ASV's greatest legacy may be the translations it inspired. It served as the basis for the Revised Standard Version (1952), the New American Standard Bible (1971, updated 1995 and 2020), and indirectly influenced numerous other modern translations.
Place in Translation History
The ASV occupies an important position in the history of English Bible translation. It bridged the gap between the venerable KJV tradition and the modern translation movement. By demonstrating that new manuscript discoveries and advances in biblical scholarship could be incorporated into a faithful English translation, it opened the door for the wave of new translations that followed throughout the twentieth century. While few readers today use the ASV as their primary Bible, its influence on subsequent translations ensures that its scholarly legacy endures.
Biblical Context
The American Standard Version is a translation of the entire Bible — both Old and New Testaments. Its text reflects the best available Hebrew and Greek manuscripts of the late nineteenth century. The ASV's treatment of key passages such as Isaiah 7:14, Psalm 23, John 3:16, and Romans 8 reflects its commitment to literal translation and its incorporation of textual scholarship unavailable to the KJV translators. The consistent rendering of the divine name as 'Jehovah' throughout the Old Testament was one of its most distinctive and debated choices.
Theological Significance
The ASV reflects the conviction that the Bible should be translated as accurately and consistently as possible, making God's word accessible in the language of the people while preserving the precise meaning of the original texts. Its production demonstrated that reverence for Scripture and rigorous scholarship can work together. The ASV also illustrates the ongoing nature of Bible translation: every generation benefits from new discoveries and fresh insights that help convey the original meaning of the biblical text more clearly.
Historical Background
The ASV was produced during a period of significant advances in biblical scholarship. The discovery of older and more reliable Greek manuscripts, including Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus, had provided a better textual basis for the New Testament. Archaeological discoveries in the Near East were illuminating the world of the Old Testament. The American committee included some of the leading biblical scholars of their era, including William Henry Green, Timothy Dwight Woolsey, and Joseph Henry Thayer. The ASV was published by Thomas Nelson and Sons and remained under copyright until it entered the public domain.