The King James Only Controversy: Can You Trust Modern Translations?

I can thank James White for getting me interested in the subject of textual criticism and have watch all his YouTube videos in six months. I have come to know his personality and his jokes and his passion and his style. Some people write like they talk (see Howard Hendricks) and James White writes like he talks, with a lot of passion. White had a video that said for a good introduction to textual criticism he would recommend this book so I picked it up as my intro to the subject and set to work on really starting to come down on where I want to begin studying. This book does a great job in that it provides a great overview of how we got the Bible and how English translations have come about. White doesn't delve into a ton of detail but he shows the highlights and the important steps on how we came up to the KJV and why further editions, like NASB and ESV, are needed and fuller. White does not step on KJV as inferior and it's awesome to read someone who has a high view of God's Word and a great grasp on scholarship and the need for intellectualism in Christianity (Francis Shaeffer would be proud). White also does a good topic of what the book is titled and that's dealing with the arguments levied by KJV Only people and takes it right to both the text and to the logic of the argument, with no need for name calling or grand statements of extremism. White also shows how textual criticism can be used to help develop a fuller, more complete understanding of the Faith and how to answer criticism against Christianity. This was really the main reason why I read the book. It was a really great introduction to that field of study. The topics are fairly clear in how they are addressed and the argumentation is not over complicated. There are a few small negatives that I found that may be difficult for some, including myself. White does start out right off the bat stating that he's trying to strike a balance between an area of study that can be vast and broad and complicated and knowing to write to a general audience. At time, he tends to assume you remember what you read eight chapters ago or use terms that weren't that clear. I believe this comes from White knowing so much about the topic that he tends to stumble on just how "clever" the reader is. When White refers to Scripture to support his arguments, I would have liked to have had the Scripture listed rather than look them up. It's just helpful not having to turn between two books for these times. These are mostly limited to his arguments and not his main points so they are low impact on hassle. I would have loved to see a "Suggested Reading" page although the footnotes tend to give you repeated examples of who White supports. Speaking of which, the footnotes in this book are great! I know it sounds geeky but I love a book where reference footnotes are on the bottom of the page rather than in the back or at the end of the chapter. It's so much cleaner and easier. The footnoted notes of White's writing add to the topic and can be skipped if they aren't important to you - just as any good footnote is. Great footnotes WOOO!!! It convinced me on the topic at hand and I would recommend this book as a good jumping off point for anyone wanting to get into textual criticism. It has helped motivate me into a deeper study. Final Grade - A+

I have both the digital and hard copy of this book! An outstanding resource. Examines this subject in a very respectful manner.