Is the Reina Valera 1960 a Textus Receptus Bible?
- Emanuel Rodriguez
- 2 days ago
- 21 min read
by Pastor Emanuel Rodriguez
"If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it" saying commonly attributed to Adolf Hilter
Many who promote the Reina Valera 1960 edition have adopted an intellectually dishonest approach of convincing people to continue to use it despite the fact that there is a better option available. They seem to think that if they continue to tell Hispanic people that it is a faithful Textus Receptus based Spanish Bible that Hispanic folks, and missionaries called of God to take the Gospel to the Spanish-speaking world, will continue to fall for this misinformation.
The problem is that we are living in the Information Age. The Internet and social media has made information more accessible than ever before. Eventually, sincere people who have a real conviction for the TR, the KJV, and the purity of God's words in any language, are going to do the homework for themselves and find the truth that is plain and obvious. Objective people will eventually figure out that they are being misguided. In fact, many are already getting their eyes opened to the truth.
The days are numbered for those who continue to spread misinformation while hoping that truth-tellers like the RVG Bible Society, who are not afraid of being despised for telling the truth, will just one day go away.
Speaking of misinformation, consider the following chart that is being propagated among Spanish-speakers by those who support the RV1960.
Notice how the 1909 and 1960 editions of the Reina Valera are being presented as representatives of the Received Text (Textus Receptus) and the pure family of Bible texts that trace back to the original autographs. This is a typical example of the kind of misinformation that has misled the Spanish-speaking Fundamentalist world for far too long.
A Hypothetical Situation
Before I give you the irrefutable facts that demonstrate that the 1909 and 1960 editions of the Reina Valera are not faithful TR Bibles, let me offer you a hypothetical situation that should make all the sense in the world to anyone who is willing to be honest.
If you're reading this, I'm assuming that you are probably a Textus Receptus and King James Version advocate. You would probably not use any other version of the Bible in English for reasons that you and I both would be in agreement with.
What if I took the KJV and decided to change it in 50 places? Just 50 places. And the changes were made to cause those 50 places to conform to the way it reads in the Critical Texts rather than the TR. I'm talking about the same Critical Texts (such as the Nestle/Aland or UBS editions of the Greek New Testament) which underlie corrupt English Bibles such as the NIV, RSV, ASV, NASB, ESV, etc. And then I presented this new edition of the KJV to you as an updated KJV but still a "King James Bible"? Would you accept it?
If I was a gambling man I'd be willing to bet my house that you would not accept this modified KJV. You would argue that this particular "KJV" has been corrupted, or contaminated, or polluted, tampered with, due to the 50 places that now conform to the Critical Text rather than the Received Text.
I bet you wouldn't accept it if it only had 25 changes that conform to the Critical Texts. In fact, you probably wouldn't even accept it if it only had 10 changes in it. You're probably so fanatical that you wouldn't want it if it had 5 or less.
What if I argued, however, "No you got it all wrong! The KJV is indeed a Textus Receptus based Bible because the KJV translators used Beza's 5th edition of the TR, as well as Erasmus, Stephanus, etc."? Would I be telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? Would you accept that argument?
No you wouldn't. You would recognize that I wasn't telling all of the truth. You would recognize that I was telling a HALF-TRUTH. And a half-truth is still a lie. Sometimes the worse lie involves what is not being said, rather than what is being said.
You would argue that in its origin the KJV was a TR-based Bible. But what I have produced is a modified version of the KJV that is NOT as faithful anymore to its original form, which was indeed TR-based, ORIGINALLY. You would argue that THIS particular rendition of the KJV has been contaminated and is therefore an inferior edition of the KJV. 50 changes, which really isn't a lot, would still be more than enough for you to reject it. You would never accept it. I would agree with you because it makes good common sense to anyone who has true conviction for Bible purity and wants to be consistent.
Yet, somehow all this consistency, conviction, and common sense goes out the window just as soon as we talk about the Spanish Bible.
The Critical Text in the Reina Valera 1909
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, NOBODY TODAY IS USING THE ORIGINAL REINA VALERA BIBLE! Most are using modern revisions (like that of 1960) of the Reina Valera Spanish Bible which have been modified by the same Critical Texts that underlie the same corrupt English Bibles that we would never have anything to do with. The same thing that I presented to you in the hypothetical situation above is exactly what happened to the Reina Valera Bible.
In its original form the translation work of Casiodoro de Reina in 1569 and Cipriano de Valera in 1602 were for the most part Textus Receptus based. The original Reina Valera Bible had its issues (read Dr. Carlos Donate's article here). These issues are forgiven, however, when we understand the obstacles that Reina and Valera suffered during their work as they were being hunted by the Roman Catholic church. They are to be honored for their sacrifices and effort. Due to the inconveniences of persecution and limited resources both Reina and Valera called for more revision to be done. They requested in their prefaces for good men to pick up where they left off and purify the text they produced, which was TR based.
Unfortunately, in the 1900s, Bible Societies that have always been in the business of producing Bibles based upon the Critical Texts, revised the Reina Valera and made changes in it that conform to the Critical Texts and therefore depart from the TR. These were steps backwards. The right thing to do would had been to identify the few questionable places that remained in Reina and Valera's text which needed to be cleaned up and brought in line 100% with the Received Text. Sadly, the opposite is what happened.
The RV1909 was produced by the British and Foreign Bible Society, in collaboration with the American Bible Society. It should come as no surprise that a Bible that these societies produced would have Critical Text corruptions in them. Have these Bible societies ever produced a good TR-based Bible? Just a few years prior to producing the RV1909, the BFBS adopted the English Revised Version of Westcott and Hort. The BFBS used the RV of Westcott and Hort to guide them in making changes to other foreign Bible projects.
"...if is of interest to note that the translators were advised in cases of translational difficulties to be guided by the readings of the English Revised Version, to which the Society had given official approval in 1901." p. 78, A History of the British and Foreign Bible Society, by William Canton
These societies are not known for producing faithful TR-based Bibles. They have always been known for producing Critical Text based Bibles. These Bible Societies are known for using the Greek New Testament of Eberhart Nestle.
The first edition of Nestle’s Greek text was produced in 1898. It was a combination of several texts. It incorporated the text produced by Constantin von Tischendorf who based his text heavily upon the Sinaiticus manuscript which he is credited with (supposedly) rediscovering. Nestle’s text also included the Greek New Testament of Westcott and Hort published in 1881. Later editions of Nestle’s text was revised by another textual critic named Kurt Aland. It is therefore now known as the Nestle-Aland text and is currently in its 28th edition. This Critical Text would serve as the basis for such corrupt Bibles as the NIV, NASB, ESV, LSB, and many others.
There are many Critical Text based corruptions in the RV1909. We have them documented in charts and graphs that can be found on our website (here).
The influence of Westcott and Hort on changes made in popular modern revisions of the Reina Valera is undeniable. In fact, in 1960 it got worse.
The Apostate Eugene Nida
In 1960 the American Bible Society produced what would become the most popular Spanish Bible among Fundamentalists for the next few decades. This revision was led by Eugene Nida, a staunch Critical Text advocate.
Eugene Nida was no friend to the TR nor the KJV. In an interview with Peter Wosh of the American Bible Society, Nida said on July 28, 1989:
"Look pal, you know there is more heresy in the King James Version as it is now printed than there is in the RSV." (Note: the author of this article possesses a copy of the transcript of this interview.)
No doubt, Nida was an apostate. From a Fundamentalist's point of view, why do we recognize Eugene Nida is an apostate. Apostasy is a falling away from the truth. Surely yoking up with the Roman Catholic church would qualify as apostasy by any Fundamentalist's standards. With that in mind, consider the words of the The Eugene Nida Institute for Biblical Scholarship where it is said that a milestone in Nida's career was when he became a:
"Key figure in forging UBS/Vatican agreement to undertake hundreds of interconfessional Bible translation projects worldwide, using functional equivalence principles."
Due to the efforts and influence of Eugene Nida, the United Bible Society is today in complete collaboration with the Roman Catholic church.
On February 16, 2023, the UBS reported a special meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican for the purpose of discussing "Bible translation work which UBS has been coordinating for almost 80 years. Pope Francis expressed his appreciation and lent his support to the efforts of our global Fellowship." (see rest of the article on the UBS website in following link here)
Since the UBS owns the rights to the RV1960, a percentage must be paid to this ecumenical organization to print RV1960 Bibles. That means that every time an anti-Catholic Fundamentalist purchases an RV1960, or supports a container load of RV1960 Bibles to be sent to Independent Fundamental Baptist missionaries and churches in Spanish-speaking countries, a percentage of the money spent is going to the support of an ecumenical organization which collaborates with the Catholic church to also produce Catholic Bibles.
This is all thanks to the efforts of Eugene Nida. He was celebrated by ecumenicists for successfully bringing together both Protestants and Catholics for the purpose of working together on Bible translation projects. Concerning the team he organized for the Bible version called the Good News For Modern Man, Nida said:
"It was a great experience to see how Latin American Roman Catholics and Protestants could work together so creatively. Perhaps the most gratifying aspect of this program was to see how the Roman Catholic participants were even more sensitive to possible adverse reactions of Protestants than even the Protestant members of the team had been." p. 136, Fascinated by Languages, by Eugene Nida
Nida also said:
"The week I spent with these Roman Catholic friends was unusually challenging and inspiring because we quickly found a broad ground of common concern and shared many insights into the Scriptures." p. 3, Fascinated by Languages, by Eugene Nida
How many conservative and fundamentalist Christians do you know who find it "gratifying" and "inspirational" to work with the Roman Catholic church on Bible translation projects?
In a biography of Eugene Nida, written by his wife, Nida is on record of saying the following:
"Personally, I've had a very good relationship with Catholics. ...for example, I was asked to give a series of lectures on Bible translation for a week at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome." My Life With Eugene Nida by Maria Elena Fernandez-Miranda Nida
In the 2nd edition of the United Bible Societies Greek N.T. (aka the UBS text), Nida is credited with being the one who "initiated, organized and administered" the project. This same text became the underlying basis for the New International Version.
For this project, Nida organized the team. That was his job. One of the men he selected to work on the UBS Greek text was a Jesuit named Carlo Martini.
The Influence of Eugene Nida on the Reina Valera 1960
In an article entitled Eugene Nida and the UBS Greek New Testament, the author wrote:
"Eugene Albert Nida (1914-2011) was undoubtedly the most influential figure in Bible translation in the twentieth century, serving as Translations Secretary of the American Bible Society for four decades and establishing the worldwide translation programme of the United Bible Societies." Eugene Nida and the UBS Greek New Testament by Simon Crisp
Nida started serving as the Translations Secretary of the UBS in 1943. Mr. Crisp elaborates in his article on how Nida was pushing for the development and updating of Nestle's Greek N.T. (the Critical Text) since the 1940s. This disproves the false narrative being pushed by RV1960 supporters (such as Calvin George) that Nida was actually conservative in his school of thought but went bad sometime after 1960. The biography of Eugene Nida written by his wife refutes that claim when it elaborates on how fond Nida was of the Catholic church ever since his childhood.
In regard to the Critical Text, Nida was a Critical Text proponent from the beginning of his career to the end of his life. He has NEVER been known as a TR man.
Another misleading narrative made to try to downplay Nida's role and influence on the RV1960 is the emphasis of the fact that Nida was not one of the members on the revision team. Some love to point out that Nida didn't do any of the actual translating on any of the many Bible projects he worked on. This, however, ignores the fact that he didn't have to since his job was to train the translators, select the members of the translation or revision team, and supervise the project. As the Translation Secretary nothing would had been done without his approval. Any attempt to ignore Nida's influence on the RV1960 is just as disingenuous as trying to deny the influence of Westcott and Hort on the RV1960.
The truth is that there is perhaps no man since Westcott and Hort that is more responsible for the influx of corrupt CT-based Bibles that have flooded the market more than Eugene Nida. The Critical Text crowd celebrate him for this. Yet, the Fundamentalist crowd who support and use the RV1960 live in denial of this, as if ignoring the facts will somehow magically make the truth disappear.
The Critical Text in the Reina Valera 1960
In an article written by Eugene Nida, entitled Reina-Valera Spanish Revision of 1960, published by a periodical called The Bible Translator, it states that there were "well over 60,000 changes of wording". The reader should not be surprised by now to know that changes made in the RV1960 were done with the Critical Text. Nida himself says so. Why wouldn't he? He was a Critical Text advocate and of that school of thought.
Nida wrote:
"Nevertheless in some instances where a critical text is so much preferred over the traditional Textus Receptus the committee did make some slight changes..." The Bible Translator, Vol. 12, No. 3, 1961, p. 113
Remember. This is the same type of Critical Text which underlie all of the corrupt Bibles in English that we stand against such as the NIV, RSV, ASV, NASB, ESV, etc.
The evidence for deliberate departures from the TR and incorporation of the Critical Text in the 1960 revision of the Reina Valera is irrefutable. One of the RV1960 revisers said so himself:
"One principle added to the first list of the RV 1960 revision committee was that wherever the RV (1909) Version has departed from the Textus Receptus to follow a better text we did not return to the Receptus. Point 12 of the working principles states: in cases where there is a doubt over the correct translation of the original, we consulted preferentially The English Revised Version of 1885, The American Standard Version of 1901, The Revised Standard Version of 1946, and the International Critical Commentary." El Texto del Nuevo Testamento, by Jose Flores, p. 323
Please take note of the CT-based English Bibles that were used in the 1960 revision of the Reina Valera. They used the Revised Version, produced by Westcott and Hort. They used the American Standard Version, which is the 1901 American version of the Bible produced by Westcott and Hort. They also used the Revised Standard Version, which has always been recognized by Fundamentalists, even by Dr. John R. Rice (who was not KJV-only) as a liberal, modernist Bible. All of these Bibles have been condemned by old-school Fundamentalists because of the involvement of Unitarians. Unitarians are heretics who deny the Trinity and the Deity of Christ.
The most outspoken defender of Eugene Nida and the Critical Text corruption in the RV1960 is a writer named Calvin George. Yet even he is forced to admit the unignorable reality of CT corruption, as shown in his writings:
"I believe Westcott & Hort texts can be consulted in the process of translating (such was the case in the Reina-Valera 1909 & 1960)” The Battle for the Spanish Bible, by Calvin George, p.115
“There are a few translations in the 1909 and 1960 that may not be able to be traced to differences in TR editions, or semantics. A few departures come from a critical text.” The Battle for the Spanish Bible, by Calvin George, p. 42
“There were some departures from the Textus Receptus in the 1960, as Eugene Nida testifies” The History of the Reina-Valera 1960 Spanish Bible, by Calvin George, p. 120
As if what you have read thus far is not convincing enough, here are actual examples of Critical Text corruptions in the Reina Valera 1960. For sake of brevity, I will only list 7. Many, many more are documented all throughout our website in graphs, charts, and across our over 300 articles.
Also, please take note of how the CT errors of the RV1960 have been corrected in the much better option for a Spanish Bible called the Reina Valera Gómez (RVG), which we'll talk about later.
Matthew 5:22
King James Bible | Revised Version of Westcott & Hort | Reina Valera 1960 | Reina Valera Gómez |
But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment | but I say unto you, that every one who is angry with his brother _________ ______ shall be in danger of the judgment | Pero yo os digo que cualquiera que se enoje _____ _______ contra su hermano, será culpable de juicio | Mas yo os digo que cualquiera que sin razón se enojare contra su hermano, estará en peligro del juicio |
The RV1960 makes Jesus a sinner in Matthew 5:22 when it omits the important words “without a cause” which the Lord said to clarify when anger is sinful. The RVG reads similar to the KJV when it represents the Textus Receptus word “eike” with the words “sin razon”. This clarifies when anger is a sin because the Bible makes it clear that not all anger is sinful in Ephesians 4:26 which says "Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath".
Psalm 7:11 tells us that God is angry with the wicked every day. Surely God is not sinning. There are times when anger is justified. But if you omit the Lord’s clarification, as the RV1960 and the Critical Texts do, you make all anger sinful, which also makes Jesus a sinner since he got angry in Mark 3:5. If you omit the Lord’s clarification you are forced to logically come to this conclusion. The Bible clarifies itself, unless you start taking out words which Jesus said to clarify things.
Mark 1:2-3
King James Bible | Revised Version of Westcott & Hort | Reina Valera 1960 | Reina Valera Gómez |
As it is written in the prophets, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. | Even as it is written in Isaiah the prophet, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, Who shall prepare thy way; The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make ye ready the way of the Lord, Make his paths straight | Como está escrito en Isaías el profeta: He aquí yo envío mi mensajero delante de tu faz, El cual preparará tu camino delante de ti. Voz del que clama en el desierto: Preparad el camino del Señor; Enderezad sus sendas. | Como está escrito en los profetas: He aquí yo envío mi mensajero delante de tu faz, El cual preparará tu camino delante de ti. Voz del que clama en el desierto: Preparad el camino del Señor: Enderezad sus sendas. |
The quotes in verses 2 and 3 are not from the same prophet, Isaiah. Verse 2 quotes Malachi 3:1 and verse 3 quotes Isaiah 40:3. This is an inaccuracy of the Critical Texts.
Mark 2:17
King James Bible | Revised Version of Westcott & Hort | Reina Valera 1960 | Reina Valera Gómez |
When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. | And when Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of a physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners ____ _____________. | Al oír esto Jesús, les dijo: Los sanos no tienen necesidad de médico, sino los enfermos. No he venido a llamar a justos, sino a pecadores ____ ________________. | Y oyéndolo Jesús, les dijo: Los sanos no tienen necesidad de médico, sino los enfermos: No he venido a llamar a justos, sino a pecadores al arrepentimiento. |
The words "to repentance" are omitted in the Critical Texts and the RV1960. How important is the doctrine of repentance?
Mark 11:10
King James Bible | Revised Version of Westcott & Hort | Reina Valera 1960 | Reina Valera Gómez |
Blessed be the kingdom of our father David, that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest. | Blessed is the kingdom that cometh ____ _____ ______ ___ ______, the kingdom of our father David: Hosanna in the highest. | ¡Bendito el reino de nuestro padre David que viene! ____ ____ ________ _____ _______ ¡Hosanna en las alturas! | ¡Bendito el reino de nuestro padre David, que viene en el nombre del Señor! ¡Hosanna en las alturas! |
CT-based Bible in English are infamous for omitting the name of the Lord. CT-based Spanish Bibles are no different. The RV1960 omit "the name of the Lord" here and in many other places. How important is the name of the Lord?
Luke 2:22
King James Bible | Revised Version of Westcott & Hort | Reina Valera 1960 | Reina Valera Gómez |
And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord; | And when the days of their purification according to the law of Moses were fulfilled, they brought him up to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord | Y cuando se cumplieron los días de la purificación de ellos, conforme a la ley de Moisés, le trajeron a Jerusalén para presentarle al Señor | Y cuando se cumplieron los días de la purificación de ella, conforme a la ley de Moisés, le trajeron a Jerusalén para presentarle al Señor |
The RVG reads exactly like the KJV when it says “la purificación de ella” (her purification). The RV1960, instead says “their purification”, which in Spanish is “la purificación de ellos”. This is the same way most modern English versions read as well because this is the way it is rendered in the corrupt Critical Texts.
For it to say “their purification” is a terrible doctrinal error because first of all the purification ritual was only for the mother, not for the son, according to Leviticus chapter 12.
Secondly, such a reading insists that the sin offering given as part of the purification process for Mary was also given on behalf of Mary’s child Jesus. As we all know, however, Jesus was perfect. He was sinless. He did not need a sin offering. Sin offerings were for sinners. Jesus needed no purification. So what you have in these Bibles which read “their purification” are Bibles that make Jesus an impure sinner. Thus, this is not only erroneous, it is a blasphemous reading! It attacks the deity of Christ.
Even the original revision of Reina’s Bible, done by Cipriano de Valera, avoided this blasphemous corruption by rendering it “la purificación de Maria” (the purification of Mary), leaving no doubt as to who the purification ritual was for. With all due respect, I believe Valera went overboard since Maria’s name is not what is in the Greek text. Simply translating it as it is in the Greek, like the KJV translators did, is sufficient. But I can appreciate Valera’s effort to make sure that Luke 2:22 didn’t word things in a way that would be downright blasphemous.
Ephesians 3:9
King James Bible | Revised Version of Westcott & Hort | Reina Valera 1960 | Reina Valera Gómez |
And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: | and to make all men see what is the dispensation of the mystery which from all ages hath been hid in God who created all things ____ _______ _______ | y de aclarar a todos cuál sea la dispensación del misterio escondido desde los siglos en Dios, que creó todas las cosas ____ ___________ | y de aclarar a todos cuál es la comunión del misterio escondido desde el principio del mundo en Dios, que creó todas las cosas por Jesucristo |
This is an important doctrinal verse which proves the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ by revealing the fact that the Lord is the Creator of all things. Omitting “by Jesus Christ” takes away a clear presentation of the deity of Christ.
1st Peter 2:2
King James Bible | Revised Version of Westcott & Hort | Reina Valera 1960 | Reina Valera Gómez |
As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: | as newborn babes, long for the spiritual milk which is without guile, that ye may grow thereby unto salvation | desead, como niños recién nacidos, la leche espiritual no adulterada, para que por ella crezcáis para salvación | desead, como niños recién nacidos, la leche no adulterada de la palabra, para que por ella crezcáis |
This is a Critical Text interpolation. False churches like the Roman Catholic church use added words like "unto salvation" to teach a works-based salvation, that salvation is the result of some sort of growing process. This is a damnable heresy.
This was why the Bible warned in Proverbs 30:6 "Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar."
There are so many more examples of clear departures from the TR and CT corruption. Again, I encourage the reader to review the documented evidence all over the website of the RVG Bible Society (especially here).
We have only focused on textual errors in this article. We haven't even begun to talk about the translational problems of the RV1960 such as Daniel 3:25 saying "a son of the gods" rather than "the Son of God", or Phebe being called a "deaconess" in Romans 16:1, or 2nd Samuel 21:19 saying that Elhanan killed Goliath instead of David, or the word hell being omitted over 40 times (and not appearing at all in the entire Old Testament of the RV1960). But I digress.
The influence of Westcott, Hort, and Nida, and the presence of the corrupt Critical Texts in the RV1960 cannot be denied by anyone who is intellectually honest.
The Problem Solved
For this reason a project was started over 20 years ago to purify the beloved Reina Valera Bible by a man of God named Dr. Humberto Gómez. Dr. Gómez is a native Mexican with Spanish as his first language. He has served as a soul-winning, church-planting missionary to his own people of Mexico for over 50 years.
Dr. Gómez worked hard to eliminate all Critical Text readings from Genesis to Revelation and replace them with readings based upon the Masoretic Text in the O.T. and the Textus Receptus in the N.T. He was assisted by many national pastors and laymen around the world. Many of us who are bilingual missionaries (I served as a missionary in Puerto Rico and Paraguay during a span of 10 years. Today I pastor a church in the U.S.) also helped Dr. Gómez .
Dr. Gómez was also assisted by men of linguistic expertise such as the late Dr. D. A. Waite of the Dean Burgon Society, David Daniels of Chick Publications who was trained by Wycliffe Bible Translators School of Linguistics, Dr. Louis Tyler a seminary professor who is an expert fluent in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin, Dr. Rex Cobb who is an experienced Bible translator and an instructor of advanced linguistics as Director of the Baptist Bible Translators Institute. Time fails me to speak of the members of the RVG Bible Society and many others who participated in this work.
Though we have been heavily criticized for this we make no apology for using the King James Bible to ensure purity in this revision. Our open use of the KJV alongside the Received Text is one of the main things that set our efforts apart from other Spanish Bible projects. Though we believe the Received Text should be the foundation for all Bible translations, we also unashamedly stand for the KJV as the inerrant word of God in English. Therefore we believe that the KJV should be used as a standard to measure purity by. Since the KJV translators was the greatest collection of linguists ever assembled for the purpose of translating God's words, how could we go wrong standing on the shoulders of those giants?
We have named this pure Spanish Bible as the Reina Valera Gómez (RVG).
For over 20 years, the RVG has been scrutinized by collaborators and critics alike. Our goal was a Spanish Bible that is 100% in conformity to the Received Text and substantially equivalent to the purity of the KJV without compromising the beauty of the old Castilian Spanish language.
The first edition was published in 2004. The latest edition was published in 2023. Since its first release, over 3 million copies of the RVG has been printed and distributed around the world. We have seen countless souls saved, churches planted, and men trained for the ministry with the RVG Bible in the Spanish-speaking world.
There is a grassroots movement growing today that is full of soldiers of Christ around the world that have adopted the RVG and seeing great results. God is blessing this Bible and we wish you would consider helping us to promote the RVG as a much better option than Spanish Bibles, like the RV1960, that were changed with the Critical Texts. The Spanish-speaking world needs a 100% pure Bible in Spanish.
CONCLUSION: We are not your enemies
We do not wish to disparage the many precious souls that have been saved with the RV1909 and RV1960 Bibles over the years. May God bless every beloved soul winner who did the best they could with the Bibles that were available to them at the time.
Today is a new day, however. Bible purity is too important to ignore or neglect. Jesus made that clear when He spoke of the significance of even the jots and tittles in Matthew 5:18. The Lord made it very clear just how important it is to have every word that God inspired and preserved for our spiritual well-being when he said in Matthew 4:4 "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." We need a Bible that reflects every pure word of God not only in English, but in Spanish and every other language as well.
Many souls were saved with Wycliffe's English translation in the 1300s as well as the translations of Tyndale, Coverdale, Geneva, and the Bishops before 1611. Yet, when the KJV showed up, it wasn't long before objective, intellectually honest English-speaking Christians recognized its superiority. Likewise, we are confident that our brothers and sisters in Christ in the Spanish-speaking world will also see the unmistakable purity of the RVG.
I pray that this article has helped you to see it as well. Now will you help us?
Psalms 119:140 "Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it."
Galatians 4:16 "Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?"
