Critique of "Kept Pure in All Ages" by Jeffrey Khoo

While advocating for reverence toward Scripture, this book promotes doctrinal errors that contradict biblical teaching and historical Christian orthodoxy. Key false teachings and their refutations are below:

1. False Teaching: Only the KJV/Textus Receptus (TR) Preserves God's Pure Word

• Book's Claim: The TR (underlying the KJV) is the exclusively preserved text, while modern versions (e.g., NIV) use "corrupt" Alexandrian manuscripts (e.g., Vaticanus/Sinaiticus).
• Biblical Refutation:
• God preserves His message, not a single manuscript family (Isaiah 40:8; Matthew 24:35).
• No Scripture teaches textual perfection in one tradition. Variants exist in all manuscripts (including TR), yet no core doctrine is compromised.
• The Bereans tested truth using available Scriptures (Acts 17:11), not a single translation.

2. False Teaching: Modern Translations Attack Core Doctrines

• Book's Claim: The NIV denies the Trinity, Virgin Birth, and Christ's deity (e.g., omitting 1 John 5:7; changing Luke 2:33; altering 1 Timothy 3:16).
• Biblical Refutation:
• Core doctrines stand regardless of textual variants. For example:
• The Trinity: Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14.
• Virgin Birth: Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:34–35.
• Deity of Christ: John 1:1, 14; Colossians 2:9.
• No essential doctrine relies solely on disputed passages (e.g., 1 John 5:7 is absent in earliest Greek MSS but the Trinity is taught elsewhere).

3. False Teaching: Dynamic Equivalence is Unbiblical

• Book's Claim: Only "formal equivalence" (word-for-word) is valid; dynamic equivalence (thought-for-thought) distorts Scripture.
• Biblical Refutation:
• Scripture itself uses dynamic equivalence:
• Matthew quotes Isaiah 7:14 (Hebrew: almah → Greek: parthenos, "virgin").
• The Septuagint (LXX) often paraphrases Hebrew for Greek readers.
• Paul adapted wording for clarity (1 Corinthians 9:20–22).
• Faithfulness to meaning—not rigid methodology—is key (2 Timothy 2:15).

4. False Teaching: Westcott/Hort Were Heretics Whose Text is Satanic

• Book's Claim: Westcott/Hort denied biblical fundamentals, making their Greek text "corrupt."
• Biblical Refutation:
• God uses flawed people (e.g., Balaam, Numbers 22–24; Caiaphas, John 11:49–52). Textual criticism must stand on evidence, not guilt-by-association.
• Alexandrian manuscripts are often older (2nd–4th c.) and align with early church fathers. Rejecting them ignores God’s providence in preservation.

5. False Teaching: KJV Superiority as a Doctrine of Faith

• Book's Claim: Rejecting the KJV equals rejecting God’s preserved Word.
• Biblical Refutation:
• Scripture commands testing all things (1 Thessalonians 5:21), not venerating one translation.
• The Gospel transcends language barriers (Acts 2:6–11; Revelation 7:9). No translation is "inspired" – only the original autographs (2 Timothy 3:16).
• Paul used diverse translations (e.g., LXX) without declaring one superior.

6. Misuse of Psalm 12:6–7 for Textual Preservation

• Book's Claim: Psalm 12:7 promises word-for-word preservation of Scripture.
• Biblical Refutation:
• Context: God preserves the oppressed ("them" = the poor, v. 5), not Scripture. Hebrew tishmerem ("preserve them") refers to people, not words.
• Scripture affirms God’s truth endures (Psalm 119:160), not a specific text tradition.

Conclusion

While zeal for Scripture is commendable, Kept Pure in All Ages elevates the KJV/TR to near-inspiration status, contradicting biblical teaching that:

• God’s Word is Living & Active (Hebrews 4:12), not confined to one translation.
• The Spirit Guides Believers (John 16:13) into truth, irrespective of textual traditions.
• Unity in Christ (Ephesians 4:3–6) is fractured by divisive translation elitism.

Modern translations (ESV, NASB, CSB) faithfully convey God’s Word using the oldest available manuscripts. The KJV is a valuable heritage, but not the exclusive vessel of truth. As Augustine warned: "In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity."

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16, ESV).
"The words of the Lord are pure words... You shall keep them, O Lord" (Psalm 12:6–7, NKJV).