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They use a translation of a translation?

I had a fella trying to convince me of the purity of the KJV over the NIV once.

He pointed out that the NIV couldn't even get the seventh word right!!

Genesis 1:1 (KJV)

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

Genesis 1:1 (NIV)

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

"Oh?", I replied? "At least the NIV just used ONE word to translation the Hebrew word for HEAVENS; whereas the KJV used two different ones."

Genesis 2:1 (KJV)

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.

Genesis 2:1 (NIV)

Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.

http://www.htmlbible.com/sacrednamebiblecom/kjvstrongs/B01C001.htm Chapter one

http://www.htmlbible.com/sacrednamebiblecom/kjvstrongs/B01C002.htm Chapter two.

8064

shamayim
shaw-mah'-yim

dual of an unused singular shameh {shaw-meh'}; from an unused root meaning to be lofty; the sky (as aloft; the dual perhaps alluding to the visible arch in which the clouds move, as well as to the higher ether where the celestial bodies revolve):--air, X astrologer, heaven(-s).

Strong's Concordance

shamayim: heaven, sky

Original Word: שָׁמַ֫יִם
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: shamayim
Phonetic Spelling: (shaw-mah'-yim)

"HMMMmmm...", he said.

Then I pointed out how the Hebrew text; from which the English translation was derived; had the SAME word in 1:1 AND 2:1 and asked him, "Why did the KJV translate it DIFFERENTLY?"

Then I pointed out how the Hebrew text; from which the English translation was derived; had the SAME word in 1:1 AND 2:1 and asked him, "Why did the KJV translate it DIFFERENTLY?"

Because they were smarter than the NIV translators...Do you refer to God in heavens even tho that is a correct phrase or do you refer to God in heaven, which is a correct phrase also???

Then I pointed out how the Hebrew text; from which the English translation was derived; had the SAME word in 1:1 AND 2:1 and asked him, "Why did the KJV translate it DIFFERENTLY?"

Because they were smarter than the NIV translators...Do you refer to God in heavens even tho that is a correct phrase or do you refer to God in heaven, which is a correct phrase also???

But actually here's a more complete translation:

shâmayim shâmeh
shaw-mah'-yim, shaw-meh'
The second form being dual of an unused singular; from an unused root meaning to be lofty; the sky (as aloft; the dual perhaps alluding to the visible arch in which the clouds move, as well as to the higher ether where the celestial bodies revolve): - air, X astrologer, heaven (-s).

Apparently the Hebrew word has two forms, The second one being shameh...And as written if the second word is used it can incorporate the part of heaven with the clouds as well as the part of heaven with the celestial bodies...It does not however mention the third part of heaven which is above the massive expanse of water that is between the 2nd and third heavens...

And what probably prompted the KJV authors to use heaven instead of heavens is that in Gen. 1:1 heaven had not been divided yet...It was just one heaven...

Those KJV translators were some smart cookies...