KJV vs. ASV vs. WEB vs. DRB: Comparing Four Bible Translations
Most people default to whichever Bible translation they grew up with, without ever seeing how it actually got made. The King James Version, American Standard Version, World English Bible, and Douay-Rheims Bible span more than 400 years and two distinct translation traditions — and the differences between them are more interesting, and more practical, than they first appear.
Daily Devotions is an offline Bible and devotional app for iPhone and iPad that includes all four of these translations — KJV, ASV, WEB, and DRB — stored on your device, switchable on any devotion without an internet connection.
Where each one came from
| Translation | Published | Lineage |
|---|---|---|
| KJV (King James Version) | 1611 | Commissioned by King James I; the common ancestor of the ASV and, indirectly, the WEB |
| ASV (American Standard Version) | 1901 | A formal-equivalence revision of the KJV, produced alongside the British Revised Version |
| WEB (World English Bible) | 1997–2006 | A modern-English update of the ASV, deliberately released into the public domain |
| DRB (Douay-Rheims Bible) | 1582–1610, revised 1750s | Translated from the Latin Vulgate for English-speaking Catholics — a separate lineage entirely |
Formal vs. dynamic equivalence
The KJV and ASV both use "formal equivalence" — a word-for-word approach that prioritizes matching the structure of the original Hebrew and Greek text as closely as English grammar allows. The WEB, while based directly on the ASV, leans slightly more toward readability for a contemporary audience, smoothing some of the older phrasing without abandoning the literal approach. The DRB takes yet another path: since it was translated from the Latin Vulgate rather than the original Hebrew and Greek manuscripts, its wording sometimes diverges from all three of the others in ways that trace back to that different source text, not to a different translation philosophy.
One detail worth noticing: the divine name
A small but telling difference shows up in how each translation renders the divine name in the Old Testament. The ASV consistently renders it as "Jehovah" in thousands of places where the KJV instead uses "LORD" in small capitals — a deliberate choice by the ASV's translators to make the name explicit rather than substituted, which the WEB (as an ASV-based translation) generally follows.
Public domain, by design
All four translations are freely available without licensing restrictions. The KJV's copyright expired centuries ago; the ASV entered the public domain in 1957; the DRB's commonly printed Challoner revision is centuries old; and the WEB's creators deliberately gave up copyright specifically so a modern-English translation could exist in the public domain for anyone to use, quote, or redistribute freely.
How to actually pick one
There's no single "correct" choice — the right translation depends on what you're reading for. If you want the traditional, literary cadence most familiar from historical English literature and hymnody, the KJV delivers that. If you want a strict, word-for-word rendering with more contemporary language than the KJV, the ASV or WEB are the better fit. If you come from — or are curious about — the Catholic textual tradition, the DRB is the one built for exactly that. Since Daily Devotions lets you switch translations on any devotion instantly, there's no real cost to reading the same verse in more than one and noticing where they diverge.
FAQ
Which Bible translation is the most literal, word-for-word?
The ASV is generally considered the most strictly word-for-word (formal equivalence) of the four, followed closely by the KJV. The WEB updates the ASV's language for modern readability while keeping its literal approach; the DRB is a literal translation of the Latin Vulgate rather than the original Hebrew and Greek.
Are all four translations free to read and share?
Yes. The KJV, ASV, WEB, and DRB (in its commonly printed Challoner revision) are all in the public domain, meaning they can be freely read, quoted, and redistributed without licensing restrictions.
What makes the DRB different from the other three?
The DRB (Douay-Rheims Bible) was translated from the Latin Vulgate rather than directly from Hebrew and Greek manuscripts, and was produced specifically for English-speaking Catholics — a different translation lineage entirely from the KJV, ASV, and WEB, which all descend from the original-language texts through the King James tradition.
Switch instantly on any devotion, fully offline.