Recently I had the distinct privilege to spend a weekend in the company of a Quaker elder in a retreat setting. One thing that especially caught my attention from this kind, calmly powerful gentleman was his use of the pronouns "thou, thee and thine" when talking to someone one-on-one. It was distracting at first because I didn't realize what he was saying, but once I heard him correctly and knew what he was saying, I found the practice quite intriguing.
Several years ago, I learned that the pronouns "thou, thee and thine" are like the "tu" pronoun in Spanish - the singular, familiar form of the second person pronoun. This was surprising to me since I had only seen them used in formal hymns and they always sound so distant and foreign - leading to my misinterpretation. I love the idea that the hymn writers used Thy and Thou because they felt intimately connected to God and wanted to use the pronouns to reflect their close relationship.
In the King James Version (KJV) Bible, anytime the singular form of the word "you" is used in the original Hebrew or Greek, it is translated "thou," and anytime the plural form of the word "you" is used, it is translated "ye" or "you." I have often in the past used the contraction popular in the southern states:"y'all" when indicating the plural "you."
For example, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 should read:
“Or do y’all not know that y’all’s body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within y’all, whom y’all have from God? Y’all are not y’all’s own, for y’all were bought with a price. So glorify God in y’all’s body.”Although this language is a little distracting, it is an important distinction to make and can change the intent quite a bit. I think in general, when taking the message of the gospel for myself instead for ourselves, by which I mean the body of Christ, we miss a lot of what God intended. There is an online Y'all Version of the bible, if you want to read it with that particular pronoun inserted.
As I read through Deuteronomy this week, I thought that this book was probably particularly filled with "y'all"s since it is a message from Moses to the Israelites. But I was surprised to find that there are quite a few "thou"s in these chapters.
For instance and probably the most surprising to me is that the Shema is singular. In the beginning verse of Chapter 6, we read, "These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord y’all’s God directed me to teach y’all to observe in the land that y’all are crossing the Jordan to possess." (Y'All Version) That wasn't surprising, but a few verses later the pronouns change: "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might."(KJV) The Ten Commandments are also singular pronouns. I find it interesting to see where there is corporate responsibility and where it is personal. All throughout Deuteronomy, the pronouns switch back and forth.
I think the Y'all Version is easier for me to read and digest than the King James, but that's just me. I feel so privileged to live in a time with so much technology on hand to make my personal bible reading time more meaningful which I hope in turn enriches or builds up the body in some way.
One small way I thought about how this plays out is found in John 15:7: "If y’all remain in me and my words remain in y’all, ask whatever y’all wish, and it will be done for y’all." If we all have to decide together what to ask God for, that is a big difference from what I might want to ask for myself. In fellowship with other believers, agreeing what to ask for collectively is an essential way to accurately understand what Jesus is saying here. As one seminarian puts it, "How much more would we value the local church if we realized most of the NT speaks to y’all, not you?"
So grab your KJV or get online and go to the Y'all Version and read some of your (y'all's) favorite scriptures. See if it changes the way you (y'all) think of what the verses are saying.
