The Unreliability of Red Letter Bibles

Many Christians pick up a Bible with the words of Christ printed in red and believe it makes Scripture easier to understand. While the idea may seem reverent, the result has often been confusion, error, and misplaced emphasis. The red-letter editions of the Bible were not inspired by God. They were created by men in the early 1900s who decided to color the words they believed Christ personally spoke during His earthly ministry. This human addition may appear harmless, yet it introduces serious problems. When a publisher or editor decides which words belong to Christ and which do not, that person has already placed human judgment over divine inspiration.

The Bible declares that all Scripture is given by inspiration of God. Second Timothy 3 verse 16 says, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” If every word of Scripture is given by inspiration, then every word is the word of Christ. Christ is the living Word who spoke through the prophets in the past and through the apostle Paul in this present dispensation. Peter confirms this when he says the Spirit of Christ was in the prophets, in First Peter 1 verse 11. Paul likewise states, “The things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord,” in First Corinthians 14 verse 37. Therefore, all Scripture is the word of Christ, not just the red portions.

The problem with red-letter editions is not simply their existence but their inconsistency. In many passages, words that Jesus did not speak are printed in red, and in other passages, His words are left in black. Below are several examples that reveal how unreliable this practice truly is.

⸻

Examples of Red Letter Mistakes

1. John 3:16–21

In nearly every red-letter edition, verses 16 through 21 are printed in red as though Jesus is still speaking to Nicodemus. Yet the conversation between Christ and Nicodemus ends in verse 15. Beginning in verse 16, the apostle John gives inspired commentary explaining the purpose of Christ’s coming. Those words should not be red, but black. By leaving them red, publishers make readers believe that Christ is still speaking when He is not.

2. John 8:1–11

In many red-letter Bibles, the narrative line, “And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground,” is printed in red. But that is not a spoken word from Christ. It is a description of His action. The red ink misleads the reader into thinking every movement or gesture of Christ was a spoken declaration.

3. Acts 9:4–6

When Christ appears to Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus, the Lord says, “Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?” and continues through verse 6. Many red-letter editions do not print these words in red at all, though they are clearly the words of the risen Christ speaking from heaven. This omission is one of the most serious errors because it ignores the very first time the Lord speaks to Paul, marking the beginning of the dispensation of grace. These words are just as much the words of Christ as any He spoke on earth.

4. Revelation 21:5–8

The verse says, “And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.” Most red-letter editions print these words in black. Yet in the same book, other statements from the same divine speaker are printed in red. The inconsistency shows that the editors could not tell when the Lord was speaking and when He was not.

5. Matthew 19:17

Some red-letter editions split the verse, printing part of it red and part of it black. The verse says, “Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.” Every word here is spoken by Christ, but man’s editorial decision has divided His speech into fragments.

6. John 14:30–31 and John 15:1

The Lord finishes His statement with, “Arise, let us go hence,” at the end of chapter 14. Yet many red-letter editions continue to print the beginning of chapter 15 in red, as though the scene never changes. The transition is ignored. The red ink flows into a new context without notice, again showing human oversight.

7. Acts 26:14–18

Paul recounts what the risen Christ said to him: “I am Jesus whom thou persecutest… to make thee a minister and a witness.” Yet most red-letter Bibles print these verses in black. These are direct quotations of the Lord’s heavenly words, and they should be recognized as such. The omission once again minimizes the authority of Christ speaking through Paul.

8. Revelation 22:12–16

The Lord says plainly, “I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches.” Yet some red-letter editions alternate between red and black through these verses because editors are unsure whether it is the angel or Christ speaking. The inconsistency reveals that man cannot properly judge where the voice of Christ begins or ends.

⸻

The Doctrinal Problem with Red Letters

Beyond these textual inconsistencies, red-letter editions cause a deeper doctrinal problem. They lead many to believe that only the red words carry the full authority of Christ. This idea is entirely false. The same Lord who spoke to Israel during His earthly ministry later spoke again from heaven to Paul concerning the mystery and the dispensation of grace. Paul calls this “the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began” in Romans 16 verse 25. He says, “By revelation he made known unto me the mystery,” in Ephesians 3 verse 3. He also declares that his gospel was not received from man but by revelation of Jesus Christ in Galatians 1 verses 11 and 12. These are not the words of a mere man. They are the very words of Christ from heaven to His Body.

Those who elevate the red letters of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John above Paul’s epistles fall into the trap of mixing Israel’s kingdom program with the Body of Christ’s mystery program. They begin to preach repentance, water baptism, and law-keeping for salvation, even though those belonged to Israel under the kingdom gospel. The gospel of salvation today is different. It is the gospel of the grace of God. Paul writes in First Corinthians 15 verses 3 and 4, “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.” He says that we are justified freely by God’s grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood. That is Romans 3 verse 24 and 25. The blood of Christ is the foundation of the gospel that saves today, not the color of the ink that prints His words.

⸻

The Authority of the Black Letters

When Paul wrote his epistles, he did not use colored ink. God inspired every word equally. A believer who rightly divides the word of truth knows when Christ is speaking, not because the letters are red but because the words are true. The Holy Spirit bears witness to truth through doctrine. First Corinthians 2 verse 13 says that we compare spiritual things with spiritual. Every word of God is pure. That is Proverbs 30 verse 5. Psalm 12 verse 6 says, “The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.” God’s words need no human improvement or highlighting to make them more divine.

If every red letter disappeared from your Bible today, nothing about the word of God would change. The truth would remain exactly the same. The authority of Scripture does not come from the color of its letters but from the divine inspiration of its content. Red ink cannot make words more holy, and black ink cannot make them less. All Scripture is Christ’s word to man.

⸻

Conclusion

Red-letter Bibles are well-intentioned but deeply flawed. They are inconsistent, man-made, and doctrinally misleading. Some of Christ’s words are left black, and some words not spoken by Him are printed red. The result is confusion and misplaced emphasis. The member of the Body of Christ should not rely on the color of ink to recognize the voice of the Lord. We study by right division and believe every word written in the King James Bible as pure and preserved. Whether black or red, every verse is the word of Christ. His voice speaks from Genesis to Revelation, and the Holy Spirit confirms His truth in every line.