​Trinity History

There is a spurious reference to the Trinity added in 1 John
5:7-8. Some Bible translators of past centuries were so zealous to
find support for their belief in the Trinity in the scriptures that they
literally added it to the text. A case in point is 1 John 5:7-8. It reads
in the King James Version (also known as the “Authorized
Version”): “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the
Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the
water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.” The words in
italics are simply not a part of the generally accepted New
Testament manuscripts. Regrettably, in this particular passage,
some other versions read essentially the same.
​

Most Bible commentaries that mention this addition tell us
that it is a spurious and forged comment added to the biblical text.
Consider this from The New Bible Commentary: Revised:
“Notice that AV [the Authorized Version] includes additional
material at this point. But the words are clearly a gloss [an added
note] and are rightly excluded by RSV [the Revised Standard
Version] even from its margins” (1970, p. 1,269).