On built and builded in the KJB

Two correspondents have written to ask about the use of the verbs built and builded in the King James Bible. Is there a difference of meaning? There's evidently a debate going on somewhere online in which this issue is part of the evidence. I haven't explored what the debate is about, so the following observations are offered simply by way of providing linguistic data that might not otherwise be available to the participants.First, some background. When build appears as a verb in early Middle English, its past tense form was mainly regular (recorded forms include bildide, bylded, builded), though some writers used an irregular form (e.g. bult, byld, built). The past participle form was mainly irregular, with a wide range of forms (e.g. gebyld, bilde, bilt, buylt), along with the occasional use of a regular form (e.g. bylded, builded). In the Early Modern English period, the two forms, regular and irregular, are both frequent, with the built form gradually dominating during the 16th century - an unusual instance of an irregular form defeating a regular one. There are instances of builded recorded as late as 1800, and it's still heard today in some regional dialects. We see both forms in use around 1600, the choice between them being dictated by external factors. Shakespeare, for example, normally uses built (15 instances), but has three instances of builded, each one using the extra syllable to fill out a metrical line. There are many instances in the plays of this sort of thing: for example, the choice between -s and -eth in the 3rd person singular of verbs is also often conditioned by metrical demands. But the reason for choosing one form over another is not always clear, and sometimes one is left with the impression that the choice is random, or perhaps reflecting the preferences of an individual scribe or compositor.In Modern English, there are several verbs which have two past forms (e.g. dreamed and dreamt) - a situation I discussed briefly in an earlier post (17 April 2008). In British English (American usage differs) there's usually an aspectual distinction: the -ed form is used when the duration of an action or the process of acting is being emphasized, and the -t form when something happens once, or takes up very little time, or the focus is on the result of a process rather than on the process itself (see the post for examples). However, it's unclear whether this kind of contrast was already operating in Early Modern English. And in any case, the built/builded alternation is different. It's more like the Modern alternation between highlit / highlighted, input / inputted, or wet / wetted, where the choice is governed by such factors as euphony, rhythm, and specialized usage (eg highlighted is the norm in hairdressing), as well as preferences related to a person's age and taste. Occasionally the two forms develop different regional uses (e.g. US dove, snuck, gotten) or different meanings (he was hanged/it was hung, I sped/speeded), but this is unusual. What is the situation in the KJB? There are 271 instances of build used in the following four ways: as a past tense (Modern Standard English built and the emphatic did build); as a past participle form (Modern e.g. have built); as part of a passive construction (Modern e.g. was built by the Romans); and as an adjective (Modern e.g. a well built house). There is just one instance in KJB of an adjectival usage (4 Ezra 5.25, 'and of all builded cities thou hast hallowed Sion unto thyself'), and only six instances of did build: see below at Ruth 4.11, 1 Kings 11.7, 1 Kings 16.34, 2 Chronicles 35.3, Nehemiah 3.3, and Esdras 5.67. Leaving these six aside, we find 196 instances of built and 69 of builded - a ratio of nearly 3:1. The norm for the translators, as for everyone else at the time, was evidently built.The situation in relation to built and builded in Early Modern English seems very similar to that presented by highlight and the others today. Looking at the list of instances at the end of this post, there are many parallel sentences which suggest that the forms are in free variation:Genesis 8.20 Noah builded an altarGenesis 22.9 Abraham built an altar1 Chron 22.5 the house that is to be builded 1 Chron 22.19 the house that is to be builtThere is even an example of both forms in the same verse:Philemon 3.4 For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God.This seems to be a case where rhythm is the governing factor: builded in the first clause preserves an iambic rhythm (try replacing it with built to see the effect). And the same rhythmical plus comes from using built in the second clause.However, there are some grammatical differences between the two constructions. Built is more likely to be used on its own, without auxiliary verbs (e.g. 'he built it'): 112 of 196 instances (57%), compared with 26 of 69 (38%) for builded. And when we look at individual auxiliaries, we find a definite preference for using them with built. The modal verbs used in the dataset are cannot, may, might, shall, shalt, should: only 4 of these are used with builded, whereas 17 are used with built. Similarly, 12 uses of auxiliary have occur with builded compared to 44 with built. On the other hand, there's no such trend with auxiliary be: 18 instances with builded and 17 with built. Another difference relates to verb transitivity. If people wanted to use the verb intransitively (i.e. without an object, as in Luke 17.28 'they planted, they builded') there is a definite tendency to use builded: 12 out of 69 instances are intransitive (17%), compared with only 3 out of 196 instances of intransitive built (1.5%). The phrasal verb build up is found with 10 instances of built up and 2 of builded up. However, the other syntactic sequences I looked at (I haven't looked at them all!) showed few or no differences, e.g. the sequence build + not is found with 1 instance each (built not, builded not). In all cases, we are talking about trends, not sharp distinctions. The grammar of the two forms substantially overlaps, and I've found nothing to suggest a semantic contrast.So, why are there any differences at all? One possibility is that the different committees had a preference for one form or the other. Here are the relevant statistics (builded--built--did build--Total):First Westminster 15 (16%)--76--3--94First Cambridge 27 (32%)--55--2--84First Oxford 4 (14%)--24--0--28Second Oxford 1 (10%)--9--0--10Second Westminster 3 (37%)--5--0--8Second Cambridge 19 (70%)--27--1--47There's the suggestion of a difference between Oxford and Cambridge, but the figures are small, and the overriding impression is that each committee was comfortable with both usages.Perhaps individual books prompted one usage over the other? The following table brings to light one interesting fact: Ezra and 4 Ezra stand out in their exclusive use of builded. Together their 22 instances amount to almost a third of all cases. I have no explanation for this, so I asked Gordon Campbell, author of Bible: The Story of the King James Version 1611-2011 (OUP 2010) for his opinion, and he commented: 'An individual translator is a possibility, but so is an individual compositor. There may have been rules or agreed conventions about tense endings, but on many issues compositors took decisions. These weren't based on principles but rather on habits (when there is consistency) or the need to save or occupy space (when there is inconsistency).' Yes, space-saving strategies and compositor preferences have long been known in the case of Shakespeare. It remains to be seen whether they play an equally important role in relation to the KJB.There are few other instances of builded predominance. Perhaps the poetic qualities of Proverbs and Song of Solomon motivated the exclusive use of the older form, but the numbers are tiny. Only in two other books (Genesis and Nehemiah) are there more instances of builded than built. Genesis is curious: until chapter 13 we find only builded, then there is a switch, with just a single exception.Here is a complete listing, book by book (built--builded--did buildGenesis 4--7--0Exodus 3--1--0Numbers 5--1--0Deuteronomy 3--1--0Joshua 6--1--0Judges 5--0--0Ruth 0--0--11 Samuel 3--0--02 Samuel 3--0--01 Kings 35--3--22 Kings 9--1--01 Chronicles 8--1--02 Chronicles 36--0--1Ezra 0--12--0Nehemiah 5--9--1Job 2--1--0Psalms 2--1--0Proverbs 0--2--0Ecclesiasticus 1--1--0Song of Solomon 0--1--0Isaiah 4--0--0Jeremiah 9--1--0Lamentations 1--0--0Ezekiel 4--2--0Daniel 2--0--0Amos 1--0--0Micah 1--0--0Haggai 1--0--0Zechariah 2--0--0Matthew 2--0--0Mark 1--0--0Luke 4--1--0Acts 1--0--01 Corinthians 1--0--0Ephesians 1--1--0Colossians 1--0--0Hebrews 0--2--0Philemon 1--0--01 Peter 1--0--0Judith 1--0--0Esdras 8--2--11 Maccabees 10--4--02 Macc 2--1--04 Ezra 0--10--0Sirach 2--1--0Wisdom of Solomon 1--0--0Tobit 3--1--0And finally, here's the list of all forms, in reading sequence, so that anyone can test other hypotheses for themselves. The builded/built datasetFirst Westminster CompanyGenesis 4.17 he builded a cityGenesis 8.20 Noah builded an altarGenesis 10.11 and builded NinevehGenesis 11.5 which the children of men buildedGenesis 12.7 there builded he an altarGenesis 12.8 there he builded an altarGenesis 13.18 and built there an altarGenesis 22.9 Abraham built an altarGenesis 26.25 And he builded an altarGenesis 33.17 and built him an houseGenesis 35.7 And he built there an altarExodus 1.12 And they built for Pharaoh treasure citiesExodus 17.15 And Moses built an altarExodus 24.4 and builded an altarExodus 32.5 he built an altar before itNumbers 13.22 Hebron was built seven years before ZoanNumbers 21.27 let the city of Sihon be builtNumbers 23.14 and built seven altarsNumbers 32.34 the children of Gad built DibonNumbers 32.37 and the children of Reuben built HeshbonNumbers 32.38 and gave other names unto the cities which they buildedDeuteronomy 6.10 cities, which thou buildedst notDeuteronomy 8.12 hast built goodly housesDeuteronomy 13.16 it shall not be built againDeuteronomy 20.5 that hath built a new houseJoshua 8.30 Then Joshua built an altarJoshua 19.50 he built the cityJoshua 22.10 the half tribe of Manasseh built there an altarJoshua 22.11 the half tribe of Manasseh have built an altarJoshua 22.16 ye have builded you an altarJoshua 22.23 we have built us an altarJoshua 24.13 cities which ye built notJudges 1.26 and built a cityJudges 6.24 Then Gideon built an altar thereJudges 6.28 upon the altar that was builtJudges 18.28 and they built a cityJudges 21.4 and built there an altarRuth 4.11 which two did build the house of Israel1 Samuel 7.17 and there he built an altar1 Samuel 14.35 And Saul built an altar... that he built2 Samuel 5.9 And David built round about from Millo2 Samuel 5.11 they built David an house2 Samuel 24.25 And David built there an altar1 Kings 3.2 there was no house built unto the name of the Lord1 Kings 6.2 the house which king Solomon built for the Lord1 Kings 6.5 he built chambers1 Kings 6.7 And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone1 Kings 6.9 So he built the house1 Kings 6.10 And then he built chambers1 Kings 6.14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it1 Kings 6.15 And he built the walls of the house1 Kings 6.16 And he built twenty cubits... he even built1 Kings 6.36 And he built the inner court1 Kings 7.2 He built also the house of the forest of Lebanon1 Kings 8.13 I have surely built thee an house to dwell in1 Kings 8.20 and have built an house1 Kings 8.27 how much less this house that I have builded1 Kings 8.43 this house, which I have builded1 Kings 8.44 the house that I have built for thy name1 Kings 8.48 the house which I have built for thy name1 Kings 9.3 this house, which thou hast built1 Kings 9.10 when Solomon had built the two houses1 Kings 9.17 And Solomon built Gezer1 Kings 9.24 her house which Solomon had built for her1 Kings 9.25 the altar which he built1 Kings 10.4 the house that he had built1 Kings 11.7 Then did Solomon build an high place1 Kings 11.27 Solomon built Millo1 Kings 11.38 as I built for David1 Kings 12.25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem ... and built Penuel1 Kings 14.23 they also built them high places1 Kings 15.17 and built Ramah1 Kings 15.22 timber, wherewith Baasha had builded1 Kings 15.22 and king Asa built with them Geba1 Kings 15.23 and the cities which he built1 Kings 16.24 and built on the hill ... the city which he built1 Kings 16.32 the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria1 Kings 16.34 In his days did Hiel the Bethelite build Jericho1 Kings 18.32 he built an altar1 Kings 22.39 all the cities that he built2 Kings 14.22 He built Elath2 Kings 15.35 He built the higher gate2 Kings 16.11 And Urijah the priest built an altar2 Kings 16.18 that they had built in the house2 Kings 17.9 and they built them high places2 Kings 21.3 For he built up again the high places2 Kings 21.4 And he built altars2 Kings 21.5 And he built altars2 Kings 23.13 which Solomon the king of Israel had builded2 Kings 25.1 they built forts around itFirst Cambridge Company1 Chronicles 6.10 the temple that Solomon built in Jerusalem1 Chronicles 6.32 until Solomon had built the house1 Chronicles 7.24 Sherah, who built Bethhoron1 Chronicles 8.12 Shamed, who built Ono1 Chronicles 11.8 And he built the city round about1 Chronicles 17.6 Why have ye not built me an house to dwell in1 Chronicles 21.26 And David built there an altar1 Chronicles 22.5 and the house that is to be builded1 Chronicles 22.19 the house that is to be built2 Chronicles 6.2 I have built an house2 Chronicles 6.10 and have built the house2 Chronicles 6.18 this house which I have built2 Chronicles 6.33 this house which I have built2 Chronicles 6.34 the house which I have built2 Chronicles 6.38 the house which I have built2 Chronicles 8.1 at the end of twenty years, wherein Solomon had built the house of the Lord2 Chronicles 8.2 That the cities which Huram had restored to Solomon, Solomon built them2 Chronicles 8.4 And he built ... all the store cities, which he built in Hamath2 Chronicles 8.5 Also he built Bethhoron the upper2 Chronicles 8.11 the house that he had built for her2 Chronicles 8.12 the altar of the LORD, which he had built before the porch2 Chronicles 9.3 the house that he had built2 Chronicles 11.5 And Rehoboam dwelt in Jerusalem, and built cities2 Chronicles 11.6 He built even Bethlehem2 Chronicles 14.6 And he built fenced cities in Judah2 Chronicles 14.7 So they built and prospered2 Chronicles 16.1 and built Ramah2 Chronicles 16.6 and he built therewith Geba2 Chronicles 17.12 and he built in Judah castles2 Chronicles 20.8 And they dwelt therein, and have built thee a sanctuary2 Chronicles 26.2 He built Eloth2 Chronicles 26.6 and built cities2 Chronicles 26.9 Uzziah built towers2 Chronicles 26.10 Also he built towers in the desert2 Chronicles 27.3 He built the high gate of the house of the Lord2 Chronicles 27.4 Moreover he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and in the forests he built castles and towers2 Chronicles 32.5 he ... built up all the wall that was broken2 Chronicles 33.3 he built again the high places 2 Chronicles 33.4 Also he built altars in the house of the Lord2 Chronicles 33.5 And he built altars for all the host of heaven 2 Chronicles 33.14 he built a wall without the city of David2 Chronicles 33.15 all the altars that he had built2 Chronicles 33.19 the places wherein he built high places, 2 Chronicles 35.3 the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel did buildEzra 3.2 and builded the altar of the God of IsraelEzra 4.1 the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity builded the temple Ezra 4.13 if this city be buildedEzra 4.16 if this city be builded againEzra 4.21 Give ye now commandment to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not buildedEzra 5.8 the house of the great God, which is builded with great stonesEzra 5.11 build the house that was builded these many years ago, which a great king of Israel builded and set upEzra 5.15 and let the house of God be builded in his placeEzra 6.3 Let the house be buildedEzra 6.14 And the elders of the Jews builded... And they buildedNehemiah 3.1 they builded the sheep gateNehemiah 3.2 And next unto him builded the men of Jericho. And next to them builded Zaccur the son of ImriNehemiah 3.3 But the fish gate did the sons of Hassenaah buildNehemiah 3.13 they built itNehemiah 3.14 he built itNehemiah 3.15 he built itNehemiah 4.1 when Sanballat heard that we builded the wallNehemiah 4.6 So built we the wallNehemiah 4.17 They which builded on the wallNehemiah 4.18 every one had his sword girded by his side, and so buildedNehemiah 6.1 heard that I had builded the wallNehemiah 7.1 when the wall was builtNehemiah 7.4 the houses were not buildedNehemiah 12.29 the singers had builded them villages round about JerusalemJob 12.14 he breaketh down, and it cannot be built againJob 20.19 he hath violently taken away an house which he builded notJob 22.23 If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built upPsalms 78.69 And he built his sanctuary like high palacesPsalms 89.2 Mercy shall be built up for everPsalms 122.3 Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact togetherProverbs 9.1 Wisdom hath builded her houseProverbs 24.3 Through wisdom is an house buildedEcclesiastes 2.4 I builded me housesEcclesiastes 9.14 there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against itSong of Solomon 4.4 Thy neck is like the tower of David builded for an armouryFirst Oxford CompanyIsaiah 5.2 and built a tower in the midst of itIsaiah 25.2 it shall never be builtIsaiah 44.26 Ye shall be builtIsaiah 44.28 Thou shalt be builtJeremiah 7.31 they have built the high places of TophetJeremiah 12.16 then shall they be built in the midst of my peopleJeremiah 19.5 They have built also the high places of BaalJeremiah 30.18 the city shall be builded upon her own heapJeremiah 31.4 Again I will build thee, and thou shalt be builtJeremiah 31.38 the city shall be built Jeremiah 32.31 from the day that they built it even unto this dayJeremiah 32.35 And they built the high places of BaalJeremiah 45.4 that which I have built will I break downJeremiah 52.4 and built forts against it round aboutLamentations 3.5 He hath builded against meEzekiel 13.10 one built up a wallEzekiel 16.24 thou hast also built unto thee an eminent placeEzekiel 16.25 thou hast built thy high placeEzekiel 26.14 thou shalt be built no moreEzekiel 36.10 the wastes shall be buildedEzekiel 36.33 the wastes shall be buildedDaniel 4.30 Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom Daniel 9.25 the street shall be built againAmos 5.11 ye have built houses of hewn stoneMicah 7.11 In the day that thy walls are to be builtHaggai 1.2 The time is not come, the time that the LORD's house should be builtZechariah 1.16 my house shall be built in itZechariah 8.9 that the temple might be builtSecond Oxford CompanyMatthew 7.24 unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rockMatthew 7.26 a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: Matthew 21.33 and built a towerMark 12.1 and built a towerLuke 4.29 whereon their city was builtLuke 6.48 a man which built an houseLuke 6.49 a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earthLuke 7.5 he hath built us a synagogueLuke 17.28 they planted, they buildedActs 7.47 But Solomon built him an houseSecond Westminster Company1 Corintians 3.14 If any man's work abide which he hath built thereuponEphesians 2.20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophetsEphesians 2.22 In whom ye also are builded together Colossians 2.7 Rooted and built up in himHebrews 3.3 he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the houseHebrews 3:4 For every house is builded by some manPhilemon 3:4 but he that built all things is God1 Peter 2.5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual houseSecond Cambridge CompanyJudith 2 And built in Ecbatane walls Esdras 1.3 the house that king Solomon the son of David had builtEsdras 2.24 if this city be built againEsdras 4.51 until the time that it were built;Esdras 4.55 them until the day that the house were finished, and Jerusalem builded upEsdras 5.53 the temple of the Lord was not yet builtEsdras 5.58 So the workmen built the temple of the LordEsdras 5.67 they that were of the captivity did build the temple unto the Lord God of IsraelEsdras 6.14 it was builded many years ago Esdras 6.19 that the temple of the Lord should be built in his place. Esdras 6.24 the house of the Lord at Jerusalem should be built againEsdras 6.28 I have commanded also to have it built up whole again1 Maccabees 1.14 Whereupon they built a place of exercise at Jerusalem 1 Maccabees 1.33 Then builded they the city of David 1 Maccabees 1.54 and builded idol altars1 Maccabees 4.47 and built a new altar 1 Maccabees 4.60 At that time also they builded up the mount Sion with high walls 1 Maccabees 5.1 the altar was built 1 Maccabees 10.12 the strangers, that were in the fortresses which Bacchides had built1 Maccabees 13.27 Simon also built a monument 1 Maccabees 13.33 Then Simon built up the strong holds in Judea1 Maccabees 13.38 the strong holds, which ye have builded1 Maccabees 13.48 and built therein a dwellingplace 1 Maccabees 15.7 fortresses that thou hast built1 Maccabees 16.9 Cedron, which Cendebeus had built1 Maccabees 16.15 Docus, which he had built2 Maccabees 1.18 after that he had builded the temple 2 Maccabees 4.12 For he built gladly a place of exercise 2 Maccabees 10.2 the altars which the heathen had built in the open street4 Ezra 5.25 and of all builded cities thou hast hallowed Sion unto thyself4 Ezra 7.6 A city is builded4 Ezra 8.52 a city is builded4 Ezra 9.24 where no house is builded4 Ezra 10.27 there was a city builded4 Ezra 10.42 there appeared unto thee a city builded4 Ezra 10.44 even she whom thou seest as a city builded4 Ezra 10.46 after thirty years Solomon builded the city4 Ezra 10.51 the field where no house was builded4 Ezra 13.36 being prepared and buildedSirach 1.15 She hath built an everlasting foundation with menSirach 49.12 who in their time builded the houseSirach 50.2 And by him was built from the foundation the double heightWisdom of Solomon 14.2 the workman built it by his skillTobit 1.4 the temple of the habitation of the most High was consecrated and built for all agesTobit 13.10 that his tabernacle may be builded in thee again with joyTobit 13.16 For Jerusalem shall be built up with sapphires Tobit 14.5 the house of God shall be built in it for ever