This verse does not appear in the NIV (New International Version) translation of the Bible. Some older translations, like the King James Version, include it as a repetition of the phrase found in Mark 9:48: 'where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.' Modern biblical scholars believe this line was added by later scribes copying the manuscript, who echoed verse 48 for emphasis, but that it was not part of the original text. The NIV and most modern translations omit it because the earliest and most reliable ancient manuscripts don't include it. Far from being a reason to distrust Scripture, this is actually evidence that translators are committed to giving you the most honest, carefully researched version of the Bible possible.
God, thank you that truth doesn't need protecting by hiding hard questions. Give me the courage to bring my doubts and confusion to you rather than away from you. Help me trust that honest searching doesn't threaten faith — over time, it deepens it. Amen.
It can feel genuinely unsettling to open your Bible and find a blank — a verse number with nothing in it. What does it mean when the text has gaps? For many people, a moment like this quietly shakes something loose: Did someone change the Bible? Can I trust it? Those are fair questions, not faithless ones. Here's what's worth sitting with: the fact that modern translators removed this verse is a sign of honesty, not erasure. For centuries, scholars have painstakingly compared thousands of ancient manuscripts — written by hand, copied across generations — to recover what was originally written. The missing verse isn't a cover-up. It's careful, faithful scholarship doing its job. You don't have to choose between trusting Scripture and asking hard questions about it. In fact, real trust can only grow in the soil of honest examination.
How do you feel when you encounter something in the Bible that seems confusing, missing, or contradictory — does it create doubt, curiosity, or both?
Has anyone ever raised questions about the reliability or accuracy of the Bible with you? How did you respond, or how would you respond now?
Does knowing that biblical scholars actively compare ancient manuscripts and correct later additions change how you think about Scripture's trustworthiness? Why or why not?
How might you explain a 'missing verse' like this to a friend who is skeptical about Christianity or who sees it as proof the Bible can't be trusted?
What would it look like for you to hold both deep faith and honest intellectual curiosity at the same time — not as competing forces, but as partners in understanding?