A survey and in-depth interviews were conducted to examine the difficulty level of the New Korean Translation, published in December 2024, for foreign students, and to compare it with the New Korean Translation and the New Korean Revised Version, published in 1998, in order to identify any significant differences. Readability was assessed using KReaD, and foreign students’ comprehension was investigated through questionnaires and in-depth interviews.
The readability analysis revealed that the New Korean Translation was easier than the New Korean Revised Version in terms of both vocabulary and sentence structure. The New Korean Translation corresponded to the reading level of 4th to 5th grade elementary school students, while the New Korean Revised Version was found to be at the level of 3rd grade middle school to 2nd grade high school students.
In terms of comprehension, non-Christian students gave scores ranging from 2 to 10 for both the New Korean Revised Version and the New Korean Translation, while Christian students gave scores from 5 to 10. Overall, non-Christian students showed lower comprehension levels than Christian students. Students from Chinese-character cultural backgrounds mentioned that the use of Chinese characters in the New Korean Revised Version was relatively easy to understand due to their ability to infer the meanings. However, they found the old-style connective and final endings in the same version to be unfamiliar and difficult to comprehend.
On the other hand, students reported that while the native Korean vocabulary in the New Korean Translation was sometimes difficult to understand, the grammar and sentence structures were generally easy to follow. Nevertheless, sentences that deviated from standard word order — such as inverted structures or poetic expressions not commonly encountered — were considered difficult.
Although the old-style connective and final endings in the New Korean Revised Version were regarded as challenging, the expressions in this version were perceived as more religious and solemn. This suggests that the older style may serve a valuable purpose in conveying a dignified and reverent tone.