diff --git a/src/node.cc b/src/node.cc
index 6f946ab3ad1cc7..494dfcf4eec2f7 100644
--- a/src/node.cc
+++ b/src/node.cc
@@ -2290,6 +2290,13 @@ static void DLOpen(const FunctionCallbackInfo<Value>& args) {
 
   // -1 is used for N-API modules
   if ((mp->nm_version != -1) && (mp->nm_version != NODE_MODULE_VERSION)) {
+    // Even if the module did self-register, it may have done so with the wrong
+    // version. We must only give up after having checked to see if it has an
+    // appropriate initializer callback.
+    if (auto callback = GetInitializerCallback(&dlib)) {
+      callback(exports, module, context);
+      return;
+    }
     char errmsg[1024];
     snprintf(errmsg,
              sizeof(errmsg),
diff --git a/test/addons/hello-world/binding.cc b/test/addons/hello-world/binding.cc
index ba6a22d7196d26..e267a3b2a7629a 100644
--- a/test/addons/hello-world/binding.cc
+++ b/test/addons/hello-world/binding.cc
@@ -15,3 +15,20 @@ extern "C" NODE_MODULE_EXPORT void INITIALIZER(v8::Local<v8::Object> exports,
                                                v8::Local<v8::Context> context) {
   NODE_SET_METHOD(exports, "hello", Method);
 }
+
+static void FakeInit(v8::Local<v8::Object> exports,
+                     v8::Local<v8::Value> module,
+                     v8::Local<v8::Context> context) {
+  auto isolate = context->GetIsolate();
+  auto exception = v8::Exception::Error(v8::String::NewFromUtf8(isolate,
+      "FakeInit should never run!", v8::NewStringType::kNormal)
+          .ToLocalChecked());
+  isolate->ThrowException(exception);
+}
+
+// Define a Node.js module, but with the wrong version. Node.js should still be
+// able to load this module, multiple times even, because it exposes the
+// specially named initializer above.
+#undef NODE_MODULE_VERSION
+#define NODE_MODULE_VERSION 3
+NODE_MODULE(NODE_GYP_MODULE_NAME, FakeInit)