English Standard Version | ESV
First released in 2001, the English Standard Version (ESV) is a unique bible translation in that it is a word-for-word translation yet maintains the stylistic and readable qualities that literal translations often miss.
While the translation philosophy is similar to that of the King James Version (KJV), the ESV has the advantage of access to far more manuscripts than were available to the translators of the KJV. Along with that, the ESV reflects modern English as opposed to the KJV’s old English.
According to the ESV website, this version seeks to translate the original Greek and Hebrew words with the greatest possible accuracy and precision. It balances this aim with a desire to carry forward the great historic stream of Bible versions in English—with literary excellence, beauty, and depth of meaning, in a fresh and compelling way.
Lead by Dr. J. I. Packer, the ESV translation team involved over 100 members and is published by Crossway.
What does it sound like?
John 3:16-17 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
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I switched from the NKJV to the ESV about 4 or 5 years ago. I had been using the NKJV for no particular reason besides it was a Bible someone had given to me. As it was falling apart I began to research the different options available and quickly fell in love with the ESV. I like that it is more of a word-for-word translation and I love the way it reads. Typically, this is the bible I recommend to people who ask. Also, I am a big fan of the pew version of the ESV. It has a nice hard cover, no additional notes or cross-references, and it only costs $15.
I started reading the ESV a couple of years ago due to its popularity among my seminary friends. If I were asked to describe this version in one word, it would be “refreshing.” I love coming to its pages and being refreshed by the Word of God (which is refreshing regardless of the translation) put in modern English (I be may thinking of the word “refreshing” due to the popular edition of the version that has a picture of water on the front). It retains the literal translational philosophy of the NASB and strives to be readable (it is more readable than NASB). My fellow team members and I are considering using the version as the standard for the church God is using us to plant.
The ESV is the Bible I use in the pulpit and the Bible we use for our Psalter readings at church. Frankly, if the church had already had the RSV in the pulpit and in the pews, I would not have switched: the ESV is 95% the same as the RSV. But the church I serve was not using the RSV when I got there: they had the NIV. The ESV is a vast improvement over the NIV for reading in public worship. The translators and the editors of the ESV paid attention not only to what the text says, but to how the translation would sound when read aloud. The AV had that too, and the RSV. Most modern translations, however, have forgotten this important dimension.
Bottom line, if you’ve got the RSV at your church, don’t switch. It’s still the best IMO. If you have heartburn over Isaiah 7:14 in the RSV saying “young woman” instead of virgin, then substitute the word “virgin” when reading that passage. (However, “young woman” is a fine translation of the Hebrew word almah, and in the immediate context makes more sense, but I digress.) If you have the NRSV, you don’t have the RSV. The NRSV is more like the NIV than anything else: it is not in the same literary tradition as the RSV. I would recommend the ESV to any church that is currently using the NRSV, the NIV, the NASB, the NKJV, or the KJV. It is a modern translation, but it still sounds like the BIBLE, not like a newspaper.
I bought the pocket-sized edition of the ESV a couple of years ago, and carry it with me in my backpack almost anywhere I go. It is a perfect size, and I love that they didn’t leave out chapter headings, footnotes, or concordance to keep the size down.
Coming from the KJV, what I love about the ESV is its readability. I would say that it sounds “Biblical,” but I think a better way to put this is to say that it sounds poetic where it should, grave where it should, joyful where it should, etc. Rather than just having one “Biblical” sound throughout, the translators did their best to understand the mood of the different genres in the Bible, and in their translating, paid attention to portraying these moods through how the words would sound when read aloud.
And, the ESV sticks to the literal translation philosophy that made the NASB such a great translation.
So, while I still use the KJV for scripture memorization, and heavily reference the NASB when doing in-depth study, the ESV is a wonderful balance of what I love about these translations, with NIV readability.
Though in college I turned to the NRSV, and still appreciate the ecumenical nature of the NRSV (have you tried reading the apocrypha in the RSV?), I still rely on the ESV for my “main” Bible reading. It sounds great from the pulpit, too. The version I’m using is the Reformation Study Bible, which is slanted but still a great work of scholarship.
I preached from the NASB for about 15 years, but about five years ago I discovered the ESV. Not only does it maintain the literal integrity of the NASB, it provides a literary beauty that was sadly lacking in that translation. Couple that with the fact that it does this and also brings the reading level down a couple of grade levels, and you have the almost perfect translation.
At the same time, Crossway has provided a number of settings and bindings, some of them quite unique. Many of their editions are paginated the same, so my compact, my Daily Reading Bible, my thinline, and the pew version are all laid out the same. While Crossway has provided some quality bindings, they need to make sure that all editions use a sewn binding rather than a glued one.
I am looking forward to a Cambridge Pitt-Minion ESV edition in goatskin in a couple of months, and figure that I will then have just about the perfect Bible in my possession.