The English Standard Version of the Bible (my Bible of choice) turns 5 years old in a few days. Congrats!
Today, the ESV is available in more than one hundred formats, has seen nearly 3 million copies distributed worldwide, and is reaching the world in creative and strategic ways. ESV General Editor J. I. Packer recently stated, “I find myself suspecting very strongly that my work on the translation of the ESV Bible was the most important thing that I have done for the Kingdom, and that the product of our labors is perhaps the biggest milestone in Bible translation in the past fifty years or more.”
[...]
The English Standard Version (ESV) Bible is an essentially literal Bible translation that combines word-for-word precision and accuracy with literary excellence, beauty, and readability. Believing that every word of the Bible is inspired by God, the translators of the ESV sought to be transparent to the original text so that the reader could see the structure and meaning of the original as clearly as possible. For more information on the ESV Bible, visit www.esv.org.
I started preaching from the ESV several months ago, and I'm really enjoying it.
A great benefit I have found is that KJV adherents who aren't really KJV-only but just prefer it because they've always used it have an easier time accepting the ESV than any other translation.
I think part of that has to do with the Psalms. When you read Psalm 23 from the ESV, it has such a familiar feel to it; I can't say that about any other translation.
Posted by: Wes Kenney | 09/27/2006 at 11:22 AM
We love the ESV too at New Attitude. =)
Personally, I think it's great that Paul's letters sound like letters from a lawyer and that the Psalms sound like poetic songs. The way they're supposed to.
Posted by: Ricky Alcantar | 09/27/2006 at 03:32 PM
The ESV was the Bible I had been looking for all my Christian life. When I became a Christian I cut my teeth on the NIV. But after some Greek I decided it was just too interprative. Then I switched to the NKJV because my wife was a KJV user from childhood. She was willing to go modern by switching to the NKJV. But then I became a bit concerned because of the inferior translations based upon the inferior texts.
So I tried the NASB Update for a really brief time. I just couldn't get into it. Great Greek but poor English. So I stuck with the NKJV while tossing in readings from the NIV.
But then it happened! The ESV was born! The best of every Bible translation came crashing together into one masterpiece of the Scripture in English. Thank you God for Crossway Bibles and the ESV!
Posted by: Scott Eaton | 09/28/2006 at 09:21 AM
I heard they're working on a revision. Or at least, that one is to come out.
Posted by: Ted Gossard | 09/30/2006 at 12:42 AM
I resisted the ESV at first, thinking the world did not need another Bible translation. However, I eventually gave in and I'm glad I did. Its desire to make "transparent" the original text (as you say) is very helpful. While Hebrew words may carry a range of meanings, you miss something vital in, say, a psalm if you do not realize that a certain key Hebrew word is repeated several times.
In a world in which "The Message" is treated like an actual Bible translation (it's far from it), the ESV is both refreshing and my new translation of choice too. If you're not reading Hebrew and Greek, make sure to consult the ESV.
Ken Shomo
Posted by: Ken | 09/30/2006 at 04:04 PM
I really like the ESV too and I use it in my study time. The problem I have run into is that the NIV is so wide-spread and there are so many more study Bibles and other resources that just don't exist yet for the ESV. In the future I plan to make the switch but I just can't do it yet.
Posted by: Justin | 09/30/2006 at 07:31 PM
So Justin, you want the rest of us to do the hard work of pulling the world toward the ESV so you can switch when it's easy and everyone's reading it already? Life is short, switch now. ;)
Posted by: Steve McCoy | 09/30/2006 at 07:40 PM