First, let me explain my transition to the ESV. Growing up, the good ol’ King James (KJV) was the translation of choice. That was my Bible of choice until I discovered the New King James (NKJV) and was finally able to escape from all of the thees and thous of the KJV, although the pastors I sat under still preferred to preach from the KJV. I dabbled a bit into the New International Version (NIV), but never felt comfortable with it; it always seemed “too easy” to read for my liking. I liked the NKJV because it was close enough that I could still very easily follow along with most pastors and it was close enough to the KJV that study tools like Strong’s Concordance were still useful to me. When the ESV first came out, I began to read it a little bit and even purchased a copy, which I still have & keep by my bedside. For whatever reason, I still preferred my NKJV Bible. It wasn’t until I moved to Austin, TX that I began to use the New American Standard Bible (NASB). The NASB was the translation of choice of my pastor and became an invaluable resource as I began learning & studying the Greek language. The rigidness of the NASB’s translation lends itself very well to following alongside with a Greek New Testament. Until recently, this had been my Bible of choice, and is still in my “toolbox” when studying. I really liked the NASB and still do.

So, if I like the NASB so much, why switch to the ESV? Let me outline a few reasons:

1. It is essentially literal. The ESV, like the NASB & NKJV, is a literal translation of the original Greek & Hebrew manuscripts. I appreciate the fact that for the most part I can look at the ESV and quickly look at a Greek text and match the two up. In as much as they can in translating into English, they try to bring across the meaning of the original text.
2. It is readable. This was a big one for me because I feel that the Bible is meant to be read. For as much as I love using the NASB for study, it can be very difficult to read at times. The text of the ESV is, more often than not, translated into smooth English that is readable & flows; whereas, the NASB can be very choppy and disconnected at times because it tries to be too faithful to the Greek or Hebrew. This is essential because people need to be able to read the Bible & comprehend it.
3. It is accessible. One of the great things that Crossway has done with the ESV is to make it accessible and tailored to suit the needs of the masses. They have several editions & styles of their print Bible so that you can find one that fits your style; whether it be heavy on the footnotes & cross references, single or double column, and so on. Another thing I like is that Crossway has enacted a digital initiative with the ESV, making it available for free in electronic form. For me, this means that no matter who I’m trying to teach, they should be able to get their hands on a copy of the ESV without much trouble & little to no cost.
4. It is built for study. What do I mean by this? Partly because Crossway has been so open with their licensing of the ESV, it has become possible for derivative projects to come along that enhance the ESV text. This started with Logos (back in the days of Libronix) when they helped create the ESV Reverse Interlinear; this opened up a whole new world of study for those not as skilled in the original languages. Then you also have other resources such as the Lexham High Definition New Testament which marks up the text with discourse analysis tags. Not to mention the abundance of study materials that are available that use the ESV text now.

Now, like any translation of the Bible, the ESV is not perfect. It is a translation and does its best to communicate God’s truth, and I take it as such. In saying that, there are a few issues that I have with the ESV. Probably the most dominant is the fact that it is basically the “Reformed Bible,” meaning that in many cases it is the translation of choice for those that associate with that theology, and in some difficult passages the ESV’s translation is such that it supports these views. While this is my primary concern with the translation, it is really minor in scope & is a problem with any translation. The truth is, though, if you faithfully teach the text, the translation used shouldn’t matter (in most cases, as there are some I’d recommend never teaching from). Other issues that I have are relatively minor, such as the use of the phrase “at table,” which just seems awkward for American English, albeit correct but uncommon English. Another would be the decision to not capitalize the pronouns that refer to God the Father, Jesus Christ, or the Holy Spirit. This was something that the NASB did and I found useful, but the ESV decided to stick with the tradition of the RSV and common practice.

In all, I want a Bible that is readable, accessible, and faithful to the original languages. I feel that I get those three things with the ESV, more than with any other translation. While other translations might get 2 out of 3 (like the NASB), the ESV seems to hit them all solidly. I have no problem sitting down and reading the ESV, as it just flows like I’m reading literature. Everyone can get a copy of the ESV for free digitally, or for very little in print, and just about anywhere. And, to top it off, it’s faithful to the original languages, even when comparing resources such as the Dead Sea Scrolls. Overall, I’m satisfied with the ESV and am confident that it’s the right Bible to use at this time for study & teaching.

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