Editing English Standard Version (section)

== Literary attributes ==
[[File:ESV Classic Pew and Worship Bible (2002 corrected ed.).png|thumb|''ESV Classic Pew and Worship Bible'' (2002 corrected ed.){{Efn|The first hardcover, black edition of the ''ESV Pew and Worship Bible'' was published in December 2003.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Purchase an ESV Bible |url=https://www.gnpcb.org/catalog/bibles |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031224082915/https://www.gnpcb.org/catalog/bibles |archive-date=December 24, 2003 |access-date=April 21, 2024 |website=Good News Publishers / Crossway Books}}</ref>}}]]
=== Relationship to the Revised Standard Version ===
The ESV is derived from the 1971 text edition of the Revised Standard Version.<ref name=":8" /><ref name=":10" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Stec |first=David M. |date=July 2004 |editor-last=Schellenberg |editor-first=Annette |title=Review: ''The Holy Bible: English Standard Version'' |journal=[[Vetus Testamentum]] |location=[[Leiden]] |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] on behalf of the [[International Organization for the Study of the Old Testament]] |volume=54 |issue=3 |page=421 |issn=0042-4935 |eissn=1568-5330 |jstor=1518879 |lccn=56003071 |oclc=46606373}}</ref> ESV translation committee member Wayne Grudem states that approximately eight percent (or about 60,000 words) of the 1971 RSV text being used for the ESV was revised as of first publication in 2001. Grudem also states that the committee removed "every trace of liberal influence that had caused such criticism from evangelicals when the RSV was first published in 1952."{{Efn|A few examples of reverted verses, being translated in accordance with the ESV's translation philosophy, are as follows: Isaiah 7:14 (now using "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son"), Psalm 2:12 (now using "Kiss the Son"), and Psalm 45:6 (now using "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever"). The committee also decided to restore the theological term "propitiation" to the following verses: Romans 3:25, Hebrews 2:17; and 1 John 2:2 and 4:10.<ref name=":12" />}} Although, Grudem also states that much of the 1971 RSV text left unchanged by the committee "is simply 'the best of the best' of the KJV tradition."<ref name=":12" />

=== Style ===
Theologian [[Tim Challies]] has praised the ESV for its commitment to literary excellence:

{{Blockquote
| text = ...{{Nbsp}}the book that has most shaped my writing is the Bible—the ESV. Not only is this the book I've read most over the years, but it's also the book I've studied the closest, and memorized most substantially. And then, of all the books I've read, it's one of the finest in its literary quality.{{Nbsp}}... One thing I've always loved about the ESV is its superior use of the English language. Any translation involves a trade-off between precision and readability so that the most-literal translations also tend to be the least-readable. Though the ESV is a precise Bible, its translators chose to place a premium on literary excellence.{{Nbsp}}... They succeeded well, and the Bible they translated is beautiful to read—far more than any of its contemporaries.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Challies |first=Tim |date=March 6, 2019 |title=The Book that Has Most Influenced My Writing |url=https://www.challies.com/articles/the-book-that-has-most-influenced-my-writing/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210803103306/https://www.challies.com/articles/the-book-that-has-most-influenced-my-writing/ |archive-date=August 3, 2021 |access-date=August 3, 2021 |website=Tim Challies}}</ref>
}}

Crossway states that the ESV "retains theological terminology—words such as grace, faith, justification, sanctification, redemption, regeneration, reconciliation, propitiation—because of their central importance for Christian doctrine and also because the underlying Greek words were already becoming key words and technical terms among Christians in New Testament times." It also states that the ESV seeks to let the distinct writing style of each biblical writer come through the translated text.<ref name=":7" />

=== Fonts ===
Crossway primarily uses the [[Lexicon (typeface)|Lexicon]] serif typeface for print editions.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Shank |first=Carl |date=November 10, 2021 |title=Good Bible Typography |url=https://www.caretypography.com/good-bible-typography |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250517100151/https://www.caretypography.com/good-bible-typography |archive-date=May 17, 2025 |access-date=May 17, 2025 |website=CARE Typography}}</ref> For the ESV.org website and ESV Bible app, it uses the [[Clarendon (typeface)#Revivals|Sentinel]] serif typeface as the default font, along with offering [[Gotham (typeface)|Gotham]] as a sans-serif alternative.

=== Position on gender-neutral language ===
The ESV translation committee states that "the goal of the ESV is to render literally what is in the original."<ref name=":7" /> The committee expands on this position in stating that, although the ESV avoids using gender-neutral language (for the purpose of preserving contextual meaning found in the original text), the translation does utilize gender-neutral language in specific cases.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Brunn |first=David |date=23 April 2024 |title=Gender in Bible Translation: A Crucial Issue Still Mired in Misunderstanding |url=https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/article/gender-in-bible-translation-a-crucial-issue-still-mired-in-misunderstanding/ |url-status=live |journal=Themelios |volume=49 |issue=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718030111/https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/article/gender-in-bible-translation-a-crucial-issue-still-mired-in-misunderstanding/ |archive-date=July 18, 2024}}</ref> The committee further states that its objective was "transparency to the original text, allowing the reader to understand the original on its own terms rather than in the terms of our present-day Western culture."