English Standard Version

Latest publication: 2001

Publisher: Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers

Sample Old Testament Verse (Isaiah 53:5)
But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. (formatted as poetry)

Sample New Testament Verse (1 Timothy 2:3-4)
This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Study Bibles with the ESV text

  • ESV Study Bible
  • Global Study Bible
  • Gospel Transformation Bible
  • Hebrew-Greek Word Study Bible
  • Literary Study Bible
  • MacArthur Study Bible
  • New Classic Reference Bible
  • New Inductive Study Bible
  • Personal Reference Bible
  • Reformation Study Bible
  • Ryrie ESV Study Bible
  • Student Study Bible
  • Verse-by-Verse Reference Bible

Devotional Bible Options

  • MacArthur Drawing Near Bible
  • Men’s Devotional Bible
  • Oswald Chambers Devotional Bible
  • Single Column Heritage Bible
  • Single Column Journaling Bible
  • The Story ESV Bible
  • Urban Devotional Bible
  • Women’s Devotional Bible

Format Information

The publishers have provided chapter headings and sub-headings within the text of scripture. Footnotes are also provided to show readers how the original language has been understood and to indicate textual differences between various original manuscripts. Poetry is formatted as poetry and the text is in paragraph style. Each book includes a single paragraph summary.

Translation Information

The ESV follows the formal equivalent translation method. The translators seek as far as possible to capture the precise wording of the original text and the personal style of each Bible book writer. They have attempted to let the reader see as directly as possible the structure and meaning of the original text. They have maintained the gender specific language of the original text.

Description by the Publisher

The English Standard Version stands in the classic mainstream of English Bible translations over the past half-millennium. The goal was to carry forward the legacy for a new century. Each word and phrase was weighed against the original languages. The words and phrases themselves grew out of the Tyndale-King James legacy and most recently out of the Revised Standard Version, with the RSV 1971 text providing the starting point.