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63-811: Crossway is best known for publishing the English Standard Version (ESV) Bible, along with evangelical Christian books. It claims to have distributed more than 290 million ESV Bibles and 1 billion tracts since its founding. In late 1978, Good News Publishers began expanding its reach by establishing Crossway, a publishing division. Beginning under the leadership of Lane T. Dennis (Clyde and Muriel's son), Crossway claims that it has published more than 1,500 titles, including books "by Francis A. Schaeffer , Martyn Lloyd-Jones , John Piper , John MacArthur , Paul David Tripp, Jen Wilkin, J. I. Packer , Chuck Colson , Frank Peretti , Max Lucado , Joni Eareckson Tada , and D. A. Carson ." In 2012, Good News Publishers and

126-579: A foreword by Leland Ryken, it features a selection of artwork created by Makoto Fujimura for The Four Holy Gospels , a separate edition produced to match the size of the original KJV printing. According to Crossway, the total number of printed ESV Bibles that have been distributed since 2001 are as follows: In October 2024, the ESV was the number one selling Bible translation on the ECPA Bible Translations Bestsellers monthly chart. This

189-704: A linguistic aid during production. The ESV has been used as the Bible text for a number of study Bible editions, including but not limited to: In August 2006, the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod released the Lutheran Service Book (LSB), which uses the ESV as its primary Bible text. With permission from Crossway, the LSB occasionally uses an alternative reading of the ESV in accordance with its original translation principles. Zondervan Zondervan

252-490: A more critical approach toward 'the Bible' can provide richer, more sophisticated sociological analyses of power and cultural reproduction within Christian traditions." Perry argues that Crossway's ESV translation committee made "intentional, systematic changes" into the ESV for the purpose of being able to "publish and mass-market a text more amenable to conservative, complementarian interpretations." Perry further argues that

315-512: A parallel understanding of 3:16 with both 4:7 (which shares the Hebrew word teshuqah ; this verse having also been updated in the 2016 text) and Ephesians 5:21–32. Coinciding with the release of the revision, Crossway announced that "the text of the ESV Bible will remain unchanged in all future editions printed and published by Crossway." However, in a statement from Lane T. Dennis the following month,

378-454: A publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language. The English Standard Version ( ESV ) is a translation of the Bible in contemporary English. Published in 2001 by Crossway , the ESV was "created by

441-579: A reaction to the ESV. To do so would be wrong. By late 2023, Paul R. House , J. I. Packer, Leland Ryken, Gordon Wenham, and Bruce Winter had retired from the translation committee. In addition, the following individuals had joined by this time: In 2008, Crossway published the ESV Study Bible , which would go on to sell more than one million copies. In 2009, the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) named

504-658: A revised version of the Grail Psalms, the Abbey Psalms and Canticles, will continue to be used. After the publication of the 2009 Oxford University Press Apocrypha edition, the Apocrypha text "was subsequently reviewed and approved by members of the ESV Translation Oversight Committee in 2017, including the special cases of Tobit and Esther (with Greek Additions) ." In 2019, Anglican Liturgy Press published

567-511: A team of more than 100 leading evangelical scholars and pastors." The ESV relies on recently published critical editions of the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts. Crossway says that the ESV continues a legacy of precision and faithfulness in translating the original text into English. It describes the ESV as a translation that adheres to an "essentially literal" translation philosophy, taking into account "differences in grammar, syntax, and idiom between current literary English and

630-539: A wholly sufficient view of evangelical Bible use is to take a small truth and make it the whole truth. It is to say to God, "We can't hear you because other people are talking." In November 2022, Crossway began an effort to fund and distribute 1 million ESV Bibles throughout English-speaking regions in the Global South , with a primary focus on Africa and Asia. Having been designed on a funding model where Bibles produced at cost are either donated or strategically subsidized,

693-458: Is also known for the Bible storytelling books of Ethel Barrett , Joni by quadriplegic Joni Eareckson Tada , Baptist minister and author Rick Warren 's The Purpose Driven Life , which has sold more than 35 million copies, and Sacred Marriage, by Gary Thomas . In 2004, Zondervan expanded to include Renee Altson , Shane Claiborne , Sarah Raymond Cunningham and Margaret Feinberg , authors writing for young readers . The children's arm of

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756-461: Is an international Christian media and publishing company located in Grand Rapids, Michigan , United States. Zondervan is a founding member of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA). It is a part of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc . and has multiple imprints including Zondervan Academic, Zonderkidz, Blink, and Editorial Vida. Zondervan is the commercial rights holder for

819-462: Is to recognize that there are different translation philosophies, different goals and means by which to reach those goals, and the goal of the translator is to be consistent in achieving those goals. In all but one of his examples, our translation was the one required by our translation philosophy. Strauss invited Mounce to engage further through participation at the following annual meeting. In 2009, Mounce presented his formal response paper titled "Can

882-468: The American Tract Society entered into a joint publishing agreement regarding publication and distribution of gospel tracts throughout North America. In 2001, Crossway published the ESV translation of the Bible. The ESV translation committee describes the ESV as a translation that is "essentially literal", following a "word-for-word" philosophy. According to Crossway, the publishing team behind

945-748: The Augustine Institute published the ESV-CE in North America as The Augustine Bible . In October 2021, following these developments, the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge published its own version of the ESV-CE, newly typeset and with anglicized spelling, in multiple formats. In April 2020, the Catholic Church in India adopted a new English lectionary that uses the ESV-CE as its Bible text (excluding

1008-584: The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW). Members of the CBMW had earlier been involved in criticizing plans made by Zondervan 's New International Version (NIV) translation committee to publish a gender-neutral edition of the NIV. Grudem, who was president of the CBMW at the time, responded by stating, "This [translation] is not a CBMW project." Chaired by Dennis, the fourteen-member Translation Oversight Committee

1071-577: The ESV Study Bible as Christian Book of the Year. This was the first time in the award's 30-year history to be given to a study Bible . By September 2024, the ESV Study Bible had sold more than 2.5 million copies. In 2011, Crossway published a special limited edition ESV New Classic Reference Bible to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the King James Version (KJV) first being published. Having

1134-660: The ESV with Apocrypha . Like the Oxford edition, it places the Apocrypha at the back of the Bible. It was rereleased in 2023 as a bonded leather hardcover edition. In May 2024, Grudem mentioned that the ESV translation committee was planning to meet in Wheaton, Illinois, in July 2024 to consider approximately 120 suggested changes to the ESV text. He estimated that the committee would approve around 30 to 40 of these suggestions, including "little tweaks to

1197-728: The New International Version (NIV) Bible in North America. According to the Zondervan website, it is the largest Christian publisher. Zondervan was founded in 1931 in Grandville, MI , a suburb of Grand Rapids , by brothers Peter ("P.J.", "Pat") and Bernard (Bernie) Zondervan, who were the nephews of publisher William B. Eerdmans . The company began in the Zondervans' farmhouse and originally dealt with selling remainders and publishing public domain works. The first book it published

1260-469: The New York Times Best Sellers list. Zondervan Academic publishes reference volumes, textbooks, and monographs, for both use in schools and by many pastors. It is widely known for its biblical language resources, including the bestselling textbooks Basics of Biblical Greek , Basics of Biblical Hebrew , and many others. The imprint also publishes several popular commentary series, including

1323-533: The 1971 RSV text left unchanged by the committee "is simply 'the best of the best' of the KJV tradition." Theologian Tim Challies has praised the ESV for its commitment to literary excellence: ...   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

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1386-579: The 1971 text edition of the Revised Standard Version. ESV translation committee member Wayne Grudem claims 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 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." Although, Grudem also states that much of

1449-616: The 2002 corrected edition. In 2009, Oxford University Press published the English Standard Version Bible with Apocrypha . This edition includes the Apocrypha , placed at the back of the Bible, intended for "denominations that use those books in liturgical readings and for students who need them for historical purposes." Crossway published a revision of the ESV text in 2011 as "ESV Text Edition: 2011." The revision changes fewer than 500 words in total throughout 275 verses from

1512-524: The 2007 text. The changes were made in each case to "correct grammar, improve consistency, or increase precision in meaning." A notable revision was made in Isaiah 53:5, changing "wounded for our transgressions" to "pierced for our transgressions" in the revised text. In addition, the ESV translation committee decided to modify the use of the word "slave" (being the Greek word doulos ) on a case by case basis throughout

1575-468: The Bible in with your existing tradition. That's simple hermeneutical humility—as long as it's paired with a sincere desire to hold one's tradition up to the light of Scripture.   ... I can be grateful to Perry for some sharp observations, even some warning shots, while still insisting that any view that muzzles God, that severs the link between his intentions and his words, is rebellion.   ... To offer "establishing transitivity with existing views" as

1638-538: The Bible they translated is beautiful to read—far more than any of its contemporaries. Crossway claims 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 claims that

1701-406: The ESV "has included more than a hundred people." In 2008, Crossway published the ESV Study Bible . In 2016, Crossway made headlines after announcing that the ESV text would be "unchanged forever, in perpetuity" as a "permanent text" edition. After public discourse about the policy, Crossway announced that it would reverse the decision. English Standard Version © 2001 by Crossway,

1764-569: The ESV and TNIV Co-Exist in the Same Universe?" In the paper, Mounce describes various points regarding his view of the need for both formal and functional translations. In October 2019, University of Oklahoma sociology professor Samuel L. Perry published a journal article titled "The Bible as a Product of Cultural Power: The Case of Gender Ideology in the English Standard Version." In the article, Perry attempts to demonstrate "how

1827-411: The ESV for its position on the use of gender-neutral language, perceiving the use of terms such as "mankind" and "brothers" to be "out of sync with modern usage [and] culturally regarded as diminishing and disrespectful of women." In June 2021, Samuel L. Perry published a journal article titled "Whitewashing Evangelical Scripture: The Case of Slavery and Antisemitism in the English Standard Version." In

1890-456: The ESV has "missed" or "not considered" certain translational issues. While I am sure they were not intentional, these are emotionally charged words that do not help in the debate. They are in essence ad hominem arguments focusing on our competence (or perceived lack thereof) and not on the facts. He was not in the translation meetings and does not know if we in fact did miss or did not consider these issues.   ... The solution to this debate

1953-412: The ESV lets the distinct writing styles of the various biblical writers come through the translated text. The ESV translation committee states that "the goal of the ESV is to render literally what is in the original." The committee expands on this position in claiming that, although the ESV avoids using gender-neutral language (for the purpose of preserving contextual meaning found in the original text),

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2016-465: The ESV or that I am "jumping ship." I am not. I thoroughly enjoy reading and studying from the ESV. But if you have been reading this blog very long, you will know that I strongly believe in different translation philosophies, that there is not a "one-size-fits-all," and that the translator's responsibility is to be consistent with that stated philosophy.   ... I am excited about being able to get back into translation work, but please do not read this as

2079-553: The ESV translation committee "have engaged in more covert means of cultural reproduction, not only disseminating their interpretation of the biblical text, but manipulating the text itself ." The ESV Study Bible often details in its study notes why a complementarian interpretation of the original text may have been rendered in translation. In 2020, the Ireland-based Association of Catholic Priests , an independent and voluntary association of Catholic clergy, criticized

2142-488: The ESV, having accepted a position on the NIV translation committee: Many of you know that I was the New Testament Chair of the ESV translation. This project has consumed thousands of hours, most of them enjoyable. I am happy with the ESV.   ... I learned so much on the ESV, things I have never taught in any Greek class at any level.   ... Here is my concern. I don't want anyone to think that I am unhappy with

2205-795: The ESV." The revision was subsequently republished as "ESV Text Edition: 2016." In 2018, the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India published the ESV Catholic Edition (ESV-CE), which includes the deuterocanonical books in Catholic canonical order. With permission from Crossway, a team of Catholic scholars reviewed the text of the ESV in light of the Vatican 's translation principles as set forth in Liturgiam authenticam , making approved modifications where needed to adhere to Catholic teaching. In 2019,

2268-629: The NCC for Crossway to use and modify the 1971 RSV text, thereby enabling the creation of a new translation. Crossway moved forward from this position by forming a translation committee and initiating work on the English Standard Version. Crossway officially published the ESV in September 2001. The first ESV print edition to be released was the ESV Classic Reference Bible . In 1999, World reported of "feminists" noticing links between Crossway and

2331-510: The New Testament, being retranslated to either "bondservant" or "servant" to disambiguate the context of the situation. In 2013, Gideons International permanently transitioned from the New King James Version to the ESV as their translation of choice for free of charge distribution Bibles. In addition to being granted licensing for the ESV text (for the purpose of distribution), Crossway gave Gideons International permission to modify

2394-612: The Singspiration and Zondervan Victory labels in the 1960s, Singcord in the 1970s, and the Milk & Honey Records label, starting in the late 1970s. In 1980, Zondervan and Paragon Associates bought Christian record label Benson Records in a partnership to own and operate for $ 3 million. The resulting company was (measured by sales) one and a half times the size of its closest competitor, Word . Zondervan bought out Paragon in 1983, and eventually sold Benson to Zomba Label Group in 1993, now

2457-480: The Zondervan Exegetical Commentary, Story of God Bible Commentary, and Word Biblical Commentary. Noted authors include N.T. Wright, Douglas Moo, Scot McKnight, Michael Bird, John Walton, Michael Horton, Dan Wallace, Bruce Waltke, Tremper Longman, Thomas Kidd, Craig Keener, Thomas Schreiner, Nijay Gupta, Lynn Cohick, and D.A. Carson. Zondervan was in the Christian record business for many years with

2520-459: The article, Perry attempts to demonstrate how "the ESV editors, while modifying certain RSV renderings to establish transitivity for their text among complementarian/ biblicist Christians, sought to establish intransitivity between the text and more pejorative social interpretations by progressively re-translating lexically ambiguous terms and introducing footnotes to obviate the Bible's ostensible promotion of slavery and antisemitism." In turn, Perry

2583-712: The book of Psalms, where the Grail Psalms translation is used instead). In July 2020, the Bishops' Conference of Scotland approved the development of a new lectionary using the ESV-CE text. This was followed by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales receiving the first volume of a new lectionary using the ESV-CE text in November 2020 (which had earlier been approved for development in November 2018). The new lectionary will be fully introduced during Advent 2024, although

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2646-497: The books I've read, it's one of the finest in its literary quality.   ... 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.   ... They succeeded well, and

2709-552: The company Zonderkidz published The Jesus Storybook Bible in 2007, written by Sally Lloyd-Jones and illustrated by Jago . It has sold in excess of 2 million copies in 19 languages. The NIV Zondervan Study Bible was released in 2015 during the 50th anniversary of the New International Version (NIV) translation. The study Bible , edited by Dr. D. A. Carson, features over 60 evangelical contributors from multiple denominations. On 11 March 2019, Zondervan announced

2772-696: The formation of two new imprints, Zondervan Reflective and Zondervan Academic. Although both imprints ran informally at Zondervan for several years this announcement formalized their public brand. Zondervan Reflective focuses on publishing books discussing the relationship between faith and culture, leadership, and how Christians can lead biblically faithful lives privately and in the public square. Noted authors include Andy Stanley, Clay Scroggins, J.D. Greear, Colin Hansen, Tim Challies, Michael Horton, Jared Wilson, John Lennox, Jemar Tisby, and Peter Scazzero. On 28 June 2020, Jemar Tisby's The Color of Compromise reached #13 on

2835-539: The need for a new literal translation of the Bible . In 1997, Dennis contacted the National Council of Churches (NCC) and proceeded to enter negotiations, alongside Trinity Evangelical Divinity School professor Wayne Grudem , to obtain rights to use the 1971 text edition of the Revised Standard Version (RSV) as the starting point for a new translation. In September 1998, an agreement was reached with

2898-405: The new policy was abandoned "to allow for ongoing periodic updating of the text to reflect the realities of biblical scholarship such as textual discoveries or changes in English over time." In the statement, Dennis responded to public discourse surrounding the policy: "We have become convinced that this decision was a mistake. We apologize for this and for any concern this has caused for readers of

2961-457: The original languages." It also describes the ESV as a translation that "emphasizes 'word-for-word' accuracy, literary excellence, and depth of meaning." Since its official publication, the ESV has received endorsement from numerous evangelical pastors and theologians, including John Piper and R. C. Sproul . During the early 1990s, Crossway president Lane T. Dennis engaged in discussions with various Christian scholars and pastors regarding

3024-408: The paper, Strauss criticizes the ESV for using dated language, among other perceived issues, such as using gender-neutral language inconsistently in translation. ESV translator Bill Mounce responded to Strauss's criticism: While the content of the paper was helpful, I am afraid that it only increased the gap between the two "sides" of the [translation philosophy] debate.   ... He kept saying that

3087-406: The project was initiated to resource Christians and pastors in low-income communities with study Bibles and various other editions, aiming to prevent "biblical illiteracy, spiritual malnourishment, and the transmission of false teaching run rampant." Crossway claims that its ministry partners were in the process of distributing more than 435,000 Bibles by the end of 2023. The ESV is derived from

3150-632: The proper translation of fought-over words like "slave" and "Jew."   ... So I carefully read not only the Salon interview but also the scholarly article in the Journal of the American Academy of Religion which gave rise to it.   ... They [both] carry the same basic message. And that message is full of frankly cynical, acidic ideas about Bible study   ... The first step in interpretation should be transitivity. You should try to fit what you read in

3213-551: The text to use alternative readings based on the Textus Receptus . The Gideons edition uses more than 50 alternative readings. Crossway published a revision of the ESV text in 2016 as the "ESV Permanent Text Edition (2016)." The revision changes 52 words in total throughout 29 verses from the 2011 text. In addition, it also features an update of the textual basis for both the Old Testament and New Testament. A notable revision

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3276-425: The translation does utilize gender-neutral language in specific cases. 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." In 2002, Crossway published an unannounced revision to the original 2001 text to make several corrections, these being in areas where it

3339-543: The translation process. He also states that the translation committee meets approximately every 5–7 years to consider text revisions. The original translation committee featured the following notable individuals: By 2011, Robert H. Mounce and William (Bill) Mounce had become emeritus members. Having served as the ESV New Testament Chair, Bill Mounce's role was assigned to Vern Poythress. Writing on his personal blog in 2009, Mounce described his relationship to

3402-500: The wording [that] make it consistent with where we've translated the same phrase elsewhere." In August 2003, Crossway released its first audio Bible, being the New Testament read by Marquis Laughlin. Shortly after, the New York City-based Fellowship for Performing Arts released an ESV audio Bible read by Max McLean , having been produced by Liz Donato and recorded under a licensing agreement. The first format released

3465-539: Was Women of the Old Testament by Abraham Kuyper , in 1933. Within a few years it developed a list of its own, and began publishing Bible editions. The Berkeley Version appeared in 1959, and the Amplified Bible in 1965. The New International Version New Testament was published in partnership with the International Bible Society in 1973, and the complete NIV Bible appeared in 1978. The company

3528-512: Was aided by more than fifty biblical experts serving as review scholars. The translation committee also received input from the Advisory Council, having more than fifty members. J. I. Packer served as general editor of the translation, and Leland Ryken served as literary stylist. Grudem states that the NET Bible study notes were one resource that the translation committee consulted during

3591-599: Was believed "that a mistake had been made in translation." This includes a revision in Romans 3:9, changing "under the power of sin" to "under sin." In 2002, Collins published the English Standard Version: Anglicized Edition in the United Kingdom . It is abbreviated as ESVUK. Crossway published a revision of the ESV text in 2007 as "ESV Text Edition: 2007." The revision makes minor changes to

3654-492: Was bought by HarperCollins , a division of News Corp , in 1988, and is the company's principal Christian book publishing division. Scott Macdonald was appointed president and CEO in May 2011. Zondervan also publishes many other books by Christian authors focusing on topics of interest to Christians. In the 1970s it published The Late, Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsey , which has sold more than 30 million copies. The publisher

3717-420: Was interviewed by Salon regarding the content of the article. Boyce College Professor of Biblical Studies Denny Burk points out that Perry makes "a significant error" in referring to Grudem as the general editor of the ESV. In July 2021, Bible Study Magazine editor Mark Ward published an article to his personal blog in response: Perry raises very important questions about Bible interpretation, and about

3780-513: Was made in Genesis 3:16 to use a complementarian interpretation of the original text: switching "shall be toward" with "shall be contrary to" in the revised text. The previous rendering can be found in the footnotes (excluding any editions that specifically do not have footnotes, such as the ESV Reader's Bible ). The ESV Study Bible details in its study notes the revised interpretation in relation to

3843-683: Was published on October 31, 2008, being the 491th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. In late 2023, Crossway finished releasing six new audio Bibles, having been read by Conrad Mbewe, Kristyn Getty , Ray Ortlund , Jackie Hill Perry , Robert Smith Jr., and Michael Reeves. The entire project took approximately 6,000 hours of production labor. Ortlund called his recording experience "the most exacting, precise, detailed, and demanding task I've performed since my doctoral work 40 years ago," in addition to being "immensely satisfying." Ortlund used The HarperCollins Bible Pronunciation Guide as

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3906-488: Was the New Testament as a set of 12 cassette tapes, having been published by Crossway on October 31, 2003, being the 486th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation . A set of New Testament CDs was published the following month, and the full audio Bible was published in 2004. The full audio Bible was rereleased in May 2024. In 2008, Crossway released an audio Bible featuring the voice of David Cochran Heath. This

3969-617: Was the first time the ESV had reached number one in the chart's history (which began in December 2011), and the first time the NIV had lost its number one spot in five years. At the 2008 annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society , Mark L. Strauss presented a paper titled "Why the English Standard Version should not become the Standard English Version: How to make a good translation much better." In

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