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 the original languages."

History

Pre-publication

During the early 1990s, Crossway president Lane T. Dennis engaged in discussions with various Christian scholars and pastors regarding 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 the NCC for Crossway to use and modify the 1971 RSV text, thereby enabling the creation of a new translation.<!-- Poythress and Grudem 2004 was republished as a free PDF in September 2022 (as per PDF introduction; sourced from https://frame-poythress.org/ebooks/). --> Crossway officially published the ESV in September 2001. The first ESV print edition to be released was the ESV Classic Reference Bible. It was published on October 31, 2001, being the 484th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation.

In 1999, World magazine reported on "feminists" noticing links between Crossway and the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW). 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." and Leland Ryken served as literary stylist. Grudem states that the NET Bible study notes were one resource that the translation committee consulted during the translation process. He also states that the translation committee meets approximately every 5–7 years to consider text revisions.

The translation committee, as originally constituted, featured the following notable individuals:

  • Clifford John Collins (professor of Old Testament, Covenant Theological Seminary)
  • Wayne A. Grudem (research professor of theology and biblical studies, Phoenix Seminary)
  • William D. Mounce (professor of New Testament, Gordon–Conwell Theological Seminary)
  • J. I. Packer (Board of Governors' Professor of Theology, Regent College, Vancouver, Canada)<!-- Packer's position does not fall under common nouns and therefore should be capitalized, see MOS:JOBTITLE -->
  • Vern Sheridan Poythress (professor of New Testament interpretation, Westminster Theological Seminary; editor of the Westminster Theological Journal)
  • Gordon Wenham, (professor of Old Testament, Trinity College, Bristol)

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.

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 2009, the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) named 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.

thumb|ESV New Classic Reference Bible (Commemorative Edition; top grain leather)

In 2011, Crossway published a special limited edition, the ESV New Classic Reference Bible, to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the King James Version (KJV) first being published. With 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.

Crossway, which operates as a not-for-profit, states that most ESV copies are "given away freely through ministry partners around the world." This 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. In 2026, the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) reported that the ESV was the best-selling Bible translation in the United Kingdom for 2025.

Debate surrounding translation philosophy

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 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:

Strauss invited Mounce to engage further through participation at the following annual meeting. In 2009, Mounce presented his formal response paper titled "Can 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 2017, Eastern Orthodox philosopher David Bentley Hart, in the preface to his translation of the New Testament, argues that "in some extreme cases doctrinal or theological or moral ideologies drive translators to distort the [original] text to a discreditable degree. Certain popular translations, like the New International Version and the English Standard Version, are notorious examples of this." Hart's translation brought various praise, but also criticism—most notably from N. T. Wright, who also produced his own translation of the New Testament.

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 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 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.