Why the ESV?

Here's a copy of my latest newsletter article from Holy Cross explaining why I like the change to the ESV.

A couple of months ago as Advent started our new church year, you may have noticed that the translation of the Bible which we read in worship and which is printed on the backs of the bulletins has changed. This is an excellent change which was made by the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod’s “Lutheran Hymnal Project.” Those involved in this project pointed out that “integral to doctrinal precision is linguistic accuracy. When the words we use to proclaim the Gospel in our worship become unclear or ambiguous, doctrinal clarity and confession immediately suffer. Words—the very specific words delivered to us in Word and Sacrament—are the way our Lord has chosen to work in our lives.”

While no translation of the Bible is perfect and has ever been endorsed as “the official translation” of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, there are two that rise to the top in terms of theological and linguistic accuracy, text-critical grounds, and readability. Those are the New American Standard Version and the English Standard Version, with the ESV taking a slight edge in readability.

In 2001, the English Standard Version was published and revealed as a modern, conservative, evangelical version of the Bible. It is what is called a “form-equivalent translation” of scripture, meaning that the words of scripture are translated on more of a word-for-word basis than other translations which may be translated on a thought-for-thought basis (like the New International Version, Contemporary English Version, or Good News Bible) or even a paraphrase (like The Message or The Living Bible). Some translations are outright corruptions of Scripture, like the New World Bible used by Jehovah’s Witnesses, which was written to portray Jesus as a man and not God. Three professors from Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, two professors from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri, and the theological editor of Concordia Publishing House were active “Translation Review Scholars” for the ESV.

This new translation is a good and welcome change for several reasons. First, it is important to retain the words of God and not just the thoughts of God because precision that is lost when the words are not retained. In order for our worship to remain centered on Jesus Christ and His Word, it is helpful to use theological words because they are more exact and help avoid theological confusion when they are properly explained.

Second, we strengthen the trustworthiness of Scripture. When I, as pastor, have to stop and say “what the Bible really means is this,” this can eventually break down people’s trust in the translations of Scripture and undermine their confidence in the ability of the Holy Spirit to lead them in understanding. It helps people to understand Scripture and to trust in the accuracy of the Word of God more when we say “this is what this word means” instead of “this is what the Greek text really means.”

Third, it is essential to remain true to the Biblical proclamation that while Scripture is meant for all people, it cannot be communicated in such a way that all people will receive it. This view is politically incorrect and offensive, yet on numerous occasions God points out that human nature does not always lead to understanding. Jesus’ own disciples did not know how to handle the “hard sayings” of Jesus (John 6:60). Mark Twain said it well: “Most people are bothered by those passages of Scripture they do not understand; but the passages that bother me are those I do understand.” God’s thoughts are so superior to ours that we will never be able to fully comprehend his ways (Isaiah 55:9) even as he reveals them in the Bible, and we should not try to twist them so that we can make sense of them because we would do this to our own peril (2 Peter 3:15-16).

At Holy Cross, we exist to teach people what they would not otherwise know, the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. We do this through the ministry of Word and Sacrament, shared through people in the community through the words of Scripture working in the members of the Body of Christ. In another few decades, another translation will come along and be utilized by the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, but each time we change, we strive to remain true to the calling and mission God has given to us.