One topic that has often been controversial in the Evangelical realm is what Bible version should be used? In the context that I was reared and trained initially for ministry, this was a question that caused a lot of contention and even division. Churches at times have split over which Bible to use. This is altogether unnecessary, but it happens. The purpose of this blog is to explain why we at Flat Run Church use the Bible version we do. 

At Flat Run Church, all our public sermons and Scripture readings are taken from the English Standard Version or abbreviated the ESV. You do not have to use the ESV to be a part of our church but here are a few reasons why we do. One reason is that is as much as possible, the ESV is a word for word translation of the Bible. The ESV falls into the Bible translation camp known as “Formal Equivalence.” 

I do not want to get overly technical here, but I think when you are choosing a Bible translation it is important to know the translation philosophy behind it. There are 3 main methods of Bible translation techniques that I am aware. Formal equivalence seeks to make a more word for word translation. The primary goal here is fidelity to the original text while making it readable. Formal equivalence was the dominant means of translation for hundreds of years. Bible translations like the King James Version, New King James Version, New American Standard, and Legacy Standard Bible would all be formal equivalence translations. 

A second method of Bible translation is known as “Dynamic Equivalence.” The desire in these translations is more understandability while seeking to be faithful to the text. It will at times bend the literal translation of a text to make it sound more comfortable to an English speaker or reader. I believe the New International Version (NIV) was one of the first English translations to test the waters of dynamic equivalence. A good test to see if your Bible is a dynamic or formal equivalence is to read Luke 9:44. If your Bible is a formal equivalence (seeking to translate word for word as much as possible) it will read something like “Let these words sink into your ears.” Honestly, that is not the way we normally speak about listening to someone else, but it is a literal word for word translation of the text from Greek. If your Bible is a dynamic equivalence, it will more likely read, “Listen closely to these words.” This is more understandable to us as English speakers however not literally what Jesus said. There is debate as to whether or not this is appropriate to do but I do not personally see a problem with it in your personal study. Versions that would follow this method would be the New International Version, the New Living Translation, and the Christian Standard Bible is somewhere in between formal and dynamic equivalence.

A third method which is really not a translation of the Bible is known as paraphrase. This is usually the work of one person or a few people seeking to make a paraphrase of what they think the Bible is saying. It is like a translation with a commentary added. Before picking up one of these types of “Bibles” you should know it will have added commentary with it. Bibles like this would be The Message and The Living Bible. 

A second reason we use the ESV is it is both a literal and a poetic translation of Scripture. The ESV is a little less literal than the NASB. I love reading the New American Standard Bible, but it is a bit clunky at times because it is overly literal. One of the reasons the King James Version has stood the test of time is because of its beauty in language. The ESV has been compared to the KJV as one of rhythm, poetic utterances, but in modern language. I concur with this sentiment. 

A third reason we use the ESV is because it is based on the best manuscripts available. The Bible is unlike any book of antiquity. Some of the older works like Homer’s Iliad only have a few existing manuscripts that are hundreds and hundreds of years old. The Bible on the other hand, has over 5000 Greek manuscripts and thousands in other languages dated very early from the time of its original writing. The oldest Greek manuscripts date back to the mid second century. This is unheard of from any work of antiquity. The ESV and all contemporary translations of the Bible seek to use all of the best manuscripts at the disposal of scholars and teachers. 

The point of this article is not to promote only one version of the Bible. It is good to seek to get a fuller understanding of Scripture from every resource possible. However, we want to clarify why we use the Bible we do in our church. Whatever your version of choice is, please read your Bible. Mediate over its contents and love the God who gave us His Word more than anything else. 

Soli Deo Gloria!