2001 ADCode: ESVModern English

English Standard Version

An "essentially literal" translation carrying forward the stream of Tyndale, the KJV, and the 1971 RSV with conservative evangelical scholarship.

Historical Sources & Antecedents

What Texts and Translations Did This Version Use?

The foundational manuscripts, earlier translations, and polyglots consulted during compilation.

1952 ADdirect revision

Revised Standard Version

The English Standard Version was produced as an "essentially literal" revision of the 1971 RSV text, restoring conservative biblical terminology.

Approx. 85% textual contribution

250 BCancient manuscript basis

Dead Sea Scrolls

The ESV translation committee consulted the Dead Sea Scrolls in dozens of Old Testament passages for variant textual readings.

Subsequent Lineage & Revisions

Who In The Future Used This Translation?

Modern revisions, authorized successors, and descendants shaped by this text.

No subsequent descendant translations recorded in our current museum catalog.

Curatorial Commentary

Historical Context & Textual Significance

Led by J.I. Packer and Wayne Grudem with Crossway, a translation oversight committee of 14 scholars acquired the rights to the 1971 Revised Standard Version. The team revised approximately 60,000 words to eliminate theological ambiguities, restore conservative readings (such as "virgin" in Isaiah 7:14 and "propitiation" in Romans 3:25), and adhere to strict formal equivalence.

Textual Legacy & Impact:

Rapidly became one of the dominant translations for evangelical churches, academia, and global study Bibles in the 21st century.

Where Can You View Original Surviving Copies Today?

Known physical copies preserved in world archives and library vaults.

Crossway Headquarters, Wheaton, IL