There are two primary philosophies of Bible translation: word-for-word translations known as “essentially literal” and thought-for-thought translations known as “dynamic equivalence.” Word-for-word translations are considered “essentially literal” because they seek to be as formal and literal as possible by translating the original text into modern English with as little interpretation and paraphrase as possible. Examples of word-for-word translations include the NASB and the ESV. Thought-for-thought translations are considered “dynamic equivalence” because they seek to be as functional and dynamic as possible by translating the original text into modern English with as much interpretation and paraphrase as is required. Examples of thought-for-thought translations include the NIV and the NLT.

The New American Standard Bible (NASB) was originally published in 1971 and later updated in 1977, 1995, and 2020. It is a “formal equivalence” translation that features a 10.0 reading level. The primary strength of the NASB is that it’s formal and literal even though it can sometimes be difficult to understand for some readers.

The English Standard Version (ESV) was originally published in 2001 and later updated in 2007, 2011, and 2016. It is an “essentially literal” translation that features a 8.0 reading level. The primary strength of the ESV is its balance between being both a literal and readable translation that is more suitable for a wider range of readers.

Because the NASB and the ESV both feature a word-for-word translation philosophy, the only major difference between the two versions is their reading level. The NASB features a 10.0 reading level while the ESV features an 8.0 reading level making it easier to understand for all ages. Another minor difference between the two versions is that the NASB translation capitalizes personal pronouns referring to God while the ESV translation does not capitalize personal pronouns referring to God which, while it does require more careful study of the text, is more accurate and faithful to the original manuscripts.

The ESV does not capitalize deity pronouns for a few reasons. First, there is nothing in the original Hebrew and Greek manuscripts that corresponds to such capitalization. Second, the practice of capitalizing deity pronouns in English Bible translations is a recent innovation, which began only in the mid-twentieth century. Third, such capitalization is absent from the whole stream of Bible translations that the ESV seeks to carry forward.

The pastors and elders at Living Oaks have decided to switch to the ESV for three reasons: unity, clarity, and simplicity. First, in terms of unity, our kids and student ministries have been using the ESV in all of their ministry programs since 2014. We want to encourage and equip families and ministries to read, learn, study, and memorize Scripture together using the same translation. Second, in terms of clarity, the ESV is both faithful to the original text and accessible to modern audiences. It’s more readable and understandable for different ages and stages of spiritual maturity without losing its accuracy and precision as a literal translation. Third, in terms of simplicity, the ESV has the potential of being more accessible and evangelistic toward non-believers and new-believers without losing any of its depth of meaning for mature believers. It strikes a beautiful balance between being suitable for corporate worship and personal devotion and useful for biblical teaching and intentional evangelism.