Hi Reid…I was wondering what it was that made you choose the ESV over, say, the NIV? Having been brought up on the KJV, and wanting to choose a favoured modern version, I’m interested. I know something about the translation issues having read books by Don Carson and James White. Carson says he favours the NIV over the ESV, but is more concerned that someone doesn’t make their translation the only translation! My only concern with the NIV is that, while in principle a dynamic translation that takes into account the different syntax, grammar, idioms of the two languages to give a thought-for-thought equivalent is better than being too rigidly literal with a word-for-word, that it may tend to be a bit too interpretive. I know the ESV is more “literal” than the NIV on the graded scale of things.

What’s your opinion?