INTRODUCTION: A User's Guide to the ESV Study Bible

Purpose and Vision

The ESV Study Bible was created to help people understand the Bible in a deeper way—that is, to encounter the timeless truth of God’s Word as a powerful, compelling, life-changing reality. To accomplish this purpose, the ESV Study Bible combines the best and most recent evangelical scholarship with the ESV Bible text, which, as an “essentially literal” translation, is especially suited for Bible study. The result is the most comprehensive study Bible ever published—with completely new notes, maps, illustrations, charts, timelines, articles, and other features. Created by an exceptional team of 95 evangelical Christian scholars and teachers, the ESV Study Bible contains more than 2 million words of Bible text and insightful explanation and teaching—equivalent to a 20-volume Bible resource library. (See the complete list of contributors on pp. 13–18.)

The purpose and vision of the ESV Study Bible, then, is first and foremost to honor the Lord: (1) in terms of the excellence, beauty, and accuracy of its content and design, and (2) in terms of helping people come to a deeper understanding of the Bible, of the gospel, and of Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Divine Words and Merely Human Words

The ESV Study Bible contains two kinds of words. The first kind is the actual words of the Bible, which are the very words of God to us. These are printed in the larger font at the top of each page. The second kind is the study notes, which are merely human words. These are printed in the smaller font at the bottom of each page. The dierence in font sizes serves to remind readers that the words of the Bible itself are infinitely more valuable than the words of the notes. The words of the Bible are the words of our Creator speaking to us. They are completely truthful (Ps. 119:160; Prov. 30:5; Titus 1:2; Heb. 6:18); they are pure (Ps. 12:6); they are powerful (Jer. 23:29; Heb. 4:12; 1 Pet. 1:23); and they are wise and righteous (Ps. 19:7–11). God’s people should read these words with reverence and awe (Deut. 28:58; Ps. 119:74; Isa. 66:2), and with joy and delight (Ps. 19:7–11; 119:14, 97, 103; Jer. 15:16). Through these words God gives us eternal life (John 6:68; 1 Pet. 1:23) and daily nourishes our spiritual lives in this present world (Deut. 32:46; Matt. 4:4). The words of the study notes are useful because they help to explain the words of the Bible, but they must never become a substitute for the Bible itself.

The best way to use a study Bible, therefore, is always to begin and end with the words of the Bible. We should always begin by reading the Bible’s actual words, seeking with our hearts and our minds to understand these words and apply them to our lives. Then, after starting with the words of the Bible itself, we can turn to the study notes and many other study Bible resources for information about the background to the text, for the meaning of puzzling words or phrases, and for connections to other parts of the Bible. Finally, we should return again to the Bible itself, reading it with a new and deeper understanding, asking God to speak through his Word to our lives and to draw us near to himself.

The Purpose of the ESV Study Bible Notes

The purpose of the notes in the ESV Study Bible is to provide significant explanatory help for Christians who want to understand the Bible in a deeper way. To that end, the notes provide the following types of helpful content:

1. Explanation of the Bible text, especially with regard to the meaning of specific words and phrases in their immediate context and in relation to the Bible as a whole.
2. Brief summary notes at the beginning of each new section, explaining the meaning and purpose of the section. These correspond to the outline for each book of the Bible, and are shaded within the notes to help identify the structure of each book.
3. A summary of how specific Bible texts fit into the overall history of salvation as this unfolds throughout the Old Testament.
4. Explanation of puzzling events, words, and phrases that are often misunderstood.
5. Background descriptions of historical and archaeological information, providing a contextual framework to help illuminate and understand the text.
6. Explanation of key Greek and Hebrew words (usually given in their lexical form), to provide insight into the meaning of key words in the original languages of the Bible.
7. Presentation of significant alternative interpretations of important Bible passages.
8. Explanation of key texts that are crucial for the understanding of Christian doctrine, theology, and ethics.
9. Interaction with and responses to challenges concerning the truthfulness, historicity, or believability of specific Bible passages.
10. Application to life today for selected key passages.

The Understanding and Teaching of God’s Word

With this purpose in mind, the ESV Study Bible carries forward a centuries-old tradition of “explaining,” “expounding,” or “teaching” the Word of God. This process of teaching God’s Word is found even within the Bible itself. For example, when Moses spoke the words of Deuteronomy to the people of Israel, he told them, “You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise” (Deut. 6:7). Similarly, when Ezra and the Levites read the Book of the Law to the exiles who had returned from Babylon, they “helped the people to understand . . . and they gave the sense, so that the people understood . . .” (Neh. 8:7–8). In the early church, Philip was sent to the Ethiopian eunuch to help him understand what he was reading from Isaiah (Acts 8:26–40). And the apostle Paul, in city after city, spent his time “teaching the word of God” (Acts 18:11; cf. 15:35; 20:20, 27). Likewise, throughout the history of the church, God has raised up people to teach the Word (cf. 1 Cor. 12:28; Eph. 4:11).

The ESV Study Bible stands within this historic stream and was created specifically to provide explanation and teaching—to help people come to a deeper understanding of God’s Word and the gospel, and to provide a resource for the edification and strengthening of God’s people around the world.

Doctrinal Perspective

The doctrinal perspective of the ESV Study Bible is that of classic evangelical orthodoxy, in the historic stream of the Reformation. The notes are written from the perspective of confidence in the complete truthfulness of the Bible. In passages where errors or contradictions have been alleged, possible solutions to these challenges have been proposed. At times the notes also summarize interpretations that are inconsistent with classic evangelical orthodoxy, indicating how and why such views are in conflict with Scripture. Within that broad tradition of evangelical orthodoxy, the notes have sought to represent fairly the various evangelical positions on disputed topics such as baptism, the Lord’s Supper, spiritual gifts, the future of ethnic Israel, and questions concerning the millennium and other events connected with the time of Christ’s return.

Additional Content: Introductions and Articles

In addition to the explanatory notes, the ESV Study Bible contains an abundance of other helpful material, including:

• Extensive introductions to each section and book of the Bible, focusing on authorship and date of writing, the historical setting, key themes, literary features, and detailed outlines.
• Background studies on the history and archaeology of the ancient world, the canon of the Old and New Testaments, the reliability of ancient manuscripts, and the nature of the original Bible languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek).
• A compact overview of themes in the history of salvation that are found throughout the OT, indicating how these themes ultimately find fulfillment in Christ.
• A series of articles on the major doctrines and ethical teachings of Scripture.
• A summary of the basic dierences in doctrine and the understanding of the Bible within Christianity, including Evangelical Protestantism, Liberal Protestantism , Eastern Orthodoxy, and Roman Catholicism.
• A description of the other world religions (modern Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism).
• An overview of the teachings of prominent cults, explaining how and where they depart from Scripture and classic evangelical Christianity.

Other Unique Features

The ESV Study Bible is also unique with respect to a number of newly created study Bible features. Among these unique features are:

• Over 200 all-new full-color maps, created with the latest satellite imagery, digital technology, and cartographic techniques. Based on extensive research and the most recent biblical archaeological scholarship, the maps are printed in full color throughout the Bible, helping to make the events, people, and places of the Bible come to life.
• More than 40 all-new illustrations, created specifically for the ESV Study Bible, including full-color renderings of important biblical structures, cities, and objects, shown in precise, accurate detail. These unique dimensional drawings were carefully researched and precisely rendered by architectural illustrators.
• 200-plus charts offering key insights and analysis in clear, concise outline form, located along with the notes throughout the Bible.

Using the Cross-reference System

The ESV Study Bible includes 80,000 cross references and an extensive concordance, which together encourage easy location of important words, passages, and biblical themes. There are several kinds of cross-references. References to specific words or phrases appear as, e.g., “ver. 7” (within the same chapter), “ch. 9:6” (within the same book), or “Heb. 4:2.” Brackets (e.g., “[ch. 9:6]”) denote passages with a similar theme. “See” directs readers to verses that contain a collection of related cross-references (e.g., “See Jn. 8:26”). The phrase “For . . . , see . . .” denotes longer passages that closely parallel the current passage (e.g., “For ver. 1–15, see Mark 4:1–12; Luke 8:4–10”). “See” paired with a verse range denotes passages that less closely parallel the current passage but still provide context and/or explanation (e.g., “See Ex. 7:17–24.”). “Cited” denotes passages quoted in or from other parts of Scripture. “(Heb.)” or “(Gk.)” indicates that the similarity of a cross-referenced passage is clearer in the original Hebrew or Greek than in English.

The ESV Bible and the ESV Study Bible

Lastly, the ESV Study Bible uses the “essentially literal” ESV (English Standard Version) Bible translation as the foundational text for creating the study Bible notes and other features. Emphasizing word-for-word accuracy, literary excellence, and depth of meaning, the ESV Bible is especially suited to be the basic text for a study Bible. First published in 2001, the ESV Bible translation work involved more than 100 Bible scholars and advisors, including: (1) the 14-member Translation Oversight Committee; (2) more than 50 leading Bible Scholars; and (3) a 50-plus-member Advisory Council—all of whom are committed to historic Christian orthodoxy. Many of the ESV translation team also participated in the creation of the ESV Study Bible. The ESV Bible is available worldwide in more than 120 editions and bindings. (For more information, go to esv.org.)

Goal and Vision

As mentioned at the beginning of this introduction, the goal and vision of the ESV Study Bible is, first and foremost, to honor the Lord and his Word: (1) in terms of the excellence, beauty, and accuracy of its content and design, and (2) in terms of helping people to come to a deeper understanding of the Bible, of the gospel, and of Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Because Crossway is a notfor-profit publishing ministry, all receipts from the ESV Study Bible are used to further the support of this goal and vision.

We are very aware, however, that anything we do will always be less than perfect and subject to error. Yet we know that God still uses imperfect and inadequate things to his honor and praise. And so to our triune God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), and to his people, we oer our work of creating and publishing the ESV Study Bible— with the prayer that our Lord would guard and protect from any error or deficiency that may unintentionally be in these pages; and with the prayer that by God’s grace the ESV Study Bible may prove useful in bringing many to Christ and for the building up of his church worldwide, for this generation, for generations to come, and for eternity.

Soli Deo Gloria!—To God alone be the glory!

Lane T. Dennis
Executive Editor

Wayne Grudem
General Editor