ESV Study Bible Giveaway
by Ted Slater on 10/01/2008 at 11:55 AM
If you've spent much time reading Christian blogs over the past few months, you're likely aware of the forthcoming release of the ESV Study Bible. It's been discussed here, here, here, here, here, here and here. Among other places.
From all reports, it's a remarkable new resource for pastors and "regular" Christians like me alike.
Albert Mohler calls it a "treasure." John Piper calls it "breathtaking," "a dream come true for me." Mark Driscoll considers it "the most important resource that has been given to the emerging generation of Bible students and teachers." Christian author Jerry Bridges sums up what many are coming to find about this book: "The ESV Study Bible is the finest study tool I have seen in fifty years of Bible teaching. The notes, articles, maps, and illustrations are all of the highest quality. It is a great achievement!"
Buzz about the ESV Study Bible has reached a crescendo. In development for years, this acclaimed 2,752-page tome is finally hitting the stands on Oct. 15.
I'm really excited to announce here for the first time that we'll be having a contest, beginning next week, to give away 10 copies of this book. We're working with our friends over at Crossway Books to celebrate this groundbreaking study Bible by giving away one of them every weekday from Oct. 6 through Oct. 17.
During those two weeks, we'll also be publishing a behind-the-scenes article by ESV Study Bible Project Director and Managing Editor, Justin Taylor, and a few excerpts from the ESV Study Bible.
Check back next Monday for a link to the contest page and rules. Make sure to tell all your friends!
1. Michael said the following at 1:20 PM on Oct 1:
I'm so excited about this, both the giveaway and the study bible. I ordered one for myself over two months ago, but I'm definitely going to enter the giveaway so I can give my fiance one, too!
2. Tami said the following at 1:31 PM on Oct 1:
Any time a good solid translation is completed, it's an achievement. I'm partial to NAS, but I would like to check the ESV out. The only challenge is, if I like it, I would likely be the only person using it. Makes reading aloud in a group a little challenging. ;)
Ted -- judging by the contributors, reviewers, and publisher, I am guessing that the notes in this Bible have a certain... how do you say... theological perspective? Is this the case? And do you know if that was intentional or not? [I am not asking to be contentious. I highly appreciate good study notes... but it helps me when I recognize what perspective the author(s) has/have.]
3. Matthew said the following at 1:56 PM on Oct 1:
I am super excited about this... got mine pre-ordered a month ago!
4. BDB said the following at 2:00 PM on Oct 1:
So, is ESV another KJV? Or...wait...
5. B. Minich said the following at 2:53 PM on Oct 1:
Wait, why should I tell my friends? I want a better chance to win!! ;)
I'll do the sacrificial thing and tell my friends, I guess.
6. (Canadian) Andrew R said the following at 3:00 PM on Oct 1:
Whoa.
Just, whoa.
7. Tami said the following at 3:03 PM on Oct 1:
BTW... awesome contest. Very generous.
8. 'Guerite ~ BoldLion said the following at 3:04 PM on Oct 1:
I did pre-order mine and will enter the contest so that I can give one to whoever that doesn't have one.
I will also post this blog on my blog link so that they too can enter the contest too. Thank you for the chance for us to win one of the giveaway!
ESV is one of my favorite translations, and I am so thankful for this one.
Hungry to eat His Word,
'Guerite ~ BoldLion
9. Jen from CO said the following at 3:22 PM on Oct 1:
Ooo. I'm in. I love my pocket ESV. And this is the pocket ESV-to-the-nth-power. Or something amazing like that.
We're slowly turning the tide at Bible Study. There are now three (out of twenty-ish) who bring ESVs. But it is fun to have four or five different translations within the group -- I get a broader understanding of the passage by just listening to someone else read it. However, they don't get the kudos we ESVers do from our teacher who prefers to stick to the Greek text and then translate/explain. So hah.
(Er... Not that Bible Study is about seeing who gets the most kudos... Well, not seriously...)
10. Amir Larijani said the following at 4:19 PM on Oct 1:
I enjoy the ESV; a pastor friend of mine turned me on to it a few years ago. Since then, I've been alternating between that and my Inductive Study Bible (NASB).
I have an ESV journaling Bible, and my only gripe is the small size: it is difficult to make notes because the pages are small and the lines in the margins are also small.
I'm hoping the folks at Precept Ministries start printing the IISB in ESV.
11. Leah said the following at 5:26 PM on Oct 1:
I already have an ESV study bible... apparently the only one in existence :P (Before this one!) I mean, of course, I don't own the only COPY, but this publication is apparently the only ESV study bible around... until this new one.
I wonder if there's going to be much difference. I recognised several of the contributors to my bible, but only recognise a few on this new one.
My Christian student Worker at the uni I went to, and his wife, had never heard of an ESV study bible before they saw mine, and his wife in particular just about exploded with excitement when she saw who the contributors were. Would people appreciate for me to check mine when I get home and let you know about it, or do people already know about the one I speak of?
BDB- ESV is nothing like KJV, it's more like NKJV.
So anyway, while it's exciting there's another one on the market, I already have one, so I'm content :)
12. Leah said the following at 5:28 PM on Oct 1:
PS - I'll add that I chose my bible before ever hearing of the ESV, and in fact I called my student worker to ask his opinion on the translation. Of course, he was very complimentary of it... ;) The only thing he had against it (and he always uses the ESV) were the red letters. I do find it a tad distracting, but hey, it's such a helpful translation I'm happy with it!
13. James said the following at 7:06 PM on Oct 1:
I've been looking forward to this since Wayne (Grudem) told us (his Christian Essentials class) that he was working on this study bible's commentaries.
14. Charity said the following at 8:14 PM on Oct 1:
I love the ESV! My current copy is coming to pieces... It is, to me, the best translation around!
15. Rachael said the following at 8:47 PM on Oct 1:
From what I understand, the ESV is more word-for-word, like the NASB. NIV is more thought-for-thought.
While I read out of the ESV and like the idea of word-for-word, I think the wording isn't always the most straightforward and clear and as easy to understand as a version that is more thought-for-thought.
But if you were studying intensely, you could always compare what you're reading with an online version of your choice.
16. Amelia said the following at 3:09 AM on Oct 2:
Will this competition be open to people outside the US? I'm hoping so.
17. Khalil said the following at 6:14 AM on Oct 2:
Can't complain about a free Bible...I personally use the NLT and NIV (English/Arabic) as my main study Bibles. Haven't looked too much at this translation though.
18. ErinLeigh said the following at 6:21 AM on Oct 2:
are you KIDDING!!?! REALLY!?!! you're giving some away!!? oh i'm so excited. thanks, guys!
19. Rachael said the following at 8:12 AM on Oct 2:
Leah,
There is another study Bible(s) that uses the ESV. Like I have "The Reformation Study Bible", and that uses the ESV...
20. Christina said the following at 8:41 AM on Oct 2:
I'm torn. I would LOVE to own this Bible but I don't NEED another Bible. I've got the JohnnyMac study Bible and the internet at my fingertips.
I do however, have a friend who would benefit greatly from a study bible and one of this caliber would be fantastic.
21. Ted Slater said the following at 9:12 AM on Oct 2:
Amelia -- only 80 percent of our readers live in the U.S.; about 20 percent live in other countries. We value our international readership, and try to be sensitive to all of you.
That said, hmf, we're just unable to open this contest to non-U.S. residents. Legal and logistical difficulties abound. I sincerely do apologize for the disappointing news, Amelia.
22. Merly said the following at 10:50 AM on Oct 2:
Your timing is perfect! For the past few weeks, I've been looking for a new Bible, and I've been considering the ESV.
On another note, do contest winners also have access to the free, online version of the ESV also? (Maybe this only applies if you purchase it yourself?)
Woohoo! Thanks Boundless team!
23. Jen said the following at 1:45 PM on Oct 2:
Oooooh, my sister just told me about this. She goes to John Piper's church in Minneapolis and we visited with her last week - they had OODLES of ESV Bibles there, I was just drooling. My husband is a big fan, though I don't have one. I'm so pumped for this give-away.
24. PhillipS. said the following at 2:44 PM on Oct 2:
Don't get me wrong, I'm stoked that this resource is available, but Crossway need to finally get around to producing an exhaustive ESV concordance with the Strongs number system if they are going to be a serious study bible. I would buy such a tool in a heartbeat, as ESV is far and away my favourite translation to read...
25. Amelia said the following at 6:17 PM on Oct 2:
That's cool, Ted. I understand that there must be lot of legal constraints in running a legitimate competition, let alone an international one! Was just wishful thinking.
And... what does hmf mean?
26. Leah said the following at 6:46 PM on Oct 2:
Rachael - hey, that's the bible I have!
Also, you said (or another Rachael!) From what I understand, the ESV is more word-for-word, like the NASB. NIV is more thought-for-thought.
While I read out of the ESV and like the idea of word-for-word, I think the wording isn't always the most straightforward and clear and as easy to understand as a version that is more thought-for-thought.
That's pretty spot on, although ESV isn't QUITE as word-for-word like the NASB or Young's Literal. I've not read much of the NASB, but what I have read (and from what I've heard) it's far harder to read than the ESV. (And Young's Literal is, literally, word-for-word. Crazy to read.) The ESV rearranges the words a bit so that it does flow easier for our English minds.
I'm not a big fan of NIV because I have found some verses (though not many) which I've thought I understood, then when I read it in the ESV or NKJV, realised a particular word inthe NIV was a bit misleading and the passage actually has a slightly different angle than what the NIV suggests.
Ted- I'm not mad or anything, just curious, but what sort of legal hurdles are there in posting a bible to, say, France or Australia?
To people discussing translation comparisons in general: I'd suggest biblegateway.org. It's excellent for comparing different translations.
27. Ronnica said the following at 10:49 AM on Oct 3:
Cool! This is really exciting!
28. Ted Slater said the following at 12:08 PM on Oct 3:
Amelia -- "Hmf" is just the sound my mouth makes when I'm disappointedly resigned about something. More onomatopoeic than acronymic. ;-)
29. BDB said the following at 7:01 PM on Oct 3:
Leah (#11) wrote:
>>BDB- ESV is nothing like KJV, it's more like NKJV.<<
I was just teasing.
My trusty, 20-year-old NKJV study Bible would be hard to part with. There's something comforting about turning to the passage for the day's sermon and finding that I've already underlined it...
Besides, they say that a Bible that's falling apart probably belongs to a person who isn't.
Perhaps I should add the ESV to my electronic-Bible resources. It's now possible to read the Bible in a government building, and people think you are texting...
30. Ted Slater said the following at 11:55 AM on Oct 6:
The contest is now open.
31. Leah said the following at 6:34 PM on Oct 6:
I did a very brief comparison of this ESV study bible (I'll refer to it as the ESB) and the one Rachael and I have- the Reformation Study bible (also ESV) I'll refer to it as the RSB.
They both share some of the same contributors but of course there are some differences too.
Some of the contributors who worked on both:
V Philips Long (Notes in Joshua in the ESB, I think he did Joshua in the RSB too)
Dennis Johnson (Notes in Revelation in the ESB)
JI Packer (Associate Editor of RSB, Theological Editor of ESB)
The RSB also had RC Sproul as its general editor and Graeme Goldsworthy was a contributor too.
NB: The Reformation Study Bible is available in NKJV as well, except it's called "The New Geneva Study Bible".
They both have "over 20,000 study notes". The ESV Study Bible appears to be far more visual than the Reformation Study Bible (which was one of the more visual bibles I'd come across). The ESB has many more maps and charts and full colour illustrations.
The RSB has theological notes all through it to explain specific reformation doctrines. I can't figure out if the ESB has something like that.
For anyone who wants to know more about the Reformation Study Bible, have a look at http://www.ligonier.org/publishing_studybible.php
32. Chance said the following at 12:33 PM on Oct 8:
I have had an ESV pocket Bible for about six months now and I enjoy using it along side my trusty KJV. It is especially good for devotions being slightly easier to follow (gotta love old English) than the King James. The only problem with my pocket Bible is that the letters are so small! Makes for especially difficult reading right before bed (when I'm drowsy to begin with!)
This contest is awesome and I cannot wait to get my hands on one of these study Bibles. Hopefully the contest will mean sooner rather than later. (though I'm starting to count my pennies now)
33. Timothy D. Latimer said the following at 12:25 PM on Oct 10:
I pray that this bible will be a great addition to my personal library. I look forward to being able to share it with my brothers here at The San Diego Rescue Mission and expect a longterm relationship with the publishers of this great work for the uplifting of the over 200 members here. Being a member of our servant team as well as aspiration to become a Chaplain's Assistant, this would be a great source of inspiration, revelation and enlightenment into, through and a better understanding of the word of God for modern day. Thank You and May God Bless the reader and hearer of his word.
34. Chris Griffith said the following at 10:45 AM on Oct 14:
I’ve been waiting for over a year for this bible. I was able to review a copy yesterday and I thoroughly enjoy it! I got the Tru-Tone Natural Brown and I must say, it’s a beautiful Bible!
I’ve used the ESV Reformation Bible since it came out. This new ESV Study Bible is different enough to make a good companion.
Thanks,
Chris Griffith
35. Rebecca said the following at 2:46 PM on Oct 15:
This is so great!!!!
36. rebecca (Ontario Canada) said the following at 6:26 PM on Oct 15:
I am so looking for a bible that has everything you need in notes and applications that will last a lifetime.