ESV Prayer Bible

Table of Contents

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Title Page

Copyright Information

Introduction to the ESV Prayer Bible

User’s Guide

Preface to the English Standard Version

Explanation of ESV Features

The Old Testament

The New Testament

The Old Testament

Genesis

Exodus

Leviticus

Numbers

Deuteronomy

Joshua

Judges

Ruth

1 Samuel

2 Samuel

1 Kings

2 Kings

1 Chronicles

2 Chronicles

Ezra

Nehemiah

Esther

Job

Psalms

Proverbs

Ecclesiastes

Song of Solomon

Isaiah

Jeremiah

Lamentations

Ezekiel

Daniel

Hosea

Joel

Amos

Obadiah

Jonah

Micah

Nahum

Habakkuk

Zephaniah

Haggai

Zechariah

Malachi

The New Testament

Matthew

Mark

Luke

John

Acts

Romans

1 Corinthians

2 Corinthians

Galatians

Ephesians

Philippians

Colossians

1 Thessalonians

2 Thessalonians

1 Timothy

2 Timothy

Titus

Philemon

Hebrews

James

1 Peter

2 Peter

1 John

2 John

3 John

Jude

Revelation

Table of Weights and Measures

Author Index

Prayer Index

Comprehensive Index of Prayer in the Bible

Concordance

Reading Plan

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How to Use the ESV Prayer Bible, ePub Edition

Thank you for purchasing the ESV Prayer Bible, ePub Edition. This edition is designed to provide all of the contents of the print edition of the ESV Prayer Bible, in an ePub format.

This Foreword highlights the differences between the print edition and the ePub edition. For more information about the contents of the ESV Prayer Bible, please read the article Introduction to the ESV Prayer Bible.

Accessing Footnotes

All footnotes in the ESV Prayer Bible, ePub Edition, are represented as a number within brackets ([1]) which links to a page of footnotes.

ESV Prayer Bible

English Standard Version

Crossway

Wheaton, Illinois esv.org

Copyright

The ESV Prayer Bible, ESV® Bible

Copyright © 2018 by Crossway.

All rights reserved.

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®)

Copyright © 2001 by Crossway,

a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

All rights reserved.

ESV Text Edition: 2016

Version: esvprb.v3.no-nav.2019.03.a.epub

Permissions notice: Crossway reserves all rights for all of the content of the ESV Prayer Bible, including but not limited to all print, electronic, and audio rights.

The ESV text may be quoted (in written, visual, or electronic form) up to and inclusive of five hundred (500) consecutive verses without express written permission of the publisher, provided that the verses quoted do not amount to more than one-half of any book of the Bible or its equivalent measured in bytes and provided that the verses quoted do not account for twenty-five percent (25%) or more of the total text of the work in which they are quoted.

The ESV text may be quoted for audio use (audio cassettes, CDs, audio television) up to five hundred (500) verses without express written permission of the publisher, provided that the verses quoted do not amount to more than one-half of any one book of the Bible or its equivalent measured in bytes and provided that the verses quoted do not account for twenty-five percent (25%) or more of the total text of the work in which they are quoted. Notice of copyright must appear as follows on the title page or copyright page of printed works quoting from the ESV, or in a corresponding location when the ESV is quoted in other media:

Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

When more than one translation is quoted in printed works or other media, the foregoing notice of copyright should begin as follows:

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from . . . [etc.] ; or,

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from . . . [etc.].

The ESV and English Standard Version are registered trademarks of Crossway. Use of either trademark requires the permission of Crossway.

When quotations from the ESV text are used in non-saleable print and digital media, such as church bulletins, orders of service, posters, transparencies, or similar media, a complete copyright notice is not required, but the initials (ESV) must appear at the end of the quotation. Publication of any commentary or other Bible reference work produced for commercial sale that uses the English Standard Version (ESV) must include written permission for use of the ESV text. Permission requests that exceed the above guidelines must be directed to Crossway, Attn: Bible Rights, 1300 Crescent Street, Wheaton, IL 60187, USA. Permission requests for use of the anglicized ESV Bible text that exceed the above guidelines must be directed to: HarperCollins Religious, The News Building, 1 London Bridge Street, London SE1 9GF, UK.

Supplemental material: Introductions, sidebars, indexes, and all other materials included in the ESV Prayer Bible (unless otherwise indicated) copyright © 2018 by Crossway. The ESV Preface, Explanation of ESV Features, headings in the Bible text, and Concordance copyright © 2001 by Crossway.

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV) is adapted from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. All rights reserved.

Published by Crossway

Wheaton, Illinois 60187, U.S.A.

crossway.org

Crossway is a not-for-profit publishing ministry that exists solely for the purpose of publishing the Good News of the Gospel and the Truth of God’s Word, the Bible. A portion of the purchase price of every ESV Bible is donated to help support Bible distribution ministry around the world.

The ESV Bible is free online and on mobile devices everywhere worldwide, including a selection of free Bible resources, at esv.org.

Introduction to the ESV Prayer Bible

In the gospel of Jesus Christ, God the Father has crossed an incalculable chasm by sending his Son to become one of us in order to bring us into fellowship with himself. By taking our nature and perfectly keeping the law of God, Jesus was qualified to become our substitute before God, the source of our righteousness, and the bridge builder to a relationship with the Father. Jesus willingly received on the cross the punishment we deserved for breaking God’s law and sinning against him. God raised Jesus from the dead and received him bodily into the throne room of heaven as an indication that he had accepted what Jesus had done to remove all barriers from a relationship with the Father. And now, the Bible says, any and all who are willing to come to God on his terms can know God and speak with him.

Increasing in the Knowledge of God

Among the things the apostle Paul prays for the Christians in Colossae—and something we should pray for on behalf of others and ourselves—is that they would be increasing in the knowledge of God (Col. 1:10). This is a captivating phrase. It tells us that we can have a relationship with the Father—we can have knowledge of God. Although he is invisible to us now, although he is unimaginably holy, and although he is not only greater than us in every way, but infinitely greater, we can know God now through Christ and experience eternal life with him.

But this little phrase in Colossians 1:10 also tells us we can be "increasing in the knowledge of God." The knowledge of God we receive through believing the message about Jesus can increase from the first moment of faith and for all eternity.

The Bible and Prayer

So, how do we increase in the knowledge of God? In much the same way that we increase in the knowledge of any person we know. We get to know others mainly by talking with them. Plainly put, God speaks to us through the pages of Scripture, and we speak to God through prayer. In other words, to increase in our knowledge of God, we must increase in our knowledge of what he has said (again, the Bible) and increase the quality of our prayer life.

The Bible, since it is inspired by a holy and infinite mind, is boundless in what it reveals about God. Not only has God been generous in speaking to us (1,189 chapters!), but his words are living and active (Heb. 4:12). Jesus described his words as words of spirit and life (John 6:63), and by extension that applies to the entire Bible as well. No matter how familiar we might become with Scripture, we could never exhaust all of its insights or what it reveals about God.

The Problem with Prayer

But when it comes to prayer, it is often a different story. Although there are an unlimited number of things we could talk to God about, many believers fall into a pattern of saying the same old things in prayer about the same old things in their lives. Sooner or later, that repetition will anesthetize our ability to focus and feel in prayer. The inestimable privilege of talking with God becomes—dare I say it—boring.

We wish it were not that way, but, frankly, it is. We know it should not be that way, so we assume there is something wrong with us. With a guilty sigh we conclude, I guess I am just not a very good Christian.

No, for if we are indwelled by the Holy Spirit, the problem is almost certainly not us but our method. Those who believe in Christ are given the Holy Spirit. His living, active presence within us creates a holy desire to speak with our Heavenly Father. As Paul puts it in Romans 8:15, the presence of the Holy Spirit causes us to cry, Abba! Father! In other words, all of those indwelled by the Holy Spirit truly want to pray. And yet, when we actually do pray, it can be boring if we say the same old things about the same old things.

The problem is not that we pray about the same things so often. The fact is, our lives tend to consist pretty much of the same things from day to day: the same people, places, work, etc. The difficulty lies in that we say the same old things about the same old things. That is boring. Prayers without variety tend to become words without meaning or feeling.

The Solution

Since this seems to be an almost universal problem, is it not likely that God has provided a solution? And since God desires all of his children to pray, does it not make sense that the solution must be simple?

Well, it is. Here is a simple, permanent, biblical solution to the problem of saying the same old things about the same old things in prayer: when we pray, we ought to pray the Bible. When we pray, instead of trying to think of new things to say to God every day about the same things, we can speak to him about what we read, verse by verse, in the Bible.

How to Pray the Bible

While I believe we can do this from any portion of the Bible, the easiest place from which to do so is probably the book of Psalms. For instance, we can turn to Psalm 23, where the first verse states, The LORD is my shepherd. In order to pray this verse, one might pray things like, "Lord, I thank you that you are my shepherd. You are a good shepherd. Would you shepherd me in the decision before me today? Would you shepherd my family today into your will? I pray that you would cause my children to love you as their shepherd, as I love you as my shepherd. And Lord, I pray for your undershepherds at the church, that you would shepherd them as they shepherd us."

When nothing else comes to mind, we go to the next clause: I shall not want. One might say, Lord, I thank you that I have never really been in want. All that I am and have comes from you. But I know you want me to bring my needs to you, so would you provide for those bills we have? Or maybe we know someone in need, and thus we pray for them.

That is it. Anyone can simply go through a passage line by line, talking to the Lord about what the text brings to mind. If nothing comes to mind, one can go to the next line. Some days we might spend all of our time on one verse. On other days we might find that only a few scattered verses in a long chapter prompt prayer. That is fine too. We can go on to the next chapter if we need to.

By this method one can pray as briefly as necessary or for as long as possible. And no one could ever run out of anything to pray. Best of all, this method ensures that one need not worry about saying the same old things about the same old things. We will pray about many of the same things as always, but in fresh ways. Moreover, we will pray about things we would never think to pray about otherwise.

Who Has Prayed the Bible?

By praying the Bible, we will enter into a method of prayer enjoyed by the people of God at least since the Psalms were written a thousand years before Jesus was born. We will join with believers like Athanasius, the fourth-century-AD theologian famous for defending the doctrine of the Trinity, who advocated praying the Psalms. We will join with the Protestant Reformer John Calvin, who said that the Psalms are the design of the Holy Spirit . . . to deliver to the church a common form of prayer. We will join with believers in the liturgical traditions who use prayer books to guide them in praying the Psalms, the most famous of these being the Book of Common Prayer. We will join with George Müller, widely regarded as one the greatest men of prayer and faith since the New Testament, who considered learning to pray the Bible the turning point in his prayer life. And we will join with many contemporary Christians, such as John Piper, who said, For me it is absolutely essential that my prayers be guided by, saturated by, and sustained and controlled by the word of God. [1]

But more importantly, we will join with Jesus, who twice on the cross (Matt. 27:46 and Luke 23:46) prayed lines from the Psalms (22:1 and 31:5). And we will join with those new Christians we read about soon after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus who prayed from Psalm 2 in Acts 4:23–26, a prayer God powerfully answered.

If praying the Bible was a way to pray for believers in Bible times, for great men and women of God since, and for Jesus himself, why not for us?

Donald S. Whitney

1 Should I Use the Bible When I Pray?, Desiring God, September 28, 2007, https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/should-i-use-the-bible-when-i-pray

User’s Guide

The ESV Prayer Bible is full of features designed to enrich and enhance every reader’s prayer life:

The texts of nearly 400 prayers are placed throughout this edition, tied to specific passages of Scripture in order to help the reader learn to pray the Bible; these prayers are written by Christian writers, theologians, and other figures of note across church history, such as Martin Luther, John Calvin, Augustine, Saint Patrick, Charles Spurgeon, Jane Austen, John Wesley, and more; such prayers can be discovered as the reader uses this Bible for regular reading (a year long Reading Plan is located in the back of this Bible) or as the reader consults the Prayer Index at the back of this edition, which provides a canonical listing of each prayer.

Further, the Prayer Index provides full bibliographic information for each prayer, allowing the reader to trace each prayer to its original source, where one can often find more prayers by the same author.

An Author Index at the back of this edition allows the user to learn more about each author and also to locate each author’s prayers across the ESV Prayer Bible.

Book Introductions to each book of the Bible, newly written for this edition, allow the reader to explore ways in which each and every book of the Bible contributes to our understanding and practice of prayer.

A Comprehensive Scripture Index in the back of this edition documents each and every prayer and reference to prayer in every book of the Bible, allowing the reader to glimpse the ways in which prayer features in each book of Scripture.

Preface to the English Standard Version

The Bible

This Book [is] the most valuable thing that this world affords. Here is Wisdom; this is the royal Law; these are the lively Oracles of God. With these words the Moderator of the Church of Scotland hands a Bible to the new monarch in Britain’s coronation service. These words echo the King James Bible translators, who wrote in 1611, God’s sacred Word . . . is that inestimable treasure that excelleth all the riches of the earth. This assessment of the Bible is the motivating force behind the publication of the English Standard Version.

Translation Legacy

The English Standard Version (ESV) stands in the classic mainstream of English Bible translations over the past half-millennium. The fountainhead of that stream was William Tyndale’s New Testament of 1526; marking its course were the King James Version of 1611 (KJV), the English Revised Version of 1885 (RV), the American Standard Version of 1901 (ASV), and the Revised Standard Version of 1952 and 1971 (RSV). In that stream, faithfulness to the text and vigorous pursuit of precision were combined with simplicity, beauty, and dignity of expression. Our goal has been to carry forward this legacy for this generation and generations to come.

To this end each word and phrase in the ESV has been carefully weighed against the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, to ensure the fullest accuracy and clarity and to avoid under-translating or overlooking any nuance of the original text. The words and phrases themselves grow out of the Tyndale–King James legacy, and most recently out of the RSV, with the 1971 RSV text providing the starting point for our work. Archaic language has been brought into line with current usage and significant corrections have been made in the translation of key texts. But throughout, our goal has been to retain the depth of meaning and enduring quality of language that have made their indelible mark on the English-speaking world and have defined the life and doctrine of its church over the last five centuries.

Translation Philosophy

The ESV is an essentially literal translation that seeks as far as possible to reproduce the ­precise wording of the original text and the personal style of each Bible writer. As such, its emphasis is on word-for-word correspondence, at the same time taking full account of differences in grammar, syntax, and idiom between current literary English and the original languages. Thus it seeks to be transparent to the original text, letting the reader see as directly as possible the structure and exact force of the original.

In contrast to the ESV, some Bible versions have followed a thought-for-thought rather than word-for-word translation philosophy, emphasizing dynamic equivalence rather than the essentially literal meaning of the original. A thought-for-thought translation is of necessity more inclined to reflect the interpretive views of the translator and the influences of contemporary culture.

Every translation is at many points a trade-off between literal precision and readability, between formal equivalence in expression and functional equivalence in communication, and the ESV is no exception. Within this framework we have sought to be as literal as possible while maintaining clarity of expression and literary excellence. Therefore, to the extent that plain English permits and the meaning in each case allows, we have sought to use the same English word for important recurring words in the original; and, as far as grammar and syntax allow, we have rendered Old Testament passages cited in the New in ways that show their correspondence. Thus in each of these areas, as well as throughout the Bible as a whole, we have sought to capture all the echoes and overtones of meaning that are so abundantly present in the original texts.

As an essentially literal translation, taking into account grammar and syntax, the ESV thus seeks to carry over every possible nuance of meaning in the original words of Scripture into our own language. As such, the ESV is ideally suited for in-depth study of the Bible. Indeed, with its commitment to literary excellence, the ESV is equally well suited for public reading and preaching, for private reading and reflection, for both academic and devotional study, and for Scripture memorization.

Translation Principles and Style

The ESV also carries forward classic translation principles in its literary style. Accordingly it retains theological terminology—words such as grace, faith, justification, sanctification, redemption, regeneration, reconciliation, propitiation—because of their central importance for Christian doctrine and also because the underlying Greek words were already becoming key words and technical terms among Christians in New Testament times.

The ESV lets the stylistic variety of the biblical writers fully express itself—from the exalted prose that opens Genesis, to the flowing narratives of the historical books, to the rich metaphors and dramatic imagery of the poetic books, to the ringing rhetoric in the prophetic books, to the smooth elegance of Luke, to the profound simplicities of John, and the closely reasoned logic of Paul.

In punctuating, paragraphing, dividing long sentences, and rendering connectives, the ESV follows the path that seems to make the ongoing flow of thought clearest in English. The biblical languages regularly connect sentences by frequent repetition of words such as and, but, and for, in a way that goes beyond the conventions of current literary English. Effective translation, however, requires that these links in the original be reproduced so that the flow of the argument will be transparent to the reader. We have therefore normally translated these connectives, though occasionally we have varied the rendering by using alternatives (such as also, however, now, so, then, or thus ) when they better express the linkage in specific instances.

In the area of gender language, the goal of the ESV is to render literally what is in the original. For example, anyone replaces any man where there is no word corresponding to man in the original languages, and people rather than men is regularly used where the original languages refer to both men and women. But the words man and men are retained where a male meaning component is part of the original Greek or Hebrew. Likewise, the word man has been retained where the original text intends to convey a clear contrast between God on the one hand and man on the other hand, with man being used in the collective sense of the whole human race (see Luke 2:52). Similarly, the English word brothers (translating the Greek word adelphoi) is retained as an important familial form of address between fellow-Jews and fellow-­Christians in the first century. A recurring note is included to indicate that the term brothers (adelphoi) was often used in Greek to refer to both men and women, and to indicate the specific instances in the text where this is the case. In addition, the English word sons (translating the Greek word huioi) is retained in specific instances because the underlying Greek term usually includes a male meaning component and it was used as a legal term in the adoption and inheritance laws of first-century Rome. As used by the apostle Paul, this term refers to the status of all Christians, both men and women, who, having been adopted into God’s family, now enjoy all the privileges, obligations, and inheritance rights of God’s children.

The inclusive use of the generic he has also regularly been retained, because this is consistent with similar usage in the original languages and because an essentially literal translation would be impossible without it.

In each case the objective has been transparency to the original text, allowing the reader to understand the original on its own terms rather than in the terms of our present-day Western culture.

The Translation of Specialized Terms

In the translation of biblical terms referring to God, the ESV takes great care to convey the specific nuances of meaning of the original Hebrew and Greek words. First, concerning terms that refer to God in the Old Testament: God, the Maker of heaven and earth, introduced himself to the people of Israel with a special personal name, the consonants for which are YHWH (see Exodus 3:14–15). Scholars call this the Tetragrammaton, a Greek term referring to the four Hebrew letters YHWH. The exact pronunciation of YHWH is uncertain, because the Jewish people considered the personal name of God to be so holy that it should never be spoken aloud. Instead of reading the word YHWH, therefore, they would normally read the Hebrew word ’adonay ( Lord ), and the ancient translations into Greek, Syriac, and Aramaic also followed this practice. When the vowels of the word ’adonay are placed with the consonants of YHWH, this results in the familiar word Jehovah that was used in some earlier English Bible translations. As is common among English translations today, the ESV usually renders the personal name of God (YHWH) by the word LORD (printed in small capitals). An exception to this is when the Hebrew word ’adonay appears together with YHWH, in which case the two words are rendered together as the Lord [in lowercase] GOD [in small capitals]. In contrast to the personal name for God (YHWH), the more general name for God in Old Testament Hebrew is ’elohim and its related forms of ’el or ’eloah, all of which are normally translated God (in lowercase letters). The use of these different ways to translate the Hebrew words for God is especially beneficial to English readers, enabling them to see and understand the different ways that the personal name and the general name for God are both used to refer to the One True God of the Old Testament.

Second, in the New Testament, the Greek word Christos has been translated consistently as Christ. Although the term originally meant simply anointed, among Jews in New Testament times it had specifically come to designate the Messiah, the great Savior that God had promised to raise up. In other New Testament contexts, however, especially among Gentiles, Christos ( Christ ) was on its way to becoming a proper name. It is important, therefore, to keep the context in mind in understanding the various ways that Christos ( Christ ) is used in the New Testament. At the same time, in accord with its essentially literal translation philosophy, the ESV has retained consistency and concordance in the translation of Christos ( Christ ) throughout the New Testament.

Third, a particular difficulty is presented when words in biblical Hebrew and Greek refer to ancient practices and institutions that do not correspond directly to those in the modern world. Such is the case in the translation of ‘ebed (Hebrew) and doulos (Greek), terms which are often rendered slave. These terms, however, actually cover a range of relationships that requires a range of renderings— slave, bondservant, or servant —depending on the context. Further, the word slave currently carries associations with the often brutal and dehumanizing institution of slavery particularly in nineteenth-century America. For this reason, the ESV translation of the words ‘ebed and doulos has been undertaken with particular attention to their meaning in each specific context. Thus in Old Testament times, one might enter slavery either voluntarily (e.g., to escape poverty or to pay off a debt) or involuntarily (e.g., by birth, by being captured in battle, or by judicial sentence). Protection for all in servitude in ancient Israel was provided by the Mosaic Law, including specific provisions for release from slavery. In New Testament times, a doulos is often best described as a bondservant —that is, someone in the Roman Empire officially bound under contract to serve his master for seven years (except for those in Caesar’s household in Rome who were contracted for fourteen years). When the contract expired, the person was freed, given his wage that had been saved by the master, and officially declared a freedman. The ESV usage thus seeks to express the most fitting nuance of meaning in each context. Where absolute ownership by a master is envisaged (as in Romans 6), slave is used; where a more limited form of servitude is in view, bondservant is used (as in 1 Corinthians 7:21–24); where the context indicates a wide range of freedom (as in John 4:51), servant is preferred. Footnotes are generally provided to identify the Hebrew or Greek and the range of meaning that these terms may carry in each case. The issues involved in translating the Greek word doulos apply also to the Greek word sundoulos, translated in the text as fellow servant.

Fourth, it is sometimes suggested that Bible translations should capitalize pronouns referring to deity. It has seemed best not to capitalize deity pronouns in the ESV, however, for the following 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; and, third, such capitalization is absent from the KJV Bible and the whole stream of Bible translations that the ESV carries forward.

A fifth specialized term, the word behold, usually has been retained as the most common translation for the Hebrew word hinneh and the Greek word idou. Both of these words mean something like Pay careful attention to what follows! This is important! Other than the word behold, there is no single word in English that fits well in most contexts. Although Look! and See! and Listen! would be workable in some contexts, in many others these words lack sufficient weight and dignity. Given the principles of essentially literal translation, it is important not to leave hinneh and idou completely untranslated and so to lose the intended emphasis in the original languages. The older and more formal word behold has usually been retained, therefore, as the best available option for conveying the original weight of meaning.

Textual Basis and Resources

The ESV is based on the Masoretic text of the Hebrew Bible as found in Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (5th ed., 1997), and on the Greek text in the 2014 editions of the Greek New Testament (5th corrected ed.), published by the United Bible Societies (UBS), and Novum Testamentum Graece (28th ed., 2012), edited by Nestle and Aland. The currently renewed respect among Old Testament scholars for the Masoretic text is reflected in the ESV’s attempt, wherever possible, to translate difficult Hebrew passages as they stand in the Masoretic text rather than resorting to emendations or to finding an alternative reading in the ancient versions. In exceptional, difficult cases, the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Septuagint, the Samaritan Pentateuch, the Syriac Peshitta, the Latin Vulgate, and other sources were consulted to shed possible light on the text, or, if necessary, to support a divergence from the Masoretic text. Similarly, in a few difficult cases in the New Testament, the ESV has followed a Greek text different from the text given preference in the UBS/Nestle-Aland 28th edition. Throughout, the translation team has benefited greatly from the massive textual resources that have become readily available recently, from new insights into biblical laws and culture, and from current advances in Hebrew and Greek lexicography and grammatical understanding.

Textual Footnotes

The footnotes that are included in most editions of the ESV are therefore an integral part of the ESV translation, informing the reader of textual variations and difficulties and showing how these have been resolved by the ESV translation team. In addition to this, the footnotes indicate significant alternative readings and occasionally provide an explanation for technical terms or for a difficult reading in the text.

Publishing Team

The ESV publishing team has included more than a hundred people. The fourteen-­member Translation Oversight Committee benefited from the work of more than fifty biblical experts serving as Translation Review Scholars and from the comments of the more than fifty members of the Advisory Council, all of which was carried out under the auspices of the Crossway Board of Directors. This hundred-plus-member team shares a common commitment to the truth of God’s Word and to historic Christian orthodoxy and is international in scope, including leaders in many denominations.

To God’s Honor and Praise

We know that no Bible translation is perfect; but we also know that God uses imperfect and inadequate things to his honor and praise. So to our triune God and to his people we offer what we have done, with our prayers that it may prove useful, with gratitude for much help given, and with ongoing wonder that our God should ever have entrusted to us so momentous a task.

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

The Translation Oversight Committee

Explanation of ESV Features

This edition of the ESV Bible includes a number of valuable features to encourage the reading and study of the Bible. A brief description is provided below explaining the purpose and use of these features.

Section Headings

Section headings have been included throughout the text of this Bible. While the headings are not part of the Bible text itself, they have been provided to help identify and locate important themes and topics throughout the Bible.

Cross-Reference System

In addition to the numeric (textual) footnotes, the New Testament portion of this edition of the ESV Bible includes two kinds of cross-­reference notes. These are identified alphabetically and follow the numeric notes at the bottom of each page. These include (1) direct quotations from the Old Testament (indirect quotations and allusions are not included), and (2) parallel passages in the four Gospels. These cross-­references are included to help the reader understand the relationship of the New Testament to the Old Testament, and the harmony of the Gospels in the New Testament.

Textual Footnotes

Several kinds of footnotes related to the ESV text are provided throughout the ESV Bible to assist the reader. These footnotes appear at the bottom of the page and are indicated in the ESV text by a superscript number that follows the word or phrase to which the footnote applies (e.g., Isaac² ). Superscript letters that precede a word indicate cross­references (see explanation of cross-references).

The footnotes included in the ESV Bible are an integral part of the text and provide important information concerning the understanding and translation of the text. The footnotes fall mainly into four categories, as illustrated in the examples below.

Types of Textual Footnotes

(1) Alternative Translations. Footnotes of this kind provide alternative translations for specific words or phrases when there is a strong possibility that such words or phrases could be translated in another way, such as: "Or keep awake" (see Matt. 26:38); and "Or down payment" (see Eph. 1:14). In such cases, the translation deemed to have the stronger support is in the text while other possible renderings are given in the note.

(2) Explanation of Greek and Hebrew Terms. Notes of this kind relate primarily to the meaning of specific Greek or Hebrew terms, as illustrated by the following examples:

(a) Notes about the meaning of names in the original languages, such as: "Isaac means he laughs" (see Gen. 17:19); and "Simeon sounds like the Hebrew for heard" (see Gen. 29:33).

(b) Notes that give the literal translation of a Greek or Hebrew word or phrase deemed too awkward to be used in the English text, such as: "Greek girding up the loins of your mind" (see 1 Pet. 1:13).

(c) Notes indicating that absolute certainty of the meaning of a word or phrase is not possible given our best understanding of the original language (e.g., Hebrew words occurring so infrequently in the Old Testament that their meaning cannot be determined with certainty). Such words are identified with a note stating that The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain (see, e.g., Josh. 17:11).

(d) Notes that indicate the specialized use of a Greek word, such as: brothers, translating the Greek word adelphoi (see, e.g., the extended note on Rom. 1:13, corresponding to the first occurrence of adelphoi in any New Testament book, and the abbreviated note, e.g., on Rom. 7:1, corresponding to subsequent occurrences of adelphoi in any New Testament book); and sons, translating the Greek word huioi (see, e.g., Rom. 8:14). See also the discussion of adelphoi and huioi in the Preface.

(3) Other Explanatory Notes. Footnotes of this kind provide clarifying information as illustrated by the following examples:

(a) Notes clarifying additional meanings that may not otherwise be apparent in the text, such as: "Leprosy was a term for several skin diseases; see Leviticus 13" (see Matt. 8:2).

(b) Notes clarifying important grammatical points that would not otherwise be apparent in English, such as: "In Hebrew you is plural in verses 1–5" (see Gen. 3:1).

(c) Notes clarifying when the referent for a pronoun has been supplied in the English text, such as: "Greek he" (see, e.g., Mark 1:43).

(d) Notes giving English equivalents for weights, measures, and monetary values.

(4) Technical Translation Notes. Footnotes of this kind indicate how decisions have been made in the translation of difficult Hebrew and Greek passages. Such notes occasionally include technical terms. For an explanation of these terms the reader is referred to standard Bible study reference works. See further the section in the Preface on Textual Basis and Resources for an explanation of the original-language texts used in the translation of the ESV Bible and how the translation of difficult passages has been resolved.

Genesis

(return to table of contents)

Introduction • Genesis 1 • Genesis 2 • Genesis 3 • Genesis 4 • Genesis 5 • Genesis 6 • Genesis 7 • Genesis 8 • Genesis 9 • Genesis 10 • Genesis 11 • Genesis 12 • Genesis 13 • Genesis 14 • Genesis 15 • Genesis 16 • Genesis 17 • Genesis 18 • Genesis 19 • Genesis 20 • Genesis 21 • Genesis 22 • Genesis 23 • Genesis 24 • Genesis 25 • Genesis 26 • Genesis 27 • Genesis 28 • Genesis 29 • Genesis 30 • Genesis 31 • Genesis 32 • Genesis 33 • Genesis 34 • Genesis 35 • Genesis 36 • Genesis 37 • Genesis 38 • Genesis 39 • Genesis 40 • Genesis 41 • Genesis 42 • Genesis 43 • Genesis 44 • Genesis 45 • Genesis 46 • Genesis 47 • Genesis 48 • Genesis 49 • Genesis 50

Genesis sets the stage for the entire Bible and for all of human history. As we read Genesis, we are brought to pray to the One who created and sustains all things, One endless in might and unrivaled in glory. We also pray knowing that we are those who, unlike any other creatures, are made in God’s own image and thus are created for fellowship with him. Genesis also recounts the fall of mankind into sin and ruin, but as we consider the story told in Genesis, we are reassured that we are praying to one who has entered into covenant relationship with his people and will honor the promises made to them—not only to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob but also to believers today, who are the heirs of the promises to the patriarchs.

The Creation of the World

GENESIS 1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. ²The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

³And God said, Let there be light, and there was light. ⁴And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. ⁵God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

⁶And God said, "Let there be an expanse [1] in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters." ⁷And God made [2] the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. ⁸And God called the expanse Heaven. [3] And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

⁹And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear. And it was so. ¹⁰God called the dry land Earth, [4] and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.

¹¹And God said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants [5] yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth." And it was so. ¹²The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. ¹³And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

¹⁴And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, [6] and for days and years, ¹⁵and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth." And it was so. ¹⁶And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. ¹⁷And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, ¹⁸to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. ¹⁹And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

²⁰And God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds [7] fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens." ²¹So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. ²²And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth. ²³And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

²⁴And God said, Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds. And it was so. ²⁵And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

²⁶Then God said, "Let us make man [8] in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."

²⁷ So God created man in his own image,

in the image of God he created him;

male and female he created them.

²⁸And God blessed them. And God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth. ²⁹And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. ³⁰And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so. ³¹And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

1:28–31 — Seeing then that you alone are the creator and maker of all things, and have prepared herbs, seeds, fruits, fish, and flesh to be meat for man; seeing also that without your blessing all these your creatures prosper not, nor yet come unto a fortunate end, but grow out of kind, wither away, perish, die, and come to naught; we most humbly ask you to bless us and all the fruits of the earth, with all other your creatures which you have made for man’s use and profit.

Thomas Becon

The Seventh Day, God Rests

GENESIS 2 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. ²And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. ³So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

The Creation of Man and Woman

⁴ These are the generations

of the heavens and the earth when they were created,

in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.

⁵When no bush of the field [9] was yet in the land [10] and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, ⁶and a mist [11] was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— ⁷then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. ⁸And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. ⁹And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

¹⁰A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. ¹¹The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. ¹²And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. ¹³The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. ¹⁴And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

¹⁵The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. ¹⁶And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, ¹⁷but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat [12] of it you shall surely die."

¹⁸Then the LORD God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for [13] him." ¹⁹Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed [14] every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. ²⁰The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam [15] there was not found a helper fit for him. ²¹So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. ²²And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made [16] into a woman and brought her to the man. ²³Then the man said,

"This at last is bone of my bones

and flesh of my flesh;

she shall be called Woman,

because she was taken out of Man." [17]

²⁴Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. ²⁵And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

The Fall

GENESIS 3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made.

He said to the woman, "Did God actually say, ‘You [18] shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?" ²And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, ³but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’" ⁴But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. ⁵For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." ⁶So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, [19] she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. ⁷Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.

3:1–7 — Alas, dear Christ, the Dragon is here again.

Alas, he is here: terror has seized me, and fear.

Alas that I ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge.

Alas that his envy led me to envy too.

I did not become like God; I was cast out of paradise.

Temper, sword, awhile, the heat of your flames

And let me go again about the garden,

Entering with Christ, a thief from another tree.

Gregory of Nazianzus

⁸And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool [20] of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. ⁹But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, Where are you? [21] ¹⁰And he said, I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself. ¹¹He said, Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat? ¹²The man said, The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate. ¹³Then the LORD God said to the woman, What is this that you have done? The woman said, The serpent deceived me, and I ate.

¹⁴The LORD God said to the serpent,

"Because you have done this,

cursed are you above all livestock

and above all beasts of the field;

on your belly you shall go,

and dust you shall eat

all the days of your life.

¹⁵ I will put enmity between you and the woman,

and between your offspring [22] and her offspring;

he shall bruise your head,

and you shall bruise his heel."

¹⁶To the woman he said,

"I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing;

in pain you shall bring forth children.

Your desire shall be contrary to [23] your husband,

but he shall rule over you."

¹⁷And to Adam he said,

"Because you have listened to the voice of your wife

and have eaten of the tree

of which I commanded you,

‘You shall not eat of it,’

cursed is the ground because of you;

in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;

¹⁸ thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;

and you shall eat the plants of the field.

¹⁹ By the sweat of your face

you shall eat bread,

till you return to the ground,

for out of it you were taken;

for you are dust,

and to dust you shall return."

²⁰The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. [24] ²¹And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.

3:21 — Lord Jesus, who are the second and new Adam, clothe me with yourself; that I put away all evil desires and lusts, and crucify and slay in me the dominion of the flesh. Be unto me a strong garment against the icy coldness of this world; that I may be preserved and warmed by you. Without you, all things droop, decay, and die; but in you we live safe, strong, and mighty. As now I cover my body with these garments, so, O Lord, cover and clothe me with yourself, especially my soul; for you are the garment of my salvation and the cloak of my righteousness. And unto you be glory and honor and praise.

Wilhelm Loehe

²²Then the LORD God said, Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever— ²³therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. ²⁴He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

Cain and Abel

GENESIS 4 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, I have gotten [25] a man with the help of the LORD. ²And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground. ³In the course of time Cain brought to the LORD an offering of the fruit of the ground, ⁴and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and his offering, ⁵but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. ⁶The LORD said to Cain, Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? ⁷If you do well, will you not be accepted? [26] And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to [27] you, but you must rule over it.

⁸Cain spoke to Abel his brother. [28] And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. ⁹Then the LORD said to Cain, Where is Abel your brother? He said, I do not know; am I my brother's keeper? ¹⁰And the LORD said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. ¹¹And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. ¹²When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth." ¹³Cain said to the LORD, "My punishment is greater than I can bear. [29] ¹⁴Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground, and from your face I shall be hidden. I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me." ¹⁵Then the LORD said to him, Not so! If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD put a mark on Cain, lest any who found him should attack him. ¹⁶Then Cain went away from the presence of the LORD and settled in the land of Nod, [30] east of Eden.

4:1–16 — Preserve us, O God of peace, from all strife, contention, from hastiness and from all jealousy, which Satan often endeavors to sow into the heart, to destroy the peace and happiness of families; enable us to bear with each other’s faults, and like children, be ever ready to forgive and forget.

Johann Habermann

¹⁷Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. When he built a city, he called the name of the city after the name of his son, Enoch. ¹⁸To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad fathered Mehujael, and Mehujael fathered Methushael, and Methushael fathered Lamech. ¹⁹And Lamech took two wives. The name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah. ²⁰Adah bore Jabal; he was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. ²¹His brother's name was Jubal; he was the father of all those who play the lyre and pipe. ²²Zillah also bore Tubal-cain; he was the forger of all instruments of bronze and iron. The sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah.

²³Lamech said to his wives:

"Adah and Zillah, hear my voice;

you wives of Lamech, listen to what I say:

I have killed a man for wounding me,

a young man for striking me.

²⁴ If Cain's revenge is sevenfold,

then Lamech's is seventy-sevenfold."

²⁵And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Seth, for she said, "God has appointed [31] for me another offspring instead of Abel, for Cain killed him." ²⁶To Seth also a son was born, and he called his name Enosh. At that time people began to call upon the name of the LORD.

Adam's Descendants to Noah

GENESIS 5 This is the book of the generations of Adam. When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. ²Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them Man [32] when they were created. ³When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. ⁴The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years; and he had other sons and daughters. ⁵Thus all the days that Adam lived were 930 years, and he died.

⁶When Seth had lived 105 years, he fathered Enosh. ⁷Seth lived after he fathered Enosh 807 years and had other sons and daughters. ⁸Thus all the days of Seth were 912 years, and he died.

⁹When Enosh had lived 90 years, he fathered Kenan. ¹⁰Enosh lived after he fathered Kenan 815 years and had other sons and daughters. ¹¹Thus all the days of Enosh were 905 years, and he died.

¹²When Kenan had lived 70 years, he fathered Mahalalel. ¹³Kenan lived after he fathered Mahalalel 840 years and had other sons and daughters. ¹⁴Thus all the days of Kenan were 910 years, and he died.

¹⁵When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he fathered Jared. ¹⁶Mahalalel lived after he fathered Jared 830 years and had other sons and daughters. ¹⁷Thus all the days of Mahalalel were 895 years, and he died.

¹⁸When Jared had lived 162 years, he fathered Enoch. ¹⁹Jared lived after he fathered Enoch 800 years and had other sons and daughters. ²⁰Thus all the days of Jared were 962 years, and he died.

²¹When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. ²²Enoch walked with God [33] after he fathered Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters. ²³Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. ²⁴Enoch walked with God, and he was not, [34] for God took him.

²⁵When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he fathered Lamech. ²⁶Methuselah lived after he fathered Lamech 782 years and had other sons and daughters. ²⁷Thus all the days of Methuselah were 969 years, and he died.

²⁸When Lamech had lived 182 years, he fathered a son ²⁹and called his name Noah, saying, "Out of the ground that the LORD has cursed, this one shall bring us relief [35] from our work and from the painful toil of our hands." ³⁰Lamech lived after he fathered Noah 595 years and had other sons and daughters. ³¹Thus all the days of Lamech were 777 years, and he died.

³²After Noah was 500 years old, Noah fathered Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Increasing Corruption on Earth

GENESIS 6