Should We Capitalize Divine Pronouns?

My Bible of preference (the main one I use in study and preaching) is the English Standard Version (ESV). While there are a great many things about it I like such as its accuracy and readability, one things that I must admit really bugs me, is the lack of the use of capitals when God is the subject in the sentence. In other words, God is referred to as “he” rather than “He”.

In contrast to this, the NASB (New American Standard Bible) uses “He” rather than “he” when referring to God. I like that. That is what I grew up with and I like this feature. When reading the text, the reader is readily aware of who is being addressed in the verse. No mental work is necessary to work out if God is being referred to; its all laid out by the use of “He.”

Having said that, Bill Mounce makes some fair points as to why the ESV and other translations do not make use of “He.” While I might still not like this particular feature of the ESV, it is helpful to know why things are as they are. Certainly, it is NOT because the ESV translators wish to dishonor God in any way, and I am grateful for that. Here’s an explanation: