Earlier in 2019 Zondervan released updated editions of Basics of Biblical Hebrew Grammar (Pratico and Van Pelt, now in its 3rd edition) and Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar (Mounce, now in its 4th edition), as well as a suite of accompanying aids for students learning from those textbooks. I haven’t spent as much time with … Continue reading What’s New in Mounce’s Greek Grammar?
Zondervan has just released updated editions of Basics of Biblical Hebrew Grammar and Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar, as well as related aids for students working through those textbooks. Behold: Zondervan Academic has sent these for review. It feels like a long time ago (though it was only 10 years) that I began … Continue reading In the Mail: Updated Zondervan Greek and Hebrew Grammars
I plan to read through the four canonical Gospels in Greek in 2018: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. I’ve created a reading plan, which divides the Gospels into three months each, Monday through Friday (with weekends to catch up, review, or take a break). There is also a weekly reading suggestion for an accompanying … Continue reading 2018: Greek Gospels in a Year
One of my favorite seminary classes was a Greek exegesis course in the book of Hebrews. The Greek of that book is difficult! Hebrews can even be a challenging read in English translation. Part of our required assignment was to keep a translation and exegesis notebook, translating much of the book verse-by-verse, with our own … Continue reading Lee Irons’s Greek NT Syntax Guide, Reviewed
The Zondervan Reader’s Greek New Testament has undergone vast improvements in its Greek font since its first eye-hurting edition. Now in its 3rd edition, the lightweight, handsome, and well-constructed Reader’s Bible is perfect for sticking in a satchel to be able to read the Greek New Testament in transit. Most notable is its size—it’s … Continue reading Zondervan Reader’s Greek New Testament: An Illustrated Review
Typesetting is somewhat subjective, but the German Bible Society’s UBS5 has some of the best-looking Greek text you’ll find in any New Testament. The UBS5 itself is about three years old. (Hendrickson, which distributes GBS items in the U.S., put together this excellent infographic.) Known for its full-bodied text-critical apparatus, translators and students alike benefit … Continue reading Reader’s Edition of the UBS5 Greek New Testament: An Illustrated Review
I’ve been practicing reading Greek fairly regularly all year. Hebrew had fallen a bit by the wayside until recently. As of the last two weeks, however, I think I’ve got a good rhythm now for keeping both fresh. I know I’m not the only pastor who finds it a challenge to not lose the heard-earned … Continue reading How I’m Keeping Greek and Hebrew Fresh
Greek for Preachers (Chalice Press, 2002) divides into three primary parts. Part 1 is “The Preliminaries,” where authors Joseph M. Webb and Robert Kysar suggest initial tools for preachers who want to use Greek. Part 2 offers “Ten Principles for Uncovering Greek Meaning,” which makes up the majority of the book. Part 3 focuses on … Continue reading Review and Reflection: Greek for Preachers
Just when I thought my sermon preparation was moving away from loooong Pauline sentences, Ephesians 1:15-23 offers another–a single sentence stretches across those nine verses. (See here on Ephesians 1:3-14 as one sentence and where I started my exegesis.) This week I thought I’d see if I could wed my need to visually outline the … Continue reading Guess What? Ephesians 1:15-23 is Also One Sentence in Greek: Trying a Mind Map
At last, an up-to-date, full-on Septuagint grammar: Muraoka’s Syntax of Septuagint Greek. I mean, just take a look at the Table of Contents! Thank you, T. Muraoka, for writing it. It is undoubtedly worth every penny, though it does cost many pennies, as you might expect. Here’s what the publisher says about it: This … Continue reading At Last: Muraoka’s Syntax of Septuagint Greek
