Old Testament Exegesis Resources

The Dictionary of Classical Hebrew is a completely new and innovative dictionary.Unlike previous dictionaries, which have been dictionaries of biblical Hebrew, this is the first dictionary of the classical Hebrew language to include, as well as the biblical texts, Ben Sira, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and all the other known Hebrew inscriptions and manuscripts.

Only one hermeneutical text published prior to the New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis can be held up reasonably to its measure of quality and the exhaustive nature of the research that produced this immense work. That singular collection worthy of comparison is its counterpart, the New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, edited by Colin Brown. This 5 volume addition to that acclaimed work, though intimidating in the achievement it embodies, is intended for serious Old Testament and exegetical study by men and women of all walks of life -- both academics and pastors, students and laypersons. Volume one contains a Guide to Old Testament Theology and Exegesis in which ten essays have been compiled to thoroughly explain proper hermeneutics and interpretation, as well as guidelines for using this source material. Volumes one through four contain the Lexicon of the Old Testament, all words found in the text ordered by Hebrew alphabetization for easy reference, and coupled with a Goodrick / Kohlenberger cross-referencing number to be used in conjunction with Strong's numbering system. The relationship of each word in different contexts and languages is also explained, including alternative words, and the particulars of their semantic domain. All this information is, of course, complete with bibliography. Volume four also begins the Topical Dictionary. Therein can be found articles on the theology of each Old Testament book individually, as well as discussion of biblical concepts, people, places, events, and literary pieces, all information that is cross-referenced to the preceding Hebraic Lexicon. Finally, volume five contains a series of indexes: Hebrew Index, Scripture Index, Subject Index, and an index of Semantic Fields. Taken as a whole, the New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis is an unparalleled accomplishment in the field of biblical hermeneutics.

This multivolume work is still proving to be as fundamental to Old Testament studies as its companion set, the Kittel-Friedrich "Theological Dictionary of the New Testament," has been to New Testament studies.The "TDOT" volumes present in-depth discussions of the key Hebrew and Aramaic words in the Old Testament. Leading scholars of various religious traditions (including Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Reformed, Anglican, Greek Orthodox, and Jewish) and from many parts of the world (Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States) have been carefully selected for each article by editors Botterweck, Ringgren, and Fabry and their consultants, George W. Anderson, Henri Cazelles, David Noel Freedman, Shemaryahu Talmon, and Gerhard Wallis.The intention of the writers is to concentrate on "meaning," starting from the more general, everyday senses and building to an understanding of theologically significant concepts. To avoid artificially restricting the focus of the articles, "TDOT" considers under each keyword the larger groups of words that are related linguistically or semantically. The lexical work includes detailed surveys of a word's occurrences, not only in biblical material but also in other ancient Near Eastern writings. Sumerian, Akkadian, Egyptian, Ethiopic, Ugaritic, and Northwest Semitic sources are surveyed, among others, as well as the Qumran texts and the Septuagint; and in cultures where no cognate word exists, the authors often consider cognate ideas."TDOT'"s emphasis, though, is on Hebrew terminology and on biblical usage. The contributors employ philology as well as form-critical and traditio-historical methods, with the aim of understanding the religious statements in the Old Testament. Extensive bibliographical information adds to the value of this reference work.This English edition attempts to serve the needs of Old Testament students without the linguistic background of more advanced scholars; it does so, however, without sacrificing the needs of the latter. Ancient scripts (Hebrew, Greek, etc.) are regularly transliterated in a readable way, and meanings of foreign words are given in many cases where the meanings might be obvious to advanced scholars. Where the Hebrew text versification differs from that of English Bibles, the English verse appears in parentheses. Such features will help all earnest students of the Bible to avail themselves of the manifold theological insights contained in this monumental work."

An indispensable and incomparable reference work, this translation of the "Theologisches Handworterbuch zum Alten Testament" makes accessible for the first time in English a wealth of theological insight. In these volumes outstanding scholars provide in-depth and wide-ranging investigations of the historical, semantic, and theological meanings of Old Testament concepts. Well-organized and clearly written articles analyze a significant portion of the Old Testament vocabulary. This reference work can serve a wide audience, from professors and researchers to pastors and students of the Bible. Even readers with little or no knowledge of Hebrew can use it profitably. Whereas traditional lexicons do little more than offer possible translations in the light of etymological and grammatical evidence, "The Theological Lexicon of the Old Testament" goes further, evaluating each term's theological relevance by clearly describing its actual usage in the language. In the process, it makes available to readers in many form- and tradition-critical insights hitherto buried in scattered commentaries, monographs, Old Testament theologies, journal articles, etc. Thus the individual articles serve as concise, well-structured histories of research with conclusions, discussion of controversies, and references to the most important literature. The methodological repertoire of the "TLOT" is deliberately broad because today it is generally agreed that no single approach can fully illuminate a term's meaning. Assumptions that led to ill-advised short-cuts--e.g., the chimera of a basic meaning from which all other meanings developed--have given way to a methodological pluralism, that considers a term's significance from several points of view and thus does more justice to actual usage. Words were included because of their importance within the Hebrew Bible, not their suitability as elements of a secondary system of Old Testament theology. Since the entries are generally ordered according to roots--the traditional and sensible approach for Semitic languages--and many words are treated as derivatives, synonyms, or antonyms of the terms listed in the article titles, thousands of words can be considered in about 330 articles. These other words can easily be found in the index. Besides examining the key verbs, nouns, and adjectives, the "TLOT" examines theologically noteworthy pronouns and particles in their own entries. "Like a diamond, highly prized for its fine cut, sparkle, setting, durability, utility, and symbolism, Jenni-Westermann's Theological Lexicon of the Old Testament has enormous value for a variety of reasons. Its rich data range from the historical to the theological, from the earliest occurrence of a particular word to its post-biblical use, from its distribution in the canon to its attestation in other literature from the ancient Near East, from its grammatical and syntactical peculiarities to its religious nuance. The contributors retain their individual perspectives, which give freshness and excitement to the whole. I have long wished for an English translation of this important work so that my divinity students would have access to it. Now, thanks to Hendrickson Publishers, that whish has been granted." --James L. Crenshaw, Robert L. Flowers Professor of Old Testament, Duke University

Extensive, scholarly discussion of every Hebrew word of theological significance in the Old Testament. Keyed to Strong's Concordance.