BIBLE STUDY RESEARCH TOOLS
Recap: Gaps of culture, history background, time, Language etc
it is possible to do a basic manuscript study without these tools. However, with their aid new vistas of understanding emerge, subtle beauty is uncovered, and the weight of a text is more fully felt.
Study Bibleècombination of Bible +helps e.g. book intros, notes, maps,concordance, reference footnotes etc
Many have useful maps and introductory material for each biblical book. However, I discourage the use of study Bibles in inductive study because I have found that when using them the reader is more drawn to the explanatory notes than to the Scripture text itself. Though there may be some helpful cultural background material included, most of the notes are interpretative in nature. The author(s) of the study Bible approach the Scripture with a particular theological lens, sociological perspective or discipleship agenda. Their reading of the Scripture tends to be deductive rather than inductive. Identify the objective.Watch the authors. Spirit filled.T.D.jakes,Maxwell leaderhship. Olukoya
· Bible Dictionary
Formatted like an encyclopedia with short articles arranged in alphabetical order, a Bible dictionary is good for researching historical background and cultural context. Use it to learn about people, places, and what a word or phrase meant at the time of the author. If you can’t find a particular word, identify the general category to which it belongs. For example, in the parable Jesus tells in Luke 19:11-27, a nobleman gives each of ten slaves a pound. The word pound is not listed in my Bible dictionary, but it can be found in the article on “money.” Ex:
- Smith’s Bible Dictionary
- The Tyndale Bible Dictionary
- Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words
· Dictionary of Biblical Imagery
Whereas a Bible dictionary is indispensable for filling out historical and cultural context, the Dictionary of Biblical Imagery provides understanding of the connotations of biblical images. The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery is used to shed light on biblical images, symbols, metaphors, motifs and figures of speech. For example, the article on “water” describes both the significance of physical water in ancient Israel but also covers the various ways water is used metaphorically in both the Old and New Testaments. The resource is also an excellent tool for identifying cross-references. Arranged like an encyclopedia, it is a good companion to a Bible dictionary.
· English Dictionary
Often, we have a vague notion of what a word means and can understand its general sense when it is used in a sentence, but we aren’t able to give a definition of it. Humility pays off when we admit that we aren’t sure of a word’s meaning. For example, I was recently in a manuscript study of Genesis 2—4. “I will put enmity between you and the woman,” some brave person raised their hand to ask, “What is enmity?” Immediately, ten other people in the room made motions and noises to indicate that they had the same question but had been too embarrassed to admit it. Taking the time to look up enmity and learning that it means “mutual hostility, animosity, and violence” aided our understanding of the passage. Never hesitate to use a standard dictionary when you are unsure of the meaning of a word.
· Bible Background Commentary
Commentaries go verse by verse or passage by passage through the Bible, or through a particular section of the Bible. This system of organization is called “versification” because it follows the book, chapter, and verse structure of the biblical text. Commentaries are meant to be used in parallel with the Bible’s text, offering explanations, insights, textual notes, historical background, and more. Most commentaries also include introductions to the books of the Bible, providing details such as the book’s author, as well as when, where, and why it was written.
A Bible background commentary covers the cultural background of the Bible verse by verse. Each book of the Bible has its own chapter (listed in the order used in the Bible, not alphabetically). Each chapter begins with an introductory section covering authorship, date, setting, purpose and genre, and then works its way through the entire biblical book, section by section. When using a Bible background commentary, be careful to distinguish between background information and interpretation.
Examples:
· Harmony
Harmonies take books of the Bible that overlap one another in content, and they show how the books fit together. They reorganize the biblical content to flow chronologically, so you can find parallel passages more easily. The most common variety are Gospel harmonies, combining the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John; however, harmonies also exist for other books, such as Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles. Many harmonies only include Scripture references, while others place the actual texts in parallel columns. A few harmonies combine the four Gospels into a single text that flows chronologically. Examples:
Concordance
A concordance is good for finding cross-references, determining where else the author used a particular word,exhusative. The Thematic Bible
Next to the reference is a portion of the sentence in which the word is found; you must look up the verse in a Bible to read it fully. The word itself is represented by its first letter in italics. The third element of each entry is a number. The number can be used to look up the word in the Hebrew and Greek dictionaries provided at the back of the concordance. Regular type numbers refer to words in the Hebrew dictionary; italicized numbers represent Greek words. Examples:
· Cross-Referencing Bible
Some Bibles include cross-references in the margins or as footnotes. Be aware that most of these will not be exhaustive, nor will they all be relevant. For example, my Bible lists four Old Testament verses next to its note for Luke 19:8, Lev 6, prov 6v31 when Zacchaeus vows to pay back four times what he has taken. In reading all four of them, I find that three are very useful, but the fourth isn’t. These are the only cross-references given for the entire Zacchaeus story; there are no references to the various passages found in the concordance about the people of God as lost sheep. Consequently, I recommend that you look in multiple research tools when identifying Old Testament quotations and allusions rather than relying solely on a cross-referencing Bible.
· Interlinear Bible
An interlinear Bible can help you determine which Hebrew or Greek word is used in a passage. It shows the original Hebrew or Greek text with the literal English translation typed below each word. I use an interlinear New Testament that includes the Strong’s Concordance number (see above).
Prov 6v31 RESTORE Shaw-lam’A primitive root; to be safe (in mind, body or estate); figuratively to be (causatively make) completed; by implication to be friendly; by extension to reciprocate (in various applications): – make amends, (make an) end, finish, full, give again, make good, (re-) pay (again), (make) (to) (be at) peace (-able), that is perfect, perform, (make) prosper (-ous), recompense, render, requite, make restitution, restore, reward, X surely.
By comparing the Strong’s numbers in a passage, I can tell where English translators have used synonyms in different verses to translate the same word used by the original author. This information is useful when building interpretations based on the use of repetition and in making associations between sections of the text that the original audience would have heard but have become obscured in translation. When used in conjunction with the language dictionaries at the back of Strong’s, an interlinear Bible can also make it quicker to determine the Hebrew or Greek meaning.
· Bible Atlas/Maps
Maps are an invaluable resource in helping students of the Bible to locate the places referenced, understand distances and perceive relationships between them. In many biblical narratives, the weight of the story is missed because we don’t recognize the significance of a place. For example, in Luke’s account of Jesus’ rejection at Nazareth, Jesus refers to “the widow at Zarapheth at Sidon” and “Naaman the Syrian.” Both places mentioned are Gentile lands relatively close to Nazareth that had been fierce enemies of Israel for centuries. Jesus’ claim that God favors folks like the widow and Naaman isn’t just uncomfortable, it is incendiary.
“Truly I tell you,” he continued, “no prophet is accepted in his hometown. 25 I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. 26 Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon. 27 And there were many in Israel with leprosy[b] in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian.”
- Holman Bible Atlas: A Complete Guide to the Expansive Geography of Biblical History
- Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts
Conclusion
Get these tools, one at a time. but the Best tools will not help you except you engage them. online version for most. Offer-various reading plans youbible has many reading plans
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