Resources

 

I am still in the process of adding resources to this page.

Below you will find various resources I have helpful in my study of biblical Hebrew.  Many of the resources you will find listed here have been ‘tried and tested’ over time and have been found worthy.  I will endeavor to update this list as I go on.

Vocabulary Building:

George M. Landes, Building your Biblical Hebrew Vocabulary, Society of Biblical Literature.

An excellent resource for those who want to strengthen their vocabulary.  Landes organizes his book according to verbal roots.  In addition to providing the definition(s) for a particular verbal root, he also includes the nouns/adjectives/other words derived from the same root.  This greatly aides in learning Hebrew vocabulary.  All words that occur 10x or more are included in this book.

Beginning Grammars:

     

Russell T. Fuller and Kyoungwon Choi, Invitation to Biblical Hebrew: A Beginning Grammar, Kregel Publications.  Workbook sold separately.

Fuller and Choi provide the Hebrew student with morphological principles and rules.  As a result, the need to memorize endless paradigms is greatly reduced.  Each chapter contains questions reviewing the material and drills reinforcing the morphological principles. All discussions of morphology in my videos are based on this beginning grammar.

Advanced Grammars:

Russell T. Fuller and Kyoungwon Choi, Invitation to Biblical Hebrew Syntax: An Intermediate Grammar, Kregel Publishing, 2017.

Fuller’s intermediate grammar is the grammar my analysis is based on. Much of the terminology you hear in my videos are found in this grammar. Fuller’s analysis includes traditional categories (accusative, genitive, etc.) and grammatical discussions found in traditional Semitic grammars, especially Arabic (verbal/nominal clauses, various adverbial accusatives, the verbal system, the Pi”el, etc.). At the end of each chapter Fuller includes questions over the chapter’s material and exercises by which the reader may practice identifying various syntactical constructions. Fuller’s grammar also includes two other features not found in most modern grammars. First, Fuller includes twelve compositions by which the reader translates a English passage into biblical Hebrew. Each composition includes footnotes in the English passage to guide the reader in translating the English to biblical Hebrew. Fuller writes, “The compositions imitate the idioms of Hebrew to ingrain the principles of syntax” (12). He goes on to note that compositions are traditionally how dead languages are learned; living languages, on the other hand, are learned by speaking (12). Second, Fuller includes a chapter on the Masoretic accents for both the prose books and the poetic books. This chapter instructs the reader on how the accents are an invaluable aid to understanding the syntax. Fuller gives many examples demonstrating the function of the accents. While your traditional grammars like Gesenius and Joüon-Muraoka devote some space to the accents, Fuller goes into more detail. Furthermore, Fuller’s chapter on the accents is an excellent supplement to the standard work on the accents by William Wickes.

Edited by E. Kautzsch, Gesenius’ Hebrew Grammar, 28th edition.

A standard grammar for over a century and a half, the grammar is divided into 3 parts: phonology, morphology, and syntax.  The syntax portion is of particular interest to students, as they often learn phonology and morphology from other beginning grammars.  Although, Gesenius-Kautzsch often provide details in morphology not covered in more recent beginning grammars.  The syntax follows a more traditional approach and bases Hebrew grammatical categories on Arabic grammar.  However, Kautzsch does make moves away from Arabic grammar in this edition.

Paul Joüon, A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew, edited and translated by T. Muraoka, Subsidia Biblica.

Another standard grammar, Muraoka translates Joüon’s grammar from the original French.  Like Gesenius-Kautzsch, Joüon-Muraoka’s grammar is divided into 3 parts: phonology, morphology, and syntax.  For the most part, the syntax follows traditional Semitic categories, although Joüon begins to move away from Semitic grammar in areas like the definition of the clause.  Muraoka often “updates” various topics by noting recent research and includes newer resources in his notes.  In some areas, Muraoka moves away from Joüon’s original analysis, as in Muraoka’s view of the Pi”el as intensive.  By and large, the grammar is a good source for traditional Semitic grammatical categories for biblical Hebrew.

Lexicons

F. Brown, S. Driver, and C. Briggs, The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon, Hendrickson Publishers.

A standard lexicon in biblical Hebrew studies.  Words are organized according to verbal roots.  Each entry gives related words in other Semitic languages, though this is out of date.  Authors employ the documentary hypothesis, but this in no way detracts from their work.  Each entry gives a detailed list of occurrences in the Hebrew OT in most of that entry’s forms.  For example, for an entry for a verb, it will list all the forms the verb occurs in the Hebrew OT and where the forms are located in the text.  This is especially helpful for those who want to strengthen their parsing skills.  Moreover, their entries on particles and prepositions are extensive.  Despite its age, this is still an invaluable tool.  Also includes a section for the Aramaic portion of the OT.  There is an index to the BDB (see below) that cuts down on the time it takes to locate a word.

Bruce Einspahr, Index to Brown, Driver and Briggs Hebrew Lexicon, Moody Press.

For those who find bible computer programs too pricey, the BDB and the BDB Index are must-have tools.  You can find them relatively cheap on used book sites, and they prove just as useful as the bible programs.  The Index is a time saver!  The index goes through book-by-book, chapter-by-chapter, and verse-by-verse, listing most words found in each verse.   For words that occur regularly in a given passage, the author ceases to list the word after a few entries.  For each word listed, the author lists the page and the quadrant of the page the entry is found in BDB.  If you have trouble parsing certain words, this Index will make your life easier!

Other Resources

Joshua Blau, Phonology and Morphology of Biblical Hebrew, Eisenbrauns.

A more advanced resource, Blau’s book is an excellent place to go for more detailed explanations of phonology and morphology.  Blau also provides information on the history of the development of various forms, etc.

Page H. Kelley, Daniel S. Mynatt, Timothy G. Crawford, The Masorah of Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, Eerdmans.

An excellent resource that defines and explains the Masoretic notes found in the margins of your BHS.

Franz Rosenthal, A Grammar of Biblical Aramaic, 7th ed., Harrassowitz Verlag.

A good, concise grammar of biblical Aramaic. Rosenthal covers morphology and basic syntax. Rosenthal leaves a little to be desired with syntax; the reader may be left wanting more information. However, a working knowledge of biblical Hebrew grammar will aid the reader of biblical Aramaic. This book can be pricy.

Frank X. Braun, English Grammar for Language Students, Basic Terminology Defined and Alphabetically Arranged. Wipf and Stock Publishers.

For those whose first language is English, it is easy to forget English grammatical categories and terminology. For myself, I had to relearn English grammar when I began my Hebrew studies. What did an ‘accusative’ do? What is a ‘preposition’? This is an excellent resource to remind you what your 7th grade English teacher wanted you to know. Braun also gives clear examples for each definition. A cheap, excellent resource!