Chapter 3: The Tools Available
The Tools Available
If we were to mine for gold, build a house, or prepare a meal, we would need adequate tools to do the work successfully, and the same principle applies to Bible study. To be sure, the Holy Spirit teaches us, but the Spirit does not work in a vacuum. The Word of God is seed (Luke 8:11), and it must be planted in the heart and watered with prayer and meditation if the Spirit is to cause it to bear fruit. Over the years, I have gathered together a book collection to assist me in my adventures with my Bible. These include …
A Bible
Select a Bible that suits you. My first choice is The New American Standard Bible, the cloth-bound library edition. It is an accurate translation and features wide margins for your notes as well as an excellent system of cross-references. Do not mark your Bible with a ballpoint pen or a fountain pen, but use a fine-point pen with acid-free ink. (You can find these pens wherever art supplies are sold.) They are perfect for underlining key words and phrases, connecting verses, and jotting notes in the margins. You may have a favorite Bible for your devotional reading, but this will be your “study Bible.”
Speaking of study Bibles, I advise you not to use one for your own Bible study. There is no space for notes, and the pages are filled with material. I have fourteen different study Bibles in my library and make good use of them, but when I’m doing my own personal studying, I use my faithful NASB. In a sense, I’m writing my own study Bible!
A Good Concordance
Next, select a good complete concordance, one that has a number system that gives you access to both Hebrew and Greek dictionaries. You look up the word you are studying, find the verse (or verses) it is in, and look up the number next to the verse. This leads you to the original Hebrew or Greek word. The New American Standard Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Holman Publishers) and The NIV Exhaustive Concordance (Zondervan) are both designed this way. The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible is a similar volume, geared to the King James Version of the Bible. It also has a “Key Verse Comparison Chart” that gives you access to five other translations. If you are only trying to find a verse, the familiar Cruden’s Complete Concordance may do the job, but real Bible study goes beyond the beloved King James Version.
My own preference is The New NIV Exhaustive Concordance because it uses the number system also found in two other valuable Zondervan concordances: The Hebrew English Concordance to the Old Testament and The Greek English Concordance to the New Testament. Please don’t let these titles frighten you! I studied both Greek and Hebrew in seminary but must confess that I lack a mastery of these languages and depend on these three books to assist me. The same Hebrew or Greek word may be translated into any number of English words in the same book of the Bible, and the careful student will want to be able to identify them. For example, in the NIV gospel of Luke, the Greek word charis is translated into five different English words: grace, gracious, favor, thank, and credit. The number system is easy to use and helps us become more accurate in our exegesis, or interpretation of the text. Frankly, I use several concordances, including Mr. Cruden’s classic mentioned above. It includes several word lists that have saved me time and trouble!
Some Other Helpful Books
This leads me to mention a volume that has been around since 1940: The Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words by W. E. Vine (Revell). It is rich in content and a joy to read. The author explains the meanings of Greek words and how similar words differ. You do not need to know Greek to use and enjoy this book. I highly recommend it to you.
Secure a good Bible dictionary and/or Bible encyclopedia. The New Unger Bible Dictionary (Moody Press) and The New International Dictionary of the Bible (Zondervan) are both on my shelf and are often consulted. The four volumes of The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (Eerdmans) are a treasury of information for the inquiring student.
I have saved one of my favorite tools for last: The New Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, edited by Jerome H. Smith and published in 1992 by Thomas Nelson. This book gives you thousands of cross-references for every book in the Bible. “The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible itself,” R. A. Torrey used to say, and he was right. The original Treasury was based on the cross-references found in The Scott Bible, a commentary by Thomas Scott, a British Episcopal rector. The set I own was published in Philadelphia in 1872. The new Nelson edition is a masterpiece of editorial skill as the editor has corrected errors found in the older editions and added considerably more material and helpful notes. If you are not using this book, you are robbing yourself of a valuable biblical resource!
Be Encouraged!
Careful and successful workers always use the best tools, but please don’t sell your car to get funds to purchase the books I have suggested. The blessing of serious Bible study depends primarily on our surrender to the Holy Spirit, our walk with the Lord, our careful reading of the text, and our obedience to what God shows us. But as I mentioned before, the Holy Spirit does not work in a vacuum, and He can use the tools I have suggested to teach us valuable spiritual truths. The Lord has given teachers to the church, and many of these teachers have shared their discoveries in the books they have compiled or written, and we are foolish not to allow them to teach us today. It requires time and sacrifice for anyone to build a basic library, but it is worth it. The psalmist wrote, “The law of Your mouth is better to me than thousands of coins of gold and silver” (Ps. 119:72). Strive to be a careful and successful worker to the glory of God.
ADVENTURE ASSIGNMENT #3
I suggest you carry with you, perhaps in your purse or wallet, the names of the books in the brief bibliography given in this chapter. You never know when you might discover one of these valuable books at a very low price—or as a gift with no price at all! Follow postings for sales of used books, and also watch the book catalogs. You would be surprised how few people know the value of these books to serious students.