Lexicons

1. Lexicons

2. Lexicons • Lexicon—a dictionary, especially of Greek, Latin, or Hebrew • From Gk lexikon, wordbook • A lexicon may be described as a “wordbook or dictionary of a specific language, or the vocabulary of a particular people.”

3. Lexicons • A lexicon is compiled to describe in succinct terms the meaning(s) of a given word. • The etymology is traced through the successive stages of the history of the language.

4. Lexicons (Hebrew) • F. Brown, S. R. Driver and C. A. Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament • Often referred to as BDB. • BDB translated Thesarus philologicus-criticus linguae Hebraeae et Chaldaeae Veteris Testament (1829-1858) • This work completed posthumously.

5. Lexicons (Hebrew) • F. Brown, S. R. Driver and C. A. Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament • Was companion volume to Wilhelm Gesenius, Hebraisches-deutsches Handworterbuch uber die Schriften des Alten Testaments (2 vols.; 1810-1812) • BDB first appeared in 1907 and was last revised in 1962.

6. Lexicons (Hebrew) • F. Brown, S. R. Driver and C. A. Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament • It depended heavily on comparative linguistics and readily translated similar terms in a variety of Near Eastern languages. • Value of BDB lies in fact editors were sensitive to the nuances or shades of meaning of Classical Hebrew.

7. Lexicons (Hebrew) • F. Brown, S. R. Driver and C. A. Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament • This gave their work an enduring quality that is not to be found in other, more recent, lexicons that lack flexibility when assigning specific meanings to words.

8. Lexicons (Hebrew) • L. Koehler and W. Baumgartner, Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti Libros (2 vols.; 1951-1953) • Has never attained stature of BDB. • Provided a Hebrew/Aramaic German/English explanation of words and their meanings and was based on the 3rd ed. of Rudolf Kittel’s Biblia Hebraica.

9. Lexicons (Hebrew) • L. Koehler and W. Baumgartner, Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti Libros (2 vols.; 1951-1953) • The order of the words is strictly alphabetical and not by root as in BDB. • Usage is also made of Ugaritic sources not available to BDB. • K-B has now been revised by Baumgartner and J. J. Stamm, and is in the process of being translated and edited by M. E. J. Richardson (1994-).

10. Lexicons (Hebrew) • L. Koehler and W. Baumgartner, Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti Libros (2 vols.; 1951-1953) • The new edition is being issued under the title Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. • so far, four out of five promised volumes have been published. • This revision makes full use of Ugaritic materials and information from the Dead Sea Scrolls.

11. Lexicons (Hebrew) • L. Koehler and W. Baumgartner, Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti Libros (2 vols.; 1951-1953) • A feature that makes this new edition more usable to students of Biblical Hebrew is the fact that words from other cognate languages are transliterated. • Only Hebrew and Greek words are written in their own alphabets.

12. Lexicons (Hebrew) • L. Koehler and W. Baumgartner, Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti Libros (2 vols.; 1951-1953) • A far as can be ascertained, this new edition of K-B has special value in the area of etymological research and in tracing hapax legomena.

13. Lexicons (Hebrew) • L. Koehler and W. Baumgartner, Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti Libros (2 vols.; 1951-1953) • Though the meanings assigned different words are often influenced by critical considerations, the conclusions offered can always be checked against BDB. • Advanced students will find valuable information in the bibliography.

14. Lexicons (Hebrew) • D. J. A. Clines, Dictionary of Classical Hebrew (1993-) • Scheduled for 8 vols., this lexicon is in many respects the first entirely new work to be published in many years. • Others, such as BDB and K-B were based upon earlier works. • DCH follows a strictly alphabetical order for the entries as they appear in sentences (as opposed to BDB where words are placed under the tri-lateral root).

15. Lexicons (Hebrew) • D. J. A. Clines, Dictionary of Classical Hebrew (1993-) • No cognates from other Semitic languages are mentioned, but inscriptional evidence down to A.D. 200, together with data from Qumran and Ben Sira, has been included. • As a result DCH does not provide information about connections with other Semitic dialects and it does not classify usages as figurative or literal.

16. Lexicons (Hebrew) • D. J. A. Clines, Dictionary of Classical Hebrew (1993-) • Related words, synonyms, and antonyms are listed at the end of the treatment of a word. • Emendations proposed by BDB and K-B are listed, but without any critical evaluation.

17. Lexicons (Hebrew) • D. J. A. Clines, Dictionary of Classical Hebrew (1993-) • DCH gives promise of being a valuable tool for the scholar. • It strength lies in its semantic examination of each word, syntagmatic listing of every usage with its meaning, and paradigmatic listing of synonyms and antonyms.

18. Lexicons (Hebrew) • D. J. A. Clines, Dictionary of Classical Hebrew (1993-) • It concludes with an English-Hebrew index, and an English translation of every Hebrew word or phrase. • Though avant-garde and highly commendable, its projected size and cost will place it beyond the reach of the average student of the biblical languages. • It is unlikely, therefore, to replace BDB for practical usefulness.

19. Lexicons • Walter Bauer, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (translated and edited by W. F. Arndt and F. W. Gingrich [1957-1958], and revised and augmented by F. W. Gingrich and F. W. Danker [1979]). • At one time referred to as “Arndt and Gingrich,” B’s lexicon is based upon an extensive examination of Greek literature, including NT words still in use in Byzantine times.

20. Lexicons • Bauer • A vast amount of material was mastered and then reduced to succinct, descriptive statements defining the usage of each word and giving its meaning during different eras of Greek literary history. • True value of the work can only be appreciated when one reads through the prefatory material, and particularly the introduction by Bauer.

21. Lexicons • Bauer • Excellent coverage • Meanings given are judicious • Grammatical hints are significant • References to literature outside the NT have been well-chosen and are representative of the usage of the same word in other sources. • The volume is indispensable.

22. Lexicons • J. H. Moulton and G. Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament, Illustrated from the Papyri and Other Non-literary Sources (1929) • Important source of philological illumination comes from papyri discovered in Egypt. • The terminology found in papyrus fragments, letters and ostraka, parallels the Greek of the NT. • Thus, much of it may be used to add new insights into meanings of words employed by writers of the NT.

23. Lexicons • M-M • This work is based upon articles published in The Expositor (1908-1911). • Following Moulton’s death in 1917, Milligan carried on the work alone, finally finishing in 1929. • Contains numerous parallels to the terminology of the NT. • Investigation of the source material offered in the concise format of M-M will not only enrich study but also provide many illustrations of word usage in the language of the people of the NT period.

24. Lexicons • G. H. W. Lampe, Patristic Greek Lexicon (1961) • Work based on the material contained in Migne’s Patrologia Graeca. • Object is to make available the theological and ecclesiastical vocabulary of the Greek Christian authors from Clement of Rome to Theodore of Stadium, so that researchers can trace easily and efficiently the development of Christian thought. • Informative coverage is given terms like apostolos, episkopos, presbuteros, ….

25. Lexicons • G. H. W. Lampe, Patristic Greek Lexicon (1961) • Values of such a lexicon are many. • 1) As far as the development of doctrine is concerned, we can trace by e.g. as well as precept either the early church’s adherence to “sound doctrine” or its departure from it. • The reasons for the latter frequently parallel trends in our own time. • Human nature remains the same.

26. Lexicons • G. H. W. Lampe, Patristic Greek Lexicon (1961) • Values of such a lexicon are many. • 2) In the course of history, changes in the usage of words and their meaning were inevitable. • “Disciple” in the Gospels used of one who had counted the cost of following Christ. • In the era of the early church it came to be applied to those whose manner of life would permit this term to be connected with their name.

27. Lexicons • G. H. W. Lampe, Patristic Greek Lexicon (1961) • Values of such a lexicon are many. • Often death by martyrdom was regarded as the criterion for calling one a “disciple.” • Lampe begins with a list of authors and their writings. • Each of the references can be traced to the Loeb Classical Library.

28. Lexicons • H. C. Liddell and R. Scott, Greek-English Lexicon (1897/1996) • A revised and updated edition was prepared for publication by H. S. Jones with the assistance of R. McKenzie (1940) and a Supplement by E. A. Barber was issued in 1968. • Provides access to the classical period of Greek literature. • An index to Greek authors and their works is found in the introductory materials.

29. Lexicons • H. C. Liddell and R. Scott, Greek-English Lexicon (1897/1996) • While this work is of value primarily for the access it provides to the classical period, literature is also cited through to the 6th c. A.D. (including the Septuagint and Apocrypha). • Obviously, the closer the reference is to the NT era, the greater will be its bearing on the meaning of the word in the language of the NT.

30. Lexicons • H. C. Liddell and R. Scott, Greek-English Lexicon (1897/1996) • Note of caution: • Do not buy an abridged edition. • An abridgement is valuable only to the student of classical Greek. • An abridgement is valueless for NT study.

31. Lexicons • Joseph Henry Thayer, Greek-English Lexicon (1886) • A translation of Wilke-Grimm’s 2nd ed. (1879). • A corrected edition appeared in 1889 and made Thayer a standard name in the English speaking theological world until 1957. • Followed the comparative philology school with its proportionately greater emphasis on etymology as compared with more recent approaches.

32. Lexicons • Joseph Henry Thayer, Greek-English Lexicon (1886)

33. Use of Lexicons • Primary purpose—to bring together within convenient range the evidence for making a judgment concerning the precise meaning of a term. • What types of evidence can be found in a lexicon? • 1) Identification of word forms • 2) Etymology • 3) Classification of usage • 4) Discrimination of synonyms

34. Use of Lexicons • 1) Identification of Word Forms • One of first tests of the beginner in learning a new language is his ability to identify word forms correctly. • Whenever one encounters new or unfamiliar words, recourse to the lexicon is necessary. • While the structural form of words is treated by a grammar, the lexicon provides a useful index to word forms.

35. Use of Lexicons • 1) Identification of Word Forms • Since most irregularities occur in the verb, the lexicon provides clues to such irregular forms by citing the principal parts of the most important, or the most irregular, verbs; these forms are usually supplied at the head of the particular article being consulted.

36. Use of Lexicons • 1) Identification of Word Forms • Once the correct form has been identified, it remains to complete the process of analysis of the function of the verb in a particular instance; several factors assist in the analysis. • 1) The verb root; this will indicate the meaning of the verbal idea. • 2) Tense force; this will identify the kind of action involved, whether durative, punctiliar, or completed.

37. Use of Lexicons • 1) Identification of Word Forms • 3) The relation of the verb to the context, that is, the connection between the verb and the other parts of the sentence.

38. Use of Lexicons • 2) Etymology • Word roots have the power to create pictures in the mind and so to vivify the reading of the Gk NT. • The lexicon shows, for instance, that the word translated “to fear” comes from a root meaning “to run”; the word “soul” stems from a root meaning “to breathe”; the root meaning of the word for “life” (zoe) is reflected in our Eng. word “vitality.”

39. Use of Lexicons • 2) Etymology • Words are not like disconnected atoms; they grow from roots and they form clusters in families. • So, words, like people, have ancestors and display family relationships. • The lexicon serves as an index to derivation by enabling the reader to trace family relationships to their source wherever possible.

40. Use of Lexicons • 3) Classification of usage • Since one word may be used in a variety of ways, the NT lexicon offers an attempted classification of usage. • Here the lexicographer must play the role of an interpreter and state what appears to him to be the specific meaning of the word in a given passage • He then cites other instances of identical or similar usage under a single heading.

41. Use of Lexicons • 3) Classification of usage • The student must learn always to exercise the greatest care and not to infer without examination that all the passages cited are exactly similar. • He should regard what the lexicon presents as an index to evidence, and the classification of usage as one specialist’s opinion based upon that evidence.

42. Use of Lexicons • 3) Classification of usage • He must then weigh this evidence for himself in the light of the specific contexts where the word occurs.

43. Use of Lexicons • 4) Discrimination of synonyms • One of the most rewarding uses of the NT lexicon is the discrimination of those words which occasionally may be used interchangeably. • The lexicon shows why in certain cases one would be appropriate and the other not. • For e.g., a person can be tested or tried in many ways.

44. Use of Lexicons • 4) Discrimination of synonyms • James (1:12) declares that the man who endures temptation is blessed, “for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life.” • “Temptation” and “tried” cannot be interchanged here without doing violence to James’ meaning. • The fine shades of meaning inherent in Greek synonyms are not always made explicit in English translations.

45. Use of Lexicons • 4) Discrimination of synonyms • In Eng., one word sometimes is used to translate several words in Greek. • Typical examples of such words in NT vocabulary are “love,” “fear,” “labor,” “power,” “know,” “send,” “ask,” “tempt,” “gift,” and so on. • Lexicons may attempt to provide a basis for distinction by means of special notes at the ends of articles.

46. Use of Lexicons • 4) Discrimination of synonyms • The notes may indicate the most important contexts in which the synonyms occur together. • When these passages have been located, insights into their meanings may be provided by observing instances of their use in classical and Septuagint Greek as well as in Koine, and by considering other NT contexts in which they occur.

47. Use of Lexicons • Old Friends (known words) • Every beginning Gk student knows o;noma, name; why bother to use the lexicon. • The big lexicon sketches the vivid associations made by the ancients between the name and the qualities possessed by a person or thing. • It details the implications of all phrases involving the name of God and Christ.