Language Studies

Aramaic Thoughts

On Learning Aramaic and Syriac - Part 5

Earlier this week I received two books that I had won in a publisher's drawing at the recent national meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society. These two books were two of the volumes in the Yale University Press series of the Works of Jonathan Edward, which was nice enough in itself. But these two volumes are the two that contain the material from what is known as Edwards' "Blank Bible." This was a Bible that Edwards' brother-in-law had given him that had blank pages interleaved with the Bible text, so that Edwards recorded there annotations on the Scriptures. Thus for someone like me, interested in the history of interpretation, it is a treasure trove of information. But it also emphasizes the differences between Bible study and annotating today and then.

Today is the day of the electronic Bible, with the possibility of having the Biblical text right in front of the reader in the original languages and as many translations as he might want. In addition, commentaries and other resources can at the same time be linked immediately to particular Bible texts. And the reader can add his own annotations almost ad infinitum without being afraid of running out of paper. There are many electronic Bible study tools available that continue to prove the adage "you get what you pay for." On the free end are Sword (www.crosswire.org), On-Line Bible (www.onlinebible.net), and e-Sword (www.e-Sword.net). At the top end, both in cost and in capabilities are BibleWorks (www.bibleworks.com) and Logos Bible Software (www.logos.com).

The most thorough comparative analysis I have seen of competing versions is that by H. Van Dyke Parunak, "Bible Software for Windows," Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 46 (2003), 465-95. For this essay, he compared the material I have already named as well Bible Windows (www.silvermnt.com), another source that costs money. Now this comparison was published in 2003, when BibleWorks was on version 5.0 (it is now on 7.0) and Logos was version 1.1a (it is now on version 3), so some things have changed in the meantime. But for someone interested in Aramaic-Syriac study, the only choice is between BibleWorks and Logos. Aramaic-Syriac is sufficiently esoteric that it can be found only in the expensive resources. In fact, with the free resources the access to original-language study is severely limited compared to Logs and BibleWorks.

The best way to keep abreast of current developments in Bible study software is through www.bsreviews.org. There you will find news of recent developments and reviews of resources in Bible study software. For those interested specifically in Syriac, there is www.peshitta.org. It contains a beginning grammar, a lexicon, and an interlinear text of the four gospels and Acts. It is a free on-line service and can be a good place for the beginning student to start. For example, the grammar begins with a careful and detailed presentation of the alphabet, enabling the student to get well-acquainted with it before moving on to higher-level discussions of grammar and syntax. If anyone reading this column knows of other Aramaic-Syriac electronic resources that could be added, please let me know, and I will discuss them as I have opportunity.

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