Linguistic and Exegetical Books
Required in the Master of Divinity Program
For Old and New Testament Courses

Biblical Division, School of Theology
Fuller Theological Seminary

Introduction

M.Div. students should use the following books from the beginning of the elementary Hebrew and Greek language courses. Students will note that these materials are necessary for the full range of Bible courses and not simply required texts for the beginning stages of language study.


Essential Books

Texts of the Bible

Hebrew

Elliger, K. and W. Rudolph. Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. 5th ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1997.

Greek

Nestle, E. and K. Aland. Novum Testamentum Graece. 27th ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelstiftung, 1993.

Aland, K. et al. The Greek New Testament. 4th ed. United Bible Societies, 1993.

Ideally, students should know and use both of these editions of the Greek New Testament. The Nestle-Aland27 is the more authoritative. The UBS4 is more accessible, more popular with students, and is the edition on which Metzger’s textual commentary is based.

Metzger, B. M. A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament: A Companion Volume to the United Bible Societies' Greek New Testament (Fourth Revised Edition). 2d ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft/United Bible Societies, 1994.

Aland, K. Synopsis of the Four Gospels: Greek-English Edition. . . . 10th ed. United Bible Societies, 1993 [Nestle-Aland26 and the RSV2].

Complete Bible

Students may prefer Biblia Sacra: Utriusque Testamenti: Editio Hebraica et Graeca. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1994.

This volume combines Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 4th ed., and Nestle, E. and K. Aland. Novum Testamentum Graece, 27th ed.

Lexicons

Hebrew

Brown, F.; S. R. Driver; and C. A. Briggs. A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, with an appendix, containing the Biblical Aramaic. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1996 [original date, 1906].

Greek

Danker, F. W. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. 3d ed. Based on Walter Bauer. . . . Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000 [BDAG].


Highly Recommended Books

Grammars

Hebrew

Joüon, P. and T. Muraoka. A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew. Roma, Editrice Pontificio Istituto Biblio, 1991.

Gesenius, W.; E. F. Kautzsch, et al. Gesenius’ Hebrew Grammar. 2d. ed. Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1963; [original date, 1910].

Students may choose to use one of these standard reference grammars.

Greek

The Wallace grammar is an up-to-date, usable New Testament Greek grammar and should serve as the accepted standard of reference. Volume Three of the Moulton set is more advanced and should be consulted for more careful work (the four-volume set is not required).

Wallace, D. B. Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics: An Exegetical Syntax of the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996.

Moulton, J. H.; W. F. Howard; and N. Turner. A Grammar of New Testament Greek. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1906-1976: [J. H. Moulton, Volume I: Prolegomena, 1906; 2d ed., 1908; 3d ed., 1908; J. H. Moulton and W. H. Howard, Volume II: Accidence and Word-Formation with an Appendix on Semitisms in the New Testament, Part i, 1919; Part ii, 1920; Part iii, 1929; reprinted 1956; N. Turner, Volume III: Syntax, 1963; and N. Turner, Volume IV: Style, 1976.].

Concordances

Many will prefer electronic concordances; one only needs to be certain that a concordance is "complete."

Hebrew

Even-Shoshan, Abraham. A New Concordance of the Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1989.

Greek

Kohlenberger is the best printed concordance; it is based on the UBS4 edition.

Kohlenberger, J. R., III; E. W. Goodrick; and J. A. Swanson. The Exhaustive Concordance to the Greek New Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1995.

Some will like the Schmoller concordance because it is small and light-weight (it is based on the Nestle-Aland26 and the UBS3 editions and is not complete).

Schmoller, A. Pocket Concordance to the Greek New Testament. 8th ed. Stuttgart: German Bible Society, 1989 [sold through the American Bible Society].

Study Aids

Hebrew

Waltke, Bruce K. and M. O’Connor. An Introduction to Biblical Hebrew Syntax. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 1990.

Williams, Ronald J. Hebrew Syntax: An Outline. 2d ed. Toronto: University of Toronto, 1976.

Greek

Metzger, B. M. Lexical Aids for Students of New Testament Greek. 3d ed. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1997.

Danker, F. W. Multipurpose Tools for Bible Study. 4th ed. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1993.