Exegetical Gems from Biblical Hebrew

The inspiration for studying Hebrew could be summed up in the words of the author's professor of Hebrew: "One cannot have good theology without good morphology!" Some seminaries and Bible schools to their detriment are doing away with language studies. This book reminds us once again that the original languages are biblical treasures that we could constantly discover. Faith comes by the Word of God. Fruitful spiritual growth comes from an earnest study of the Bible. As one goes further into the book, one could easily feel the conviction of the author rising out of the pages. Using a basic second-year Hebrew syntax syllabus structure, we get a chapter by chapter treatment of nouns, verbs, pronouns, adjectives, prepositions, particles, and so on.

The format is similar.
- Introduction
- Overview
- Interpretation
- Further Reading

At the beginning of each chapter, there is a Hebrew verse (without transliteration) taken from the Old Testament. As the author introduces the chapter, he shows us a couple of English translations to set the pace. Phrases are underlined to help us see the different renditions in the translations. It shows us how even the English translation is an interpretation in itself. The overview sections explains some basic exegetical tools to be used in the chapter. This is then followed by Interpretation which is probably the most technical part of each chapter. As I read the resources section, it is clear that the author wants readers to go further to use the example verse as a springboard to more exegesis work on our own. We learn about the "five-step method" of word studies. We are reminded of the differences in the way adjectives are understood between English and Hebrew. We have quick primers of verb conjugations, stems, prepositions, and many other grammatical structures.

Targeted at three main audiences, Hardy II shows us that we all need a refresher guide of Hebrew from time to time. For college students and seminarians, we connect the theory with the practical. Many first-year students get so caught up with the grammar that they find it hard to connect it to real life application. By guiding the reader from exegesis to analysis, and from analysis to application, not only will the student be guided, they too would be excited about the potential language studies bring. For former Hebrew students, like me, we need to be reminded about the valuable gems in the language itself. Moreover, God's Word is to be preached and is expounded best with an understanding of the nuances of Hebrew, something the English language still couldn't quite capture it as well. For Hebrew instructors, this book is a ready supplement for teaching. I remember my Hebrew class was constantly thirsting for examples about how exegesis leads to real insights of the Bible. This book is a treasure of such illustrations.

The way Hardy II uses the English translations clearly shows us that English translations are insufficient for a proper understanding of the biblical texts. They could only let us appreciate the many questions and struggles of the Bible translators. When the translations differ, readers naturally would gravitate toward the original languages, which is precisely what the author had wanted to achieve. I appreciate the care and consideration Hardy II has put into the overview, showing us the unique grammar characteristics prior to exegeting the verse concerned. Though each chapter is relatively brief, the section that requires the most heavy lifting is the "Interpretation" section where readers would need to take the Hebrew word and follow along the author's analysis. This takes time and effort. If the reader could make the extra effort to plow through the work, like polishing a rough diamond, he will eventually capture the "exegetical gem."

H. H. Hardy II (PhD, University of Chicago) is associate professor of Old Testament and Semitic languages at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. He is the author of two language resources and numerous articles.

Rating: 4 stars of 5.

conrade
This book has been provided courtesy of Baker Academic and NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

A Couple months ago I reviewed the companion volume to this book (Exegetical Gems from Biblical Greek) and strongly recommended it. Pretty much everything that I said about that book goes for this one. It is an excellent resource for second year (or maybe even second semester) biblical Hebrew students or those (like me) wishing to brush up on what they studied back in college/seminary.

Each short chapter provides a sample verse and discusses one major aspect of grammar and interpretation. It shows the proper way to use your knowledge of biblical Hebrew rather than the “gold nuggets” approach that reads way too much into every little nuance of the language. This book did seem to have a little more technical jargon in it than its Greek counterpart, but it may just be that my Hebrew is way rustier than my Greek, so I can’t say for sure.

The eARC that I read had some serious formatting issues with the Hebrew font (it frequently read left-to-right with no vowel pointings). I am assuming that this will not be the case in the finished product. With that assumption, I highly recommend this book to anyone in the middle of learning biblical Hebrew or who needs a little refresher course.

The publisher have said of this book that it is “perfect for students looking to apply their Hebrew and for past students who wish to review the essentials of Hebrew grammar.” But before you dismiss that this book is something you can overlook because you don’t know Biblical Hebrew consider the possibility that this makes a great gift (Birthday, graduation, Christmas, etc) for someone you know in seminary, ministry and those who teach God’s Word and want to learn Hebrew or do use Hebrew regularly for teaching and preaching!
Each of the book’s thirty chapters covers various aspect of Hebrew grammar and exegesis goes over not only technical information but also examples of how such knowledge helps us to draw out insight from Old Testament passages. This format is a wonderful way to learn and also relearn and retain the skillset of being an exegte and an expositor of the Bible! Subject include pronouns, verb conjugations (there’s eight chapters covering different aspects!), participles, clauses, etc. There’s even chapters on interrogatives, certain prepositions and discussions about textual criticism and word studies!
The author is qualified to write on exegetical gems from Biblical Hebrew grammar since he is an associate professor of Old Testament and Semitic languages. He teaches at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. I wished I had this book as an assigned reading when I was in seminary not as a main grammar textbook but sort of a “devotional” that reminds students the big picture of why one is learning Hebrew grammar and exegesis. Though I said “devotional” I’m also aware that this might be too dry for most people but still this is helpful to go over an overview of an aspect of the Hebrew language and then an example of how it helps us understand a particular passage of Scripture than most Hebrew grammar and exegetical textbook. Reading this there were times I’ve thought “Oh I remember that in Seminary!” and other times there were things that were totally new that I learned. I imagine other readers will experience the same thing.
I recommend this book and it helped me immensely in sharpening my Hebrew.
NOTE: This book was provided to me free by Baker Academic and Net Galley without any obligation for a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.