Bible
Dictionaries and Encyclopedias
Bible
Dictionaries and Encyclopedias are exactly what they sound like: parallel texts to
language dictionaries and general encyclopedias. Entries are arranged
alphabetically. In most bible dictionaries key persons, places, practices, objects,
themes, and biblical books are covered. If you were reading Exodus 24: 1-19, for example,
you might look up "Moses", "covenant," "Sinai," or
"Exodus, Book of." If you were reading Galatians 4:21 - 5:1, you
might look up "Abraham," "Hagar," "covenant,"
"Galatia," or "Galatians, Letter to the". A
good bible dictionary or encyclopedia will usually have signed articles with a short
bibliography either at the beginning or the end of each article. Some dictionaries are
contained in one volume. Others are multi-volume works. The author of each entry is
usually listed at the end or beginning of the entry. Sometimes initials are given. You can
usually look up the full name of the author along with his/her academic or religious
affiliation in a Table of Contributors. This usually is found at the beginning or
the end of the volume. One way to find out which works scholars consider important
and are worth consulting for your own research is to compare the bibliographies from
similar entries in different bible dictionaries. If an article or book appears in more
than one list, it is likely to be an important resource. Some
bible dictionaries, encyclopedias, and commentaries are associated with a particular
religious tradition and may reflect the history of interpretation or the concerns of that
tradition. Others are produced solely for academic purposes and are non-denominational.
Although there may be differences associated with religious commitments, you should
find a great deal of overlap in scholarly works. Reading several dictionaries and
commentaries will give you an idea of where there is consensus in interpretation and where
differences emerge. In comparing both entries and bibliographies you should keep in mind
the publication date. A work from 1992, for example, will include references and scholarly
developments through about 1991.
In addition to entries related to the bible itself, there are also some dictionaries that
include entries on the methods and history of biblical interpretation. A few
"companions" and dictionaries focus on this. Some examples are listed
separately below.
Examples
of good, recent bible dictionaries and encyclopedias available in the University of Idaho
Library are as follows:
Ref BS440.H235 1996
Achtemeier, Paul J., ed. HarperCollins
Bible Dictionary.
San
Francisco: Harper and Row, 1996. 2d edition. This volume is the product of the Society of
Biblical Literature, the largest organization of academic biblical scholars in the world.
It is non-sectarian. Since it is a one-volume work some articles are shorter than one
would wish.
Ref BS440.I57 1979 Bromiley, Geoffrey W., ed. The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1979. This is a
four volume encyclopedia produced primarily by conservative Christian scholars. A
number of the authors are British. It has gone through several editions. Volumes
of it are available for preview on googlebooks.
Ref BS440.N443 2006 -
Doob Sakenfeld, Katherine, Samuel E. Balentine et al, eds. The
New Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press.
Five volumes. This is a scholarly dictionary put out by Abingdon Press.
Because it has five volumes some of its entries are longer than in a one
volume dictionary. It is a companion set to the New Interpreter’s Bible.
Ref BS440.A54 1992 Freedman, David Noel, ed. Anchor Bible Dictionary. New
York: Doubleday, 1992. This six volume dictionary is a scholarly dictionary and
non-sectarian. It has relatively good coverage of archeological information. One should
keep in mind that some authors present their own views on a topic rather than striving to
present a summary of various perspectives.
Ref BS440.E44 2000 Freedman, David Noel, ed. Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI,
2000. This is a recent, scholarly one-volume dictionary. It was
named an Outstanding Reference Source by the American Library Association. Available for
preview on googlebooks.
Ref BS440.M429 1992 Mills, Watson E., Edgar V.
McKnight, and Roger A. Bullard, eds. Mercer Dictionary of
the Bible (Macon: Mercer University Press, 1992). This is a one-volume academic
bible dictionary produced by scholars from the National Association of Baptist Professors
of Religion. Available for preview on googlebooks.
Works
that focus on biblical interpretation are:
BS511.2.C35
1998
Barton, John, ed. The Cambridge Companion to
Biblical Interpretation. (Cambridge ; New York :
Cambridge University Press, 1998). This companion focuses on methods of
interpretation in Part One and on "Biblical books in modern interpretation" in
Part Two. Articles are largely by well-known British and U.S. scholars.
BS
511.2.D53 1990 Coggins,
R. J. and J. L. Houlden, eds. A Dictionary of Biblical
Interpretation (Philadelphia: Trinity Press International, 1990). This
dictionary focuses on how the bible has been interpreted. The editors taught at King's
College, London at the time of publication. This is the place to look up types of
interpretation and terms such as narrative theology.
BS500.D5
1999 Hayes,
John H., ed. Dictionary of Biblical Interpretation
(Nashville: Abingdon, 1999). This is a recent two-volume dictionary with
entries on methods of interpretation and the interpretation history of particular biblical
books, etc. Gives helpful overviews.