Biblical Studies Reference Resources
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. In addition to a 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 UI 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: 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 is a bit dated as Eerdmans published it in 1979. 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 which is included below. For a sampler, go to http://images.umph.org/abingdonpress/NewInterpretersDictionarySample.pdfRef 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.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.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.
One/Several Volume Commentaries.
A one volume commentary is a reference work that offers comments on each biblical book (Jewish or Christian Bible or section of such, e.g., Torah/Pentateuch). The entries on each biblical book usually offer introductory comments of a literary, historical, social scientific and/or theological nature. They then offer analysis on a section by section or verse by verse basis. There may also be additional general articles covering topics such as the history of the Ancient Near East or the formation of the canon. A good one volume commentary will make clear who the author of the commentary on each book is at the beginning or the end of an entry. Sometimes the author(s)'s full name appears. Sometimes initials are given. If initials are given, the reader must look up the person's name in a list of contributors. This often includes scholarly or religious affiliations. A good one volume commentary will also provide bibliographical references. Again, at the beginning or ending of each article. One way to find out which works scholars consider important and are worth consulting for your own research is to compare the biblical book entry bibliographies from several one/two volume commentaries. If an article or book appears in more than one list, it is likely to be an important resource. In addition to one volume commentaries that include multiple books of the bible, there are also commentaries that focus on the books of the bible in multiple volumes and monographs (a single book) which covers a single biblical book. For your take home research project you may use the New Interpreters Bible or The JPS Torah Commentary as well as single volume commentaries.
Additional Information
Some dictionaries 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 will include references and scholarly developments through about 1991.
Ref BS491.3.E37 2003
Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible. Eds. Dunn, James D. G. and John W. Rogerson. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2003. Focuses on sections rather than verse by verse commentary. Uses the NSRV although some commentators refer to Hebrew and Greek. Commentators are biblical scholars from various traditions. A number are British. Includes apocrypha. There are lists of contributors and abbreviations at the beginning of the commentary.Ref BS1222.L54 2001
Etz Hayim: Torah and Commentary. Edited by Rabbi David L. Lieber and Jules Harlow. Sponsored by Rabbinical Assembly / U.S.C., Philadelphia: JPS, 2001. According to the publisher this work features the "JPS 1985 translation of the Torah and features separate p'shat [plain sense] and d'rash [imaginative and traditional] commentary themes, showing two approaches to interpreting the Torah. There are also essays on key themes by prominent Conservative Movement rabbis and scholars; a special section, halakhah l'ma-aseh, that points out where Jewish laws are based on biblical passages;"Ref BS491.2.H37 2000
HarperCollins Bible Commentary. Eds. James L. Mays, Beverly L. Gaventa et al. (San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 2000). This is the revised edition of Harper’s Bible Commentary, 1988 produced by the Society of Biblical Literature. Some of the commentaries are by different authors than in the earlier edition.Ref BS491.2.M47 1995
Mercer Commentary on the Bible, Watson E. Mills and Richard F. Wilson, eds. (Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 1995). This commentary was produced by the National Association of Baptist Professors of Religion. It covers the Hebrew Bible, the Apocryphal and Deuterocanonical Books, and the New Testament.Ref BS491.2.N485 1990
The New Jerome Biblical Commentary, Raymond E. Brown, S.S., Joseph A. Fitzmyer, S.J., and Roland E. Murphy, O.Carm., eds. (Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1990). This commentary was produced by Roman Catholic scholars. It contains outstanding general articles as well as commentary on the books of the Hebrew Bible, the Deutero-canonical books (the Apocrypha), and the New Testament. It has a topical index. An earlier edition is called the Jerome Biblical Commentary. It is not as up-to-date as this edition.Ref BS491.3.O94 2001
The Oxford Bible Commentary, John Barton and John Muddiman, eds. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001). This is a very recent scholarly commentary. Traditional historical critical method is used along with more recent methods. Editors and associate editors are all from British universities as are many of the contributors. Includes apocrypha Available for preview on googlebooks.Ref BS2379.S43 1993
Searching the Scriptures: A Feminist Introduction. Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza, ed., (1; New York: Crossroad/Continuum, 1993). Searching the Scriptures: A Commentary (2; New York: Crossroad/Continuum, 1994).These two volumes represent introductory articles and commentary on a number of biblical and related extra-canonical texts. Most of the articles reflect liberal feminist perspectives.Ref BS1225.53.T675 2008
The Torah : A Women’s Commentary. New York : URJ Press, 2008Ref BS491.2.W66 1992
The Women's Bible Commentary Carol A. Newsom and Sharon H. Ringe, eds. (Louisville: Westminster Press, 1992. This commentary covers the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament. Authors come from various religious traditions. It focuses on women and women's issues, often from a feminist scholarly perspective.Ref BS491.2.N484 1994
The New Interpreter's Bible (Abingdon) - This twelve volume set is a very recent and entirely new set of commentaries from Abingdon, a Methodist publishing house. Authors come from a number of religious traditions, however. It represents a mid-point between an exclusively academic and a religious commentary series.Multiple Volume Commentaries
Some multiple volume commentary sets will be found in the reference section of the library. Others which treat individual biblical books in separate volumes will be shelved on the 4th floor under the book they cover, usually under BS (for Biblical Studies). These commentaries give more detail than is available in a one volume commentary. After a general introduction, they often begin with a translation of a section of the biblical book and then comment on that section before moving on to the next section in order. Narrative commentaries and thematic commentaries may not proceed in a verse by verse format. Some examples are:
The JPS Torah Commentary . ( Jewish Publication Society) - 5 vols. Very thorough scholarly commentaries on the first five books of the Hebrew Bible by Jewish scholars. These are available in the library stacks.
BS1275.3.T54 1996 Tigay, Jeffrey H. Deuteronomy = Devarim (1996)
BS1245.3.S27 1991 Sarna, Nahum M. Exodus = Shemot (1991)
BS1265.3.M55 1990 Milgrom, Jacob Numbers = Ba-midbar (1990)
BS1255.3.L48 1989 Levine, Baruch A. Leviticus = Va-yikra (1989)
BS1235.3.S325 1989 Sarna, Nahum M. Genesis = Bereshit (1989)
Ref BS491.2.N484 1994 The New Interpreter's Bible (Abingdon) - This series is a very recent and entirely new set of commentaries from Abingdon, a Methodist publishing house. It is a twelve volume work. Authors come from a number of religious traditions, however. It represents a mid-point between an exclusively academic and a religious commentary series.
Anchor Bible - a series of commentaries on individual books including the apocryphal/deutero-canoncal books. These will be found by title of the biblical book or author and are located under BS in the library stacks. UI owns this series.
Hermeneia - a series of commentaries on individual books. Highly academic and detailed. Most are translations of German commentaries. These will be found by title of the biblical book or author and are located under BS in the library stacks. UI owns many volumes of this series.
Old Testament Library - a series of commentaries on individual books. Some are translations of German commentaries. These will be found by title of the biblical book or author and are located under BS in the library stacks. UI owns many volumes of this series.