Foreword

Foreword
Learning the biblical languages has long haunted seminary students. The gifted few, who aspire to spend a lifetime of studying, teaching, and writing from the original languages, embrace the task with great gusto. However, the overwhelming majority, who feel neither called to such ‘scholarly’ pursuits nor capable of mastering the languages, labour through it with much anguish, memorise as much morphology and vocabulary as they can for the examinations, and then promptly forget all the forms. They may spend hundreds of hours studying Greek and Hebrew in seminary, but never use any of it in their ministries.
What has changed? Bible software! Modern software programmes do a lot of the donkey work for us. At the click of a mouse, we can open several lexicons and see complete parsing information for Hebrew or Greek words. This ability to access grammatical information without memorising paradigms opens up new ways of ‘learning’ the languages. By harnessing the power and appreciating the limitations and dangers of using software programmes for Bible study, we can gain many of the benefits of learning Hebrew and Greek without spending any time memorising paradigms. What is more, we can begin reaping the rewards instantly and we can keep using the tools in our day-to-day ministries.
Dr Jabini’s Introduction to Biblical Languages has a modest aim: to teach students and pastors to use the original language tools found in software programmes profitably and responsibly. Jabini works from the two best free programmes currently available—e-Sword and The Word—because the leading commercial products are too expensive for many students. What I like most about Introduction to Biblical Languages is the practical way in which Jabini teaches us how to use good tools responsibility. With dozens of practical examples from both Testaments, he shows us how to use the tools. He shows the benefits we can derive from them, and cautions as to the limitations. His treatment is balanced and helpful.
This is a book for thinking practitioners. If you are a preacher or teacher of God’s Word and wish to improve your exegetical skills without spending years learning to read Hebrew and Greek fluently, Introduction to Biblical Languages is a great place to start. I have no doubt it will add depth and breadth to your Bible study.
Kevin Smith (DLitt; PhD)
Vice-Principal
South African Theology Seminary