Book Notes
Multipurpose Tools for Bible Study
Frederick W. Danker
(Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993) 337 pp., $18.
Reviewed by Eva Frank Greene
Danker’s fourth edition of his well-known reference work is one of the best resources available in English for in-depth biblical study. Its fifteen chapters cover a wide range of reference works related to the Bible: concordances, grammars and lexicons, dictionaries, Bible versions (translations), Judaica, the Dead Sea Scrolls and commentaries. This revised and expanded version incorporates new developments, yet includes the classic historical works in the field. In addition to comprehensive bibliographic resources, the volume includes discussions on how to use the aids treated. One chapter covers fields related to Bible study such as archaeology, papyri and social-scientific criticism. Gracefully written and insightful, the work also provides through indexes of subjects and names. Danker rewards his readers with unwearied personal observation and an impartial examination of the research of others.
Just Build the Ark and the Animals Will Come: Children on Bible Stories
Collected by David Heller
(New York: Villard Books, 1994) 142 pp., $14.95.
Reviewed by Gabrielle DeFord
Do you recognize this quote from the Bible? “Don’t be afraid of me. I am the Lord your God. See, I’m invisible. That’s how you can tell for sure.” At least that’s how one 9-year-old paraphrased the voice in the burning bush that spoke to Moses. Harvard psychologist David Heller interviewed hundreds of children from a variety of faiths to create this collection of kids’ wisdom that offers a refreshing glimpse at familiar Bible stories. The book’s ten chapters—from the opening one, “In the beginning God was lonely, so He made people to play with” to the closing one, “The Bible is the best book ever written because it has the most creative Author”—cover the Old Testament stories of Creation, the Flood, Jacob and Joseph, the Exodus, Samson and Delilah, King David, Daniel, Jonah and Job, with a closing chapter of reflections on the Old Testament. With insights like, “God created heaven and earth, but that didn’t make Him too busy to spend time with his children” and “God kept the lions away from Daniel by showing them pictures of girl lions,” Just Build the Ark and the Animals Will Come will help you look at the Old Testament with new eyes.
The Complete Parallel Bible: Containing the Old and New Testaments with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books
(Oxford University Press, 1993) 3, 249 pp., $59.95.
Reviewed by Gabrielle DeFord
Four modern translations of the Bible from the Catholic and Protestant traditions—The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV, 1989), The Revised English Bible (REB, 1989), The New American Bible (NAB, 1970) and The New Jerusalem Bible (NJB, 1985)—are printed in simultaneous four-column spreads in this volume, permitting readers easy comparison of different interpretations page by page. Differences between translations in canonical content, verse placement and literary style—whether more exact in word choice like the NRSV and the NAB, more poetic like the REB and NJB, or sensitive to the issue of inclusive language like the REB and NRSV—thought-provokingly open the reader to shades of meaning in the biblical text that would not be noticed by the reading of a single translation, providing readers with a glimpse into the priorities and ideologies of the translators.
Who’s Who in the Old Testament and Who’s Who in the New Testament
Joan Comay and Ronald Brownrigg
(New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1993) 419 pp., $15.95 and 303 pp., $13.95.
These books provide biographical information, listed alphabetically, on each character in the Old and New Testaments. Explained in a straightforward narrative derived from the biblical text, the characters are placed within a historical, geographical and archaeological context. Citations are listed at the end of each entry so that the reader can locate a character in the Bible. Who’s Who in the Old Testament comprises 3,000 biographical entries, including entries for the main characters in the Apocrypha and a historical chronology. Who’s Who in the New Testament contains over 300 entries, including geographical entries focusing on the growth of the Church and primary locations in the New Testament as well as an interpretive analysis of the different versions of the Gospels and the characters of their authors. These books will benefit especially Bible students wanting succinct, accurate and readable information.
Multipurpose Tools for Bible Study
Frederick W. Danker
(Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993) 337 pp., $18.
Reviewed by Eva Frank Greene
You have already read your free article for this month. Please join the BAS Library or become an All Access member of BAS to gain full access to this article and so much more.