This is a post that will need to be updated more often than it will be updated. But, check back every 9 months or so for new entries.
First, USE THE LIBRARY!
There are many great
resources available via ebook at TIU's library. Note, though, that there are
several that I'd say are either, not fantastic resources or are outside the
comfort of Evangelical conservative views about the Bible. Just be
careful.
But for your own
library and personal study:
· The Baker Illustrated Bible Handbook. I'm not just saying this because it's written
by Duvall and Hays. I'm saying it because it won many book awards when it came
out a couple of years ago. (You're familiar with the Ephesians entry.)
· Commentaries:
Bible
Dictionary:
· This is a helpful tool, but not as necessary as
the others. (If you're careful, you can often find enough information online.)
Concordance:
· This is often a requirement for a course like
this one. (Remember the chapter on Word Studies?) Personally, I think that this
is worth the cost of a Bible software like Logos or Accordance or
BibleWorks.
· If you must purchase a paper-copy, consider
which translation you're most familiar with, then choose the Strong's
Concordance for that translation. Remember the principles of Word Studies: It
doesn't matter what the English word is, but what is the Greek/Hebrew word(s)
behind that this word is translating.
BlueLetterBible:
· I've spent some time here. The problem is that
it doesn't provide you with the Greek/Hebrew words for each translation. You
can do this with NASB and KJV, but this is pretty limited.
· There's word that the ESV is coming out with a
similar tool for the ESV. That would be awesome.
Greek and Hebrew and
word study tools:
· After you've figured out the word you're
looking for with a concordance or BlueLetterBible, you're still left with most
of the work. These tools are written by scholars who are good at this kind of
work––they know Greek and Hebrew really well.
· First: Greek:
o
Verlyn
Verbrugge's New International Dictionary of
New Testament Theology (The
guy has a super awesome name!) This is an adequate resource and for $35 it's
affordable, too.
· For the OT, there is no abridged version.
· Sometimes you can find these sets on the cheap.
But you have to keep your eyes open. You can also get them in a Bible software
package. Personally, if you're going to drop the money to buy one of these more
expensive ones, you'd be better off with the software. For just a little more,
you get the convenience of clicking a word and it opening the dictionary to the
right entry. Plus you can usually add them as a bigger set for a good
discount.
A further note on commentaries:
o
Not all
commentaries are created equal. There are sets of commentaries that cover
individual books for the whole Bible (or most of the Bible). The ones I'd recommend
for y'all:
o
NIV
Application Commentary. You're familiar with Snodgrass's Ephesians commentary
in this set. The whole set is frequently on sale for these Bible software
companies.
o
Bible
Speaks Today You're familiar
with Stott's commentary in this series. While this one is older, it often has
some really great contributions.
o
Teach the Text is a new series that doesn't have many books
out yet, but the initial volumes are really fantastic.
o
You can
also check out a fairly reliable list of the best commentaries here. See also the most recent edition of the Commentary Survey. There's one for the OT and NT. (These links will not be updated to the most recent edition, so you'll need to do some digging.)
Books that can enhance your study of the Bible:
o
Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes by E. Randolph Richards and Brandon J. Obrien.
This is a fantastic book that will help you to answer the important question: ‘What do I bring to the text?’
o
Narrative Criticism of the New Testament by James L. Resseguie. This book will walk you
through narrative categories to understand the ways that the New Testament’s
narratives are laid out. Note that it focuses on the NT, but it is a helpful
orientation to the OT as well.
Bible Studies and
Group Studies:
o
Experiencing God’s Story of Life and Hope by J. Scott Duvall. This study is useful in
several contexts––classroom, Bible study, Sunday School, or even as a
church-wide study coupled with a sermon series. And, of course, written by
Duvall, it is solid interpretation. However, it is not a Bible study, per se. Rather, it walks the reader through God’s
story, exploring at each stage along the way what we believe, how we behave,
and what we are becoming.
o
The Story: This is a fine read on its own, but there are also study materials to go
alongside it by Max Lucado and Randy Frazee. The study materials are alright,
but I would couple The Story with
another book such as Living God’s Word (a
companion to Grasping God’s Word by
Duvall and Hays) or Telling God’s Story by
Vang and Carter. In fact, this is perhaps the best way to begin someone on a
plan of biblical literacy. Not only are you reading the Bible (The Story is biblical text), but you
also have commentary that guides you through the overarching biblical
narrative.
Books for Spiritual
Formation:
o
These
books provide a reliable guide for growing in Christ and into Christlikeness.
o
After You Believe (N. T. Wright)
o
The Radical Disciple (John Stott)
o
Renovation of the Heart (Dallas Willard)
A note on choosing reliable resources:
o
There are
specific Evangelical publishers that publish books that are exclusively written
by evangelical scholars. (Evangelical = believe the Bible is inerrant the Word
of God) Checking out the publisher is the first thing you should do when
picking up any book––because you can learn a lot about a book by its publisher!
Here are some of the most common (and generally reliable) Evangelical
publishers.
o
IVP
o
Baker
o
Zondervan
o
Kregel
o
Brazos
o
Crossway
o
Moody
o
B&H
(Broadman & Holman)
o
David C.
Cook
o
Tyndale
All of this stuff
makes for great Christmas and birthday gift ideas––especially if you’re working
in a local church. You can also take classes where books like these are
required and build your library that way :).
