Biblical Studies

The following resources have been compiled by the librarians with specific regard to the field of Biblical Studies.

Reference Books

Taylor has quite a deep collection of Biblical studies materials, which therefore cannot possibly be covered in the scope of this guide. In the Reference Collection, most of the relevant resources can be found in the call number range between 220.3 - 290.3.

Commentaries

• Anchor Bible commentaries (For all books of Bible). 38 volumes. Main Collection 220.7 B47an
  Offer translations and commentary on biblical literature by the world's finest scholars.


• The expositor's Bible commentary. 1976. 12 volumes. Ref 220.7 Ex76G
  This tool is created of excellent scholarship by top theological minds in the evangelical community. Based from the NIV Bible, each book of the Bible is laid out with exposition, introduction, an outline and a bibliography for future study. Notes on questions or historical controversies for passages are included, as are references to the original languages when necessary.


• The new interpreter's Bible. 1994. 12 volumes. Ref 220.7 In81n.
  An important reference work for students and pastor's alike, this collection offers parallel-column comparison of the NIV and NRSV texts, commentary, and sections for life application.


• The IVP Bible background commentary: New Testament. 1993. Ref 225.7 K25i
  Provides verse-by-verse cultural background for each NT book, as well as providing a glossary of cultural terms and historical figures, maps and charts, bibliographies for future study, and introductory essays about cultural background information for each book.


• The IVP Bible background commentary: Old Testament. 2000. Main Collection 221.7 W17i
  Provides verse-by-verse cultural background for each OT book, as well as providing a glossary of cultural terms and historical figures, maps and charts, bibliographies for future study, and introductory essays about cultural background information for each book.


• Zondervand NIV Bible commentary. 1994. 2 volumes. Ref 220.7 Ex76B
  Provides an abridged version of the Expositor's Bible Commentary, mentioned above, retaining all the essential insights without the technical information. 

Concordances

• The NRSV concordance unabridged. 1991. Ref 220.523 K82n
  Lists every word with context line, except articles, conjunctions, particles, prepositions, and pronouns. These are listed without context lines in the second section. Also contains index to the 6,266 footnotes in the NRSV and a topical index.


• Zondervan NIV exhaustive concordance, 2nd ed. 1992. Ref 220.523 G62z
  Lists every word with context line, except articles, conjunctions, particles, prepositions, and pronouns. These are listed without context lines in the second section. Numbered Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek lists are in the back. At the end of each context line in the main concordance is a code number corresponding to the entry number in the biblical language lists for the original word from which the English is translated. 

Dictionaries

• Anchor Bible dictionary. 1992. 6 volumes. Ref 220.3 An21f
  The ABD is both international and interconfessional, with nearly 1000 contributors from around the world representing Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, and Muslim traditions (and also those of no religious tradition). The list of contributing scholars includes names long associated with biblical and theological studies. It includes entries that relate specifically to Twentieth-century developments in biblical scholarship such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, early Jewish-Christian relations, the historical Jesus, and sociological and literary methods of biblical criticism (including feminist hermeneutics), and information in numerous entries on archaeological sites. In addition, the bibliographies are usually up to date and often extensive, and in complete citation format.


• Interpreter's dictionary of the Bible. 1962. 4 volumes. Ref 220.3 In8
  Purports to identify and explain all proper names in the Bible and Apocrypha.


• The New international dictionary of New Testament theology. 2003. Ref 225.3 N46
  This set features concise discussions of the major theological terms of the Bible that are arranged in English alphabetical order and discusses the use of each key term in classical Greek, the Old Testament, the rabbinic writing, and the New Testament. It also contains a glossary of technical terms, full bibliographies and complete indexes that make the wealth of information in these volumes readily accessible. An important tool for the study and understanding of Scripture.


• Theological dictionary of the New Testament. 1964-1976. 10 volumes. Ref 487.3 K65
  One of the most widely-used and well-respected theological dictionaries ever created, TDNT is indispensible for studies in the Greek New Testament. Words were selected for inclusion in this dictionary based on their theological significance. The historical development and theological nuances of each word are exhaustively explored. The authors trace usage in classical Greek literature, the Old Testament (LXX) and extrabiblical texts, and New Testament passages.


• Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels. 1992. Ref 226.03 D56G
  Articles in the Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels treat questions arising from the Gospels themselves, longstanding traditions of interpretation of Jesus and the Gospels, significant background issues, and the range of methodological approaches used in Gospels study today. These essays concentrate on Jesus and the Gospels, limiting their discussions to the needs of those who study, teach and expound the Gospels.


• Dictionary of Paul and his letters. 1993. Ref 227.03 D56h
  No other single reference work presents as much information focused exclusively on Pauline theology, literature, background and scholarship. In-depth articles focus on individual theological themes (such as law, resurrection and Son of God), broad theological topics (such as Christology, eschatology and the death of Christ), methods of interpretation (such as rhetorical criticism and social-scientific approaches), background topics (such as apocalypticism, Hellenism and Qumran) and various other subjects specifically related to the scholarly study of Pauline theology and literature (such as early catholicism, the center of Paul's theology, and Paul and his interpreters since F. C. Baur). Separate articles are also devoted to each of the Pauline letters to hermeneutics and to preaching Paul today. 

Encyclopedias

• International standard Bible encyclopedia. 1978. 4 volumes. Ref 220.3 In78 1978
  This practical, authoritative, and complete classic reference encyclopedia explains every significant word in the Bible and Apocrypha. It gives detailed information on the language and literature of Bible lands, and the historical and religious environments of the people of the Bible in articles by nearly 200 scholars.


• Encyclopedia of religion. 2005. 15 volumes. Ref 200.3 En19
  Provides valuable summaries and analyses of the best of current scholarship in the field of religion. The final volume includes not only an index, but also a "Synoptic Outline of Contents" which sorts entry headings under topics related to either individual religions and religious traditions or religious studies and an appendix with an additional 21 entries.


• The Encyclopedia of Christianity. 2005. Ref 230 En19B
  t covers all forms of Christianity throughout history and the world. Over 300 major articles by distinguished international contributors are linked through a novel series of pointers that provide different angles on topics and show the connections between them. The contributors include the leading experts on the topics under consideration, which range from regional surveys to portraits of denominations and sects, explorations of theological and moral questions, relationships with other faiths, and a "Who's Who" of Christianity. In addition to the main articles, helpful "fact boxes" present basic factual material, often in the form of lists, bringing together information that is often surprisingly difficult to find: creeds, councils, popes, miracles and parables of Jesus, religious orders, and much more.


• Encyclopedia of Christian theology. 2005. 3 volumes. Ref 230 En19L
  Covers over 500 events, doctrines, individuals, theories, and schools of thought that comprise the study of the Christian religion across all of its denominations. The 250 contributors-all carefully selected specialists at the world's leading centers for religious scholarship-analyze both the essential building blocks of theology as well as its most complex aspects and concerns.


• New Catholic encyclopedia. 2003. 15 volumes. Ref 282.03 N42 2003
  A comprehensive and authoritative work of reference reporting on the movements and interests that have shaped Christianity in general and Catholicism in particular over two millennia. In addition to providing information on the doctrine, organization, and history of Christianity over the centuries, it includes information about persons, institutions, cultural phenomena, religions, philosophies, scientific developments, and social movements that have affected the Catholic Church from within and without. 

General

• The confession of faith: together with the larger catechism and the shorter catechism with the scripture proofs (Westminster Confession of Faith), 3rd ed. 1990. Main Collection: 285 C76G
  Together with the Westminster Confession of Faith (1647), the Westminster Assembly produced two catechisms, a Larger and a Shorter, which were intended for use in Christian families and in churches. These documents have served as the doctrinal standards, subordinate to the Bible, for Presbyterians and other Reformed churches around the world. The Shorter Catechism shows the Assembly's reliance upon the previous work of Calvin, Lasco, and the theologians of Heidelberg. It is organized in two main sections summarizing what the Scriptures principally teach: the doctrine of God, and the duty required of men. Questions and answers cover the usual elements: Faith, the Ten Commandments, the Sacraments, and Prayer. 

Lexicons

• Greek lexicons can be found in the 483-389 call number range of the Reference section. An example of a standard book in this section is
  A Greek-English lexicon by Liddell & Scott. Ref 483 L61 1996.
  Liddell & Scott's lexicon is the world's most comprehensive and authoritative dictionary of ancient Greek. It is the central reference work for all scholars of ancient Greek authors and texts discovered up to 1940, from the 11th century BC to the Byzantine Period. The early Greek of authors such as Homer and Hesiod, Classical Greek, and the Greek Old and New Testaments are included. Each entry lists not only the definition of a word, but also its irregular inflections, and quotations from a full range of authors and sources to demonstrate usage.


• Hebrew lexicons can also be found in the Reference collection at the call number of 492. An example of a standard lexicon here is
  A Hebrew and English lexicon of the Old Testament by Gesenius. Ref 492.4 G33.
  Based on the seminal work in Hebrew lexicography, Gesenius' Thesaurus, this lexicon offers the reader short English definitions, and, in cases of uncertainty, the means of forming an independent judgment from the extant materials and the extra-biblical history of the words.

Finding Books:

If browsing the Zondervan collection for Bible commentaries, they are found beginning with the call number 222, and are in the order of the Books of the Bible.

• Online Catalog
  • Find books, as well as a variety of other materials in the TU Libraries.
  • Use the Advanced search option to specify material format, campus, language, and date range.
• WorldCat
  • Listed under Essential Tools.
  • Find books, among other things, to request via Interlibrary Loan (ILL).

Finding Articles:

• ATLA Religion Database
  Provides indexing to over 450 journals, in addition to essays, book reviews, and dissertations. 50 of those journals are available in full text format. Subjects covered include: church history, history of religions, sociology and psychology of religion, and general biblical studies.


• Christian Periodical Index
  Indexes about 100 articles and review essays in English from an evangelical perspective or of interest to the evangelical community.


• Religious and Theological Abstracts
  Contains summaries of articles from scholarly journals in religion and theology. Christian, Jewish, and other world religions.


• New Testament / Old Testament Abstracts
  Two separate publications (in the print Reference collection at 016.22 N42 and 016.22 OL1, respectively), that are now searchable electronically. Summarize articles on either New or Old Testament scholarly literature.

Periodicals (Journals)

• Periodical Title List
  Search by journal title keyword for online full-text journals, and to see what we have in print in the library.


• Click here for a Religion Subject Search in the Periodical List to find out what journals (and how many) we have available both in print and online. Click on the blue links to enter the actual list of titles. The numbers in parentheses beside the subject indicate how many journal titles are included in that subject area. This search includes Religion, as well as Psychology and Philosophy, because of the way the company has grouped them.

Internet Resources

For more religion-related Web resources, please visit our Biblical and World Religion web sites page.

• Theological Journals Search
  Search over 250 religion journals related to scripture studies, systematic theology, practical ministries, and cognate disciplines for which full text is freely available on the Internet. While most of the journals are in English, some are in other languages, so non-English searches are appropriate.


• Bible Gateway
  Allows for easy searching based on Scripture reference as well as simple keywords.


• Unbound Bible
  Hosted by Biola University, this extremely useful web site contains a plethora of study tools and versions of the Bible.


• Research Guide for Christianity from Yale Divinity School Library
  This research guide provides useful links to catalogs, free web sites, and other scholarly resources for the use in research.


• Wabash Center for the Study of Religion
  The Wabash Center has published an "Internet Guide to Religion" which is an annotated guide to selected electronic resources. You can browse by Subject, Person, Material Types, or you can type a keyword in the search box in the left column. Excellent source for a variety of religious topics.


• Divinity Library, Vanderbilt University
  This page lists a number of free web sites interspersed with their subscription databases. Any item that states "Free database--open to all users" is one that TU students and faculty will have access to.

Research Tools

• RefWorks
  A citation management program that allows you to collect and organize citations, create bibliographies and works cited pages, and format papers and bibliographies to a specific citation style.


• CREDO Reference (formerly xreferplus)
  A conglomeration of specialized dictionaries and encyclopedias that allows you to search for definitions and encyclopedia articles, as well as develop ideas for expanding or refining a research strategy.

Citation Help

• The SBL handbook of style: for ancient Near Eastern, Biblical, and early Christian studies. 1999.
  Ref 808.027 Sb41 (2 are also on reserve at Circ desk)


• MLA handbook for writers of research papers. 2003.
  Ref 808.027 G35M


• A manual for writers of term papers, theses, and dissertations. [Turabian style guide]. 1996.
  Ref 808.02 T84m (also available in the Stacks)

• WorldCat.org
  "Cite this item" within individual item record lists the citation in APA, MLA, Chicago and more.


• Also, contact the Writing Center at writingctr@taylor.edu or visit them on the Portal under the Academics tab.

Product descriptions on this page are incorporated from book reviews and product descriptions from various sources.

Ask-A-Librarian for more information

Created by Lana Gottschalk, Reference Librarian

Last revised May 1, 2008