Zondervan Academic Books by Constantine Campbell:

Now that February is coming to a close, I wanted to take a few minutes to thank each of the sponsors, who were kind enough to place a a banner on Bible Geek Gone Wild via BeaconAds in the month of February. Next up is SpectrumMobile Technologies.

SpectrumMobile Technologies is the maker of the Reader’s Greek New Testament (RGNT) for the Apple iPad. RGNT offers a complete Greek New Testament with full morphology, a Strongs concordance, and two English translations. All of these features are built into the app itself, so you’ll always be able to use all of the texts and features of the app, even when you don’t have a connection to the internet.

The following video tutorial offers an overview the RGNT user interface:

Endorsements:

“The Readers GNT offers the help that readers desire for their reading of the NT. The Greek text is clear and is the up to date in regard to the best textual readings. The English versions that are included help the reader to see how others have translated these words. The Strong’s definitions provide the lexical help we need. The parsings and other grammatical highlights address specific questions that readers have about the individual words. Finally, the program is flexible so the reader can choose which one of these helps to view in the display. The Readers Greek NT has the reader in mind at every point along the way.”
-Dr. William Varner, Professor of Greek Exegesis, The Master’s College

“The Reader’s Greek NT iPad app is has been a useful tool for both quick on-the-spot reference and study in the Biblical Greek. I appreciate the range of meanings as found in the word definitions as well as the parsing of words that are easily located. The app is easy to navigate and adaptable according to your skill level and need. Reader’s Greek NT is handy offline when online tools such as biblewebapp.com are not accessible. This is the best Greek Reader app I’ve yet to see and recommend it as a pastoral tool.”
-Demecio Castilleja, Pastor, Discovery Baptist Church, Regina, SK, Canada

Here are the places you can learn about the Reader’s Greek New Testament By SpectrumMobileTechnologies on the web:

• spectrummobiletechnologies.com
• iTunes Preview
• YouTube

Taking a cue from Martin Luther’s 95 theses, Channing Crisler offers 9.5 Theses Regarding the Need to Learn Biblical Greek.

1. The Greek New Testament is the real New Testament.

2. We already tried to let someone guard the truth for us.

3. Without knowledge of Greek, you will always be dependent on the decisions of the commentators.

4. Substituting computer software for a knowledge of Greek is like replacing a paintbrush with your finger.

5. Word studies do not equal biblical exegesis.

6. God chose 1st Century Koine Greek not 21st Century English.

7. Something is always lost in translation.

8. You’ll have to slow down.

9. Big ideas must come from the smallest details of the Greek.

9.5. God’s approved workmen should use the best techniques and tools available to them.

You can read the full article along with his explanation for each of the 9.5 theses here: LINK.

I was excited to read the following in the Friends of CSNTM July E-Newsletter:

Today the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (CSNTM) announces that it is now available on iTunes U, a dedicated area of the iTunes Store (www.itunes.com) that offers free audio and video content from leading educational institutions.

The Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (CSNTM) has always been committed to helping others understand the reliability of our New Testaments, the history of translations, the study of the text, and significant figures who have made this possible.

Beginning today, CSNTM is making a series of videos concerning New Testament manuscripts, textual criticism, history of the New Testament, and expert commentary on key verses available as a free download on iTunes U.

Featured in the videos are interviews and footage shot around the world of important people involved in the work of the Center. Dr. Daniel B. Wallace will also be featured as he explains important aspects in the study of the text of the New Testament.

Visit CSNTM on iTunes U »»»

This past winter Bible Geek Gone Wild seemed to be in sort of a blogging coma.  It seems I’ve finally emerged from my “slumber” and am catching up on the many books and publisher’s catalogs that adorn my desk.  When I was at TGC last month in Chicago, I picked up a copy of the 2010 – 2011 Zondervan Academic Resources Catalog.  While in some sense you could say I’d like nearly one of everything, one particular new book in the Greek resources section that stood out was Biblical Greek: A Compact Guide by Williams D. Mounce. This book follows the format and organization many of us are familiar with from Mounce’s Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar. This book differentiates itself from the grammar by limiting its scope to the “nuts and bolts” of the Greek language, making it useful as a desk reference.  I could see this being a big help for translation and exegesis work, especially when I need to refresh my memory on things like how to handle liquid indicatives, attributive genitives and the like. You can learn more about Biblical Greek: A Compact Guide and preview a sample of the book at Zondervan.com:  LINK.

Book Details:

• Author: Constantine R. Campbell
• Category: Religion / Biblical Reference / Language Study
• Publisher: Zondervan (November 2010)
• Binding: Softcover
• Page Count: 90
• ISBN: 0310329078

Recommendation:

• Review Date: 3/18/2011 by Shaun Tabatt
• Rating: Highly recommended

Of all the publisher’s I follow, Zondervan Academic continues to stand out based on the number of useful original languages resources they continue to release year after year. The latest addition to their lineup of language resources is Constantine Campbell’s Keep Your Greek: Strategies for Busy People (Zondervan, 2010).

As a blogger and social media enthusiast I appreciated the background story behind the book. In a sense, it all began when Dr. Campbell decided to take the tips he had been sharing in the classroom about how to keep your Greek going after college / seminary and turned them into a series of posts called “Keep Your Greek” on his now retired blog: www.readbetterpreachbetter.com. The nine posts in that series actually served as the outline for this book. I especially liked that Dr. Campbell chose to share some of the comments dialog from his original blog posts at the end of each chapter. It was useful to see the types of questions posed by the original readers of the content and Dr. Campbell’s responses. Maybe it is because I spend far too much time using social media, but the blog responses section at the close of each chapter drew me in and made me feel a part of the conversation.

Keep Your Greek:  Strategies for Busy People is quite short at only ninety pages. The content is divided amongst ten chapters and the book closes with an appendix and a list of recommended resources. Each chapter introduces a new concept about how to enhance your ongoing study of Greek. You can get a good idea of each chapter’s content from its heading and subheading. If you are a very serious and stodgy language student, try not to take offense as some of them are a bit tongue in cheek. They are as follows:

• Chapter 1: Read Every Day: Reading reminds, refreshes, and reinforces.
• Chapter 2: Burn Your Interlinear: The interlinear is a tool of the devil, designed to make preachers stupid.
• Chapter 3: Use Software Tools Wisely: Bible software can be a blessing or a curse–it’s up to you.
• Chapter 4: Make Vocabulary Your Friend: You remember the names of your friends, right?
• Chapter 5: Practice Your Parsing: Practice makes perfect. Or aorist. Or present. Or … What is that verb?
• Chapter 6: Read Fast: It’s the vibe of the thing.
• Chapter 7: Read Slow: Slow and steady wins the race.
• Chapter 8: Use Your Senses: Greek is a language, not just words on a page.
• Chapter 9: Get Your Greek Back: If you did it once, you can do it again. And it will be easier this time.
• Chapter 10: Putting It All Together: Make it a part of life.

When it’s all said and done, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There was a light-hearted tone that ran throughout the entire book, making what is sometimes a very mundane topic, enjoyable to read. Each chapter offers extremely practical advice, much of which I intend to put in place as I continue my quest to keep up my own Greek skills. And if you are more of a Hebrew or Aramaic guy, don’t despair, these strategies will enhance for your ongoing language study as well. I would highly recommend this book for any Bible college / seminary student, pastor, or layperson who is interested in or who has ever studied Greek. Even if your interest in keeping up with your Greek studies is limited, you will find something of use here. Readers who enjoy this book should also consider picking up a copy of Dr. Campbell’s Basics of Verbal Aspect in Biblical Greek (Zondervan, 2008).

Author Information:
Constantine R. Campbell (PhD, Macquarie University) is a senior lecturer in Greek and new Testament at Moore Theological College in Sydney, Australia. He is the author of numerous books, including Basics of Verbal Aspect in Biblical Greek. Dr. Campbell is a public speaker, musician, and author, and lives in Sydney with his wife and three children.
Disclaimer:
This book was provided by Zondervan for review. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

Michael Bird made a parody of the Old Spice commercials for the SBL Greek New Testament. I hope you get as big a laugh out of it as I did. You can get the SBL Greek New Testament for free electronically at www.sblgnt.com. You can also buy it in print from the Society of Biblical Literature for $29.95 (LINK)

HT:   Tim Challies for pointing out an article from BBC News titled David Livingstone’s ‘lost letter’ deciphered.  David Livingstone wrote a four page letter around the margins of his journal in February 1871 from  Bambarre (modern day Democratic Republic of congo).  Fading and challenges caused by the iron gall ink bleeding through to the successive pages have left this letter illegible for many years.  Through the use of imaging technology, David Livingstone’s letter speaks once again.  A research team from Birkbeck College, University of London, working with colleagues at the National Library of Scotland and the David Livingstone Centre in Blantyre used successive waves of light to separate the text layers and a 39 megapixel camera to scan the images.  The recipient of the letter was David Livingstone’s friend and future biographer, Horace Waller.

What caught my eye most in this article was the use of advanced imaging technology to make this letter legible once again.  It’s exciting to see ancient documents brought back to life and preserved electronically for generations to come.  This is also why I closely follow the ongoing work of the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts, who travels the world digitizing manuscripts of the Greek New Testament.  You can learn more about the exciting work being done by CSNTM at their web site, www.csntm.org.  The article, David Livingstone’s ‘lost letter’ deciphered may be read in its entirety at the BBC News web site:  LINK.

During their recent visit to the Byzantine and Christian Museum of Athens this past May, they CSNTM team was able to photograph a previously uncatalogued gospel manuscript.  You can read the full story here:  LINK.  The Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (CSNTM), under the umbrella of The Center for the Research of Early Christian Documents (CRECD), exists for the following purposes:

1. To make digital photographs of extant Greek New Testament manuscripts so that such images can be preserved, duplicated without deterioration, and accessed by scholars doing textual research.
2. To utilize developing technologies (OCR, MSI, etc.) to read these manuscripts and create exhaustive collations.
3. To analyze individual scribal habits in order to better predict scribal tendencies in any given textual problem.
4. To publish on various facets of New Testament textual criticism
5. To develop electronic tools for the examination and analysis of New Testament manuscripts.
6. To cooperate with other institutes in the great and noble task of determining the wording of the autographa of the New Testament.

You can learn more about the exciting and important work of CSNTM at www.csntm.org.

If you’re a Bible language Geek, you should take a few minutes to watch this video about Zondervan’s lineup of 75+ Biblical Greek & Hebrew resources. I was excited to learn in the video that they’re working on some intermediate Hebrew resources as well as some Aramaic resources. Daniel B. Wallace, Constantine Campbell, Miles V. Van Pelt, and William D. Mounce make brief appearance in the video, so if you’re not quite sure who they are, at the very least it will give you a chance to put a face to the name. You can learn more about these and other resources in Zondervan Academic’s 2010 Spring Catalog, which is available here:  LINK.