I have studied Biblical Hebrew, the language of the Old Testament, for years. It’s opened up the stories of the Old Testament in a new way, reading the original language. It has deepened my understanding of passages. If you teach in your church it’s a MUST. Here’s 5 things to help you also read Biblical Hebrew:
1.Buy a good Hebrew Grammar Book
My two recommended ones are:
“A Handbook to Biblical Hebrew” by Page H. Kelley
“Basics of Biblical Hebrew” by Pratico and Van Pelt
They both have accompanying exercise books which use verses from the Bible as the basis of the exercises. This is essential to reinforce the learning.
2.Use Biblical Hebrew videos online
These help with pronunciation and to provide extra translation practice.
The best is the series of videos “Aleph with Beth”, taught by Beth On YouTube.
3.Translate a verse or two every day
Practice makes perfect. So translating a Bible verse every day, as a habit, aids recognition of words and verb conjugations.
4.Try and form your own sentences
Simple sentences for example:
• My name is John
• David loves his wife
• The boy walks in the field
5.Have a long-term vision
Biblical Hebrew isn’t easy to learn. You won’t learn in 6 months or a year, unless you already speak and write in modern Hebrew, which is similar. So it’s necessary to practice a little every day or regularly, for many years, until it becomes second nature. It’s worth it. So take a long-term view.
A good example of how it helps
When Jonah explains to the sailors who he is, he replies in the NIV English Translation:
“I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.”
But literally in the Hebrew it’s “and I FEAR the Lord”
Why is this an important point to understand the story of Jonah. Because it highlights a key repeated word and theme of the story: the need to fear the Lord. So the reason that Jonah does a runner, is because he doesn’t fear the Lord. But when the pagan sailors DO obey the Lord and throw Jonah overboard, the sea immediately becomes calm, and in 1:16
“At this the men greatly feared the LORD, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows to him.”
This acts as a mini sub-story, that points forward to the obedience of the Ninevites and learning to fear the Lord.