Bible Study Resources

Bible study resources include links to books that are used to aid in understanding the meaning of passages discussed in the sermon notes. Included as a recent post is Maclaren's classic sermon on the "deception of sin."

Biblical Theology Tools

Writings that provide basic concepts that are developed through a study of the entire Bible.

Historical Context of Melchizedek

The link above provides insight into the Hebrew's community of faith understanding as to whom they were taught that Melchizedek was via Essense tradition as evinced from scrolls found in Qumran cave 11. He is more than a heavenly mediator of judgment, ie.e Michael the archangel. The author of Hebrews corrects that teaching illustrating that he is indeed the pre-incarnate Divine Messiah of Genesis and Psalm 110.  The PDF is also provided at the bottom of this page.

Melchizedek is also understood as Messiah from a second source in the Hebrew community of faith and that through the teaching of Hellenist philosopher and theologian Philo. He portrays Messiah allegorically as pure perfection through enlightened reason, Logos. Jesus has perfected reason but as correction expresses that perfect reason incarnate.

How to Use Sermon Study Notes

The sermon notes provide a suggested method to study Scripture. The
method itself is similar but not exactly the same as Bernard Ramm’s
literal-historical-grammatical hermeneutic in his book Protestant
Biblical Interpretation. This method is commended to the Christian as a
guide toward both sane and Spirit-filled biblical interpretation.

Bible Word Study Tools

The Crosswalk Internet Site has a plethora of tools like concordances, word study, Bible dictionaries and commentaries.

Interpretation Tools

Interpretation of Parables by Doerksen

Provides an excellent article giving the basics of the parabolic interpretation methods.

Greek Language Helps

Vine’s New Testament Dictionary

Vine’s is an indispensable tool that enables the beginning and intermediate student of the Bible to deepen their understanding of bible words from the Greek and Hebrew language without having to know the language. The word references are in English and refer back to the Greek or Hebrew. The only down side is that it is referenced to King James English which makes some uncommon words hard to find.

Thayer's and Smith's Bible Dictionary

Here is an excellent link requiring either a Strong's concordance number to the word or a rudimentary knowledge of the Greek word.  The lexicon is It has great cross references.

The Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon

A short and quick way to look up Hebrew meanings behind the English translation of terms in Scripture online.  Use of this tool does not require any ability to read Hebrew.

Biblical-Theological-Philosophical Intersections

Links provide reflections into the deep. They are for inquisitive minds that seek possible glimpses into the majesty of God's mystery. Here the Thomistic maxim must be held first and foremost "omnium exeunt in mysterium" - "all fades into mystery."

Descriptions of Jesus Christ's pre-existence, immutability, and imminence in Hebrews raises questions that constantly bump up against a person's construct of "time." For those who wish a cursory first pass at this click on the following link. Specifically look at 'metaphysics of time perception' B-theory-untensed time-multiple block time, that's where I resonate.  Buyer beware the link is an entrance into, not an answer about, in spite of anybody's certitude. If nothing else it should bring you to God's mystery and worship - click On Time.

Philo's Dualism

"Type 6. Cosmological duality. The classic position of Plato: the world of
material things is the secondary copy or shadow of the 'real' world of
the Forms, which are perceived by the enlightened mind. In many different
versions, this view filtered down as a mainline belief of the Greco-Roman
(and the modern Western) world: that which can be observed in the physical
world is secondary and shabby compared with that which can be experienced
by the mind or spirit. (In some modern versions the order is reversed,
putting the material first and the spiritual second." NT Wright

"Type 7. Anthropological duality. The human-centred version of cosmological
dualism. Humans are bipartite creatures, a combination of body and soul,
which are arranged in a hierarchy: soul ahead of body in many religions
and philosophies, body ahead of soul in many political agendas." NT Wright

"Philo accepts dualism of the cosmos and human being that is types 6 and 7:  Jews
in general did not divide the world rigidly into the physical and the noumenal/spiritual,
and even Philo himself shows at various points that, even if the 'real
meaning' of a passage of scripture, or a Jewish ritual, is to be found
in a spiritualized sphere, the material sense and performance are by no
means to be despised or neglected.
He thus offers a soft version of types 6 and 7." NT Wright

I am of the opinion that the readers of the Book of Hebrews were steeped in Philo's philosophy. This is not to say that that it represents the
reality of the Cosmos; rather, it is the touchstone upon which the author of Hebrews seeks to correct and reconstruct a Biblical vision of spiritual realities that are beyond the physical ones.

Cultural Tools for Interpretation

The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah - Alfred Edersheim

A believing rabbi who provides incredible cultural and historical insight into the Gospel texts.  Worth buying the book but if you can't afford it, the online link is given here.

Bible Commentaries 

Barnes New Testament Notes on Paul's Epistle to the Hebrews

Barnes
gives an insightful and practical analysis of this epistle. Although I
don't always hold fast to some of his conclusions, like the authorship
of Paul, his notes are invaluable to the epistle's study. The language
is a bit archaic  but if you choose to dig through it, you will strike
veins of gold as the reward for your labor.  NOTE - you will need a
password to get into the site.  I think the PDF is free, if not the
html is.

Robertson's Word Pictures of the NT

ISBN:  None.  Use Christian Book Distributors. Make sure it is the 6 Volume set.

This is the gold standard but getting ever harder to find.  Don't buy the
abridged and make sure your set is the full 6 volumes.  It is a classic
explaining in easy terms how the Greek word, tense, voice etc
influences the meaning.  See the online version above.

Vincent's New Testament Word Studies, 4 Volumes
ISBN:0917006305 By: Marvin R. Vincent

Here is an illuminating old classic from 1887 that brings Greek words
together with spiritual mediation.  Don't need to buy it just click on the link and after using the pdf version see if you want to purchase it.

Where to buy:

• Amazon Store
• Christian Book

We also recommend the following books:

• Robertson's Word Pictures of the New Testament
• Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah
• John Lightfoot: A Commentary on the New Testament – From the Talmud and Hebraica