Bible Study Resources

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.

Bible Commentaries 

Barnes Notes on the Gospel of Mark

You will need to register but won't get spammed by this link. It is a tried and true reference source giving nuances both historical and linguistic. My first recommendation for that which is free.

Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah by Alfred Edersheim

This is the best cultural background study to enrich your understanding of a text. Go to the "passage index" at the end of the pdf section and click on the selected Mark passage that you are studying. There are fascinating insights into the back ground.

From the Talmud and Hebraica by Bishop John Lightfoot

Anglican Bishop and scholar John Lightfoot gives cultural background information from Jewish religion, Scripture, and customs. It is worth a quick check when studying the text.

Expositions of Mark by Alexander Maclaren

MacClaren is more of an application of Scripture tool than a study tool. So if you are looking for application from an older but wise commentator this reference is a good tool.

Overview of the Book of Job

The preceding link provides an overview for Job for the purpose of contextualizing our July 9th Study. It is a good overview of the book's narrative. I do not agree with Wiersbe or most of the commentators regarding Job's sinlesssness leading to their misunderstanding of the a main purpose of the Book, God's merciful sanctification of Job. One of my many reasons is that if Job were sinless He would not have repented as part of the book's culmination and conclusion (cf. Job 42:1-6). His sin was self righteousness exhibited in his judgment of God (cf. Job 31:1-40) and righteousness of self in his own eyes (cf. Job 32:1).

Overview of Judges

The preceding link provides an overview for Judges for the purpose of contextualizing our July 2nd Study.

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

Another excellent discussion by Barnes that gives an insightful and practical analysis of St. Paul's tender and personal communication to the local Church at Philippi. Barnes is theologically solid though some of his historical research might be a bit dated. I have yet to find areas of disagreement like mine of his conclusions about the authorship of Hebrews. There remains pearls to be found in using this commentary even if the language is a bit archaic. NOTE - you will need a password to get into the site. I think the PDF is free, if not the html is.

HCG Moule's Philippian Studies

Here is an 1898 classic that is little remembered in our 21st stupor of massive data input. Moule was one of eight incredible children some of whom were missionaries to China, others like him Cambridge scholars, and still others president's of Christian academies. All were testimonies to Godly parents and the Spirit's moving through what they taught as 'home schoolers.' Mind you, Moule was far more than an ivory tower theologian, no he had the pastor's heart as a curate and then he Bishop of Durham. It is this heart that provides the depths of insight found in this commentary. There is a buyer beware and that is Moule held to the Wesleyan doctrine that one could achieve sinless perfection before glorification in the age to come. Alot of guilt and baggage can come with this well-meaning but erroneous doctrine.

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.

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.

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.

Other 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.

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."

The Gospel-In Short

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

The URL gives you a quick link to the overview of the Book of Judges for the July 2nd study.