Camping4ELOAH.COM
Hosea 6:6 For I desired mercy and not sacrifice;
and the knowledge of God more than your burnt offerings.
Study Tools and Resources
Below are some of the study tools and resourses that I use while researching, studying and translating Father’s Word:
1. Shepherd’s Chapel (Youtube). What is Shepherd’s Chapel and Why should you study with them? Shepherd’s Chapel is a daily, one-hour, Verse–by–Verse, Chapter–by–Chapter, and Book–by–Book study program which is watchable on Dish Network channel 256, known as the “Bible” Channel. The Programming runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The “Live” Broadcasts are at 5PM; 8PM; 11PM; and then the next day at 5AM; 8AM; and 1PM. Pastor Dennis Murray is the Pastor, though you will still see recorded broadcasts of his Father, Pastor Arnold Murray, who returned Home to Father in February 2014; but, the Teachings are still valid.
2. Companion Bible. What is a Companion Bible and Why do you Need One? A Companion Bible is, As quoted in the Preface by Dr. Bullinger: “The Companion Bible is so called because its wide margin is intended to be a Companion to the text; and the whole is designed as the Companion of all readers of the Bible. The human element is excluded, as far as possible, so that the reader may realize that the pervading object of the book is not merely to enable him to interpret the Bible, but to make the Bible the interpreter of God’s Word, and Will, to him. To the same end this Edition is not associated with the name of any man; so that its usefulness may neither be influenced nor limited by any such consideration; but that it may commend itself, on its own merits, to the whole English-speaking race. It is Not a New Translation; it is Not an Amended Translation; it is Not a Commentary.”. I’ve also included a Link to the Appendices to his Companion Bible, it can be reach here: Appendices.
3. Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible with Hebrew and Greek lexicons: What is a Strong’s Concordance and Why do you Need One? A Strong’s Concordance, generally known as “a Strong’s,” is a concordance of the 1611 King James Bible (KJV) which was constructed under the direction of Dr. James Strong (1822–1894) and first published in 1890. Dr. Strong was Professor of Exegetical Theology at Drew Theological Seminary at the time. His work is an exhaustive cross-reference of every word in the KJV back to the word in the original text. (at the end of this description of the Strong’s I have added a clickable\searchable link to the Strong’s for you to use)
Unlike other Biblical reference books, the purpose of the Strong’s is not to provide content or commentary about the Bible, but to provide an index to the Bible. This allows the reader to find words where they appear in the Bible. This index allows a student of the Bible to re-find a phrase or passage previously studied. It also lets the reader directly compare how the same word may be used elsewhere in the Bible. In this way Strong’s Notes provides an independent check against translations, and offers an opportunity for greater, and more technically accurate understanding of text.
A Strong’s includes: 8674 Hebrew root words used in the Old Testament. (Example: Hebrew word #582 in Strong’s) and 5624 Greek root words used in the New Testament. (Example: Greek word #3056 in Strong’s) James Strong did not construct the Strong’s Concordance by himself; it was constructed with the effort of more than a hundred colleagues. It has become the most widely used concordance for the King James Bible.
Each original-language word is given an entry number in the dictionary, of those original language words listed in the back of the concordance. These have become known as the “Strong’s numbers”. The main concordance lists each word that appears in the KJV Bible in alphabetical order with each verse in which it appears listed in order of its appearance in the Bible, with a snippet of the surrounding text (including the word in italics). Appearing to the right of scripture reference is the Strong’s number. This allows the user of the concordance to look up the meaning of the original language word in the associated dictionary in the back, thereby showing how the original language word was translated into the English word in the KJV Bible.
New editions of the Strong’s are still in print (as of 2007); however, I recommend staying away from the newer editions.
The Strong’s is not a translation of the Bible nor is it intended as a translation tool. The use of Strong’s numbers is not a substitute for professional translation of the Bible from Hebrew and Greek into English by those with formal training in ancient languages and the literature of the cultures in which the Bible was written.
Since the Strong’s identifies the original words in Hebrew and Greek, Strong’s Numbers can sometimes be misinterpreted by those without adequate training to change the Bible from its accurate meaning simply by taking the words out of cultural context. The use of Strong’s numbers does not consider figures of speech, metaphors, idioms, common phrases, cultural references, references to historical events, or alternate meanings used by those of the time period to express their thoughts in their own language at the time. As such, professionals and amateurs alike must consult a number of contextual tools to reconstruct these cultural backgrounds. Many scholarly Greek and Hebrew Lexicons (e.g., Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon, Thayer’s Greek Dictionary, and Vine’s Bible Dictionary) also use Strong’s numbers for cross-referencing, encouraging hermeneutical approaches to study
Here is a searchable link for the Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicons: (FULL Search by Strong’s word number [e.g. 3091 Hebrew] OR English word!)(click on the Radio Button to select either the Hebrew or Greek, then enter the number OR English Word you want to research into the Box, and then select “search.”)
4. E-Sword: E-Sword is a free downloadable computer software program, which contains the King James Version Bible with the Strong’s Concordance built right into it. It is quick and user-friendly, you just roll your mouse over the Strong’s number and it’ll give a pop-up window with the Hebrew word (Old Testament) or Greek word (New Testament). Use it to quickly search out a verse or a word by using it’s search tool (click on the binoculars).
5. Smith’s Bible Dictionary. What is a Smith’s Bible Dictionary and Why should you use it as a Study Tool? A Smith’s Bible Dictionary Contains 4,640 entries cross-referenced and cross-linked to other resources on and you can find an online version at StudyLight.org, this resource can be classified as a required reference book for any good study library. Originally written in 1884, the Smith’s Bible Dictionary contained “the fruit of the ripest biblical scholarship of England.” “Published as a four-volume set, it set a standard for richness and clarity of topics. Unfortunatley, the pictures and maps produced in the original are not presented at StudyLight.org. All scripture references and reference to other entries within the text have been linked. To use this resource to it’s full potential, follow all the links presented within the text of the entry you are reading. StudyLight relies on cutting-edge technology to enhance your experience through our ‘AutoSuggest’ feature. To activate this feature you must be using: Apple Safari, Google Chrome 5, Firefox 3, Opera 9, Internet Explorer 7, or a more recent version of any of these. This feature allows you to start typing your query in the search box. Beginning with the second letter typed, our system will display a drop-down list of suggestions that are found in this resource. Click an entry displayed in the drop-down box and then the ‘find’ button to view that entry.”.
6. There are original manuscripts out there called the Massorah, otherwise known as the Masoretic Text, which are the original words and footnotes of the Bible, I use and recommend the Greens Interlinear Bible; though, there is another version online, and you can find it here: Massorah.
7. Bible Atlas for quick research of the lands mentioned in Father’s Word.
8. Learn Hebrew at hebrew4christians.com.
9. The Complete works of Flavious Josephus a noted Biblical Historian.
10. Dr. Ginsburg’s Introduction to the Hebrew Bible.
11. Dr. Bullinger’s Number in Scripture.
12. I use the Biblical Research Site: Abarim Publications to research the etymology of Biblical Names and Locations.