[B-Greek] Zerwick's B-Greek & Grammatical Analysis
Jonathan Robie
jonathan.robie at datadirect.com
Fri Sep 12 18:22:40 EDT 2003
At 05:18 PM 9/12/2003, Clayton Javurek wrote:
>Zerwick, IMHO, is a simplified version of an Analytical Greek Lexicon.
>It only offers grammatical information mostly.
Wow, I really disagree. I think that Zerwick does a good job of pointing
out the nuances of language that you might miss, including the different
usages that might be implied. This goes way beyond what an analytical
lexicon gives you. And I also like the fact that it is keyed to an
intermediate grammar that illustrates the usages he suggests are involved,
and the grammar gives further examples of usage.
>However, the LINGUISTIC AND EXEGETICAL KEY TO THE NT
>by Cleon Rogers, redone in 1998, offers more
>historical, cultural, and theological info along
>with the grammatical.
This revision of the Linguistic Key is quite useful, much better than
earlier editions. I don't think it's better than Zerwick for understanding
the use of language, but it does get close. It certainly contains much more
historical, cultural, and theological info - which is a strength and a
weakness. Usually, when I read, I am trying to let the text speak.
Surrounding the text with all these other things during my early stages of
reading makes it harder for me to be receptive, it tends to help me force
the text into my traditional Protestant background as I read it. So I tend
not to use Rogers as frequently, but I do think it has excellent
information, and if I didn't have Zerwick, I would certainly be using
Rogers instead.
Also, Zerwick fits into my laptop case more easily.
>I will take Rogers over Zerwick any time. I can always go to the Analytical
>Greek Lexicon to get what Zerwick offers me.
If I want to focus on just understanding the Greek text, I prefer Zerwick.
If I want a good overview of traditional Protestant understandings of the
text, I think Rogers would be much more helpful. If what I wanted was an
Analytical Greek lexicon, I would use that instead, but it's really a
different tool - and one I don't use much, personally.
Jonathan
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