[B-Greek] reference book question

Dr. Don Wilkins drdwilkins at sbcglobal.net
Mon Nov 22 15:52:10 EST 2004


Smyth:
Pros: excellent discussions and organization with very good sets of 
charts, reliable information backed with examples.
Cons: written for classical as opposed to koine (though IMO the rules 
are essentially valid for both), language of English translations 
outdated, thus the nuances may be blurred.

Robertson:
Pros: very detailed (the indicies are longer than many books), something 
of a milestone in the field, a serious attempt to see NT Greek within 
the overall development of the Greek language, far more informative and 
plausible presentation of the eight-case system than is found in 
beginning and intermediate grammars based on the system.
Cons: very poor organization and difficult to read (looks more like a 
professor's own rambling notes on topics than a conventional grammar), 
overly fixated on Homerian Greek and lacking in genre-based distinctions.

I was going to add low price as a pro for Smyth, but I would think that 
Robertson should also be available at a good price. Also, a case could 
be made that both are outdated; however, it's hard to argue with Smyth's 
examples and the utility of his grammar. As for Robertson, I don't know 
of anyone else who has attempted anything of comparable scope (perhaps 
in part because so much more attention has been given to linguistics).

Don Wilkins

On Monday, November 22, 2004, at 12:28 PM, Steve Raine wrote:

> Hello folks--
>
> Looking to get a good reference book for NT study (to supplement 
> Mounce & Wallace.)
>
> Probably deciding between  Smyth's Grammar and Robertson's Grammar (in 
> light of historical research).
>
> Pros and cons of each?
>
>
> Thanks,
> Steve Raine
>
>
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