Cornerstone Presbyterian Church
Presbyterian Church in America (PCA)
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From the preface: “We have been very greatly encouraged by the continuing and consistent demand for the New Bible Dictionary since it was first published in 1962 and revised in 1982. The major part of this reference work still stands and has required little or no modification to main its claim to be ‘New” and up-to-date.”
New Bible Dictionary. I. Howard Marshall, A. R. Millard, J. I. Packer, D. J. Wiseman, editors. Inter-Varsity, 1962, 1982, 1996. 1298 pages.
This book is a companion to the New Bible Commentary, already in the church library. It is not a dictionary in the usual sense, giving short definitions of words. It is also not a concordance, an index to the locations of Biblical words. It is more of a one-volume encyclopedia of Biblical topics.
For example, if you look up “grace”, you find an article, of a little over a page, titled GRACE, FAVOUR. The article has a section on the use of the word in the Old Testament, and another on how it is used in the New. The New Testament article starts by explaining the Greek word most often translated as grace, charis, and how that corresponds to the correspond Hebrew word hen. It explains how, though Jesus never said the word, its idea is very prominent in the Gospels, giving specific details. This pattern continues into the use of the word in Luke and Acts, in the Pauline Epistles, and in other New Testament writings.
I have often made use of an earlier edition of this dictionary for looking up Biblical characters. Can’t remember what you thought you remembered about, say, Jeroboam? Look him up, JEROBOAM. Ah yes, there were two of them. There is a summary biography of their lives along with the pertinent Biblical references. This article is a little over a half page.
Every book of the Bible (or series of books) has an article. Right after JOHN THE APOSTLE, 2 pages, and JOHN THE BAPTIST, about 1 page, comes the article JOHN, EPISTLES OF, about 3 pages, and then JOHN, GOSPEL OF, about 6 pages.
The various articles are written by different people, identified at the end of the article by initials, and in the List of Contributors by name and position. For example, the article GRACE, FAVOUR was written by the late J. H. Stringer, formerly Tutor, London Bible College.
Because of the book’s British origins, many of the authors are from Britain, Canada, Australia, and South Africa. These include very well known Evangelicals like F. F. Bruce and J. I. Packer.
American authors represented, some perhaps not so well known, include J. B. Payne (formerly of PCA’s Covenant Seminary in Saint Louis), John Murray and E. J. Young (both formerly Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, the former referenced in Cornerstone’s Romans class), E. M. Yamauchi (Miami University, Ohio, active with IVCF there, I have met him), M. G. Kline (Gordon-Conwell Seminary in Massachusetts, and Westminster West in California), and T. R. Schreiner (a commenter also used in the Romans class, at the time from Bethel Seminary of St. Paul.).
The whole list of contributors is filled with unfamiliar names, reminding me of how vast is the body of believers, filled with scholars I know nothing about.
We on the Library Committee hope this will be a useful reference for the people of Cornerstone.
— Dean Brown, November 2006
“As a basic book for every thinking Christian’s library, it is indispensable.”
—John Stott
“The text is clearly written, up to date, cognizant of critical theories, yet true to the Bible as God’s Word and replete with helpful information. This work is destined to become a standard that will be turned to often by students and ministers alike.”
—Christianity Today
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