When I was in seminary, I was married with three kids, I worked full time, and I attended school more than full time. Not to brag…okay, to brag…but I completed a Th.M. (120 credit hours) in three years. I do not recommend this, and neither does my wife. But at the time, it was what we thought was best for our family.
Of all my classes, Greek and Hebrew were the most difficult and time consuming. In class, we were taught to use books for exegetical papers, diagrammatical analysis, word studies, and everything else related to learning these languages and using them to study Scripture.
Eventually, a pastor friend of mine told me a secret for speeding up my language research. Prior to gaining this arcane knowledge, it was not uncommon for me to spend 20-30 hours per week on just Greek or Hebrew. After I learned the secret, I cut that time in half. This was still more than I spent on any other class, but it was a great improvement.
What is the secret? It’s one word. Or maybe it’s two. Whatever. The secret is this: BibleWorks.
BibleWorks is an all in one, exegetical research program that does almost everything you are taught to do in class, but at the touch of a button rather than with all the book pulling and page turning. Yes, you still have to know how the language works, memorize the vocabulary, understand the grammar, and be able to translate and diagram. If you cannot do this on your own, you will fail all the tests and quizzes. But when it comes to your homework and papers, using the program speeds up the process so you can do the same work in less time. That is invaluable for time-strapped fathers, parents, and students.
And if you’re a pastor who saw the value of exegetical research while in seminary but no longer have the time to do it each week, BibleWorks can help you continue the process of studying the original languages, even if you’re short on time or a bit rusty on all the details of language study.
Next week I’m going to post a list of everything that is in the newest version, BibleWorks 8. It will blow you away.
