Abstract
The latest edition of this short reference work (originally published in 1976) is an update to the third edition of 2001, and aims to provide the student of scripture a ‘first reference, a starting point for understanding the vast array of methods, approaches, and technical terms employed in the field of biblical studies and to provide a handy and reliable guide for those scholars whose expertise lies in other departments of religious studies’ (p. v). The short entries are generally descriptive, rather than prescriptive, and include a short bibliography at the end. New entries include African American Biblical Interpretation, Asian American Biblical Interpretation, Mikhail Mikhailovich Bakhtin, Common English Bible, Brevard Childs, Contextual Biblical Interpretation, Discourse Analysis, Albert Eichhorn, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Gospel of Judas, Intentional Fallacy, Landscape Criticism, The Message, Orthodox Biblical Interpretation, Period, Precritical Biblical Interpretation, Rewritten Bible/Scripture, Paul Ricoeur, Signs Source, Sondergut (which is not listed in italics, unlike most foreign words or phrases), a full entry for Wirkungsgeschichte, and Yehud/Yehudite. Entries excluded from this edition include Albrecht Alt, Shirley Jackson Case, Electronic Hermeneutics, Richard Reitzenstein, Ernst Stellin, B. H. Streeter (though he is mentioned under the Four Document Hypothesis), Roland de Vaux, and Bernhard Weiss.
Particularly helpful for students are the numerous technical terms included from other languages (’Am Ha’arez, Bildhälfte, Rib Pattern, Gemeindeordnungen, Haggadah, Haustafeln, Nunc Dimittis, Vorlage, and many others). The volume also includes a key for abbreviations used in textual criticism (along with common Latin words and phrases), a list of the abbreviations used for various primary and secondary works, and headers on each page that assist in navigating the contents of the volume. A bibliography of major reference works is included, along with a pullout diagram of Biblical Interpretation.
A few items could be updated if the book goes to a fifth edition. The entry for Commentary is listed out of order alphabetically, as is the second listing of Deep Structure. Homoioarchton is incorrectly spelled Homoioarchonton on p. 148. The volume helpfully covers many English translations, but some of the best-selling English Bible translations from the past decade that students may encounter are nowhere mentioned (e.g., ESV, HCSB), even in the article canvassing numerous translations, while some lesser-used versions receive dedicated entries (e.g., CEV, TEV). Additionally, although this edition does include information about the Common English Bible (2011), the information on the NIV (2011) could be updated (for example, the claim that the NIV is closer to the RSV than any other recent version). In keeping with the volume’s interest in textual criticism, I would suggest Coherence-Based Genealogical Model might be a fitting topic to cover in a future edition.
This updated handbook succeeds well in what it aims to be as a first reference; students and professors would be wise to take note of it.