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The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon
A trio of eminent Old Testament scholars, Francis Brown, R. Driver, and Charles Briggs, spent over twenty years researching, writing, and preparing this lexicon. Since it first appeared in the early part of the twentieth century, BDB has been considered the finest and most comprehensive Hebrew lexicon available to the English-speaking student. Based upon the classic work of Wilhelm Gesenius, the "father of modern. Hebrew lexicography," BDB gives not only dictionary definitions for each word, but relates each word to its Old Testament usage and categorizes its nuances of meaning. BDB's exhaustive coverage of Old Testament Hebrew words, as well as its unparalleled usage of cognate languages and the wealth of background sources consulted and quoted, render BDB and invaluable resource for all students of the Bible.
1232 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1906
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About the author
Francis Brown
127 books3 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
The Rev. Francis Brown (December 26, 1849 – 1916), American Semitic scholar, was born in Hanover, New Hampshire.
He was the son of Samuel Gilman Brown (1813–1885), president of Hamilton College from 1867 to 1881, and the grandson of Francis Brown, whose removal from the presidency of Dartmouth College and later restoration were incidental to the famous Dartmouth College case.
The younger Francis graduated from Phillips Academy, Andover in 1866, from Dartmouth in 1870 and from the Union Theological Seminary in 1877, and then studied in Berlin. In 1879 he became instructor in biblical philology at the Union Theological Seminary, in 1881 an associate professor of the same subject, and in 1890 Davenport Professor of Hebrew and the cognate Languages.
Brown's published works won him an honorary doctorate of Divinity from the University of Glasgow (1901), and a D.Litt. from the University of Oxford, as well as honorary doctorates from Dartmouth and Yale. The works are, with the exception of The Christian Point of View (1902; with Profs. A. C. McGiffert and G. W. Knox), almost purely linguistic and lexical, and include Assyriology: its Use and Abuse in Old Testament Study (1885), and the important revision of Gesenius' Lexicon, undertaken with S. R. Driver and C. A. Briggs — Brown Driver Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1891–1905).
The Rev. Francis Brown (December 26, 1849 – 1916), American Semitic scholar, was born in Hanover, New Hampshire.
He was the son of Samuel Gilman Brown (1813–1885), president of Hamilton College from 1867 to 1881, and the grandson of Francis Brown, whose removal from the presidency of Dartmouth College and later restoration were incidental to the famous Dartmouth College case.
The younger Francis graduated from Phillips Academy, Andover in 1866, from Dartmouth in 1870 and from the Union Theological Seminary in 1877, and then studied in Berlin. In 1879 he became instructor in biblical philology at the Union Theological Seminary, in 1881 an associate professor of the same subject, and in 1890 Davenport Professor of Hebrew and the cognate Languages.
Brown's published works won him an honorary doctorate of Divinity from the University of Glasgow (1901), and a D.Litt. from the University of Oxford, as well as honorary doctorates from Dartmouth and Yale. The works are, with the exception of The Christian Point of View (1902; with Profs. A. C. McGiffert and G. W. Knox), almost purely linguistic and lexical, and include Assyriology: its Use and Abuse in Old Testament Study (1885), and the important revision of Gesenius' Lexicon, undertaken with S. R. Driver and C. A. Briggs — Brown Driver Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1891–1905).
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
January 8, 2024
This was an excellent lexicon for Biblical study. There were 8,673 Hebrew words of high frequency use from the Old Testament and approximately forty-pages worth of Aramaic words (taken from Daniel, Ezra, Jeremiah, and Genesis).
The words are in alphabetically order. Each word had the (if in existence) equivalent from the Arabic, the Aramaic, the Syriac, the Assyrian, and the Greek. Each entry gave the English translation, multiple grammatical and syntaxes variations (transitive verb, imperative, indefinite, proper name, masculine/feminine plural, etc.), and locations when used in the Old Testament.
Words that jumped out to me with Arabic-Hebrew equivalents were the following. These words are spelled with equivalent characters and pronounced almost exactly the same:
1. house, home بیت = בַּיִת "beit"
2. big, large کبیر = כבר "kabir, kabr"
3. ship, boat, vessel سفينة = ספינה "safina"
4. king, ruler ملِك = מלך "melek, melekh"
5. Lebanon لبنان = לבנון "lubnan, lebanon"
Overall I found this Biblical Hebrew lexicon very useful and interesting because it gave a lot of information for each entry. I would recommend this to anyone interested in Middle Eastern languages and Old Testament study. Thanks!
The words are in alphabetically order. Each word had the (if in existence) equivalent from the Arabic, the Aramaic, the Syriac, the Assyrian, and the Greek. Each entry gave the English translation, multiple grammatical and syntaxes variations (transitive verb, imperative, indefinite, proper name, masculine/feminine plural, etc.), and locations when used in the Old Testament.
Words that jumped out to me with Arabic-Hebrew equivalents were the following. These words are spelled with equivalent characters and pronounced almost exactly the same:
1. house, home بیت = בַּיִת "beit"
2. big, large کبیر = כבר "kabir, kabr"
3. ship, boat, vessel سفينة = ספינה "safina"
4. king, ruler ملِك = מלך "melek, melekh"
5. Lebanon لبنان = לבנון "lubnan, lebanon"
Overall I found this Biblical Hebrew lexicon very useful and interesting because it gave a lot of information for each entry. I would recommend this to anyone interested in Middle Eastern languages and Old Testament study. Thanks!
October 8, 2019
An indispensable asset to the study of the Bible. Several digital versions are now available for free, and a resource like Biblehub, which seemingly includes this whole lexicon plus cross-references with other works in the field which may ultimately supplant the written text, I still come back to this work again and again whenever I have a question on a given Hebrew word or to help elucidate a particular biblical text.
Very highly recommended.
Very highly recommended.
April 11, 2013
A fantastic resource for researching the Hebrew definitions of the bible.
As a Preacher and a Christian author I recommend having this book to sharpen your sword.
But in the battle to grow in the Word of God you will need more than one method of sharpening. This book in and of itself is not enough. I recommend having several various dictionaries and lexicons to reference. That way you may have a more accurate understanding of the words you are trying to define.
As a Preacher and a Christian author I recommend having this book to sharpen your sword.
But in the battle to grow in the Word of God you will need more than one method of sharpening. This book in and of itself is not enough. I recommend having several various dictionaries and lexicons to reference. That way you may have a more accurate understanding of the words you are trying to define.
July 10, 2014
I haven't actually read the whole lexicon - I'm using it for my ongoing study of Biblical Hebrew. But it's pretty awesome - I'll say that much!
November 24, 2013
There are both significant pros and cons with this volume. I will list them accordingly:
Pros:
1) It's reliable and better than nothing. I had lost or given away my Hebrew lexicons and when I started translating Hebrew again, I had found myself in trouble. This volume did come in handy.
2) This is arguably the most popular Hebrew lexicon, at least among intelligent laity. Because of it's high supply, the reader will have no trouble in finding a very cheap copy somewhere.
3) I didn't notice this on my first use of the work, but it also has many Arabic root words listed in conjunction with the Hebrew ones. If one is learning other Semitic languages at the same time (Ugaritic, Aramaic), this is very helpful.
Cons:
1) There are simply better lexicons out there. While few mortals can afford Koehler and Baumgartner, Holloday's lexicon is available for under $30. Holladay is one third the size of this and has roughly as many entries, and the entries are probably more accurate and user-friendly with regard to the changing morphology.
2) For serious exegesis one needs to move beyond this lexicon. Scholarship has come a long way and there are more accurate readings now.
Pros:
1) It's reliable and better than nothing. I had lost or given away my Hebrew lexicons and when I started translating Hebrew again, I had found myself in trouble. This volume did come in handy.
2) This is arguably the most popular Hebrew lexicon, at least among intelligent laity. Because of it's high supply, the reader will have no trouble in finding a very cheap copy somewhere.
3) I didn't notice this on my first use of the work, but it also has many Arabic root words listed in conjunction with the Hebrew ones. If one is learning other Semitic languages at the same time (Ugaritic, Aramaic), this is very helpful.
Cons:
1) There are simply better lexicons out there. While few mortals can afford Koehler and Baumgartner, Holloday's lexicon is available for under $30. Holladay is one third the size of this and has roughly as many entries, and the entries are probably more accurate and user-friendly with regard to the changing morphology.
2) For serious exegesis one needs to move beyond this lexicon. Scholarship has come a long way and there are more accurate readings now.
September 14, 2017
Another reference work for my Bible Study and it's a beauty! Now I can go deeper than what Strong's offers. Loving it!!!
March 25, 2017
It's a bit dated and the formatting can be a bit confusing at first. Once you get used to it though it's super helpful. A BIG bonus for adding an index of Hebrew verbal roots in the back of this edition (published ~2010). It's made life way easier to find words I'm looking for, particularly verbs.
December 20, 2021
This ebook in Strong number arrangement can be found: payhip.com/ChristianClassicsReproduct...
June 1, 2007
A great dictionary, arranged in alphabetical order by root, with a section at the back for Biblical Aramaic. If the root you need is far from obvious, you can frequently find the word you're translating with a note saying what root to look under. If you're not sure you're looking under the right root, each definition comes with concordance info. Each entry contains cognates in other Semitic languages. Great for working with etymology.
October 10, 2008
Fabulous. It's helpful to have a Strong's to obtain the Stong's number in order to locate the corresponding entry in Brown-Driver=Briggs but each entry lists all of the uses to which the word is put and the specific passages in which a particular meaning is employed. An excellent tool for increasing ones understanding of the biblical text.
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August 20, 2008Reference Book
August 12, 2012
BDB is /the/ lexicon of choice.
August 16, 2012
Still a great resource, but not as solid as HALOT (Kohler-Baumgardner). Can be hard to use because words are listed under their (sometimes theoretical) roots.
February 14, 2013
Not the easiest to use, but my favorite reference book of all time.
November 19, 2013
Indispensable for biblical Hebrew.
December 6, 2008
Good book, but not for beginners.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews