Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Vols 1-4) [Hardcover]

Ludwig Koehler (Author), Walter Baumgartner (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1999 | ISBN-10: 9004097007 | ISBN-13: 978-9004097001 | Edition: 4 Volume Set

The third edition of Ludwig Koehler and Walter Baumgartner's Hebrew dictionary is widely regarded as one of the most up to date dictionaries for the old Testament and related literature in classical Hebrew and Aramaic. This English edition of this classical reference tool is intended to become the standard modern English dictionary for biblical Hebrew. The complete and unabridged translation has been prepared by an international team of Hebrew and Old Testament scholars. The original German text has been revised where appropriate. Combining scholarly thoroughness with easy accessibility, the dictionary meets the needs of a wide range of users, from the beginning student of biblical Hebrew to the specialized scholar in biblical studies, Semitic studies or ancient Judaism, as well as academic libraries, theological seminaries and institutions. The dictionary will be published in three volumes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'..".includes a large amount of valuable new material, and it is the most up-to-date, and in several ways the best, modern lexicon of the Old Testament in Hebrew.'
J.A. Emerton, "Vetus Testamentum.
'.."..a mine of extremely fruitful and reliable informationexcellentwe recommend it to all serious exegetes.'
John M. Bauchet, "Scripture Bulletin.
'..".will remain an indispensable standard work of reference for decades to come.'
Walter W. M]ller, "Mundus.
'"The dictionary in this new form will have a very good future'
Professor James Barr, The Divinity School, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
'..".an extremely attractively produced and easy to use lexicon, which will be essential for all students of Hebrew and which will greatly assist them in their reading of the Old Testament.'
"The Expository Times.
'..".KB remains the lexicon of choice and this less expensive edition is a welcome feature.'
Richard S. Hess, "Themelios.
--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Language Notes

Text: English, Hebrew (translation)
Original Language: German, Hebrew

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1800 pages
• Publisher: Brill Academic Pub; 4 Volume Set edition (January 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9004097007
• ISBN-13: 978-9004097001
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,270,174 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best resource, February 12, 2003

By 

Frederic C Putnam (Hatfield, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, 2 volume set (Hardcover)

The best English lexicon of biblical Hebrew & Aramaic, KBL is also easier to use than the classic BDB. Words are listed alphabetically, rather than grouped by root, with cross-references to other words from the same root (no more trying to figure out a noun's putative "verbal root"). Akkadian tends to dominate the etymological information, rather than Arabic), along with Ugaritic. Glosses tend to be traditional, although references within the articles and the extensive supplementary bibliography (84 pages; alphabetically by author) allow you to find narrative lexical discussions. The Aramaic section is outstanding, with citations ranging far beyond biblical Aramaic. Although some might be tempted to begin with an "intermediate" lexicon such as Holladay, KBL's layout, clarity, and wealth of information makes this appropriate for both beginning students, pastors, teachers, and other scholars.

90 of 118 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars The New Koehler-Baumgartner, January 9, 2001

By 

Mr. Gary Dykes (Visalia, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Volumes 1-4) (Hardcover)

The printed 5 volume set provides a fine supplementary lexicon for all students of the Biblical Hebrew and Aramaic. The volumes are finely bound, printed on acid-free paper (though not ANSI certified). Each volume is smyth sewn.

Much more asthetic than using a computer screen, the printed version allows you to view all 5 volumes at the same time, even without electricity! Though it cannot compare with the search power of the CD version. The main text is in a two column format and all of the fonts are easy to read.

These volumes will become the standard Hebrew Bible lexicon. Unfortunately! However they should be supplemented with other works because:

(1) They do not show all of the needed etymologies, many entries display no etymological data. (Ernest Klein's work is recommended here). The data from North/West Semitics could be expanded, it is lacking in many entries. Hittite data seems deficient as well as some Sumerian data -- let's face it, they are early influences on the Semitic languages. The Koehler-Baum. work only skims the surface when it comes to etymologies.

(2) Many important works by evangelical scholars (such as S. P. Tregelles, Gleason, Archer, Kyle Yates, E. Young, Robert Dick Wilson, et al) were not even utilized. Too much emphasis was given to the popular works done by secular scholars.

(3) Ugaritic, Phoenician, Arabic and other fonts (scripts) are simply transliterated. They should have been printed out in their original script. Transliteration tables could have also been included for the scholars who are not familiar with these languages, but accuracy can be jeopardized when the original scripts are just transliterated, and it takes time and effort to "recompose" them. Perhaps they were transliterated so that the digital search engines could be simplified. Poor trade off!

(4) Some important definitions are missing for some entries! Thus other lexicons are needed. For example: sh-r-Ha (shin, resh, he) in volume 4, pages 1652f does not show the meaning as "to shine" (from a possible Arabic root) nor as "chains" or "bracelets" as in Isaiah 3:19.

(5) Textual variations are often not listed, and the Qumran literature and data could have been better utilized.

(6) Foreign word indexes could have been supplied, and an index of Biblical passages could have been added. Several hands worked on the 5 volumes, and a variety of abbreviations are used for the Biblical books, making Biblical book cross references difficult even on the CD version.

All in all, a very useful addition. The price is quite high and the folks at Brill often ask too much for their publications. The work NEEDS to be supplemented, and some entries are woefully deficient -- giving only a partial definition. Coupled with the poor etymological data -- this is not acceptable. Gary S. Dykes

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Koehler - Baumgartner, March 3, 2006

By 

AJ "returning Yosef" (Missouri USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, 2 volume set (Hardcover)

This lexicon should be in the library of anyone seeking to understand the deeper meanings of Hebrew words in Tanach. No one text stands alone in that regard; however, it is felt that Koehler - Baumgartner is indispensable for any serious student of Biblical Hebrew, and everyone is a student of this wonderful language. The 2-volume unabridged study edition is affordable and is more space efficient on the shelf. Buy this one with confidence.