Old Testament Hebrew Vocabulary: Learn on the Go [Audiobook] [Audio CD]

Jonathan T. Pennington (Author, Narrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 18, 2003

These two CDs with a booklet enable a person who is taking biblical Hebrew to work on, by ear as well as through the eyes, all vocabulary words that occur in the Old Testament 20 times or more and all the names of people in the Old Testament that occur 100 times or more. A 40 page booklet containing the entire word list and glosses accompanies the CDs. Read by Jonathan T. Pennington.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

These two CDs with a booklet enable a person who is taking biblical Hebrew to work on, by ear as well as through the eyes, all vocabulary words that occur in the Old Testament 20 times or more and all the names of people in the Old Testament that occur 100 times or more. A 40 page booklet containing the entire word list and glosses accompanies the CDs. Read by Jonathan T. Pennington.

About the Author

Jonathan T. Pennington (PhD University of St. Andrews, Scotland) is assistant professor of New Testament Interpretation at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Audio CD
• Publisher: Zondervan; Unabridged edition (November 18, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310254922
• ISBN-13: 978-0310254928
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 6.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #585,399 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hebrew for the Ears, April 9, 2004

By 

William E. Turner Jr. (Philadelphia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Old Testament Hebrew Vocabulary: Learn on the Go (Audio CD)

These two CD's serve as another helpful addition to Zondervan's ever growing original languages library. Pennington again is the "author" who lends his voice to the reading of the Hebrew words and their definitions. It basically follows the same format as his New Testament Greek Vocabulary.

All Hebrews words occurring 20 times and more are given in their descending order of frequency. Pennington also says the alphabet in the beginning and like the NT counterpart there is a 40 page booklet to accompany the CDs. The glosses (definitions) follow Zondervan's Vocabulary Guide for Biblical Hebrew by Van Pelt and Pratico.

The only disappointment which I have so far is that I learned Hebrew using the modern pronunciation whereas Pennington uses the Classical pronunciation. (...)

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well Done, August 31, 2005

By 

Kelly D. Kerr (Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Old Testament Hebrew Vocabulary: Learn on the Go (Audio CD)

Pennington performs a valuable service to anyone who seeks to learn Hebrew on their own. The vocabulary includes the most common Hebrew words so that the learner will have the maximum benefit of memorization. Each is clearly pronounced enabling the student to recognize similar sounding words, which is important since much Hebrew Scripture relies on word plays and punning. It is a great resource.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars this product is good but..., May 10, 2008

By 

Rev. VMI (lexington, va United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Old Testament Hebrew Vocabulary: Learn on the Go (Audio CD)

I actually bought the Old Testament Hebrew Vocabulary CDs at a book store for full price, should have come to amazon... I am enjoying them and finding that they are extremely helpful. I like that there is a booklet included so that you can distinguish between letters and vowels that may sound alike on the CD. I have found that my knowledge of hebrew words has increased exponentially since starting this program and while I don't quite feel comfortable reading the Hebrew OT, I haven't finished the program yet, I am noticing more and more that I will read my English version and come across words that are likely translations of words that I know.

I believe that these CDs would be a good place to start in your Hebrew education if you want to get into the OT as quickly as possible. I know for me incentives like reading a sentence or passage in Hebrew really keeps me going through some of the most grueling hours of rote memorization. I would suggest for all that are really serious about their study of original texts to start with these CDs and then get a good grammar book to fill in the gaps. Of the five or six Hebrew grammar books that aimless seminary professors have subjected me to 'A Practical Grammar for Classical Hebrew' by Weingreen is by far the best I have found. He does a great job about explaining not only what the proper grammar is but also why it is.

Now for the negatives about this CD. First, I'm not sure if everyone would consider this a negative or not but he uses the classical pronounciation instead of the modern pronounciation of Hebrew. It is easy enough to switch around in your head but I figure if you are going to go through all the trouble of learning a language that is still spoken today why not learn it in such a way that you can use it on that trip to Israel that you've always wanted to take? Secondly, the CD is helpful for initially learning how to pronounce the words but after that it is just about useless. My suggestion is to get some 3x5 cards cut them into fifths and write the words on there. you can take the flashcards anywhere and they will be easier to prove your comprehension to yourself. It is really helpful, however, that he set these words up in manageable lists according to frequency. Also, I don't feel that he gives you enough time on the CD to think about the meaning of the word before tell you or enough time to go over the word after you get the definition before he starts on the next word. I know I could use the pause button but pausing that gets old fast. I think he probably intends you to write the cards. Lastly, learning a language takes real committment. We are talking between 1-3 hours a day for several months, maybe even years. What a person puts into learning a language is what they will reap from it. I have found so far that every word frequency list has several words that I am either already familiar with or can guess and at least one word that gives me a theological insight into a passage or thought process behind the OT. I think these are gifts from God to help continue on what is sometimes a dry task, but even with these there is still a lot of discipline and committment required in learning the language. Don't fall into the trap of believing that you put the CDs in your car stereo and magically learn Hebrew on your way to work.

This review went on longer than I anticipated so to sum up. Good beginning resource to jump start a life long discipline of study and faithfulness. Take the book and make flashcards, use the CDs to correct pronounciation. Well worth the money. God bless.