Customer Reviews

A Workbook for New Testament Syntax: Companion to Basics of New Testament Syntax and Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics

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This workbook is an important tool that helps students work inductively through NT syntax. Every common usage is involved in the questions. The questions move from simpler Greek to more complex Greek. And the passages are clustered around categories of usage. I personally think this is by far and away the best way to learn NT syntax. The student reads the grammar, then get into the workbook and work through the questions.

Wallace's Grammar is an excellent reference tool for NT exegesis. However, if you want to really KNOW the in's and out's of NT exegesis without having constantly refer back to Wallace's Grammar, then this workbook is the best tool to get you there.

There IS an answer key and it IS available for FREE for any who are teaching the course. Simply send an e-mail to jesse.hillman [at] zondervan [dot] com. The answer key was not put in the back of the book or online so as not to encourage cheating.

Overall, this workbook is a great guide through the challenging terrain of learning NT syntax. Heartily recommended!

Just a note here in response to the reviews. A key is available from the publisher for instructors and self-learners. Simply send an email request to deskcopyrequest [AT] Zondervan [dot] com.

The Workbook for New Testament Syntax is simply an outstanding pedagogical tool. The book progresses from simpler Greek to more complex Greek as it moves through the twenty lessons. By the time the 19th lesson rolls around, the Greek is quite challenging: Acts 13 and 18! But working through the programmed lessons, starting out with John 1, the authors have succeeded in enabling students who have just come out of first-year Greek to build their syntactical knowledge to the point where they can translate and think exegetically through some of the toughest Greek of the NT by the time they get through the book. Instead of eliciting stellar examples of each grammatical category, as a standard grammar would do, it focuses on passages that are theologically rich (with the Kenosis appearing in two different lessons because of its importance), grammatically rich (with the grammatical form that occupies that particular lesson), and important exegetically. Altogether, the lessons draw from 18 different NT books. The students translate nearly 400 verses from the NT and get exposure to every one of the more common grammatical uses (as defined by Wallace's arrowed system of identification). It is obvious that a great deal of thought has gone into this volume.

Vocabulary that occurs less than 50 times in the NT is supplied with each lesson, making it easy for the student to dive right in. As well, an introductory paragraph adequately informs the student about the context of the text to be translated.

Each lesson has a built-in 100 point value (though a few have more than that, with some bonus points built into the lesson). The numerical value of each question is listed in brackets, with the constituent elements broken down. Thus, for example, on p. 20 (Lesson 1) question 16 has a question about ho logos in John 1.14. The question asks for the case, case usage, and word to which it is related. The point value is listed as "[1+1+1]"--one point for each element in the question. On p. 167 (Lesson 18), question 5 says: "alla: This conjunction is adversative, contrasting what two elements? [4]." The more difficult and more exegetically meaningful questions are worth more. The total for each lesson comes up to 100 points. The point values have been well thought out: they are weighted appropriately for each lesson, and many of them are quite challenging.

An answer key is provided free by the publisher upon request, as long as the person requesting it is the teacher of the course or studying Greek on one's own.

There is so much to translate that it seems that the best way to use the Workbook in a classroom setting is to require the students to read the matching grammatical section of one of Wallace's grammars ahead of time, then utilize this information to answer the questions. The classroom time can be taken up with translation and syntactical analysis as the students come across various constructions in the text. This, indeed, seems to be the approach preferred by the authors.

Not everything is perfect, though. There are a few weaknesses to the Workbook. First, I was able to figure out the point system from the introduction, though I could not find any explicit reference to the bracketed points. But this should be plain to anyone who reads the introduction. Second, I did not notice any place that mentioned the answer key being available for professors. Perhaps this was by design: it's tempting to cheat on syntax if one can gain ready access to the answer key. But in future printings, I would prefer that mention of the answer key be given in the introduction or preface.

Also, the first printing did not have 3-hole punches nor perforated pages. It also had some of the lessons starting on the back side of where another one ends. That was an oversight on the publisher most likely, for it would not be easy for a student to turn in just one lesson as homework since he or she would need the first page of the next lesson for the next class! But I understand that these problems have been fixed.

All in all, I frankly have never seen a syntax workbook so well crafted nor one so competent in achieving its goals. I only wish that I had had this Workbook when I was studying second year Greek in seminary. I think my mastery of the language would have been much greater much earlier on. And I would have learned the value of exegesis along the way. I highly recommend the Workbook for NT Syntax as the best way to master NT syntax.

Length:: 2:39 Mins

This is a review for the New Testament Syntax Workbook by Dr. Daniel B. Wallace and Grant G. Edwards, which should accompany Dr. Wallace's ExSyn a.k.a. Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics.
I worked through the WB with a friend last summer and found that it more than prepared me for my Intro to Exegesis course at Dallas Theological Seminary. The WB challenges those who have labored through Wallace's grammar to wrestle with actual syntactical issues throughout the NT. Two of my favorite elements were 1) that it presented a structured context for doing syntax in various areas of the NT and 2) that it did NOT include a key. I was glad that it did not. Too often, as we do course work or personal study, we depend too much upon keys, and they become more of a crutch rather than a help. Without it, the student is forced to wrestle and labor over the syntactical options that he or she has been learning about in the grammar. I would suggest working through the WB first without the key, and then requesting a copy from the appropriate source - either your prof or if you are using the WB for personal study, directly through Zondervan Publishing. I have found Zondervan to be more than accommodating in similar matters. Important note: the answer key is FREE through Zondervan for profs and self learners: email Jesse Hillman at jesse.hillman [at] zondervan [dot] com.
Good studies to you; keep wrestling with the issues!

In Christ,
Rex Howe
http://rexhowe.wordpress.com

The workbook is a useful tool, but it would be much more useful if it had a key available. Syntax is a very subjective science, and it would be helpful to know what the author considers to be the correct answers to the syntax questions. He clearly has answers in view, but the answers are not always clear to the student, or even to the teacher. The scoring system is a bit opaque as well. Neither the students nor the teacher can figure it out. Why not make it more obvious, or just leave the scoring to the teacher? Laboring over the creation of a key is not my idea of every teacher's favorite task, and it is particularly stressful when the answers are as subjective and unclear as in these syntax exercises. On the positive side, I have not seen a better syntax workbook. It has many features to commend it.

If you read the "acknowledgments" page I was one of the initial students in the class who tested the workbook before Zondervan went to print with it. I have to say that the workbook has been very helpful. So much so, that I actually own two copies! I wanted to work through it more than once.

Since the workbook is designed for an intermediate level, the texts are grouped around syntactical issues. The difficulty steadily increases as one works through the material. Instead of working through a lengthy biblical text and randomly happening upon a syntactical issue, the issues become the framework and example texts are given as case studies. I think this is a great way to tackle NT Greek syntax; since it immerses the student in the text while primarily focusing on the syntax at hand. Furthermore it give a "real life" feel"to working through these issues. At bottom, I cannot think of a better way to regularly involve students in learning Greek syntax. It is a must have for intermediate students.

Educators can get an answer key free of charge from Zondervan. I am glad for this. Otherwise, there would be cheat-sheets running around everywhere. Also, educators can get a free instructor's copy from Zondervan, and if they approve of the text then order their student's copies through Amazon (of course!).

I agree with the previous reviewers. For me, no key = no use. Perhaps, the author is hoping to sell his key...sadly, at the expense of his workbook.
Mounce is much better, with key included.

each lesson is divided into 2 parts: warm-up and syntax. if u study the textbook you can prolly figure out 95% of the warm-up questions and 50% of the syntax questions. it's not unusual for me and my study buddies to spend 30 minutes on a particular question and in the end we still dunno if we are right or not. you may argue that there is no right answer since syntax is subjective. then again, if you are being tested on something that has no right answer, you wanna at least know what the author think the right answer is.

i dunno know why wallace don't include the answer key like mounce. maybe he wants to train you think by yourself. then again, there's no way for you to verify/rebut your own logic because there's no answer included.

overall, the workbook prolly lost 95% of its usefulness because there's no answer key. you could have done the same exercises using any Greek Bible.