Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Peter Kirk <peterkirk AT qaya.org>]

On 10/08/2004 21:56, George F. Somsel wrote:

> On Tue, 10 Aug 2004 19:48:35 +0100 Peter Kirk <peterkirk AT qaya.org>
> writes:
>  
>
> > On 10/08/2004 19:04, Maurice A. O'Sullivan wrote:
> >
> >    
> >
> > > ...
> > > What you call the condensed edition of BDB -- other list members 
> > >      
> > take 
> >    
> >
> > > note -- is a facsimile edition, and very, very clunky to move 
> > >      
> > through.
> >
> >
> > Are you sure? There is also a condensed (non-facsimile) edition 
> > which 
> > originally came with the Online Bible and has been distributed 
> > elsewhere. This is missing what I find the most useful part of BDB, 
> > the 
> > lists of references. There are also theologically motivated changes 
> > to 
> > the definitions, at least of `ALMA. This edition is, in my opinion, 
> >
> > worth what it costs, which is nothing.
> >
> >
> > --
> > Peter Kirk
> >    
> _______________
>
> I have the enhanced BDB, the Abridged BDB and the facsimile BDB.  You are
> absolutely incorrect in your assertion that there is any theologically
> motivated change in the abridged edition.  It is a faithful, though
> shortened version of the original and complete version.
>
>  
George, we may be talking about different abridged versions, but I 
definitely have one (although not in Logos format), entitled "Brown, 
Driver, Briggs (BDB) Hebrew-English Lexicon, abridged (Online Bible)", 
which has an adjusted definition for `ALMA. I quote:

> 1) virgin, young woman
> 1a) of marriageable age
> 1b) maid or newly married
> ++++
> There is no instance where it can be proved that this word
> designates a young woman who is not a virgin. (TWOT)

But my printed BDB has a different definition: "young woman (ripe 
sexually; maid or newly married)", with no mention of "virgin". The 
following is taken from the Preface to this edition:

> Source
>
> This version of the Online Bible / BDB / Strong's dictionary (OBDS) is 
> an adaptation of material developed in part by Online Bible associates 
> and is used by permission.
>
> ...
>
> According to our sources, the OBDS was a project undertaken by a Texas 
> man, who, after retiring from the armed services went to seminary. 
> Then, during a year of living with his aged father in Tennessee, he 
> began keying the BDB entries to the Strong’s numbering system and 
> distilling BDB into a shorter dictionary (etymology and bibliography, 
> along with Scripture references and quotations, were largely removed). 
> As a further check, the entire lexicon was compared with M. Robinson 
> and J. Green’s A Concise Lexicon of the Biblical Languages (CLBL). 
> Cross references to Harris, Archer, and Waltke's Theological Wordbook 
> of the Old Testament (TWOT), published by Moody Press, were also added.
>
> During the production process, some internal editing of the 
> definitions was carried out. It is said that definitions considered to 
> be liberal were altered (e.g., ‘virgin’ was preferred over ‘young 
> woman’, ‘Jerusalem’ is ‘teaching of peace’ with no mention, as in BDB, 
> of the Canaanite god Shalim, etc.). Also, all reference to the JEDP 
> documentary hypothesis, assumed by BDB, was removed. Furthermore, 
> personal names were matched with etymologically derived meanings, most 
> often without mention of the possible sources of such meanings.


See also http://www.crosswire.org/sword/modules/ModInfo.jsp?modName=OLBHeb.

This is probably not the version which Maurice mentioned, which was "a 
facsimile edition, and very, very clunky to move through". But it may 
well be "the free condensed edition in Logos' software" which Dave 
mentioned, because a "condensed edition" can hardly be the same as "a 
facsimile edition" - although there is currenty no mention of this text 
on the Logos site.

--
Peter Kirk
peter AT qaya.org (personal)
peterkirk AT qaya.org (work)
http://www.qaya.org/