A Basic Bibliography for Biblical Studies

Introductions to Exegetical Methods:

• Gorman, Michael J. Elements of Biblical Exegesis: A Basic Guide for Students and Ministers. Revised ed. Baker Academic, 2010.
  • A very practical guide from a long-time seminary teacher.
• Green, Joel B., ed. Hearing the New Testament: Strategies for Interpretation. 2^nd edition. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2010 (orig. 1995).
  • Eighteen in-depth articles covering both traditional and more modern interpretive methods: historical, social, literary, etc.
• Carvalho, Corrine L. Primer on Biblical Methods. Winona, MN: Anselm Academic, 2009.
  • One of the best recent introductions; easy to read and practical.
• Montague, George T. Understanding the Bible: A Basic Introduction to Biblical Interpretation. 2^nd edition. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist, 2007.
  • An historical survey of the major trends in how the Bible has been interpreted over the past 2000 years; the book concludes with examinations of Dei Verbum (from Vatican II) and of The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church (by the PBC).
• Hayes, John H. and Carl R. Holladay. Biblical Exegesis: A Beginner's Handbook. 3^rd edition. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2007.
  • A practical step-by-step guide with a minimum of technical terms, solid introductions in exegetical method, and good presentations of exegetical theory and practice.
• Stuart, Douglas. Old Testament Exegesis: A Handbook for Students and Pastors. 4^th edition. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2009.
  Fee, Gordon D. New Testament Exegesis: A Handbook for Students and Pastors. 3^rd edition. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2002.
  
  • Very practical "how to" manuals, but requiring some use of the original biblical languages.
• Stenger, Werner. Introduction to New Testament Exegesis. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1993.
  • Another practical manual, with ten examples of applying mostly form and redaction criticisms.
• Harrington, Daniel J. Interpreting the Old Testament: A Practical Guide. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1991.
  Harrington, Daniel J. Interpreting the New Testament: A Practical Guide. Rev. ed. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1990.
  • Somewhat older, but still excellent introductions to the standard historical-critical methods, including literary, textual, source, form, and redaction criticisms.
• Briefer overviews:
  • C. Holladay & W. Walker, "Biblical Criticism," HarperCollins Bible Dictionary, 141-46;
  • or W. Baird, "Biblical Criticism (NT)," Anchor Bible Dictionary, vol. 1, pp. 730-36;
    also the ABD articles on "Source Criticism," "Form Criticism," "Redaction Criticism," "Textual Criticism," "Gospel Genre," "Feminist Hermeneutics," and "Sociology (Early Christianity)."
• See also the Guides to Biblical Scholarship series from Fortress Press

Introductions to the Old Testament:

• Bergsma, John, and Brant Pitre. A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament. Ignatius Press, 2018. (1060 pages)
• Boadt, Lawrence. Reading the Old Testament: An Introduction. New York: Paulist Press, 1984; 2^nd edition, revised by Richard Clifford and Daniel Harrington, 2012. (528 pages)
• Carvalho, Corrine L. Encountering Ancient Voices: A Guide to Reading the Old Testament. Winona, MN: Anselm Academic, 2006; 2^nd edition, 2010. (502 pages)
• Cavins, Jeff, et al. A Catholic Guide to the Old Testament. Ascension, 2023. (483 pages)
• Childs, Brevard S. Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture. Philadephia: Fortess, 1979. (688 pages)
• Collins, John J. Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2004; 3^rd edition, 2018. (622 pages)
• Coogan, Michael D., and Cynthia R. Chapman. A Brief Introduction to the Old Testament: The Hebrew Bible in Its Context. Oxford University Press, 2009; 4th edition, 2020. (496 pages)
• Drane, John. Introducing the Old Testament. Oxford: Lion Hudson, 1987; 4^th edition, 2019. (518 pages)
  • Spanish edition:. Introducción al Antiguo Testamento. Editorial Clie, 2018. (376 pages)
• Duggan, Michael W. The Consuming Fire: A Christian Guide to the Old Testament. Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor, 1991; 2^nd edition, 2010. (688 pages)
• Gottwald, Norman K. The Hebrew Bible: A Socio-Literary Introduction. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1985; repr. with CD-ROM, 2002. (736 pages)
• Harris, Stephen, and Robert Platzner. The Old Testament: An Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. New York: McGraw Hill, 2002; 2^nd edition, 2007. (528 pages)
• Jacobson, Rolf A., and Michael J. Chan. Introducing the Old Testament: A Historical, Literary, and Theological Survey. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2023. (672 pages)
   
• BRIEFER INTROS:
  • Binz, Stephen J. Panorama of the Bible: Old Testament. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2016. (136 pages)
  • Campbell, Jim. The Stories of the Old Testament: A Catholic's Guide. Chicago: Loyola Press, 2007. (352 pages)
  • Ceresko, Anthony R. Introduction to the Old Testament: A Liberation Perspective. New York: Orbis, 1997; 2nd edition, 2001. (386 pages)
  • Charpentier, Etienne. How to Read the Old Testament. Translated by John Bowden. New York: Crossroad, 1982. (128 pages)
  • Collins, John J. A Short Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. 3rd edition, 2018. (376 pages)
  • Friedman, Richard Elliot. Who Wrote the Bible? New York: Simon and Schuster, 1987; revised 2019. (304 pages)
  • Smith-Christopher, Daniel. The Old Testament: Our Call to Faith and Justice. Ave Maria Press, 2013. (304 pages)

Introductions to the New Testament:

• Brown, Raymond E. An Introduction to the New Testament. New York: Doubleday, 1997. (924 pages)
• a masterful work by a great scholar;  long and challenging for undergraduates, but excellent for seminary and graduate-level study
• Ralph, Margaret Nutting. A Walk Through the New Testament: An Introduction for Catholics. New York: Paulist Press, 2009. (352 pages)
  • very accessible text, esp. for adult faith formation purposes
• Kelly, Joseph F. An Introduction to the New Testament for Catholics. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2006. (296 pages)
  • another good short text, esp. for adult faith formation purposes
• Powell, Mark Allan. Introducing the New Testament: A Historical, Literary, and Theological Survey. 2^nd ed. Baker Academic, 2018. (592 pages)
  • an excellent text; also available in Spanish: Introducción al Nuevo Testamento: Un estudio histórico, literario y teológico. 2020. (560 pages)
• Wright, N. T. and Michael F. Bird. The New Testament in Its World: An Introduction to the History, Literature, and Theology of the First Christians. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Academic, 2019. (992 pages)
  • extensive learning program also includes a workbook, video lectures, audio lectures, and more
     
• Ehrman, Bart D. The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings. 7^th ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2019. (624 pages)
• one of the most popular texts for undergraduate courses; mostly historical focus, not theological; also has a companion reader volume
• Harris, Stephen L. The New Testament: A Student's Introduction. 9^th ed. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield, 2019. (512 pages)
• another good undergraduate textbook, with a strong historical focus
• Johnson, Luke T. The Writings of the New Testament: An Interpretation. 3^rd ed. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2010. (544 pages)
• comprehensive and balanced; especially appropriate for seminarians and masters-level students; with CD-ROM
• Perkins, Pheme. Reading the New Testament: An Introduction. 3^rd ed. New York: Paulist Press, 2012. (336 pages)
• a standard classic, now in its third edition; very accessible for lower-division undergraduate courses

Collections of Non-Canonical Literature related to Biblical Studies:

• New Testament Apocrypha. 2 vols. Wilhelm Schneemelcher, ed. Eng. transl. by R. McL. Wilson. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1991-92.
• The Apocryphal New Testament: A Collection of Apocryphal Christian Literature in an English Translation. J. K. Elliott, ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993; paperback 2005.
• The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. 2 vols. James H. Charlesworth. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1983-1985; paperback 2010.
• Apocryphal Old Testament. H. F. D. Sparks, ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press; New York: Oxford University Press, 1984.
• The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament in English. 2 vols. R. H. Charles, ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1978; paperback 2020.
   
• The Nag Hammadi Library in English. Revised edition. James M. Robinson, ed. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988.
• The Dead Sea Scrolls : A New Translation. Michael O. Wise, Martin G. Abegg, and Edward M. Cook, eds. HarperOne, 2005.
• The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English. 7^th ed. Geza Vermes, transl. & ed. Baltimore: Penguin, 2012.
• The Dead Sea Scrolls Translated: The Qumran Texts in English. 2^nd edition. Florentino García Martínez, ed.; Wilfred G. E. Watson, transl. Leiden/New York: E. J. Brill; Grand Rapids: W. B. Eerdmans, 1996.
• The Works of Philo: Complete and Unabridged. Transl. by C. D. Yonge. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1993.
• The Works of Josephus: Complete and Unabridged. Transl. by William Whiston. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2005.
   
• See also the online collection of Non-Canonical Literature (formerly the "Non-canonical Homepage"), from the Wesley Center for Applied Theology, Northwest Nazarene University

Collections of Catholic Church Documents:

• The Scripture Documents: An Anthology of Official Catholic Teachings. Transl. Dean Bechard, SJ. Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2002.
  • the newest comprehensive collection of Church pronouncements related to the Bible.
     
• See also my list of online versions of many other Official Church Documents related to the Bible.

Other Scriptural Resources, especially for the Non-Specialist:

• Liturgical Press (1-800-858-5450)
• Benedictine-run press from Collegeville, MN; many inexpensive but excellent books on scripture, esp. their "Michael Glazier Books" and "Zacchaeus Studies" series.
• Paulist Press (1-800-218-1903)
• good, inexpensive books on scripture from a modern Catholic perspective, esp. their "Responses to 101 Questions on..." and "What Are They Saying About..." series.
• Christian Book Distributors (1-508-977-5010)
• evangelical Protestant emphasis (mostly KJV & NIV Bibles), but they also have many good reference works at discounted mail-order prices.
• American Bible Society (1-800-322-4253)
• best source for Bibles and reference works in the original Hebrew & Greek; many modern translations also available, including inexpensive editions and bulk-order prices.
• Biblical Archaeology Society (1-800-678-5555)
• bi-monthly glossy magazines Biblical Archaeology Review and Bible Review, with current reports on a wide variety of archaeological and biblical topics.
   
• Click here for an extensive list of Biblical Publishers (Print and Electronic).

Computer Bible Programs:

• Bible Works - best program currently available for scholars, for study using ancient biblical languages and/or many modern translations.
• Bibloi Program - also excellent; formerly called "Bible Windows"; from Silver Mountain Software.
   
• Click here for Other Computer Bible Programs.

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More Bibliographical Resources:

Part 1: Bibles | Dictionaries | Commentaries | Atlases | Concordances | Synopses | Reading Guides

Part 3: Bibles in Spanish | Bibles in Ancient Languages | Hebrew & Greek Resources
 
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