For years, I have longed to have the Greek New Testament and the Hebrew Old Testament in one volume. Biblia Sacra is the common gold standard, but it is expensive. After looking at various options, I finally on A Reader’s Hebrew and Greek Bible: Second Edition by A. Philip Brown II and Bryan W. Smith (Zondervan Academic; Hardcover, 2020).
A reader’s Bible with the Greek and Hebrew includes footnotes that give definitions (glosses) of uncommon vocabulary, to allow readers to make their way through the text without constantly looking up words in their dictionaries/lexicons.
So far, I love this! I was skeptical that this volume would deliver after purchasing A Reader’s Hebrew Bible back in seminary and being disappointed. Not only did that volume feel cheap and flimsy compared to my hardback compact BHS, I found the font lacking and the pages confusing. However, A Reader’s Hebrew and Greek Bible: Second Edition has improved upon previous iterations. The volume is sturdy and the pages feel of higher quality.
My only two critiques after a week’s usage is that the Greek font seems smaller and more condensed than the Hebrew and, in the Hebrew, the names are faded. The proper nouns are faded intentionally–to be a signal to help readers–yet it seems to me that anyone who knows enough Hebrew to use a reader’s Bible is going to be able to sense when dealing with a name. Of course, I can also see the point and I suppose I’m more disappointed by the execution than the concept. The words are just too faint.
These weaknesses aside, this book feels great and I am picking it up daily, as a supplement to my other studies, to keep fresh in my reading of God’s Word in the original languages. I highly recommend it to those who know the biblical languages and want practice reading without helps, or something to take into the pews with them.