September 22, 2021 // The Biblical Languages Podcast

In this episode of the Biblical Languages Podcast, Kevin Grasso interviews Reinier de Blois on Biblical Hebrew Lexicography.
Reinier is a Dutchman with a Master’s in African Languages and Linguistics, as well as a PhD in Hebrew Linguistics. He was previously a missionary for Bible Translation in Nigeria, until he became a Translation Consultant for UBS in African countries, and eventually the head of the United Bible Societies’ department creating technology for Bible Translation. He is now the Director of the Nida Institute for Biblical Scholarship at American Bible Societies, as well as the Academic Director of the international training program at Jerusalem Center Bible Translators.
Here's a snapshot of what you can expect in this conversation:
- The current weaknesses of existing biblical Hebrew dictionaries and how they can be improved
- How the field of cognitive linguistics can provide tools for understanding the meaning of biblical Hebrew words
- The distinction between lexical domains and contextual domains and how they help with semantic analyses
- How senses, metaphors, and idioms relate to lexical meaning
- And much, much more!
Popular Posts
- The Inward Jew: Romans 2:28-29 and Biblical Greek Syntax
- Gentiles and Torah: Romans 2:14 and the Nature of Biblical Greek Adverbs
- Justified or Made Righteous? Biblical Greek, Lexical Semantics, and Romans 3:24
- The Meaning of δικαιόω (Justify) in Paul with James Prothro (Key Terms in Pauline Theology: Part 4)
- From the Faith for the Faith: Pistis in Romans 1:17 and Habakkuk 2:4

Show notes
Resources referenced in this episode:
Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew
This is Part 3 of our series on Lexical Semantics. Check out the other episodes in this series:
- Part 1: Foundations of Lexical Semantics with Malka Rappaport Hovav
- Part 2: Greek and Septuagint Lexicography with William Ross
- Part 4: Biblical Greek Word Study (πίστις) with Nijay Gupta
- Part 5: Biblical Hebrew Word Study (Locative Verbs) with Keren Dubnov
- Part 6: How to Know What Biblical Greek Words Mean
- Part 7: Bonus Episode - Data, Fallacies, and Objections
- Part 8: How to Know What Biblical Hebrew Words Mean
Where to listen
Listen to the full episode, share your feedback, and let us know topics you'd like to hear on future episodes!
September 22, 2021 // The Biblical Languages Podcast

In this episode of the Biblical Languages Podcast, Kevin Grasso interviews Reinier de Blois on Biblical Hebrew Lexicography.
Reinier is a Dutchman with a Master’s in African Languages and Linguistics, as well as a PhD in Hebrew Linguistics. He was previously a missionary for Bible Translation in Nigeria, until he became a Translation Consultant for UBS in African countries, and eventually the head of the United Bible Societies’ department creating technology for Bible Translation. He is now the Director of the Nida Institute for Biblical Scholarship at American Bible Societies, as well as the Academic Director of the international training program at Jerusalem Center Bible Translators.
Here's a snapshot of what you can expect in this conversation:
- The current weaknesses of existing biblical Hebrew dictionaries and how they can be improved
- How the field of cognitive linguistics can provide tools for understanding the meaning of biblical Hebrew words
- The distinction between lexical domains and contextual domains and how they help with semantic analyses
- How senses, metaphors, and idioms relate to lexical meaning
- And much, much more!
Show notes
Resources referenced in this episode:
Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew
This is Part 3 of our series on Lexical Semantics. Check out the other episodes in this series:
- Part 1: Foundations of Lexical Semantics with Malka Rappaport Hovav
- Part 2: Greek and Septuagint Lexicography with William Ross
- Part 4: Biblical Greek Word Study (πίστις) with Nijay Gupta
- Part 5: Biblical Hebrew Word Study (Locative Verbs) with Keren Dubnov
- Part 6: How to Know What Biblical Greek Words Mean
- Part 7: Bonus Episode - Data, Fallacies, and Objections
- Part 8: How to Know What Biblical Hebrew Words Mean
Where to listen
Listen to the full episode, share your feedback, and let us know topics you'd like to hear on future episodes!

The Biblical Languages Podcast hosts discussions and interviews related to learning the biblical languages and issues relevant to biblical exegesis. Episodes cover topics in 4 major categories: language acquisition, linguistics, cultural backgrounds, and exegesis.
Listen & subscribe here: https://biblingo.org/podcast/

The Biblical Languages Podcast hosts discussions and interviews related to learning the biblical languages and issues relevant to biblical exegesis. Episodes cover topics in 4 major categories: language acquisition, linguistics, cultural backgrounds, and exegesis.
Listen & subscribe here: https://biblingo.org/podcast/
Recent Posts
- The Inward Jew: Romans 2:28-29 and Biblical Greek Syntax
- Gentiles and Torah: Romans 2:14 and the Nature of Biblical Greek Adverbs
- Justified or Made Righteous? Biblical Greek, Lexical Semantics, and Romans 3:24
- The Meaning of δικαιόω (Justify) in Paul with James Prothro (Key Terms in Pauline Theology: Part 4)
- From the Faith for the Faith: Pistis in Romans 1:17 and Habakkuk 2:4