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Creative Bible Study
2. Look up the word in a Bible concordance. Words are listed in a concordance in alphabetical order. If the word is used several places in the Bible, you will find a list of verses which contain the word. Study these verses to help you understand the meaning.
Find the word as it is used in the verse you are studying. Note the number given at the end of the concordance listing and look up this number in the back of the concordance. If you are studying a word from a verse in the Old Testament you will look up the number in the Hebrew Dictionary. If you are studying a word from the New Testament you will look up the word in the Greek Dictionary. (Chapter Five explains how to do this.)
When you find the word number, it gives you the original meaning of the word in Greek or Hebrew. It may also refer you to another number in the dictionary. This means the word you are studying came from another word. To trace your word back to the original meaning you will have to look up this other word also.
3. Look up the word in a Bible word study book. Words are listed in alphabetical order in a word study book. If your word is used elsewhere in the Bible you will find several listings. While you want to study these also, be sure to pay special attention to the verse from which you have selected your word. Your purpose is to determine what this word means within the context of that particular verse.
4. Look up the word in a regular dictionary. This will tell you how the word is currently used in modern language. It may be similar to its use in the Bible or it may be quite different. The difference between the use of words in modern language and in the Bible results from two things:
First, the meanings of words change throughout time. New meanings are attached to old words and sometimes the original meanings are forgotten.
Second, the Bible was written in Greek and Hebrew. The same word has different meanings in different languages. The word meant one thing in Greek or Hebrew but may be different in another language.
STEP FOUR: SUMMARIZE YOUR STUDY
During the first three steps of word study make notes on what you learn about the word. Write down the meanings of the word from the Bible margin, concordance, word study book, and modern dictionary. Record notes on its use in other Bible passages.
When you complete your study, use what you have learned about charts and outlines to summarize your word study notes. Remember to record somewhere on your chart or outline the book, chapter, verse number, and word you are studying.