The New Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible in five volumes provides the best quality in contemporary biblical scholarship on a comprehensive range of topics, including the Old and New Testaments, the Deuterocanonical books, and contextual studies of the ancient Near East, the Greco-Roman worlds, and their literatures. The dictionary contains maps, charts, and illustrations to further clarify the written material. The biblical text used is the NRSV translation.
A diverse group of 900 scholars from 40 countries have contributed 7,100 fresh new articles with 8,400 entries including persons, places, things, theological concepts, and much more. These contributors were selected by the editorial board for their expertise in their field and for the quality of their scholarship in publication. Special care was taken to select authors who could provide a variety of perspectives from different theological traditions (Protestant, Catholic, Jewish), diverse theological trajectory (conservative and liberal), and from the social locations of gender, ethnicity, and race.
Topics are listed in alphabetical order from A–Z and evenly divided among the five volumes. The main entry includes a pronunciation guide. Hebrew and Greek origins of the entry follow, with transliteration. Longer articles contain an introduction that summarizes the topic and include a helpful outline to guide the reader. Articles conclude with a short bibliography and cross references to related articles. In each definition, authors strive to incorporate as many biblical instances of the term as possible in the given amount of space, and to discuss the theological, social, or ecclesial implications of the topic, so that the definitions are practical aids to the tasks of preaching, teaching, and study of the Bible.
