Dr. Bill Mounce (https://www.billmounce.com/about), is the the founder and President of BiblicalTraining.org. He also serves on the Committee for Bible Translation (responsible for the NIV translation of the Bible), is author of Basics of Biblical Greek and other works, and was formerly a professor at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and Azusa Pacific University. In this episode, he joins David Capes to talk about his own pilgrimage as a student of Greek and the vision and work of BiblicalTraining.org.

Dr. John Walton, Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College Graduate School, lays out the importance of knowing the context of a passage to understand it.  After discussing four kinds of context for exegesis, he focuses on the historical context.  As a test case, he takes us to Daniel 7:1 to understand what is happening historically at the time of Daniel’s fantastic vision. 

Dr. John Walton, Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College Graduate School, lays out the importance of knowing the context of a passage to understand it. After discussing four kinds of context for exegesis, he focuses on the linguistic context. As a test case, he takes us to 1 Samuel 13:14: “the LORD sought out a man after his own heart [David].” What does that mean? Where does it come from? It might not mean what we always thought.

Dr. Robert Plummer, the Collin and Eveyln Aikman Professor of Biblical Studies at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and the host of the Daily Dose of Greek screencast (dailydoseofgreek.com), considers whether the Lord teaches us to pray for deliverance from evil in general, as many translations have it, or from "the evil one," the devil. Grammar and context favor taking it as a reference to the devil.

Dr. Danny Carroll Rodas, Scripture Press Ministries Professor of Biblical Studies and Pedagogy at Wheaton College, moves us beyond Hosea 1-3 to consider the various metaphors used by the prophet to communicate the nature of God and the serious afflictions of God’s people.

Dr. Jon Laansma, Gerald F. Hawthorne Professor of New Testament Greek and Exegesis at Wheaton College, uses Titus 2:13 to illustrate how the knowledge of Greek grammar doesn’t usually lead to one “correct” interpretive conclusion, but to a range of viable interpretations. The gains are knowing the boundaries of what is viable and the ability to converse authoritatively with other qualified interpreters.

Dr. Jon Laansma, Gerald F. Hawthorne Professor of New Testament Greek and Exegesis at Wheaton College, discusses what “syntax” is, why biblical scholars give it emphasis, some of the challenges to be faced in gaining mastery over this side of Greek grammar, and how to meet the challenges.

Dr. Andrew Abernethy, Associate Professor of Old Testament and Degree Coordinator for the Master of Arts in Biblical Exegesis Program, shows us how Isaiah 53:4 was interpreted and translated in the Latin Vulgate by Jerome.  He translated it that Jesus was “like a leper” stricken by God and rejected for the diseases he bore.  As a result artists and paintings from the Middle Ages depict Jesus on the cross as suffering the marks of leprosy. 

Dr. Doug Penney, Associate Professor of Classical Languages, discusses how he encourages students to read outside the canon of Scripture in order to sharpen their translation skills. Often, when students read a New Testament book in Greek, they rely on their memory to produce a translation. Reading Aesop’s Fables takes them to a text they do not know.

Dr. Philip Ryken, president of Wheaton College and Professor of Theology, draws our attention to the “scrapbook” of Jeremiah (31:31-34) to talk about the new covenant.  But, instead of focusing on the obvious, he highlights how God is the “husband” of the new covenant.