How To Use Interlinear Bible

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Francoise Witsell

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Aug 3, 2024, 5:58:02 PM8/3/24

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Select a Beginning PointGenesisExodusLeviticusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudgesRuth1 Samuel2 Samuel1 Kings2 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzraNehemiahEstherJobPsalmsProverbsEcclesiastesSong of SongsIsaiahJeremiahLamentationsEzekielDanielHoseaJoelAmosObadiahJonahMicahNahumHabakkukZephaniahHaggaiZechariahMalachiMatthewMarkLukeJohnActsRomans1 Corinthians2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians1 Thessalonians2 Thessalonians1 Timothy2 TimothyTitusPhilemonHebrewsJames1 Peter2 Peter1 John2 John3 JohnJudeRevelation

Select an Ending PointGenesisExodusLeviticusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudgesRuth1 Samuel2 Samuel1 Kings2 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzraNehemiahEstherJobPsalmsProverbsEcclesiastesSong of SongsIsaiahJeremiahLamentationsEzekielDanielHoseaJoelAmosObadiahJonahMicahNahumHabakkukZephaniahHaggaiZechariahMalachiMatthewMarkLukeJohnActsRomans1 Corinthians2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians1 Thessalonians2 Thessalonians1 Timothy2 TimothyTitusPhilemonHebrewsJames1 Peter2 Peter1 John2 John3 JohnJudeRevelation

Many people think that a faithful translation of the Bible means a word-for-word translation. If the verse in Hebrew contains ten words, then ten English words should be used to translate the verse. If the Greek text contains eight words, then only eight English words are necessary to translate it. To be a faithful translation of the original text, each Hebrew and Greek word should have a corresponding English word. Yet this is not the way translation works.

The idea of corresponding English word, or words, which matches with the original text of Scripture, is not found in translations, but rather in interlinear Bibles. We must appreciate the fact that an interlinear Bible is different from a translation.

An interlinear Bible is not a translation. It is a tool that helps identify Greek and Hebrew words with their English translation. For example, in an interlinear of Matthew 1:18, the English words under the Greek words would look something like this:

An interlinear can be useful to find which particular Greek or Hebrew word that is used for the English translation. Beyond this, they are not really much help. In fact, they can be misleading to someone who does not understand the grammar of the original languages. The best thing a student can do is to learn the biblical languages. If this is not possible, then owning an interlinear will only be of limited use.

In addition, the order of the words in the original cannot be kept in the English translation. If one attempts to do this, it will not result in good English. Neither will it convey the message of the biblical writer. A translation needs to be able to use one or more English words to translate the corresponding Greek or Hebrew word. Furthermore, the order of the words usually has to be changed in the English translation to make sense out of the passage. Therefore, the interlinear only has limited value.

Recognizing the value of consistent reflection upon the Word of God in order to refocus one's mind and heart upon Christ and His Gospel of peace, we provide several reading plans designed to cover the entire Bible in a year.

The Blue Letter Bible ministry and the BLB Institute hold to the historical,conservative Christian faith, which includes a firm belief in the inerrancyof Scripture. Since the text and audio content provided by BLB represent arange of evangelical traditions, all of the ideas and principles conveyedin the resource materials are not necessarily affirmed, in total, by this ministry.

I believe (might be wrong!) that the actual interlinear display only works with a very small set of resources with titles in this format: "Lexham [Hebrew/Greek/Latin]-English Interlinear [Text - e.g. Bible, Vulgate,Septuagint etc]" - access additional lines through the view settings. They're available whether you're online or offline.

The normal pop-up options for word lookups (when you double tap on a word) where you can bring up interlinear-style info for individual words work offline for original languages, but require an internet connection for English resources.

In terms of features the main thing I am after is the OT and NT to be displayed in line by line with the English and then either the Hebrew or Greek lines underneath on the same page. I was hoping for this in the NASB translation.

In terms of features the main thing I am after is the OT and NT to be displayed in line by line with the English and then either the Hebrew or Greek lines underneath. I was hoping for this in the NASB translation.

Not at the moment, no - you can look up any word (provided you have an internet connection and you have reverse interlinear datasets) by long-pressing or double-tapping the word, but you can't get interlinear lines displayed for them on screen. Hopefully it will arrive eventually, but I wouldn't get your hopes up for it in the short term.

I use a layout with the English, Hebrew and Greek texts as separate tabs that are synced with each other. It allows me to get similar information without too much effort, and it has it's perks over interlinears, but it's not the same, obviously.

The Exegetical Guide has a "Word by Word" section that provides all the same information as the Interlinear, and it actually gives more information than an interlinear view, because it shows translations from multiple lexicons/dictionaries

It is similar on my iOS iphone, using the Logos app, where only my top 3 prioritized dictionaries appear, and I don't have the option to expand to all 20 dictionaries I have on my desktop. But the top 3 prioritized dictionaries are enough when mobile, and this is more than I get with an interlinear.