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Welcome to the Wesley Seminary Guide!
This page provides information on finding and researching Bible dictionaries, commentaries, historical and cultural background information, books, articles, language resources, and ancient works. What is Research? walks you through the research and writing process.
To navigate to the different sections use the tabs above.
You can bookmark this page for quick access.
A Bible Dictionary (or Bible Encyclopedia) provides important facts and background information regarding a biblical topic. Depending on the particular dictionary, entries contain information about:
Theological Dictionaries: Focus on the theological meaning of concepts and words from the Bible. Sometimes entries are listed in Greek or Hebrew. You can use a Strong's Concordance or Interlinear Bible to identify the word if you do not know the original language.
In the Library Catalog do a "Keyword" search for "bible dictionaries".
Type your search in the box below! The catalog search will pop up in a new window.
Find Commentaries at Jackson Library
Accessing E-Book Commentaries in the Jackson Library Online Catalog
Technical or Critical or Exegetical
Includes very detailed, technical discussion of the text. Requires some understanding of the original languages.
Examples:
International Critical Commentary
Word Biblical Commentary
Hermeneia
New International Greek Testament Commentary
Anchor Bible
Sacra Pagina
Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament
Expositional or Essential or Semi-Technical
Includes less technical, but still extensive discussion. Does not rely on readers' understanding of original languages but may refer to original languages.
Examples:
New International Biblical Commentary
New International Commentary on the New Testament
New International Commentary on the Old Testament
New American Commentary
New Century Bible Commentary
Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture
Homiletical
Intended to aid in sermon preparation. Usually based on an English translation of the Bible.
Examples:
Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary
Pillar New Testament Commentary
New American Commentary
Interpretation
Devotional or Applicational
Focuses on the basic meaning of the text and life application.
Examples:
Life Application Bible Commentary
Holman Commentary
Warren W. Wiersbe Commentaries
Here are some online commentaries we have access to (click title for access):
Find Commentaries at Jackson Library
Commentaries are located in two places:
Circulating Collection, 2nd floor
Reference Collection, Main floor
The general call number ranges for commentaries are:
220.7 Large sets
221-224 Old Testament
225-228 New Testament
Strategies for finding commentaries in the Catalog:
In the Library Catalog do a "Keyword" search for "[book of the Bible] commentaries".
Type your search in the box below! The catalog search will pop up in a new window.
Search the Library Catalog For Books or E-Books
Go to: Catalog | Advanced Search |
Find one relevant commentary and click on the appropriate heading listed under "Subject" (ex. Bible. Galatians -- Commentaries.)
TIP: When viewing the list of nearby subject headings, you might want to look at "Bible. Ruth -- Criticism, interpretation, etc." as well.
In the Library Catalog do a "Subject" search for:
Bible. Ruth -- Commentaries
Bible. Corinthians, 1st -- Commentaries
Type your search in the box below! The catalog search will pop up in a new window.
Search the Library Catalog For Books or E-Books
Go to: Catalog | Advanced Search |
Accessing E-Book Commentaries in the Jackson Library Online Catalog
The Jackson Library collections include a number of high-quality full-text electronic (e-book) commentaries for student use.
Find Background Information at Jackson Library
Old Testament Background Information
New Testament Background Information
Find Background Information at Jackson Library
In the Library Catalog try the following searches.
Examples:
Examples:
You can find Bible Atlases in the 220.91 section of the Reference Collection on the main floor.
Oversized atlases are stored in the first row before the 000's.
Find Books and E-Books on the Bible at Jackson Library
In the Library Catalog do a "Subject" search for one of the subjects above.
Type your search in the box below! The catalog search will pop up in a new window.
If you know the name of the ancient writer, do an author search in the Library Catalog to find reprinted and translated works by that author:
In the Library Catalog do an "Author" search.
Type your search in the box below! The catalog search will pop up in a new window.
Search the Library Catalog For Books or E-Books
Go to: Catalog | Advanced Search |
To learn more about what research is and how to research, visit the Introduction to Research Guide.
To learn more about how to get research help from OCLS, visit the Introduction to Research Guide.