The Disciples' Institute of Biblical Studies offers free college level courses via email or snail mail at no cost (other than the purchase of necessary books, from any source). The Elements of Greek Course is 12 credits (about 480 hours of work). It is a lot of time, but at the conclusion the student will have read through the entire New Testament in its original language! Yes, this is an acheivable goal for the average believer, if he is willing to consistently spend time working at it (lets see .. 1 hour a day for 480 days, about 16 months, hmm...). This is not the empty promise of 'Learn Greek in 30 days'. It is serious work, with a serious but attainable goal.
Here are the books we use, in the order that you will need them. Although you can learn Greek by yourself with these materials, taking the course will formalize the procedure, give you someone to confer with, and encourage you to set a goal and keep working at it. There is a Basics of Biblical Greek Homepage with free tools and a computer vocabulary quiz geared to the first book below.
| Subject | Book Data | Short Comments |
| DIBS Elements of Greek | BUY Basics of Biblical Greek (Grammar)
for $20.99 (List 29.99)
William D. Mounce ISBN 0310598001 Hard Back, 460 pages |
There are several beginning Greek Grammars out there. I learned from a turn of the century (last century) text, and most books are reworks of the same old method. Mounce has applied modern research and presented a far superior method to learn and retain Greek. The emphasis is on understanding principles instead of rote memorization. Of course, some things must be memorized, especially basic forms and vocabulary, but there is far less required using this method! |
| DIBS Elements of Greek | BUY Basics of Biblical Greek (Workbook)
for $14.39 (List $17.99)
by William D. Mounce ISBN 0310400910 Soft Cover - Notebook size, 3-hole punched tearout pages, 186 pages. |
The grammar above has no exercises or assignments in it! They are all contained in this workbook, and I heartily recommend using it. At the homepage mentioned above you can find the answer sheets (don't cheat!) and this will allow you to correct your own work. All exercises are from the New Testament (with references); you are working with the actual Greek NT text very early! |
| Greek (optional) | BUY A Graded Reader of Biblical Greek
for $13.59 (List $16.99 )
by William D. Mounce ISBN 0310205824 Soft Cover, 256 pages |
After completing the Basics, this book gently leads you in reading complete sections of the Greek New Testament. It helps by explaining the occaisional items covered in intermediate or advanced Greek, and by giving definitions of rare words. It provides a review of the basics as well as an introduction to more advanced study. |
| DIBS Elements of Greek | BUY Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics
(An Exegetical Syntax of the New Testament)
for $35.99 (List 44.99)
by Daniel B. Wallace ISBN 0310373409 Hard Back, 797 pages |
This is for the intermediate student, a good book to be read after completeing the Basics and kept forever as a reference. It explains with how the greek language is used. Once you are able to identify the words and basic meanings, this book fills in the nuances of how words are used together. For instance, what are the possible meanings of "the Word was God" in John 1:1? How do the rules of Greek Grammar apply to this? After reading this book, you will know. |
| DIBS Elements of Greek | BUY Refresh Your Greek
(A Greek New Testament with Helps)
for $52.49 (List $74.99)
by Wesley Perschbacher ISBN 0802433529 Hard Back |
This is your guide to reading the entire Greek New Testament! It will allow you to keep moving, rather than stopping to look up uncommon words or fine points of grammar (which are explained in this book along with the Greek text). |
| Greek (Reference) | BUY The Student's Complete Vocabulary Guide to the Greek New Testament
for $11.99 (List 14.99)
by Warren C. Trenchard ISBN 0310533414 Soft Cover, 340 pages |
The most complete vocabulary guide I've found. The Basics (above) lists Greek words occurring over 50 times in the NT. The homepage (above) has a computerized vocabulary drill with all words used 10 times and over. This book includes ALL the words. They are listed in order of frequency, and about 90 percent are also listed in their family by the root word. For instance, (in English) we would find head, headless, headstrong, and hardheaded all listed under head, and seeing them together helps us to learn the whole set of words. |
| Greek (Reference) | BUY Morphology of Biblical Greek
for $27.99 (List $39.99)
by William D. Mounce ISBN 0310410401 Hard Back, 368 pages |
In five sections, this book covers how Greek words change into various forms. An exhaustive book, it indexes every word in the Greek NT to a paradigm of it's type. The emphasis is on showing how and why words change, rather than memorizing charts of forms. |
| Greek (Reference) | BUY The Analytical Lexicon to the Greek New Testament
for $30.09 (List $42.99)
by William D. Mounce ISBN 0310542103 Hard Back, 541 pages |
Similar to a dictionary, every form of every word in the Greek New Testament is listed alphabetically, parsed, and referenced to its root, where a definition is given. The appropriate entry in the Morphology (above) is referenced for further study. The frequency of each form is given, and forms or words used only once are given NT chapter and verse. An excellent reference book. |
| Greek | BUY The Greek New Testament
for $33.95 (List 33.95)
United Bible Societies ISBN 3438051109 Vinyl Cover, 934 pages |
This is the standard critical Greek NT with footnotes giving the variant readings (where different ancient copies vary from one another) and estimated probability that the variation chosen is the original. If you have mastered Greek or want to analyze the textual variations, this is the book. If you are still struggling with vocabulary, forms, and grammar, stick with the "Refresh Your Greek" for a while. |