As someone who is very interested in philology and learning languages in general, I was excited to see that “Hebrew For Life” was coming out. The foreword written by none other than Miles Van Pelt. Van Pelt’s foreword brings some things into perspective that you probably knew but never looked at exactly the same way. Statements such as “Over 75 percent of the Christian Bible was originally written in Hebrew” brings an interesting perspective to the table. I knew the Old Testament was longer than the New Testament, but I never considered the percentage. His name is a name I have always associated with biblical Hebrew so his endorsement of the book had me even more excited than I was previously.

After reading the foreword, you’re introduced to the preface which gives you the goal and a little background on the authors involved. The aforementioned goal being that they want you to have an intimate knowledge of the God of the Hebrew Bible. Each author has a background in teaching the biblical languages, so you’re not getting this perspective from an amateur such as myself.

Throughout the book, you get many inspiring quotes showing just how important the biblical languages are to understanding the Bible. Quotes from thinkers such as Martin Luther and Phillip Melanchthon. Interesting topics are addressed in this book as well, such as why relying only on one translation can limit your perspective to the choices of the particular translators. Throughout the book, this is a constant theme. The authors do not want you to limit yourself by not knowing the original languages.

The authors go through several objections to why someone would not consider learning some Hebrew themselves. Objections such as “Hebrew is excessively difficult“. They also go through the many devotional aspects and qualities that are accessed by learning Hebrew and share some personal stories on just how that plays out.

Overall, this book can be summed up as an encouragement to push yourself to learn Hebrew. Start out with an introductory book on grammar and you’ll surprise yourself on just how much you’re able to comprehend.

I was given an early copy in exchange for my honest review. ( )