Basics of Biblical Hebrew Grammar: Second Edition

This is a well laid out grammar with extensive help on every key grammatical point. I think many of the reviews here I have read bring out good points, however, there is a bias in this grammar that I didn't see mentioned. I'd like to point that out here.

This book uses the traditional pronunciation guides that were used in many older grammars and in Seminaries years ago. However, it is not the only traditional pronunciation of Hebrew. Yet this grammar presents it's pronunciation as if it was the traditional mode. This is unfortunate because it's not completely accurate and because the pronunciation guide used here will cause many of the words you learn using it to sound like you learned Hebrew in a western language Seminary. It would be better if grammars like this switched to the modern pronunciation of Hebrew, since there are millions of Jews living today who speak modern Hebrew.

Also, this Grammar has more detail in some ways than a 'basics' book ought to have, but I really love the way it is laid out and the format of the material.

Therefore, I give it a four star.

This is by far the best update to the Basics of Biblical Hebrew text book to date. Lay open design with extra wide margins for notes. Red letters to show endings and changes to words. Very easy to read and very logical instruction. In combination with the Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary course OT500 (taught by the author), the Hebrew text comes to life. Great instruction by a great instructor. Very nice companion CD for further study. A must for anyone wanting a better understanding of the Hebrew text. Appropriate for pastors,teachers, and students of the Bible.

This book has a lot of information in it. It also has useful chapter vocabulary words and examples. I would like to have seen mor transliteration in the early chapters in order to get the nhang of pronunciation and spelling.

While Weingreen introduced me to Hebrew, Basics of Biblical Hebrew (BBH) is a perfect refresher text. Professor Pratico and Van Pelt move very slowly and carefully, taking care not to barrage students with more than the absolutely essential basics. However, this can test the eager and "short nosed" polyglots in the class very quickly. While everyone may not need to repeat their first year of Hebrew (or for that matter want to do so even if they did), I find BBH a pleasant organizational tool for the corpus of latent Hebrew in my head. All my comments must be understood as coming from a "repeater" and not a first-time love of this ANE language. So when i give it 5 stars, I do so in thanks for what it has offered me in organization, and not necessarily initial presentation of the language.

For all those who must learn Hebrew, this text is a must have; as you learn Hebrew, you will have questions. This text has answers to your Hebrew grammar questions.