I have been doing some Hebrew and Aramaic word studies, and I am just blown away by how inadequate the English language is to interpret words in the original biblical languages. Is there a way to find all of the deep meanings of the original text without going to seminary?

While getting formal training in languages and translation, such as the courses offered through the Moody Bible Institute and Moody Theological Seminary, is of great value, there are some simple ways you can dig deeper into your Bible study at the word level. Appreciating two simple principles and using a good Bible concordance can help with your desire to understand the Bible in its original languages.

First, we need to realize that words do not have deep or deeper meanings. God, through the authors of the Bible, was not trying to conceal hidden meanings in the words He inspired. What some Bible teachers suggest are deeper meanings can simply be literary devices like allusions, typology, foreshadowing, plays on words, etc. While these are legitimate observations, they are not discovered by diving into the meanings of words, which leads to the second principle.

We need to understand that words mean things in context. Take the English word “love” as an example. I love the Lord, I love my wife, I love the New York Yankees, and I love Firecakes donuts. Each of these loves is different! There may be similarities, but it would be silly to take one sense of the word “love” and apply it in every single context. Yet often we do just that! Some people try to understand and apply every meaning of a word, each time that word occurs in Scripture. English does not work this way, neither do the languages of the Bible. Context is the key to understanding the word in question.

A great tool to help you with your Bible study at the word level is a Bible concordance, such as the classic Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance. Bible study software, for example, the Logos Bible study app, can also provide in-depth understanding of individual words. A concordance catalogues every word in a specific translation of the Bible and can help you better appreciate a word’s meaning in context. By looking at the various contexts in which a word is used, you can identify which meaning is most appropriate for the word in the verse or passage that you are investigating.