Now, with the help of this little book, you can begin to be your own Biblical historian! You need no longer puzzle over those cryptic little footnotes in the Bible text, or rely so entirely on the Experts to tell you what the Hebrew means, or what the Greek implies: in addition, you can begin to obtain an insight into the supposedly arcane languages of the early Bible translations, whether the Syriac, a kind of “sloppy Hebrew” and the nearest thing to Aramaic – or Coptic, the uniquely evocative language of Christian Egypt, or the ancient Ethiopic of the interiorof Africa, where Writings can be found that are found nowhere else.
Here is a concise guide for everyone who has hitherto struggled with the ancient languages, and found the conventional sources difficult to use: its no-nonsense brevity deals rapidly in each case with the script and the main features of the language, in order to provide a basic passive reading knowledge, while those who wish to proceed to more in-depth studies are given a basic knowledge and the confidence to use other materials.
The book also stands on its own, as part of a series of booklets from the same publisher on the lesser-known languages of the world, being a quick reference tool for the intelligent reader, and a source of enjoyment for those who enjoy linguistic explorations.