Learning the basics of Biblical Hebrew from a book

“Our knowledge of Biblical Hebrew is directly dependent upon Jewish oral tradition and thus on the state of that tradition during and following the various dispersions of the Jews from Palestine. This dependence arises from the peculiarly deficient orthography in which the biblical text was written: it is essentially vowelless, or at most, vocalically ambiguous (see below, §8). The actual pronunciation of the language was handed down orally … The written consonantal text itself achieved a final authoritative form around the end of the first century A. D.”

– The introduction to Thomas O. Lambdin’s “Introduction to Biblical Hebrew” (1971), pages xiii-xiv

For nearly three years, I have read Thomas O. Lambdin’s “Introduction to Biblical Hebrew” – some 284 pages of it. Specifically, I read it from 14 August 2022 through 25 July 2025, at which time I completely finished it – excepting the appendices, index, and the entirety of the glossaries (although I read many parts of these glossaries). I did this completely from a book, and never had the benefit of a classroom, a professor, or a native speaker – or even a recording of one, for that matter! I’ve never heard so much as one hour of audio of the language, even from non-native speakers, and this made it somewhat daunting at times. It may have increased the difficulty level in at least some ways, and I don’t recommend it to others unless other options are not available (as they were not for me).

Is it better to be a generalist or a specialist?

“Jack of all trades,

And master of none,

But oftentimes better

Than a master of one.”

– Paraphrase of an old saying

An anecdote about Leonardo da Vinci, and the origins of the term “Renaissance Man”

During the Italian Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci achieved great successes in an astonishing variety of fields. He was celebrated as a great painter, draftsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. The Italian Renaissance has since become associated with people like Leonardo, whose accomplishments are so broad and varied. Indeed, it is from this era that we get the term “Renaissance Man” – and, of course, the corresponding term “Renaissance Woman.” These two terms describe people like Leonardo, who achieved success in a wide variety of fields. But there have been people like this in many different periods, which is why there are other terms than those referencing the Italian Renaissance. This includes the term “polymath,” a more formal word. This just comes from two Greek words that translate to “many areas of learning.”

Leonardo da Vinci, one of the greatest generalists in history

Reflections on the proper role of self-education

“Never let your schooling interfere with your education.”

– Possibly a paraphrase of author Grant Allen, although it is often misattributed to Mark Twain

Not all learning is done in a classroom …

One of the saddest things I’ve seen is when people have no curiosity. They may suppose that they’ve learned everything that they need to know, and that they don’t need to learn any more. I don’t think that everyone needs to keep reading textbooks (although I like to do this myself), but I think that people should continue to learn long after they leave school. Fortunately, not all learning is done in a classroom – many life experiences can be educational in some way. You can learn some things in the real world that you would never learn in a classroom. And you can keep reading and keep thinking, and be open to what life has to teach you.

Me when I graduated from Yavapai College, which is now my employer

The wisdom of the ages: The enduring legacy of books

“I cannot live without books; but fewer will suffice where amusement, and not use, is the only future object.”

– Thomas Jefferson, in a letter to John Adams (10 June 1815)

Books allow us to hear from people long dead, and speak to people yet unborn

More than 3,000 years ago, an epic poem was written in Ancient Mesopotamia. It is known as the “Epic of Gilgamesh,” and it is now available as a book. It is still being read, and still being studied – more than 30 centuries after its publication! It’s one of the oldest surviving pieces of literature in human history. The book is proof that writing allows you to “hear from people long dead, and speak to people yet unborn” – to paraphrase some words often attributed to Abraham Lincoln. None of those viewing this post were alive when this book was written. None of them ever met the authors, or even saw the grainiest photograph of them – let alone the people themselves. But we can still read a translation of their words, almost as though we could hear their voices. In a way, their voices can still speak to us, and their words still echo in the ears of the living.

The Epic of Gilgamesh, on clay tablets

Frederick Douglass took a great risk by learning how to read

Note: This post quotes from Frederick Douglass’s memoir, where he recounts racist treatment that he received from various white men. Although he quotes their offensive language, this post has censored out the racial slurs, indicating only by brackets that the unfortunate “N-word” was the word used in the original quotations.

Before the Civil War, a young slave secretly took a great risk by learning how to read ...

Before the Civil War, a young slave secretly took a great risk by learning how to read. The young slave’s name was Frederick Douglass, and he would later become a tireless campaigner in the cause of black freedom. First he would campaign against slavery, and then he would campaign for civil rights. (But I’m getting ahead of myself.)

Frederick Douglass in the 1860s, long after his being held as a slave

Frederick Douglass would later recount this story in a famous memoir

After he had escaped to the North, Frederick Douglass would later write a memoir. It was simply entitled “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave (Written By Himself).” This memoir was first published in 1845. In it, he describes his experiences as a slave, writing the most influential account ever given about American slavery. Most relevantly for our present subject, he recounts his secret undertaking to learn how to read, while under the domination of White Southerners. The writing speaks so well for itself that very little commentary will be needed to dramatize it, or put it into perspective.

Original edition of this memoir

Yes, Blackstone’s “Commentaries” influenced Abraham Lincoln (and here’s the proof)

“The election of 1834 came, and [Abraham Lincoln] was then elected to the Legislature [of Illinois] by the highest vote cast for any candidate. Major John T. Stuart, then in full practice of the law, was also elected. During the canvass, in a private conversation he encouraged [Abe to] study law. After the election [Abe] borrowed books of Stuart, took them home with him, and went at it in good earnest. He studied with nobody. He still mixed in the surveying to pay board and clothing bills. When the Legislature met, the law books were dropped, but were taken up again at the end of the session.”

– Abraham Lincoln’s “Autobiography Written for John L. Scripps” (circa June 1860), in which Lincoln strangely is referring to himself in the third person (as shown above)

There was an official campaign biography of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 …

Sir William Blackstone died nearly three decades before Abraham Lincoln was born. But Blackstone would nonetheless have an influence on the young Lincoln through one of his books, as many others have noted. In the year 1860, William Dean Howells wrote the “Life of Abraham Lincoln,” the official campaign biography of Abraham Lincoln (not to be confused with the above-quoted autobiography). This campaign biography was subject to revisions by Lincoln himself. Lincoln did indeed make some modifications whenever he deemed it necessary, but he did not alter the part about Blackstone that I’m going to quote here.

Sir William Blackstone

… which briefly talked about Lincoln’s legal education back in the 1830’s

The passage is about Lincoln’s legal education, which seems to have been gained sometime back in the 1830’s. Lincoln was in his twenties when getting this education. Thus, here is the portion of this biography about Lincoln’s reading of Sir William Blackstone:

William Dean Howells, author of this campaign biography of Lincoln

Learning the basics of Ancient Greek from a book

"The study of Ancient Greek has long been a bookish pursuit, and rightly so. For this language we have only the books (and other writings) of the Ancient Greeks to study. We have only part of a language, the part that can be written down."

- Preface to C. A. E. Luschnig's "An Introduction to Ancient Greek: A Literary Approach" (the book that I read), 2nd edition (2007), page x

It took me three and a half years to read this

For three and a half years, I have read C. A. E. Luschnig's "An Introduction to Ancient Greek: A Literary Approach," 2nd edition - some 280 pages of it. Specifically, I read it from 28 September 2013 through 13 May 2017, at which time I completely finished it. I did so completely from a book, and never had the benefit of a classroom, a professor, or a native speaker - or even a recording of one, for that matter! I've never heard so much as one hour of audio of the language, even from non-native speakers, and this made it somewhat daunting at times. It may have increased the difficulty level in at least some ways, and I don't recommend it to others unless other options are not available (as they were not for me). It was a long process that was sometimes tedious (though usually not at all so), but I'm nonetheless glad that I read it. It's given me access to the world of Ancient Greece, and may one day give me access to various parts of the Bible in the original.