(Part 1)

JBTM Book Reviews
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also receive attention and the commentary provides a wealth of information. In particular,
the examination of Black Gospel music is fascinating. The authors also provide valuable
material on Primitive, Landmark, Independent, and a myriad of other Baptist entities and
how they fit into the larger Baptist story.
There are no major flaws in this text. The authors aim to tell the story of American
Baptists and do so in a scholarly yet accessible manner. Virtually all significant content is
included. Also, the bibliography is extensive, and the internal notation easily allows readers
to locate the primary source for further information. I highly recommend Baptists in America:
A History with no reservations to Baptists who want to know their history as well as to non-
Baptists who want to know about the denomination.
- Joseph Early Jr., Campbellsville University, Campbellsville, Kentucky
Beginning Biblical Hebrew: A Grammar and Illustrated Reader. By John A. Cook and
Robert D. Holmstedt. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2013. 332 pages. Paperback,
$40.00.
In the past few decades, publishers have produced a phenomenal number of Hebrew
grammars. The number of new students has not overwhelmed the academy to the point of
needing new and better learning tools and a glut of new grammars. Nor has our knowledge of
Hebrew grammar developed, for the most part, to the point of needing publishers to produce
a rapidly increasing number of textbooks. So why then are so many Hebrew grammars
emerging on the market? And what does the present volume add to the mix?
John Cook and Robert Holmstedt explain that their new textbook arose out of the same
situation as most others of this recent generation – “the authors’ dissatisfaction with the
available grammars” (9). While the authors state that the available grammars did not satisfy
them and motivated them to produce their own grammar, the reader may infer another factor.
Language curriculum and pedagogy, more than in other disciplines, depends heavily on the
pedagogical philosophy of the professor. The student learning outcomes and ordering of
material can vary greatly from class to class. Furthermore, as Cook and Holmstedt point out
in their preface, most other Hebrew textbooks lean strongly on a grammar translation model.
The authors of this new grammar sought to incorporate new ideas – at least new to the study
of biblical languages – from the science of second language acquisition, and also to avoid
the large amounts of detailed grammatical information and metalinguistic jargon of other
grammars, borne out of a change of aim. The authors do not want primarily for students to be
able to translate a text—in this case the Hebrew Bible—but rather to understand a language
system.