The smartest Bible Scholars you've ever met

I just got an email from a Logos user who was sharing some thoughts on how to continue to be the best Bible software in the world. He encouraged me by saying: "I'm sure you are already doing this, but make sure you keep a good handful of academics involved in the design of L4 particularly in original languages."

With all our preparations for the ETS/SBL conferences recently, and in preparing for a new blog post on this topic, I just happened to have a list of some of the advanced degrees our employees have earned. This is by no means comprehensive, and doesn't even begin to cover perhaps hundreds of undergradute degrees, but take a look at how we have taken this advice to heart. We have already purposefully pursued the experts in the top of each field as a result of our dedication to not only being the most user-friendly and accessible Bible software in the world, but also to be the most powerful and scholarly Bible software in the world.

Just take a look at a few of the advanced degrees and honors our employees have earned.

Ph.D. Theology
Ph.D. Hebrew and Semitic Studies
Ph.D. Computer Science
Master of Biblical Studies
Master of Divinity
Master of Bible
Doctor of Literature in Biblical Languages
Master of Theological Studies in Biblical Languages
Master of Arts in Hebrew and Semitic Studies
Master of Arts in Ancient History, Ancient Egypt and Syria-Palestine
Master of Arts in Linguistics
Master of Theology
Master of Arts in Theology
Master of Linguistics
Master of Fine Arts Writing
Master of the Christian Studies in Biblical Languages
Master of Divinity
Master of Business Administration
Master of Science in Computer Science
Master of Divinity
Master of Business Administration
Master of Arts in Biblical Studies, Greek, Hebrew and Syriac
Master of Arts in Biblical Studies
Master of Science in Computer Science
Master of Arts in Social Work
Master of Computer Science
Master of Arts MFCC

Academic Leadership Positions:

2009-2010, President, Northwest Region of the Evangelical Theological Society
2008-2009, Vice-President, Northwest Region of the Evangelical Theological Society
2008-2010, Program Unit Chair, Bible and Technology Section, International Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature

Academic Honors:

Leila Custard History Award, Bob Jones University, 1986
Ancient History Department scholarship, University of Pennsylvania, 1990
James L. Weinstein Fellowship in Hebrew Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1995
Scholarship, Wisconsin Society for Jewish Learning, University of Wisconsin-Madison; 1996, 1997
Society of Biblical Literature Regional Scholar Award, 2007

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Comments

Steven L. Spencer

Let me recommend that you include Dr. Daniel Wallace as an adviser. He heads the Greek department and Dallas Theological Seminary--and is one of the foremost Greek scholars today. Plus, he's one of the nicest and kindest men I have had the privilege to know. He's the driving force behind the NET Bible. His expertise in Greek would make him an invaluable resource person. Blessings to all, Steve Spencer

Robert Pavich

I would only comment that we have a familiarity with the folks at Logos and that makes us "forget" that they aren't slouches in their fields just because they chose to put their talent to work at Logos instead of a straight academic setting.

There are several Logos Employess I'd be glad to be cloned with.... [:D]

Matthew C Jones

Just take a look at a few of the advanced degrees and honors our employees have earned.

And it shows, in the quality of the software and momentum of the company.

With these on staff and the new possibilities of Logos 4, I don't see why Logos does not establish an online-only semimary.

Disclaimers:
(Yes, I do know there already are some online seminaries out there.)
(Yes, I do know, Logos Bible software is already used in many seminaries.)
(Yes, I do know it will require a paradigm shift for the establishment to embrace this possibility.)
(Yes, we may have to wander in the wilderness for 40 years while God kills off the old guard who refuse to embrace the future visvion.)

Don

Dan,
May I humbly suggest you consider someone with a Library Science degree to work in cataloguing so we can have a standardization of authors' names (how many ways does MacArthur's name show up 11? and some others are not even last, first, middle) and Titles, Series, etc.

Dan Pritchett

Dan,
May I humbly suggest you consider someone with a Library Science degree to work in cataloguing so we can have a standardization of authors' names (how many ways does MacArthur's name show up 11? and some others are not even last, first, middle) and Titles, Series, etc.

Believe it or not, we are all over this! [:)]

Our mother, [{]Jenni Pritchett,[}] is actually a former president of the Church and Synagogue Library Association a published author on Library Reference as well as president and founder of Librarian's Helper, one of the very first professional librarian card cataloging software programs ever!

I believe Bob has addressed this before, and may yet again, but one of the issues involved is that, as true and good Library Science would suggest, we have to be true to the books. The issue with MacArthur, for example, is that he has been published by so many publishers and has written so many books, that they did not all decide on one standard naming convention.

We have overcome this problem by creating a system where you may search your library universally for any part of the author's name and get all their books, or even make dynamic collections. There is a good blog post and video about this here: http://blog.logos.com/archives/2009/11/wow_thats_cool.html

With the universal search implemented on your Logos 4 library any search for; j macarthur, macarthur, macarthur j... will get you the same results—all the titles you were looking for.

Don

Thanks for the link!

Brice J. Braillard

I suppose a strength would be to revisit some of your resources and correct their inaccuracies. Easton's is full of them, Strong's isn't even very accurate in some details. It makes research unreliable and timely to double check the bible everytime I pull up a concordance list or commentaries' view.

Don't get me wrong------Libronix is incredible. Cross-reference capabilities and all. I own the Scholar's edition and have never been happier with the software technology.

But if you build the best vehicle on the market and put faulty firestone tires on it...it matters.

On a side note or rather to the point of the question...You could look into bringing these commentary, dictionary and concordance scholar's together (or at least their protege's) to come to some sort of rational conclusion to the vast differences in their texts. Like perhaps, Biblical conclusions.

Take the ten lost tribes of Israel...

The Reubenites, Gadites and Half-tribe of Manasseh are in Halah, Habor, Hara and the river of Gozan (1 Chronicles 5:26)

The Simeonites are in the hill country of Seir (1 Chronicles 4:42)

I am still looking for the other 6, but if you believe in the written word and the "tests for Canonicity", then looking at it from that perspective should eventually provide results.

How is it that in most of the commentaries in your program...have 1 Chronicles 6 (the Geneology of the Levi) so...? 6:19-21 (of Gershon) in particular; Of Gershon; Libni his son, Jehath his son, Zimmah his son, Joah his son, Iddo his son, Zerah his son and Jeatherai his son.

If you read the sentence right before 6:20, it states the truth of this listing that each one of these men were not the father of the next in line...but rather that this is a list of the fathers of the clans of Gershon.

Perhaps, in the conclusion, the commentary editors were looking at the fact that the fathers of the clans are listed so...

Of Gershon:

The descendants of Kohath:

The descendants of Merari:

In which case a statement could be made that they (1 Chron 6:20, 21) were sons "Of" Gershon and not his descendants. Unless you use Libronix and trace the ancestory of each of the men on that list and no where else in the written word are these men the "seed" of each other.

Of course, getting members of these institutions together...and getting them to agree...perhaps might be to GREAT an undertaking for "The smartest Bible scholars, you've ever met".

Perhaps, you could begin a difinitive breakdown of the facts of the bible AS IT IS WRITTEN. Show no fear for Revelation 22:18, 19 and God be merciful.

Maybe the true number of Israelites that came out of Egypt would tarry some weight? The key to its answer lies in Jacob's blessing of Manasseh and Ephraim in Genesis 48 and the chapters of Numbers 1 and 26 comparitively.

Maybe the destruction of Adultery by God at Creation, before the fall of man?

So many truths revealed and yet, so many more to go...

Merry Christ'mas and may God bless your endevours.

Brice J. Braillard

Sorry, guess I just say it as it is...on the number of Israelite's that came out of Egypt.

Try Numbers 26:4 1/2 ---- after the paragraph break ---- and then go look at Jacob on his death bed in Genesis 48.

God Bless

Tes

I suggest ,that you may include the Amharic bible (Ethiopian language) Hailesellasie 1 in your format in logos 4.

Robert Pavich

I suggest ,that you may include the Amharic bible (Ethiopian language) Hailesellasie 1 in your format in logos 4.

Tes,

posting the same topic many times does nothing but clog up the forum.

Please post suggestions in the "suggestion" section of the forum.

thanks,

bob

Mark Barnes

Dan,

I appreciate (in part) the problems with metadata but:

There are some glaring errors. The two New American Commentaries released this week have a missing series tag. This is not MARC data, this is Logos data!
There is no reason why Logos can't have a canonical or definitive publisher/author field for Library/Collection purposes, even if you have to have inconsistent MARC records data within resources.
If you look at the wiki, you'll see a long list of metadata correction proposals. The vast majority of these are problems with Logos tagging, not MARC/LOC records.

In Logos 3, we probably wouldn't have cared about any of this. But in Logos 4 it matters because of the wonderful new collections/library features. Please, can your mom help us to use those features properly by correcting the data [:)]

Tes

I suggest ,that you may include the Amharic bible (Ethiopian language) Hailesellasie 1 in your format in logos 4.

Tes,

posting the same topic many times does nothing but clog up the forum.

Please post suggestions in the "suggestion" section of the forum.

thanks,

bob

Thank you Logos for the Personal book. This time has been changed.