Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words: With Topical Index

Some Tips:
(a) If you want to use this book, you must have KJV of the Bible alongside VCED. All entries are given in KJV word.
(b) To save a step, you might want to consider using, "The New Enlgishman's Greek Concordance and Lexicon (Hendrickson Publisher)." It is also coded with Strong's number and uses KJV renderings of the verse.

All in all, it is an excellent tool for Bible Study. I heartily recommend it to all believers.


Accessible foundation   December 11, 2000
Kyle Maxwell (Irving, TX)
65 out of 65 found this review helpful

This is a classic, essential reference, right there with Strong's, and with good reason. If you don't have an expository dictionary of Bible words from the original languages, then you should start with this one. Some terms are discussed in depth, others more sparsely, but it gives you a good feel for the meaning of important terms.

As you become more comfortable with examining the meanings of the original Hebrew or Greek words, you may find yourself wanting more, and so there are other, more in-depth dictionaries available. But this is quite accessible and an excellent starting point. Vine's is also fairly denomination-neutral, being careful not to expound too much on opinion, but sticking to the business of objectively defining the word.

If you're looking for an expository dictionary and don't have one, this is the place to start.


Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testame   February 25, 2000
33 out of 33 found this review helpful

This is an excellent resource for someone new to doing word studies. It includes Strong's Concordance numbers for each word making it easy to differentiate between various meanings. You do not need to know the original language to find the original meaning. I use it in conjunction with either Strongs Exhaustive Concordance or with Zodhiates Word Study Bible. I highly recommend it for anyone wanting to do further research and get more accurate information from their Bible study.


Great Book......but understand it is not the final end.   July 1, 2000
Glenn Davis eaglesky@netdoor.com (Plantersville, MS United States)
29 out of 29 found this review helpful

I am a student of New Testament Greek. Researching in the Greek is one of my favorite things to do. My library is small, but includes some good research books. I must say at first that I thoroughly enjoy my Vine's.

I use Vine's everytime that I do research. It is a good resource and full of information. But I must caution those who intend to use this book w/out any knowledge of Greek, that you will have to put forth some effort into this book. At times there are words that come across, such as "passive use, middle intensive, conditional clause", which will only make sense if the reader understands Greek. I know of an English teacher who has a hard time w/ Greek...mainly because, for example, an infinitive in Greek is not the same as an infinitive in English. So understand that the labeling of words in Vine's is from a Greek standpoint.....not English.

In my studies I have discovered that many times Vine's is unable to ascertain the meaning/definition of the use of a word. It's use to me that is it has logically grouped words together, and summarizes (at best) the usage of the words in the New Testament. In my corresponding research w/ Kittel's and Colin Brown, I have found the groupings of Vine's to be somewhat consistent.

When I need a quick look at a word, I always go to Vine's. If I need in-depth study, I pull my other books out.

This book will be a huge benefit for anyone who serious studies the New Testament. I believe that those who do casual study will not gain the full use of this book.

For those who are looking for in-depth insight and knowledge into the use of Greek words and language will not find much benefit from this book. Those who do want to see the "richness" of the original text will need to embark on a life-long study of New Testament Greek.


a win-win situation   June 2, 2000
20 out of 20 found this review helpful

For the student who is just starting to seriously study the Word, Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary should be the next book on your list to get after you have acquired Strong's Concordance and a Bible Dictionary. With those three volumes alone, you are quite able to dig in deeper into the meanings of important or unfamiliar words and concepts, and you are well on your way to having a solid foundation for your biblical study library.

This newer edition is not only re-typeset so that it looks more modern and is easier to read than older editions, but it also has a really great feature - the entires you are looking up are not written in the original languages - they are written in English! Unlike other lexicons which utilize entries only in the original tongue, Vine's does not even require you to be able to read the entry in a different language, so as soon as you get the book you can start looking up words and benefit from the wealth of information that is contained inside. The short articles give you a lot of "meaty" and useful information but do not get bogged down in a lot of technical jargon. For those who prefer looking up the original word, there is also a Greek word index (sorry no Hebrew) and several other helps, so it is really a win-win situation.