By Dr. Douglas F. Levesque, Founder of The Levesque Institute
New technologies are making everyday activities easier. Pay at the pump gasoline, online banking, and news by cell phone are examples of modern science made friendly. Now, the intricacies of Bible study and even interpretation have also become ‘palm accessible’. Moses must be glad the antiquities and timeless principles of the Bible have now gone high tech.
Software Applications
Imagine reading Ancient scripture on your computer screen and coming across the King James English, “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” What does “tittle“ mean? With the click of a mouse button, the unfamiliar word appears alongside its equivalent in the original tongue. The Greek word is ‘keraiah’. The definition follows, “a little horn or extremity. Used by Greek grammarians of the (languages’) accent points.“ Also, other places that word is used in the old book are highlighted, “Luke 16:17”. Links to other resources of significance instantly improve the knowledge of even the casual student. A score of such programs from various publishers are available in multiple price ranges and features. It is truly easier than ever to, “study to show thyself approved unto God” (II Tim. 2:15). This author is impressed with the EBible by Thomas Nelson Publishers. It’s ‘Libronex’ operating system allows the user to download new materials as they become available and interface lots of material at once.
Internet Resources
For those with online capability there are also extensive Bible study web sites. The Blue Letter Bible (www.blueletterbible.org) has quick search engines that locate verses, words or phrases, definitions and more. There are extensive archives of encyclopedias, atlases, and language helps. Pastors, scholars, and students used to spend thousands of dollars for hard to find resources in order to fully ‘study’ Scripture. Now an hour online can produce a treasure trove of information to help even the first time reader to learn more efficiently. A simple web search will deliver dozens of online Bible resources that offer varying degrees of sophistication and usability. These High Tech solutions continue to prove the Bible accurate, “My words shall not pass away” (Matt. 24:35).
Bible Smuggling
The Iron and Bamboo Curtains have not been able to stop the influence and spread of printed Bibles getting into the hands of common people, but smuggling Bibles into closed countries is more dangerous than extreme sports these days. The Islamic curtain is using terror to stop the ways of the west from entering their domain, but these new high tech Bible study tools are pretty difficult to keep away from a people who long for liberty. There will always be the need for printed Bibles, and downloading to a desktop printer is now just an icon click away. No more risky smuggling.
If ‘google bombing’ has become a WMT or Weapon of Mass Technology, then the high-tech Bible can prove to be liberty’s greatest sword! “For the word of God [is] quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and [is] a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Heb. 4:12).