Biblical Hebrew: How good should my Greek be first? When to learn Hebrew if you're learning Greek

When should I start learning Hebrew? This was a question a number of Greek students asked me recently on one of our member's calls. This is a great question, and seminaries often have you learn both together. Is this the best way? Here are my suggestions to help you know when you should learn Hebrew if you're already working on Greek.
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[@DerMelodist]

I’m a graduate from seminary and I had to learn both Hebrew and Greek. I’m also working on Latin but that’s merely for fun and besides the point of your question. I nearly failed my first semester Greek because it was a summer intensive course. I took a break from the Greek course work for a year but I would practice vocabulary and read a little bit each day out of Mark and 1 John. I read both books repeatedly and now I feel very confident with my Greek and I love it. Daily Dose of Greek was a Godsend during that time. Hebrew was definitely the more challenging of the two languages for me. The challenge came from a complete unfamiliarity with the script, words, and phonetics with consonants like ayin. It was only when Aleph with Beth’s channel started publishing lessons where my Hebrew then began to take off. I went from doing the worst in the beginners classes to being in the top of the final classes as well as tutoring others. Of the two now, Hebrew is still more of a challenge. However, daily practice is the key to mastering both languages. If you’re reading this, I know and God knows you can learn both. שלום and έρρωσο!

[@NomosCharis]

I just finished my 4th semester of Greek and am about to officially start Hebrew. I have to say, I am grateful that I didn’t try to do both at the same time. Whoa, boy, whoa…

[@randybrown1801]

Me too. I finished 4th semester Greek last week and will start Hebrew in the fall. Can’t believe I considered trying both at the same time to finish my MDiv faster.

[@user-kilrilirrlri]

Hi u did them in offline course or online. Do u have any suggestions for free online courses or feasible? Thank you

[@alexev526]

I took two Hebrew grammar classes, three Hebrew exegesis classes, and now am finishing with Intermediate Hebrew while doing Greek 1. I did a 3 month greek crash course a long time ago, but I remember a lot of the vocabulary, which is making everything else a lot easier. Practice, practice, practice, and read out loud a lot. Greek has a much easier alphabet and vocabulary for native English speakers, but a much more developed verbal system. Hebrew has a very complex vocabulary, tons of morphological changes, but is a simpler grammar than Greek

[@lucajacovig8159]

I love Greek and Hebrew ❤ amazing languages

[@markelmore66]

I took one year of Attic Greek at UGA and then began Biblical Hebrew the following year and continued second year Greek at the same time. Because I had learned the fundamentals of Greek, I didn’t have the interference of learning the fundamentals of both. In second year Greek, we translated “Oedipus The King” so the focus was not on grammar and paradigms as was beginning Hebrew. After graduating with 2 years of each, I joined the Air Force and became an Arabic Cryptolinguist. Hebrew was invaluable to learning Arabic and I picked up Arabic grammar faster and also learned so much more about the glosses of Semitic words which profoundly helped my understanding of OT Hebrew. In short - my advice is this: you can learn both at the same time but STAGGER them where you are beyond the grammar of one and focusing on translation while learning the initial vocabulary and grammar of the other. It doesn’t matter which one you do first - the important thing is to just start!

[@johnathanblauw2608]

So I've learned a considerable amount of Latin, and I'm starting to learn Greek. Personally, I'm Catholic, of the traditional variety, and so I'm really excited about learning Greek, and my primary mode of attack and understanding is through formulaic prayer, such as the rosary, creed, the Lord's Prayer, the angelic salutation, the Jesus prayer, and so on. There are so many resources from the orthodox, that help me learn some of these basic pronunciations, so that I can get my feet wet without having to start with dry grammar and vocabulary and so on. But I'm excited to move into that eventually!

[@theoglossa]

Hi Dr. Darryl. Thank you for your warm welcome to the Greek Mastery Membership. SDG! I just enrolled to Greek Mastery while learning Hebrew with Dr. Tony Costa.

[@storyofscripture]

Yes thank you for giving me this video, I am asking myself this question right now

[@Scobyland]

I had two semesters of Hebrew in 1975. Was difficult. Failed first semester, got a B second semester. I know enough to still read a bit, if vowels are shown, and do word studies. In 1977-78, I had two semesters of Greek. I did well both semesters, but didn’t keep up with it. I can read it. I can do word studies. In any case, having found your videos, I will get back into it. Thank you.

[@renzquizon2505]

Thank you for making this video. I'll definitely take note of this.

[@faithfulapologetics]

Great advice!

[@dooglitas]

Great advice.

[@storyofscripture]

I started learning Greek in Nov 2020 and finished Greek grammar 1 in March of 2021, since then I have read another beginner Greek grammar other than the logos course I first took, increased vocab words to roughly 1700 words, read about 10 books of the GNT using the MNTG student edition vocab. What I should do in addition to the vocab is work on parsing, I need to get an app for that and incorporate it. I'd like to finish a Gospel eventually before starting Hebrew, so I have Jude, then James after finishing Galatians, then finally Gospel of John as well as finish the going deeper intermediate Greek grammar I started.

[@isosoriharrison9556]

I heard both languages can be difficult and so before I start seminary I want to get a grasp and mastery over this topic. I got the book that she recommended for Greek and I also got a hermeneutics book as well. My goal is to start teaching people without using means of sources. I want to be able to look at text and actually teach a to a degree that I can help people understand scripture to the most precise manner.

[@frankmckinley1254]

I read Hebrew fairly well but have not learned Greek yet.

[@hongkongcantonese501]

If studying more than one language, it is best to have a solid foundation in one, before starting the other, if you want to be “fluent” in both.

[@AtiShard16]

I honestly think one should start with Hebrew. The Hebrew Bible is the foundation for the NT.

[@dooglitas]

What you say is partly true. The NT is the foundation of Christianity. The Old Testament is foundational for background, but it is not foundational for Christian theology and doctrine. Personally, I find Hebrew infinitely more difficult to grasp. I find it very alien. I am very comfortable with my Greek after many years of study. I find Hebrew perplexing. And I am not as motivated to study through the difficulties as I am with Greek.

[@DanNaim400]

@@dooglitas u missing the Good staff

[@dooglitas]

@@DanNaim400 Perhaps, but I don't think so. I have studied Hebrew and have several grammars and study books. I didn't I don't read the Hebrew OT. I just said that I am not as motivated to study Hebrew as I am to studying Greek and the New Testament.

[@AtiShard16]

@@dooglitas The NT is secondary. God's primary revelation is the Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible. When Paul said "all scripture is God breathed", he was taking about the Hebrew Tanakh. The Greek NT directs us back to the Tanakh. The NT is God-breathed as well but it always instructs us to read the Tanakh. Hebrew is a holy language, Greek is not.

[@dooglitas]

@@AtiShard16 The NT is not secondary. It is the culmination of all the prophecies of the OT. Jesus is the personification of God's word. He is the Word of God. The NT is the revelation of our redemption. The OT is directed to National Israel. The law was for the nation of Israel. Jesus fulfilled the law. He was the final sacrifice. It is NOT secondary. Without Jesus Christ, there is no salvation. The Jews have the Tanakh, but they do not have redemption. They are lost souls. The temple is destroyed. Do you even read the NT? Do you even believe in Jesus Christ?

[@angelofasanaro1584]

For a inhabitants of Malta it is not difficult reading a page of bible or Greek Koinè.Torá or translation of text in Koinè is possibile.

[@heavenlyboy34]

I dabbled in Arabic before taking a Koine Greek class. Arabic is way harder. I imagine related languages like Hebrew would be as well.

[@DanNaim400]

Wish I knew Greek to read the Brit Hadasha

[@BiblicalStudiesandReviews]

Great video! Can’t seem to be first to comment anymore 😂

[@GinaBurlingham]

Shalom shabbot .... Hallo fruendin gutem tag ihnen.

[@stevenhart6788]

Do you have a recommendation on the best Grammar for beginning students of Hebrew?

[@TheRichiesInPeru]

What Hebrew Grammar/s do you recommend for self study? I already have years of Greek under my belt, and am ready to jump in to Hebrew.

[@rarapope]

I learned firt Hebrew, and in my opinion greek is much more challenging than the OT languages.

[@pierreabbat6157]

I started Hebrew before Greek, and even before I knew God, when a math prof from Israel visited Cincinnati. But my Hebrew is not as good as my Greek. The question doesn't make sense, as the languages are unrelated and neither builds on the other. "How good should my Danish be before I start learning Icelandic?" would make more sense.

[@Xargxes]

Is there a Hebrew Old Testament that has the Greek Septuagint or Latin Vetus Testamentum as an interlinear? I am native Greek and have no issues reading Koine and Latin, but would love to get better at (Biblical) Hebrew. Was told that an interlinear bible would really help with my reading skills. Any other tips for learning Hebrew are obviously welcome! Thanks so much for your amazing content. Pax tibi.

[@pierreabbat6157]

I have a NIV triglot which has Hebrew, Greek, and English in three columns, not interlinear. I've seen a Hebrew-English interlinear, but found it hard to read, because the two languages are written in opposite directions.

[@yoseffeigenbaum9639]

Hebrew should be 1st even though Greek is easier for English speakers.

[@elderinisrael]

Honestly, you don't have to learn Greek to learn Hebrew, the two languages aren't even related. Learning Greek will not help in learning Hebrew.

[@garlandjones7709]

Are there any Hebrew graduates in here? I have a question on a syntactic issue with translating Genesis 1:7 that I have found little to zero information on.

[@Micah88]

Hey there. I hope you're doing well. You mentioned that you chose to learn Hebrew first before Koine Greek. I was thinking about this, and the majority of biblical text is actually found in the OT, like 70% approximately. I was watching another channel called "Disciple Dojo" and he made that claim as well. That as believers we tend to focus so much on the NT, but majority of the bible is based on the OT scriptures and that the NT constantly reflects and goes back to the OT. So, if we truly wanted a more rich and full understanding of the NT then we should know a lot more about the OT. So, to me, it makes perfect sense to learn the Hebrew first and then the Greek. My question though is...If I learned Greek first, I could just read the Septuagint for a better OT translation, right? I know it's not Hebrew but it's gonna be the next best option. And with the OT would one not need to then study both Hebrew and Aramaic?

[@mblakeney5151]

why cant we just say that seminaries teach languages poor generally. you forget it as quick as you learn it.

[@stevenv6463]

My Hebrew is pretty good but my Greek sucks.

[@aural_supremacy]

Don’t need Greek to learn Hebrew, what is up with that title seriously.

[@GThePreacher]

You don't need Greek to learn Hebrew.......you can start with hebrew....

[@iamwatergirl]

I CHALLENGE YOU TO GO ON EYA CENSORED ON A LIVE BROADCAST TO DISCUSS BIBLE CHANGES. DO YOU REALLY KNOW THE BIBLE?