BibSoftBible Software Reviews

by Sean Reed

www.bibsoft.org

BibSoft Bible Software Reviews,by Sean Reed

© Copyright 2010, Sean Reed.

All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be copied in part or in whole for the purpose of profit without the prior written permission of the author. The electronic form of this publication may in its entire and original form be freely distributed provided no profit is garnered from its distribution.

BibSoftBible Software Reviews

Introduction.

The manner in which you as a seminarian engage with the Bible has, in all likelihood, been greatly impacted by the ready availability of scholarly grade Bible soft-ware programs. For centuries, your predecessors held the printed text in their hands as they plumbed the depths of the biblical writings, perused scholarly com-mentaries, and analyzed theological treatises. Their domains of study were most frequently brick-and-mortar theological libraries.

Yet today, you and your contemporaries may readily access numerous translations of the Bible, various original language manuscripts, lexicons, grammars, commentaries, dictionaries, and a host of other biblical and theological writings without ever setting foot in a library. Furthermore, you can search and analyze these important resources in ways never dreamed of by the scholars and seminarians of only two decades ago. In mere seconds, you can look up an obscure Hebrew word in HALOT, open side-by-side an English transla-tion and its underlying Hebrew or Greek text, trace every use of an important Greek word in the Pauline writings, or search for a complex grammatical con-struction.

Along with your fellow seminarians and Bible scholars, you primarily perform four basic tasks utilizing Bible software:

1. Search. The first, and most common, task you per-form with Bible software is searching for verse refer-ences, words and phrases, grammatical construc-tions, and other features of a text.

2. Analyze. After searching, you often analyze the re-sults of your search by accessing parsing informa-tion, creating a grammatical diagram, or viewing statistical information related to your search.

3. Reference. An attractive feature of Bible software programs is their ability to provide ready access to various reference resources to enhance your under-standing of the text and its meaning.

4. Note. While studying a biblical text, you record your observations of the text under study and, even-tually, the final results of your research.

Because the value of a Bible software program is di-rectly related to the ease—and power—with which it enables you to perform these four fundamental tasks, the following reviews (of Accordance 9, BibleWorks 8, and Logos 4) will focus on the various ways in which these programs enable you to execute the four primary study exercises. Each review will consist of an introduc-tion to the program, an overview of the interface, a tutorial-style review of the program’s features for per-forming the four key tasks, and finally a brief compari-son and purchasing recommendations.

BibSoft Bible Software reviews

by Sean Reed

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Accordance 9OakTree Software, Inc.www.AccordanceBible.com

Introduction

The premier Bible software program for Macintosh since 1994, Accordance 9, from OakTree Software, provides an elegant interface, powerful search capabili-ties, and numerous scholarly and popular Bible study resources. A leader in providing tagged original lan-guage texts, Accordance is often the only choice for scholars engaged in critical study of ancient biblical manuscripts. Several biblical scholars, in fact, have switched from Windows to Macintosh just to use Ac-cordance in its native operating environment—it’s that good!

As stated in the introduction, this review focuses on how you perform the four primary tasks: search, ana-lyze, reference, and note. Yet before addressing how you can accomplish these important tasks using Accor-dance 9, we need to consider two significant considera-tions when evaluating Bible software: the available re-sources, and the interface.

Interface

The core principle guiding the development of Accor-dance 9 is, according to the developers, “the Bible is central.” This is readily apparent when you launch the program. A workspace with a search window snappily opens displaying your preferred biblical text (you may

have multiple workspace windows open at the same time) [Fig. 1]. The top portion of the window contains the search entry box where searches are constructed while the majority of the window is occupied by the text display pane where the biblical text, or other opened resources, is viewed. In Accordance 9, your study begins with the Bible.

Additional texts, translations, and reference tools may be added in parallel with your favorite biblical text by selecting them from the icons located on the right side of the window just below the search entry box. If you wish to open an additional search window in its own tab or zone, you can select a text, translation, or tool from the resource palette.

Zones is a new interface component which was intro-duced in Accordance 9. This feature allows you to open multiple search windows side-by-side in the same workspace in addition to viewing texts in parallel within the same search window. This is especially use-ful, for example, when you wish to open a biblical text and a lexicon side-by-side in the same workspace for easy reference.

The instant details box, generally placed near the bot-tom of the screen below your workspace, displays in-formation based on the location of your cursor. For organizing and accessing the various modules in your Accordance library, the library window provides a con-

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Scholar’s Introductory Level, $149Scholar’s Standard Level, $249Scholar’s Premier Level, $349

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Fig. 1. The Accordance 9 interface is flexible and intuitive, allowing you to focus on studying the Bible. You can display all the interface components (workspace, library window, etc.) or just the ones you intend to use. Additionally, they can be positioned on your screen in any manner.

Resource palette pro-vides easy access to all the resources in your library and is handy for amplifying.

Library window is where you organize your Accordance 9 li-brary and access your various resources.

Instant details boxdisplays relevant infor-mation based on the location of your cursor.

Workspace window is where you interact with texts and tools; the zones feature allows for flexible arrangements.

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venient place for doing so. Here you can create your own groupings of resources for easier searching, set your preferred resources for amplifying, and arrange your texts and tools in a manner you find convenient.

Additional interface features, and more details on those mentioned above, are discussed throughout this review.

Resources. Because Accordance 9 is a module-based program, you can add additional resources to your Ac-cordance library as your finances permit. OakTree has made a whole host of primary, secondary, and tertiary resource modules which may be purchased individually or in packages (which normally include a significant discount over purchasing the modules individually).

In developing resources for Accordance, OakTree has focused on producing scholarly-grade primary source materials (many tagged with morphological informa-tion) such as the standard Hebrew and Greek texts, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and more. Accordance leads the way in providing scholars with access to such original lan-

guage manuscripts, offering more than either Bible-Works or Logos.

Additionally, numerous high-quality reference re-sources are available for Accordance, such as HALOT, BDAG, Anchor-Yale Bible Dictionary, etc. Many sig-nificant commentary series—such as the New Interna-tional Greek Testament Commentary, Hermeneia, Pil-lar, and Word—have also been produced for Accor-dance. See the discussion on page 16 for several reasons why reference resources in Accordance are often of a higher quality than those available for other software platforms.

In addition to top-notch scholarly resources, OakTree also makes available for Accordance all the major Eng-lish translations of the Bible, a growing number of non-English translations, and numerous popular re-sources for biblical studies. For a complete listing of available modules, visit www.AccordanceBible.com.

Visit the BibSoft website for Bible software news, videos, and more reviews. Go to www.BibSoft.org.

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Welcome to BibSoft.org!Here you’ll find helpful reviews of the three scholarly!grade Bible software programs. Each review is geared for the seminarian.

First Task: SEARCH

Three qualities characterize Accordance’s search engine: power, speed, and ease of use. It’s power lies in its abil-ity to handle nearly any imaginable search criteria, providing you with a host of search commands. The speed with which Accordance 9 performs searches sets it apart from most other Bible software programs, and this power and speed is very accessible to the us-er—whether a beginner or a seasoned expert—because Accordance allows you to construct searches using common-sense search terms which may be abbreviated in a variety of ways. You do not need to memorize cryptic or archaic search commands.

Because Accordance employs straightforward, simple search commands, chances are the search terms will be exactly what you would expect—simply enclose the term in angle brackets. For example, Accordance’s AND command is <AND>. In fact, you need only en-ter enough of the search command for Accordance to distinguish it from the other available commands—the <AND> command may be entered simply <a>. In ad-dition to the AND command, Accordance provides easy access to all the standard search terms in addition to several specialized, Accordance-only commands (see the Feature Highlight on page 6).

The various ways in which you may enter search commands demonstrates a user interface feature found throughout Accordance: the ability to accomplish the same task in a variety of ways. To enter search com-mands, you can: (1) type the command; (2) select the search command from the search menu; (3) select the command from a contextual menu available by control-clicking; or (4) use a key combination.

Accordance has two search modes: verses and words. Additionally, you can build searches in a graphical manner by using the construct search window.

Verse Search. In verse search mode, you enter verse references you wish Accordance to display [Fig. 2]. For example, to display Revelation 14:6–7 you simply type Revelation 14:6–7, or Rev 14:6f, or even Re 14.6,7, and press the return key or click the blue search but-ton. The results of your search are instantly displayed. Yes, instantly. You can also enter multiple verse refer-ences or ranges separated by commas or semi-colons in any order you like, displaying verses contiguously or non-contiguously.

Word Search. The power of Accordance’s search en-gine becomes apparent when you utilize its word search mode [Fig. 3]. You can easily build simple searches utilizing the search entry box. For example, to search for every verse in which the words “fear” and “glory” appear, you simply type the two words sepa-rated by the <AND> command. To limit your search to a specific range of verses, you can use the [RANGE]

Fig. 2. Verse references may be entered in any order, contigu-ous or noncontiguous; Accordance will display the verses in the order you specify.

Fig. 3. Word searches may be constructed using a variety of easily remembered search commands.

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Feature Highlight: Search CommandsAccordance search commands are sensical, easy to re-member, and can be inserted into the search entry box in a variety of ways (see page 5). In addition to the standard search commands (and, or, xor, not, etc.), Ac-cordance provides you with a number of specialized commands. These include [LINK], [RANGE], [HITS], [INFER], [FUZZY], and many others. This Feature Highlight focuses on the [INFER] and [RANGE] commands.

Infer. The [INFER] command instructs Accordance to compares two texts or passages and look for similarities in phrasing. When you construct an infer search an Accordance, you set the parameters of the search and specify how stringent you want the search to be. Any two texts may be used (or the same text may be com-pared with itself ) as long as they share the same charac-ter set (Hebrew, Greek, English, etc.).

Here’s an example: You want to find possible allusions or quotations in the Psalms to the Song of Moses in Exodus 15. First, open your desired text (in this exam-ple, the NAS95S module) and conduct a verse search for Exodus 15. Next, open a new NAS95S search win-dow and enter the [RANGE] command, with Psalms specified as the range, followed by the <AND> and [INFER] commands [Fig. H1].

After inserting the [INFER] command, Accordance will prompt you to select a window to serve as the basis of this search (for this search, select the window dis-playing Exodus 15). You can also specify how stringent the search should be by setting the number of words Accordance should look for in a phrase. When you run the search, Accordance returns verses in Psalms which contain phrases similar to those in Exodus 15.

Fuzzy. The [FUZZY] command enables you to search for a phrase which are you not accurately remember-ing. Accordance 9 does this by adding or dropping a specified number of words to the search.

For example, when you search for the phrase “worship the one who made heaven” in the NASB, no hits are returned—this exact phrase does not appear in this translation. When you append the phrase with the [FUZZY] command and allow Accordance to add or drop two words [Fig. H2], five verses are returned, in-cluding Rev. 14:7 which includes the phrase “worship Him who made the heaven.”

Search commands. For detailed information on all the available Accordance commands, visit the Accordance website (www.AccordanceBible.com) where you can download a search commands manual.

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Fig. H2. The [FUZZY] search command instructs Accor-dance to search for phrases which are similar to the phrase entered in the search entry box.Fig. H1. The [INFER] command instructs Accordance to

look for inferences or common phrases between two texts sharing the same character set.

command or the pre-defined ranges option, accessible above the search entry box.

When searching a tagged text, you can build finely tai-lored searches based on the tagged information [Fig. 4]. For example, you can search for every occurrence in a tagged English version where the word “fear” is translated from the Greek verb fobew (28 times in the NASB).

To easily view tagged information, simply hover the cursor over a word in a tagged text, and the instant de-tails box will display the relevant information. If you wish to build a search based on the tagged informa-tion, control-click on a word and from the contextual menu choose Search For: Key Number. Accordance will open a new search window and search the selected tagged text for all occurrences of the underlying Greek or Hebrew word.

More impressively, when searching a tagged original language text you can search for specific forms of He-brew or Greek words by specifying stem, person, num-ber, case, etc [Fig. 5]. For example, you can search for every occurrence of the Greek verb fobew as an aorist imperative. You can also create more complex searches,

combining multiple search commands to build exactly the search you need.

In addition to constructing searches based on morpho-logical information, Accordance 9 has the capability to perform searches based on syntactical information. See the Tool Highlight on page 9 for a discussion of Ac-cordance’s syntactical search capabilities.

Construct Window Search. Accordance broke new ground with the introduction of the construct window in 1994, providing users with a graphical approach to building searches. The construct window is particularly helpful for building complex searches which require specific criteria for each word, or element, in the search argument. While many searches created in the con-struct window can also be built in the search entry box, the graphical quality of the construct window helps keep complex search arguments organized.

You build searches in the construct window using drag-and-drop element modifiers [Fig. 6]. Each col-umn represents an element, or word, in your search and may contain many modifiers. The space above the columns is where you define relationships between elements utilizing additional drag-and-drop com-mands.

Fig. 4. In a tagged English text, each significant word is tagged with a key number which identifies the underlying Hebrew or Greek word from which it is translated. You may manually enter the key number to construct a key number search or allow Accordance 9 to do the work for you when you amplify from a word in a tagged English text.

Fig. 5. A simple morphological search in the Greek New Tes-tament for the aorist imperative form of fobew returns three hits. When searching a tagged original language text, you can include search tags for any combination of morphological and lexical forms.

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Searching multiple resources. In addition to search-ing a single biblical text or tool, Accordance allows you to search all—or a specified group—of your resources at once [Fig. 7]. In previous versions of Accordance, the search all function was often slow—quite unlike Accordance’s normally snappy searches. In Accordance 9, however, Accordance’s legendary search speed has finally come to the search all function. You can now search your entire Accordance library—all Bibles, tools, lexicons, commentaries, etc.—in seconds, and Accordance will display the results of the search just as quickly. Be aware, however, that the very first time you conduct a search all, Accordance will need to create an index of your library. Yet even this task will only take a few moments. Subsequent searches will be conducted with lightning speed.

Amplify. As briefly mentioned above, in addition to manually building searches you can instruct Accor-

dance to do the work for you by utilizing the amplify command. All Accordance modules are integrated through the amplify feature. Any module—whether text, lexicon, commentary, etc.—can easily be searched for any word or verse reference with just a couple clicks of the mouse. You need only select the word or verse reference in a source text and then select a tool or text from the resource palette (or from the Amplify menu). Accordance will automatically open the selected mod-ule and search it for the selected word or verse refer-ence.

You can also amplify by control-clicking on a word or reference and select an option from the Search For, Search In, or Lookup contextual menus. Additionally, you can simply triple-click a word or verse reference, and Accordance will amplify to the appropriate re-source based on your set preferences.

Evaluation. The Accordance search engine is unparal-leled. While you generally can accomplish the same searches using other scholarly-grade Bible software programs, doing so often involves additional steps in the process and even cryptic search terms which have no apparent direct link to the functions they represent. Unlike some competing products, because Accordance

Fig. 6. This construct search looks for verses where an im-perative form of the verb fobew is followed within 12 words by, first, a second different imperative verb and, second, a subordinating conjunction.

Fig. 7. In Accordance 9, the search all function is fast.

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seamlessly integrates every module, you are able to ef-fortlessly amplify your search from one resource to an-other without manually opening new windows and typing additional search terms. Using the construct window, you can build searches visually and keep all the elements of your search neatly organized.

The two search related shortcomings in previous ver-sions of Accordance have now, thanks to the release of

version 9, been addressed. First, the ability to search all resources quickly and view the results contextually is now seamlessly integrated into Accordance. Second, Accordance now provides syntactical databases for the primary Hebrew and Greek texts—a feature which has long been available in a competing product (see the Tool Highlight below).

Tool Highlight: Syntactical DatabasesAvailable only in Accordance version 9, the new syn-tactical databases provide you with powerful, cutting-edge search and textual analysis features. Now when viewing the primary Hebrew and Greek texts, you can instantly view a word’s syntactical function and rela-tionship to other words in the sentence—simply by hovering your mouse over it! Open the syntax modules in parallel with the text, and Accordance visually dis-plays these relationships by way of a syntax tree that scrolls in parallel with the text. Utilizing the syntactical databases, you can now move beyond morphological searches by constructing searches that look for specific syntactical features.

To open a syntacti-cal database in paral-lel with the primary Hebrew or Greek texts, select the grey syntax icon located just below the search button and select

either the BHS-W4 or GNT-T databases [Fig. H3]. The syntax tree may be viewed horizontally or verti-

cally [Fig. H5] depending on your preference. When you hover your cursor over an element in the syntax module, Accordance highlights the corresponding words in the text while also displaying a brief defini-tion of that syntactical feature in the instant details box. When viewed in parallel with a biblical text, the databases scroll in sync with the text.

Searching. The syntactical databases have been seam-lessly integrated into Accordance 9. You can use either the search entry box [Fig. H4] or the graphical con-struct window.

Here’s a simple example: To search for logoß where it is the subject, open a search window with the GNT-T as the search text. Simply type logoß followed by the

Fig. H3. To open a syntactical database in parallel with a biblical text, click the gray syntax icon and select the appropriate database.

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Fig. H4. Syntactical tags may be added to search terms.

“@” symbol followed by [SUBJECT], the subject tag enclosed in brackets [Fig. H4]. All available syntactical tags, along with all Accordance’s search commands, are also available via the Search menu, by typing their cor-responding key commands, or via the contextual menu raise by control+clicking in the search entry box.

When you press enter or click the search button to ac-tivate the search, Accordance instantly returns the re-sults (17 hits in the book of John). Yes, instant-ly—even syntactical searches are lightning fast in Ac-cordance. As with any Accordance search, you can view

detailed information concerning your search by open-ing a details window or zone.

Purchasing. Accordance’s syntactical databases are not yet complete. You can purchase them now, however, and receive the currently completed books (Genesis in the BHS-W4 and John in the GNT-T). OakTree will update the modules for free as the syntactical tagging for additional books becomes available. The BHS-W4 syntactical database is $60; the GNT-T database is $50.

Fig. H5. Accordance 9’s syntactical databases are available for the primary Hebrew and Greek texts, allowing you to search for syntacti-cal relationships in addition to grammatical features.

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Second Task: ANALYZE

After using Accordance powerful search engine to find the text or texts for which you are looking, you can utilize Accordance’s equally powerful analytical tools to analyze both the statistical results of your search and the texts themselves. Your analysis begins with a simple move of your cursor.

Morphological information. The instant details box provides a wealth of information based on the location of your cursor [Fig. 8]. Simply hover the cursor over a word in a tagged original language text, and the instant details box will display the morphological parsing in-formation for that word. If you are analyzing a tagged English translation, the instant details box will display key numbers and the underlying Greek or Hebrew word.

When you wish to see the parsing information for more than one word at a time, you need only select the words—or even multiple verses—you want parsed and click the parsing icon on the resource palette. Accor-

dance instantly opens a window, or new zone if that is your preference, listing every selected word and its complete parsing information [Fig. 9].

Diagrams. For syntactical analysis of a text, the built-in diagramming feature gives you the necessary tools for creating your own grammatical diagrams of biblical passages [Fig. 10]. As with the parsing tool, you need only select the phrase, verse, or paragraph you wish to diagram and click the diagram icon on the resource

Fig. 8. The instant details box displays a wealth of relevant information based on the location of your cursor.

Fig. 9. Accordance 9’s parsing tool provides instant parsing information for any number of selected words or verses.

Fig. 10. Accordance’s diagram feature provides you with all the necessary tools to build your own grammatical diagrams.

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palette. Accordance instantly opens the diagram win-dow and imports the selected words. If the source text is grammatically tagged, the imported words retain their tagging, allowing you to simply hover the cursor over a word in the diagram window to view its parsing information in the instant details box. Additionally, the words are color coded based on parts of speech.

While Accordance provides a full feature set for creat-ing your own diagrams (which may be saved and shared with other Accordance users), OakTree does not currently offer as additional modules any of the dia-gram sets created by scholars and published in print form. The new syntactical databases help, however, to alleviate this omission.

Compare texts. When you want to visually note the differences between two translations of the Bible, let Accordance do the work for you. Open two Bible translations in parallel and click the compare texts but-ton located just below the search entry box [Fig. 11].

Accordance will also highlight the differences between two original language texts, provided both employ the same character set (i.e., Greek, Hebrew, etc.). Unfortu-nately, Accordance does not compare more than two texts at one time. Another shortcoming is the inability to compare passages that do not share the same verse references. Regardless of these two exceptions, Accor-dance’s analyze text feature is much preferred over manually comparing two texts.

Key number mapping. This helpful feature in Accor-dance enables you to easily visualize the links between tagged English translations and the underlying Hebrew and Greek texts [Fig. 12]. Simply open a tagged trans-lation in parallel with the BHS-W4 or GNT-T mod-ules and hover your cursor over a word in the English translation. Accordance will automatically highlight in the Hebrew or Greek text the underlying word original language word. When you hover the cursor over a word in the original language text, Accordance likewise highlights the corresponding English word.

Fig. 11. At the click of a button, Accordance 9 instantly analyzes two texts of the same character set and displays the differences.

Fig. 12. When a tagged translation is viewed in parallel with a tagged original language text, Accordance highlights corre-sponding words based on the location of your cursor.

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Search details. In addition to analyzing the biblical text using the tools outlined above, you can also view detailed statistical data based on the searches you con-struct in Accordance [Fig. 13]. After completing a search, click the “details” icon (located below the search entry box) and select from the contextual menu the type of search details you wish to view. Accordance opens the details window (or a details zone, if you pre-fer). Here you will find detailed analysis of your search, hits and analysis graphs, and even a concordance based on your search criteria. You can also easily customize how Accordance displays the information, export it for use in other programs, and print it.

Parallel databases. Accordance includes seven parallel databases which enable you to easily view parallel bib-lical passages side-by-side [Fig. 14]. For example, if you are studying the feeding of the five thousand and want to view the four Gospel accounts in parallel, one of the

three available Gospels parallel databases enables you to easily view them side-by-side in one window. To open a parallel database, click the parallels icon on the resource palette and select the appropriate database from the contextual menu. You can then search the

Fig. 13. Display a wealth of statistical information using Ac-cordance ’s details tool.

Fig. 14. The Accordance bundles (such as the Scholar’s Introductory) include seven parallel databases: Gospels, Harmony, Synoptics, Q (Sayings), Epistles, OT in NT, and Old Testament.

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database for scripture reference, title (each parallel in-stance is given a title, such as “The Feeding of the Five Thousand”), or title number.

You can also amplify to a parallel database. Simply se-lect the reference you wish to view side-by-side with parallel passages and select a database from the re-source palette. You may also control-click the reference and select Lookup: Parallels from the contextual menu; Accordance will automatically select the appropriate parallels database, open it, and search it for the selected reference.

Regrettably, Accordance’s compare texts feature, dis-cussed above, is not available when utilizing parallel databases.

Critical apparatuses. When using original language critical texts, you often need to examine the critical apparatuses which highlight variant readings and list the manuscripts consulted in preparing the critical text

(both the BHS and GNT are critical texts). Accor-dance makes available several critical apparatuses for purchase, including the standard Hebrew and Greek text apparatuses from Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft and the acclaimed New Testament apparatus from the Cen-ter for New Testament Textual Studies (CNTTS). See the Tool Highlight below for a discussion on using ap-paratuses in Accordance.

Evaluation. While Accordance’s search engine is its brightest star, the many analytical tools you can utilize in Accordance are also brilliant resources for the semi-narian. With instant access to detailed parsing infor-mation, the ability to compare textual differences in two translations or texts, a complete feature set for cre-ating your own diagrams, and brilliantly presented search details data, Accordance provides the necessary analytical tools for even the most rigorous textual ex-amination and exegesis.

A critical apparatus catalogs variant readings, listing manuscript differences and their relationship to the critical text. Accordance leads the way in providing electronic editions of critical apparatuses. The standard Hebrew and Greek apparatuses from Deutsche Bibel-gesellschaft are available for Accordance in addition to the cutting-edge New Testament apparatus from the Center for New Testament Textual Studies (CNTTS). The Tischendorf apparatus for the New Testament is also available as well as three apparatuses for the LXX. While the principles discussed apply to all apparatus modules, this tool highlight will focus on the Greek

New Testament Apparatus, Nestle-Aland 27th edition from Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft.

Viewing in parallel. You will most often open an ap-paratus module in parallel with the appropriate biblical text. In this arrangement, the apparatus scrolls in sync with the text, allowing you to quickly scan it for vari-ant readings. Because the manuscript symbols, sigla, and other cryptic markings in the apparatus module are hyperlinked, you need only pass the cursor over a marking to view its meaning in the instant details box.

Because Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft has not allowed

Tool Highlight: Critical Apparatuses

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OakTree to include the sigla markers in the tagged version of the GNT, you will also need to open the untagged version of this text which includes the sigla markers (the untagged text is included with the pur-chase of the apparatus) in order to ascertain the por-tion of the verse to which a given apparatus note ap-plies. If screen real estate is at a premium, you can set the untagged sigla-marked text (NA27-GBS) as the preferred hyperlink text for the apparatus module. When this preference is set, hovering the cursor over the verse headings in the apparatus modules displays the sigla-marked text in the instant details box.

Searching. The NA27 Apparatus module includes a variety of content fields which allows you to construct tailored searches. Here’s an example [Fig. H7]: You want to find all the entries in the apparatus where the manuscripts å, W, and  agree on an addition which is not reflected in the NA27 text. First, open the NA27 Apparatus module in its own search window by select-ing it from the resource palette. Above the search entry box, choose the “critical signs” field and enter the sigla

marker which indicates an addition to the text (¡). Next click the “more options” triangle below the search entry box. This allows you to add additional fields to your search. Because you want all three manuscripts to be in the same apparatus note, select “paragraph” from the “search in every…” popup menu. From the fields menu, select “witnesses.” Now you can enter the three manuscript symbols separated by the <AND> com-mand (when searching a tool module in accordance, your search can include up to five separate search fields).

When you run the search, Accordance returns 166 hits, indicating more than 40 places where these three manuscripts agree on an addition to the text. By open-ing a details window or zone, you find that the highest percentage of hits occurs in the book of Luke.

Purchase. The standard critical apparatuses for the Hebrew and Greek testaments may be purchased for $149. Included with the apparatuses are the untagged texts with the sigla markers.

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Fig. H6. When set as the hyperlink text via the Display: Set Tool Display… menu, the NA27-GBS text with sigla markers is displayed in the instant details box when the cursor is hov-ered over the verse heading in the apparatus notes.

Fig. H7. Sophisticated searching of apparatus modules is pos-sible in Accordance.

Third Task: REFERENCE

In addition to its powerful search and analysis tools for investigating biblical texts and translations, Accordance 9 also enables you to readily access numerous scholarly and popular reference resources at the click of a mouse. Because Accordance is a module-based program, you have available to you an ever increasing number of commentaries, lexicons, dictionaries, and more. The number of reference resources you own for Accordance is really only limited by your budget.

Quality. Reference resources in Accordance are often of more value to the seminarian than those available in other Bible software programs, even if a particular re-source available for two or more Bible software pro-grams is based on the same published book. The rea-son is twofold: First, all Accordance modules are com-pletely integrated for cross-searching based on Accor-dance’s clever and useful amplify feature. Second, Ac-cordance modules include a number of various content fields will allows you to more quickly find and view relevant content (see “Viewing and searching tools” below).

Tool organization. Although you likely think of most of the tool modules available in Accordance as refer-ence resources, Accordance groups and labels its mod-ules according to their internal organization [Fig. 15]. For example, a commentary is generally organized ac-cording to verse reference, and thus Accordance terms commentaries, translation notes, critical apparatuses, and other such resources “reference tools.” Such mod-ules may be viewed individually or in parallel with bib-lical texts.

Because Bible dictionaries are organized alphabetically based on the English titles of each article, dictionaries and other such resources organized alphabetically in English are labeled “English tools.” Lexicons are organ-

ized according to their He-brew or Greek entries, and thus Accordance calls these resources “Hebrew tools” or “Greek tools.”

All tools which are not or-ganized according to verse reference or alphabetically based on the English, He-brew, or Greek alphabets are called “general tools.”

Viewing and searching tools. To open a tool mod-ule in Accordance, you

need only select it from the resource palette or the li-brary window. Accordance will open the selected re-source in its own search window (or tab or zone based on your set preferences). When opened in its own search window, a tool can be searched using many of the same search commands used for searching biblical texts and translations.

Fig. 15. Reference re-sources may be accessed via the resource palette.

Fig. 16. Accordance modules include various types of content and thus contain a variety of fields which may be utilized for accurate searches. When you need to construct a truly sophis-ticated search, you can specify search criteria for up to five fields by clicking the “More options” triangle.

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Because tool modules in Accordance include varying types of information, they contain various content fields—such as titles, page numbers, Hebrew, Greek, or English content, transliterations, manuscripts, etc.—which enable you to search for specific types of information in your tool modules [Fig. 16].

Here’s an example: If you open Waltke’s An Introduc-tion to Biblical Hebrew Syntax and search the entire module for the word “qal,” Accordance will return nearly 400 hits. When you limit your search, however, to titles in the grammar which contain the word “qal,” Accordance returns less than ten hits, enabling you to quickly find the main discussion of the qal stem for which you are looking. In addition to searching one field, Accordance allows you to search multiple fields at the same time, allowing for truly sophisticated searches of tool modules.

Search all. In addition to searching your en-tire Accordance library at once (see “Searching multiple resources” on page 8), you may also create custom groups of modules in order to search a selected num-ber of resources in one search. Your custom groupings may include texts, tools, and User Tools.

To create a search group, you need only create a new group in the library window and drag the desired

resources into your new group [Fig. 17]. When you want to search your group, select it from the search icon on the resource palette. Accordance opens a new search tab or zone in which you can construct your search argument.

Amplifying. The easi-est way to open a tool module is by amplify-ing to it. When you amplify, Accordance not only opens the desired resource, it also searches for the word or verse refer-ence you have selected in the source text. To amplify, first select a word or verse refer-ence in any open re-source then choose the desired tool from the

resource palette (you may also amplify via the Amplify menu or by control-clicking to raise a contextual menu). Accordance will automatically open the se-lected tool and search for the word or verse selected.

Additionally, you can triple-click a word to instruct Accordance to amplify to your preferred resources [Fig. 18]. For example, if the word you triple-click is an English word, Accordance will automatically open the English tool which is listed first under the English tool category in the library window and search for the se-lected word. When you triple-click a Hebrew or Greek word, Accordance likewise opens the top-listed He-brew or Greek tool and searches for the selected word [Fig. 18]. Amplifying is particularly useful for looking up original language words in your favorite lexicons.

Fig. 18. Your preferred amplify resources are the modules listed at the top of each tool category. To set your preferences, simply drag your preferred module to the top of its category in the library window.

Fig. 17. In the library window, you can create your own group-ings of modules for searching. Each group may contain any combination of texts, tools, and even User Tools.

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When you triple-click a verse reference in a biblical text, Accordance will open your favorite reference tool (such as a commentary or translator’s notes) to its first article on the appropriate verse.

Instant details box. When you are viewing biblical texts, you can employ the instant details box to quickly view pertinent information from your favorite tools. As discussed earlier in this review, the instant details box by default displays morphological information from tagged texts based on the location of your cursor. To display different information, you need only hold down the command key, and Accordance will display information pulled from your top-listed dictionary, lexicon, or reference tool (you can arrange the order of your modules in the library window).

When your cursor is over a reference in a biblical text, pressing the command key displays the relevant article from your preferred reference tool in the instant details box. This is particularly helpful for viewing translator’s notes, cross references, and commentary notes.

If you hover your cursor over a word in a tagged text (either original language or English translation) while pressing the command key, the instant details box dis-plays the appropriate article from the key number dic-tionaries (English tagged text) [Fig. 19] or your pre-ferred lexicons (Hebrew or Greek tagged text).

Viewing reference tools in parallel with texts. In ad-dition to viewing their content in the instant details

box or accessing them in separate search windows as tabs or zones, you can also display ref-erence tools (those organized by verse reference) in parallel with a biblical text or translation. When

a reference tool is viewed in parallel with a text, the reference tool scrolls in sync with the text. This is par-ticularly helpful for translator’s notes, cross reference modules, and critical apparatuses.

To open a reference tool in parallel with your search text, click the blue tool icon below the search entry box [Fig. 20]. From the contextual menu, select the refer-ence tool you wish to view in parallel with your search text. You can add multiple reference tools to the text search window and arrange them in a variety of ways.

Evaluation. Accordance 9 allows you to interact with your reference resources in useful, time-saving, and powerful ways. In addition to utilizing the Accordance search engine to scour your library of reference materi-als, you can view reference tools in parallel with bibli-cal texts and amplify to and from tool modules. Be-cause OakTree is continually releasing new tool mod-ules, you have access to an every growing library of scholarly and popular reference resources.

Fig. 20. To view a reference tool in parallel with a text, click the blue book icon (located just below the search entry box) and select a ref-erence tool from the contextual menu.

Fig. 19. When you hold down the command key, Accordance displays additional information based on the location of the cursor. In this figure, the cursor is hovered over the word “worship” in Rev. 14:7 in the NAS95S module (New American Standard Bible with Strong’s numbers).

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Tool Highlight: Graphics Bundle

Atlas. Accordance’s excellent Atlas module provides a rich, interactive experience with the geography and topography of the holy land. Quickly find important biblical locations, measure the distances between cities, and note the elevation of any location on the atlas. You can easily customize which locales are displayed on the map, view animated routes which depict the journeys biblical characters embarked upon, and even view 3D renditions of any area on the map Fig. H9].

Because the Atlas is fully integrated with your other Accordance modules, you can amplify directly to the Atlas from any text or tool. For example, as you read the parable of the good Samaritan in Luke 10, you need only select the word “Jericho” and amplify to the Atlas by selecting it from the resource palette. Accor-dance opens the Atlas and highlights the city of Jericho on the map. When you hover your cursor over Jericho, the instant details box informs you this city is 722 feet

Fig. H8. The Graphics Bundle includes the Accordance 9 Atlas, Timeline, and PhotoGuide.

below sea level; it even displays coordinates, based on the location of the cursor, in three formats.

PhotoGuide. An excellent companion to the Atlas is the PhotoGuide [Fig. H10]. In addition to thousands of full color photographs of the holy land, the Pho-toGuide also includes helpful notes on the locations

listed in the Atlas. It is really a quite excellent diction-ary of biblical sites. When you have both the Atlas and the PhotoGuide installed, simply triple-clicking on a site in the Atlas can automatically open the Pho-toGuide to the appropriate article which will, more often than not, include stunning photographs.

Timeline. Interactive and searchable, the Accordance Timeline graphically presents the major events and people of the Bible. Additionally, you can customize the timeline by adding your own events. The Timeline includes two dating schemes: conservative and critical [Fig. H11]. The conservative scheme takes the biblical account as reliable and trustworthy; the critical scheme places more confidence in extra-biblical historical re-cords.

Purchase. The Graphics Bundle is a tremendously worthwhile investment and is available for $189 (each module may also be purchased individually).

Fig. H9. Any portion of the Atlas may be viewed as an inter-active 3D landscape.

Fig. H11. The Accordance Timeline.

Fig. H10. The PhotoGuide contains thousands of quality images of the Holy Land.

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Fourth Task: NOTE

While you may be in the habit of writing your study notes in Word, Pages, or another word processing ap-plication, Accordance 9 provides three well developed features which allow you to integrate your notes, study documents, and textual markups into Accordance.

User Tools. Accordance’s User Tools feature enables you to create your own Accordance modules which you may interact with in much the same manner as the purchased tool modules in your Accordance library: you can search your User Tools, amplify to them, and, unlike purchased modules, edit them [Fig. 21].

To create a User Tool, click the My Tools icon on the resource palette and select New User Tools…. After prompting you to name your new User Tool, Accor-dance will open a new search window (or tab or zone, based on your preferences). Simply click in the display window, start typing, and Accordance will open an edit window where you can input content by manually typ-ing or by copying text from an Accordance module or another application. You may also create hierarchical

titles to organize your module. In addition to manually creating your own modules, you can also import exist-ing HTML and plain text documents into Accordance.

Any Scripture reference in a user tool can be linked. When you hover the cursor over a linked Scripture ref-erence in a User Tool, the verse or verses are displayed in the instant details box. Additionally, you can create links to any tool module in your Accordance library; a single click, and Accordance opens the linked module to the designated content. Links to webpages and ex-ternal files may also be inserted into User Tools.

While User Tools support a variety of formatting (bold, italic, etc.), Accordance does not support in-denting or the creation of tables in User Tools.

Many Accordance users choose to make their User Tools available to the general public through the Ac-cordance Exchange, accessible via the Accordance web-site (www.AccordanceBible.com/exchange).

User Notes. In addition to creating tool modules, Ac-cordance’s User Notes feature allows you to record notes which are tied to specific verse references. Behav-ing much like reference tools, User Notes may be opened in parallel with a biblical text and will scroll in sync with the text [Fig. 22]. You can edit a note on the

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Fig. 22. User Notes scroll in parallel with biblical texts and are instantly editable.

Fig. 21. You can create your own tool modules with Accor-dance’s User Tools function and interact with them in many of the same ways as you interface with your other modules.

fly simply by selecting a text entry point and typing. Accordance will open an edit window scaled to your note window for easy editing.

While your User Notes may contain Scripture refer-ence links, they do not support links to tool modules, webpages, or external files. Like User Tools, User Notes support only minimal formatting options.

Highlighting. To access Accor-dance’s highlight tools, select Win-dow: Highlight Palette from the menubar [Fig. 23] to open the highlight palette. From the high-light palette, you can apply high-light styles, create new highlight files, and modify or add highlight styles.

While you can use this feature to simply markup the biblical text

[Fig. 24], the highlight tool’s suite of features enables you to use it for serious analysis. For example, you can highlight every hit from a search by selecting a high-light style while pressing the shift key. This is particu-larly useful when you want to color-code particular words or forms for easy reference. You can also search based on your various highlight schemes.

Exporting. If you need to export a biblical passage or quote from a tool module, Accordance enables you to do so in variety of ways. As with most programs, Ac-cordance allows you to copy text and subsequently paste it into another program. While you can simply use the key combination command+c to copy text, control-clicking will raise a contextual menu with sev-eral copy options [Fig. 25].

When copying from a text, you can specify the copied text: eliminate superscripts; include a citation with the copied text; only include verse references; transliterate the original language text; include only lemmas and not the inflected forms; or the contents of the instant details box.

When you select the Copy As: Citation option when copying from a tool module, Accordance will include the appropriate bibliographical information. Based on your set preferences, Accordance can even insert an appropriately formatted footnote citation when you paste into a compatible program (such as Microsoft Word).

Evaluation. Accordance 9 provides you with impor-tant tools for taking notes as you study the biblical texts and recording the findings of your study. The flexibility afforded you for copying text in a variety of ways is a helpful and important feature. OakTree has some work to do, however, in improving the format-ting capabilities of User Tools and User Notes. You

Fig. 24. Using Accordance 9’s highlight feature, you can markup biblical texts in a variety of colors and styles. Multiple highlights files may be created.

Fig. 23. The highlight pal-ette.

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Fig. 25. Accordance provides several options for copying text.

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Tool Highlight: MT-LXX ParallelThe Septuagint (LXX) is one of the most important translation of the Hebrew Scriptures. The MT-LXX Parallels Database assists you in comparing the LXX with the Hebrew Scriptures. With the MT-LXX Paral-

lel Database viewed in parallel with the BHS-W4 and LXX, you can quickly note the corresponding Greek and Hebrew words. A a reference tool, it scrolls in sync with the biblical texts.

Fig. H12. The MT-LXX Parallel may be viewed in parallel with the BHS and LXX for easy identification of corresponding words, or it can be searched utilizing the parsing data from these texts for truly sophisticated searches.

really ought to be able to indent and have access to more flexible formatting options. Overall, however, Accordance’s note-taking tools are well integrated into the overall Accordance experience (and you don’t have

to pay extra for a plugin in order to utilize them). In the future, OakTree plans to introduce more features into its suite of tools for user created modules.

Searching. The MT-LXX Parallel Database is en-hanced by the ability to merge the tagging data from the tagged LXX and BHS-W4 modules with the paral-lel data of the MT-LXX Parallel Database. This is par-ticularly useful when you wish to find, for example, every time the Hebrew verb ary corresponds to the Greek verb fobew.

To accomplish such a task, you need three search win-dows or zones: the BHS-W4, the LXX, and the MT-LXX Parallels Database. In the BHS-W4, search for the root ary. Next, switch to the LXX search window and search for fobew. After you have run these two searches, open the MT-LXX Parallels Database. Insert the [MERGE] command into the search entry box by selecting Search: Enter Command: Merge from the file menu (you can also type shift+command+m). Accor-dance will open a dialog box asking you which search window you wish to merge with the database; select the BHS-W4.

Next, insert the <AND> command followed by a sec-ond [MERGE] command. When you enter the second [MERGE] command, select the LXX search window from the dialog box. To be sure only true correspond-ing hits are returned, click the “More options” triangle and select “Paragraph” from the “Search in every” menu. When you run the search in the MT-LXX Par-allels Database window by clicking the blue search but-ton, Accordance highlights every instance where ary corresponds with fobew [Fig. H13].

To see the spread of hits across the biblical canon, you can open a hits graph by selecting the details icon be-neath the search entry box.

Evaluation. The MT-LXX Parallels Database is a powerful tool for analysis, and it is a must have re-source if your frequently utilize the LXX in your stud-ies. Although you will need to spend some time think-

ing through the search process to discover how to build the proper search for the information you need, the database is capable of very flexible, sophisticated searches.

The database does have a shortcoming. Because it is a tool module, you do not have the option of opening a sortable analysis chart which lists the search hit lem-mas. To compile a list of the different hit lemmas, you need to sort through the hits in the display portion of the search window, manually eliminating repeat hits.

Purchase. The MT-LXX Parallels Database may be purchased for $100.

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Fig. H13. Accordance allows you to specify exactly what is displayed in the tool search window. By selecting paragraphs, Accordance only displays those lines of data that contain hits from the search. To also view the Scripture references, select “Add Titles.”

Review Conclusion

Accordance 9 enables you to perform the four primary study tasks—search, analyze, reference, and no-te—with ease and flexibility. Its search engine is acces-sible in a variety of intuitive ways, belying its sophisti-cation and power. The analytical tools available to you in Accordance are varied and capable. The ever grow-ing number of scholarly and popular reference re-sources available as modules for Accordance means you will have the requisite tools at your fingertips, limited only by your budget. Although Accordance has room to grow in the area of User Tools and User Notes, these features are well integrated into the program and pro-vide the necessary components for taking notes as you study.

iOS. OakTree is currently developing an iPhone/iPad Accordance application. Once this app is released, you will be able to download all your Accordance modules to your iPhone or iPad, at no additional expense, for on-the-go searching, analyzing, referencing, and note-taking.

Purchasing Advice

Because Accordance has so many available resources, choosing the appropriate combination for your needs can be daunting. OakTree offers several primary collec-tions, bundled packages of modules which are offered at a lower price than if each resource was purchased individually. If at a later time you decide to upgrade to a higher level, OakTree will only charge you the differ-ence in price between the two levels.

If your budget is limited, the most sensible choice is the Scholar’s Introductory Level for $149. It includes tagged editions of the standard Hebrew and Greek bib-lical texts, a tagged copy of the KJV, the parallel data-bases described on page 13, and your choice of a free

modern translation Bible unlock. As you have available funds, you can then add additional study resources such as the BDAG/HALOT bundle for $249, the Graphics Bundle for $189, and many others.

The Scholar’s Standard Level retails for $249. It in-cludes all the Scholar’s Introductory Level modules and adds additional Greek texts, Greek and Hebrew lexi-cons, and a Greek grammar.

The Scholar’s Premier Bundle, which costs $349, adds the tagged LXX, an additional Greek grammar, a He-brew grammar, and a couple theological lexicons in addition to all the modules contained in the Introduc-tory and Standard levels.

For full details of each level, and additional collections available for purchase, visit the Accordance website (www.AccordanceBible.com).

Discounts. If you are a full-time seminarian, you are eligible for a 10% discount on most Accordance pur-chases (pastors, professors, and scholars are likewise eligible). The prices quoted in this review do not re-flect this discount.

Comparison

Although Accordance is a Mac-native program, it can also be run under Windows utilizing a free emulator program. Thus if you are a Windows user, Accordance deserves consideration in addition to BibleWorks and Logos as you decide in which Bible software program you will invest.

If you are on a tight budget, you may find BibleWorks 8 to provide you with more exegetical resources, ini-tially, for your investment. It includes a vast number of original language texts and translations in a variety of languages, all for a reasonable price. BibleWorks does not, however, allow for much growth as it has only a

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limited number of additional secondary and tertiary resources available for purchase as add-ons.

Logos 4 is now an attractive option for both Windows and Macintosh users due to the recently released Mac version of Logos 4. While Logos has a truly impressive number of resources available for purchase in addition to its base packages, its tools for searching and analyz-ing the biblical text are not as fast or flexible as those available in Accordance. Nevertheless, Logos has led the way in porting its resources to multiple platforms, such as iOS (iPhone/iPad), and in providing syntacti-cal databases.

Before making a decision, you will surely want to care-fully read the reviews of all three programs contained in this publication.

Disclaimer. I have personally invested hundreds of dollars in purchasing Accordance modules. In order to more fully evaluate specific features and resources in Accordance of interest to seminarians, I requested re-view copies of the following modules which I did not already own: PhotoGuide, the BHS and GNT critical apparatuses from Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, and the MT-LXX Parallels Database. OakTree kindly provided these resources gratis. The cost of these provided mod-ules represents only a fraction of my personal invest-ment in Accordance.

As noted at the conclusions of the BibleWorks 8 and Logos 4 reviews, review copies of these programs were provided to me gratis by their respective developers for the purpose of these reviews.

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www.bibsoft.orgBibSoft Bible Software Reviews,by Sean Reed© Copyright 2010, Sean Reed.All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be copied in part or in whole for the purpose of profit without the prior written permission of the author. The electronic form of this publication may in its entire and original form be freely distributed provided no profit is garnered from its distribution.

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