Student Testimonies

Having studied Biblical Hebrew at a traditional seminary in the United States, I was interested to see if there was a way of learning Hebrew that could birth in the students a love for the language rather than the loathing that seems to be the norm. From the first day of the course we were immersed, learning Biblical Hebrew by doing. The teachers would introduce and act out a new word and then soon afterwards we were following along. Learning to jump, run, and play, all in Biblical Hebrew. Imagine, people laughing while learning an ancient language!

One of the underlying assumptions of Dr. Buth is that there is a difference between talking about Hebrew and knowing Hebrew. Through this course, we were introduced to the joy of knowing Biblical Hebrew as a living language as opposed to the dead language found in most grammar books and other courses. This course is unique in that it engages the student on all levels to make learning the language exciting and rewarding. The students act out scenes from the Bible in Biblical Hebrew, learn about life in biblical times, and take trips around the Land to read the stories in their original setting -- in the original language.

Dr. Buth's course is not magic. The students work hard, but the payoff is that learning comes quicker. I have never seen or heard of another way of learning an ancient language like this. The language takes root and the Bible opens up in a revolutionary way within the student. I would recommend this course to anyone who wants to start reading the Bible for themselves and not through the eyes of an anonymous translator.

After six weeks in Dr. Buth's Biblical Hebrew, I was further along in Biblical Hebrew than most seminary students I know who have studied for two or three years ... I have since gone on to study Hebrew Bible and Hebrew Language at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and have taught Biblical Hebrew for the Biblical Langauge Center the past seven years. I can honestly say that I have yet to take a Biblical Hebrew class as effective as Randall Buth's course.

This is a serious, effective class with a lot of content and high expectations of its students. At the same time, it is taught in a way that makes it enjoyable and learnable. On top of the classroom experience, it was incredible to be in the land of Israel and Jerusalem only ten miles away. Even though I am not a pastor, I would especially recommend the class to seminarians who really want to experience the Book that they will devote their lives to sharing with others. It's an experience of a lifetime. And, since I've been home, I've been amazed at my new ability to read the Bible in Hebrew. I'd highly recommend it to anyone who asked.

For years I had sensed that biblical language teaching, especially Hebrew, could be taught in a better, more enjoyable and authentic way. Then I met Randall Buth and his team. Their method provides a revolutionary way of fully immersing in the language and biblical culture. The Ulpan is a life-changing experience. Was it a holiday--staying in a quality hotel with friends in the Judaean hill)? Was it a pilgrimage--reading the Hebrew Bible together on tour through the Holy Land? Or was it professional development--deeper training in the essential skills of biblical studies? It was all of these and much more. If we are to see the full benefits of a church and academy that is rooted in the cadences, rhythm, logic, and drama of God's Word, learning the original language this way is must for the next generation of biblical scholars and educators.

Although you all hear this often, your program pushed my Biblical Hebrew ahead in an amazing way. I greatly appreciate your efforts. Please keep up the great work. Your materials and cds are tremendous.

Even though Eleanor and I only attended three weeks we could see what a tremendous lot of work it must have been for you. It was a great experience for us and we have certainly improved which is exciting. Our reading has sped up and I managed to read the whole of Jonah unpointed and with understanding. Your teaching certainly brought this beautiful language to life.

As a Bible translator with Wycliffe, I have been in multiple "second-language-learning" situations and am very familiar with TPR ("natural") type approaches, and have used them in my own teaching in various venues. It was very nice to be on the receiving end of such competent execution. It is the best controlled immersion experience I can imagine, since the level of language the student is exposed to is monitored and pitched slightly above maximum comprehension...in the process of learning Hebrew, the students also begins to construct a framework for learning the details of Hebrew grammar.

They must expect no translation into English for what they do not understand, and instead engage in active listening and guessing just like children. But it works! For me, the biggest sell for this course is the fact that after only a couple of weeks' instruction I was able to understand 80-95% of the explanations of the archeological sites we visited in Hebrew. I don't know many traditional courses that can boast of such results. And even the simple speaking knowledge of the language I have acquired in 5 weeks provides clear, effective hooks for hanging any subsequent grammatical explanations later on.

I learned so much due to your teaching style--you put life into the Hebrew language. You made it a living language. You taught from your heart with excitement. Then all the props --hats, swords, books, fruit, animals, costumes --made learning so much fun and easy. We learned by doing --going outside throwing rocks far/near, building altars, run fast/slow, even pointing to the grass!

I can't say enough for the language courses with the Biblical Language Center. The course materials are aptly named: Living Biblical Hebrew and Living Koine Greek. I have taken both courses and I am happy to report that I am continuing to read and speak both Hebrew and Greek. Those ancient languages are now living in me. I want to keep learning more; and I am. And I am not even a particularly good language student!

My experience with the Biblical Language Courses is in strong contrast to the the Greek and Hebrew courses I took in college and in seminary. When I finished with my previous courses I was glad to be done and quite discouraged about my ability to learn these ancient languages. After getting done with the courses at the Biblical Language Center I didn't doubt my ability to learn Hebrew or Greek at all. In fact, I left knowing that I could become fluent and excited to keep learning!

The courses are fun and amazingly successful. The instructors are highly skilled, friendly, encouraging, and successful at teaching language. And even though they are taught in the land of Israel, which is amazing in itself, penny for penny these courses are more affordable than taking a course back home.

There are two young boys in our mission church who want to go to Mexico City to the Seminary to prepare as pastors. One of the young men comes from a Mexican Indian village where they are just beginning to speak Spanish. In order to enter the seminary he needs to know a bit of Hebrew so I am showing him the aleph - bet and a few words. He is finishing high school and hopes to be accepted in seminary at least by next year. Your course is a God send for all of us."

I always thought learning Biblical Hebrew and Greek would be far too difficult--it was the domain of professional scholars and language experts and not for the rest of us mere mortals. With the Living Biblical Hebrew and Greek courses, you discover very quickly that learning biblical languages is not as difficult as you had imagined. It was quite a joy to learn that within about a year I could understand many parts of the Bible in the original, and I was surprised at the pace I learnt all those odd looking letters.

In course one, you find yourself understanding hundreds of Biblical Hebrew and Greek words, without learning them through English --and even before you know how to pronounce the alphabet. When you do learn to sound out words, for the first time, you have that child-like experience you had on your mother's knee - "wait a second, I know this word already!" There is no hurry to learn, but it is quite inspiring, and your understanding just grows. One of the coolest things is nothing you learn is a waste! The Bible is the one book you can guarantee you will still be reading when you are 80 (with the right specs). You're never too old to start this course.

After spending the summer in Israel in the intensive Biblical Ulpan, I came back to the States to begin a biblical languages based exegesis graduate program at Wheaton College. Although I had only had 6 weeks of Hebrew in my life, I thought I would try the Hebrew proficiency exam 'just for fun,' and to see how well my studies there had lined up with other students here. I tested out of the first full year of Hebrew! My roommate, who studied 3 years of biblical Hebrew at an American Bible school, is amazed at how much vocabulary I know and can use easily in various situations--she is now using my Living Biblical Hebrew CDs and textbook to see if she can catch up! The more I sit in Hebrew class here, the more thankful I am that I received such a strong foundation internalizing the language in Israel.

I heard about the Ulpan from a friend who had begun her Hebrew studies in the traditional way, and she strongly recommended that I look into the Living Language method. When I first found out that we would be singing and dancing and speaking in class I thought, “All right, speaking is one thing, but dancing is another; let’s be serious.” However, looking back, associations that were made with the words which are in the Bible and the songs, plays, and highly animated teaching style have stuck; and will not be quickly forgotten. It was fun, and I am unable to picture myself beginning the language in any other way. To learn as a child was not only more efficient and easier, but also made the language to me what it was to Moses and Isaiah: alive.

Not only was it fun, I am amazed at how much I learned. As I continue to study Hebrew at seminary in the states I am very thankful for the huge head start that I received that makes the traditional way of learning Hebrew almost bearable. This is not to say that this approach is a miracle worker, it still requires a lot of action on the behalf of the participant, but you will have actually learned some Hebrew, not just learned "about" Hebrew. I would recommend this study to anyone.

With no previous background in Hebrew, I used "Living Biblical Hebrew" and "Selected Readings" as a self-study course, and progressed rapidly in knowledge and fluency in Hebrew. It enabled me to start thinking in Hebrew and responding to Hebrew intuitively without the need of any translation in my mind.

For me, the method proved most effective, and the learning process was a wonderful adventure and a great pleasure. After completing the course, the student may find other Biblical Hebrew grammar books useful for enhancing his knowledge, but in my opinion, there is no better introductory course than "Living Biblical Hebrew." It is ideal for beginners and for those who wish to learn Biblical Hebrew through self-study. (Knowledge of English is required, however, since all the explanations are written in English.)

Another advantage of this course is that it facilitates the study of Modern Hebrew. As a foreign student in Israel, I know that most people (including those who have studied Biblical Hebrew several years in the traditional way) find Modern Hebrew quite difficult. However, thanks to Dr. Buth's course, Modern Hebrew was fairly easy for me, and I have since advanced smoothly and swiftly in Modern Hebrew studies.

T. Perng, Taiwan (Graduate Student at Hebrew University of Jerusalem)