First, I can really only second the other two reviewers'views on this lexicon. It is as convenient to use as a dictionary, (provided, of course, that you know Hebrew alphabetical order and enough Hebrew to recognize Qal stems of verbs), and quite a bit more informative. The book IS concise, containing just over 400 pages (as against the BDB's 1000+), proper names are listed but not defined, and all instances of every word are not cited. Rather, examples of each sense of the word are usually cited. There are errata listed at the beginning and end of the book. In short, this is very handy, and if you've gone beyond the need for Strong's numbers, and want up to date linguistic information, try this edition!

All the points Mr. Gould gave are exactly right. So I'll just try personal testimonial to sell you this tool. I have owned this book for 20 years, but whenever I see a used one in the bookstore I try to justify buying it again for my son or anyone. It is that useful.

I study the Hebrew of the Bible often, very often and for years, translating words and looking to get the right shade of meaning. Holladay is the first lexicon I reach for. I can literally straighten my elbow right now and pull it off my shelf of hundreds of books and dozens of Hebrew books and aids. This is because not only is all that was mentioned in the other review but it is compact and readable. Only then, after checking Holladay, do I turn to Gesenius, the others and the multivolumes.

If you are a student, a minister who has to keep looking up 'alma (give it up! ;-), or need a quick reminder of a word meaning, I can't believe you don't already have this book!!! Act like "somebody" and get this NOW.

Binding wise, I have to add, that this book has held up very well to constant use without its dustjacket. One minor casuality is the gold ink on the cover---it has faded some and looks more light green than gold. So what!? I should look so good after 20 years!

This English abridgement of Koehler and Baumgartner's lexicon is perhaps the best reference tool Hebrew students will come across having such usefulness at a reasonable price. It is alphabetically organized and thus quicker than Brown-Driver-Briggs, but it also represents more current scholarship and better linguistic methodology. As well, it is a good size and the entries are generally well-organized. Even if you already have BDB, I would suggest getting Holladay because of the additional information on contextual usage and his more careful use of lexical data from cognate languages.