Scott Baugh and BAGD/BDAG Lexicon (Reflections)

Written 4/23/2004 & edited 7/17/2015; 7/17/2023:

S. M. Baugh (A First John Reader) recommends that one consult BAGD (now BDAG) when he/she undertakes a study of Greek words: "This should be your first stop--and for most words, your last stop--for every Greek word study"
(page 128).

Those of us who own BDAG no doubt (haud dubie) concur with Baugh. For most Greek words, BDAG is the last stop, but neither Baugh nor I recommend the uncritical employment of this Greek-English lexicon. Baugh has his own criticisms of BDAG, but I'm sure he would admit that these quibbles in no way diminish its overall and surpassing value.
One problem that Baugh had with BAGD was that it contained "glosses" rather than "word meanings." That is, the older lexicon would give readers/students the rough approximate meaning of a word in English rather than saying what the word roughly meant in ancient Greek. But the new BDAG is miles ahead of the older lexicon in this respect. For instance, with the entry for APODEIXIS:

"a pointing away to [something] for the purpose of demonstration, proof."

Linguists such as Anna Wierzbicka have pointed out that words are better defined sententially as opposed to being defined by one word "glosses." This is why the new BDAG is a vast improvement over Strong's and the old BAGD. Another important point to keep in mind is that context often helps us determine how a term is being used by a writer or speaker. Moreover, words have semantic domains or semantic fields; the referent and context of a term surely determine how a writer is using it. One must consider the usus loquendi. BDAG is helpful in this respect.

Lastly, I would issue a gentle warning concerning J.H. Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon. Thayer's work was produced before lexicographers began to utilize the ancient Greek papyri in word studies. Now that the papyrological evidence has been examined, assessed and published, the fruits of this research now appear in works like BDAG. One may also consult the text Vocabulary of the Greek Testament by J.H. Moulton and G. Milligan although I think this work is in the process of being updated or has been superseded by now.