In an appendix, “The Nature and Meaning of the Covenant in the Old and New Testaments,” Robert Tripp wrote the following about the importance of studying the original language texts of the Bible, something I wish that more Latter-day Saints would agree with (compare and contrast with Bruce McConkie’s rather unfortunate, anti-intellectual piece, “The Bible: A Sealed Book”):
Ofttimes, Church members express some difficulty in understanding the scriptures, especially the Old Testament. But I feel that if the scriptures can be looked at from a “covenant point of view” they become much more exciting and understandable.
A useful method in understanding the nature and meaning of the covenant is to search out the writings of scholars who have devoted their lives to the study of such topics and who possess a command of the original biblical languages. A knowledge of ancient languages is invaluable in understanding the meaning of words and phrases which are partially lost in translation. (Oaths, Covenants, and Promises: Their Meaning to Latter-day Saints [comp. Robert M. Tripp; Salt Lake City: Bookcraft Inc., 1973], 207)
