Logos Bible Software just launched a new website called ref.ly (think bit.ly). It allows you to share Bible verses as links via Twitter and other places where you have a limited number of characters and want to keep the URL as short as possible.

Enter a Bible reference, and ref.ly will instantly generate a short URL linking to the passage at Bible.Logos.com. Since ref.ly uses Bible references to create the URL structure rather than a random bunch of characters like most URL shorteners, you can create the short URLs yourself without having to visit the site every time.

Don’t worry about trying to figure out which Bible reference abbreviation to use—ref.ly recognizes almost every conceivable form you throw at it. So you can share Matthew 11:25–26 in any of these ways:

1. http://ref.ly/Mt11.25–26
2. http://ref.ly/Mt11.25f
3. http://ref.ly/Mat11.25f
4. http://ref.ly/Matt11.25f
5. http://ref.ly/Matthew11.25f

You can share a single verse (e.g., http://ref.ly/1Co15.28), a range of verses, (e.g., http://ref.ly/Jn1.1-18), a chapter (e.g., http://ref.ly/1P5), or a book (e.g., http://ref.ly/3J), and you can even specify a particular version by simply adding @ followed by the version abbreviation (e.g., http://ref.ly/Re4.8@ESV).

In an effort to promote the Cornerstone Biblical Commentary series, Logos is giving away the Matthew, Mark volume by David L. Turner and Darrell L. Bock for free—no strings attached! Make sure to use coupon code CORNERSTONE.

NOTE: If you don’t already have a Libronix Customer ID, make sure to download the free Libronix engine and create a Libronix Customer ID before you grab this commentary.

It’s a limited-time offer. Spread the word!

Dan Phillips, who blogs at Biblical Christianity and Pyromaniacs, emailed me about a month ago and asked me about making Henry Alford’s The Greek Testament: With a Critically Revised Text; a Digest of Various Readings; Marginal References to Verbal and Idiomatic Usage; Prolegomena; and a Critical and Exegetical Commentary available for Libronix. In that email he told me that “John Piper names it as the one he always consults.” Recently I asked him if he knew the source for Piper’s statement. He didn’t, but said he’d do some hunting. He asked his blog readers for help, and it was Pilgrim Mommy to the rescue.

I think it might be . . . during the Q&A at the end of Piper’s talk on John Owen.

I just listened to the end of Piper’s biographical lecture on Owen, and here’s what he says in the Q&A in response to a question about commentaries that he finds helpful:

When I’m stumped with a . . . grammatical or syntactical or logical flow [question] in Paul, I go to Henry Alford. Henry Alford . . . comes closer more consistently than any other human commentator to asking my kinds of questions. (John Piper, “John Owen: The Chief Design of My Life—Mortification and Universal Holiness,” 1:30:11–1:30:31.)¹

Mystery solved. Thanks, Pilgrim Mommy.

If you like Alford and would like to have it in the best digital format, you can pre-order it for only $129.95. It’s out of print, hard to obtain, and will cost you 2 to 3 times that much for the print volumes.

Also, his The New Testament for English Readers is available on Community Pricing and with enough bids could go for $16 or less.

Read Dan’s post at the Pyromaniacs blog for more on Alford.

Footnotes

1. I actually have three different versions of this audio, all of which are different lengths. The time above is from the latest version of the audio on the Desiring God website. ↩

Logos just released a new round of base packages labeled ND. No, that’s not an abbreviation for anything. They serve merely to distinguish the various versions of the base packages. The previous base packages were OC, the ones before that were QB, and the ones before that were RA. You can upgrade from your current OC package to the corresponding ND package for free (you pay only for the media and shipping). They’ve added the TNIV and NIrV to all of the base packages that include the NIV (i.e., all but Christian Home and Original Languages).

Shanna and I are in the midst of a major transition. We are wrapping up things here in Greenville, SC (like packing and trying to sell or rent our condo) and preparing to move about 2,900 miles across the country to Bellingham, WA. I will be taking a job (in the marketing deparment) with Logos Research Systems, Inc., the makers of Logos Bible Software, and Shanna will be looking for work once we get settled in. I didn’t realize how big of a task preparing for a move like this would be! It’s good for us, though, because it’s making us rely upon God more than when we feel like we have things under control.

We’d appreciate your prayers. Here are some specific things you can pray for us:

1. That God would continue to pour out His grace on us and teach us to rely upon and rest in Him.
2. That we would find a buyer or renter for our condo ASAP. Though the bank thinks we can afford two mortgages, I’m not convinced!
3. That we would have a safe and enjoyable trip to Bellingham. We’ll be driving a 22′ Penske truck and pulling our car behind us! Pray especially that we won’t run into snow in the mountains.
4. That we would adjust well to the weather and culture. Bellingham is very different from Greenville! We’re enjoying the sun while we still can! In fact, we’re heading out right now for one last picnic.
5. That we would find a solid church where we can minister and grow. Silver Beach Community Church looks like it might be a pretty good fit.
6. That Shanna would find an enjoyable and well-paying job. We are hoping that something will open up for Shanna at Logos, perhaps in the shipping department or as a receptionist. We have only one vehicle, so this would be ideal.
7. That I would learn my job responsibilities quickly and perform them well.
8. That I’d be able to make progress on my dissertation!
9. That God would show us more of Himself and use us for His glory in this next chapter of our lives.

We’ll try to give an update once we arrive in Bellingham and get settled in.

If you’re in the Greenville area and want to lend a helping hand, give me a call (864-238-1989). We’ll be loading the truck on Tuesday afternoon (10/30).