Ministry Letter from Dr. Gary Hill


Interested reader,

HELPS Ministries Inc., a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) tax exempt corporation, shares multi-media resources for equipping leaders to read and teach the Scriptures. For the last 40 years, our ministry has uninterruptedly produced Bible-knowledge materials. In 1976, I teamed up with Dr. Gleason Archer, Professor at TEDS (Trinity Evangelical Divinity School | Trinity International University), to begin this global training product. In 1987, I co-edited The Discovery Bible NT (Moody Publishers, Chicago) – a best-seller study Bible sharing tens of thousands of Greek insights instantly available to every reader. Over three decades and three million dollars of research and development have gone into the resources. See endorsements from: James Packer, John Walvoord, John MacArthur, R. C. Sproul, Walter Kaiser and numerous other authorities.

The Discovery Bible is practical and users never need to learn the Hebrew or Greek alphabet – or memorize a Hebrew or Greek word. This interactive software, tagged to the NASB and KJV text is lightning fast and has all the content of the Moody Publishers, print-edition and much more:

  • ​A 7,000 page OT/NT devotional lexicon, also leafing in or alluding to 1,000 reference works;

  • All “beyond translation” action-picture verbs flagged with easy-to-understand explanations and examples (Hebrew and Greek);

  • Color-highlighted occasions of emphatic word order of the original text (OT/NT);

  • NT Englishman’s Concordance;

  • ​New American Standard Exhaustive Concordance (NASEC Dictionary)

  • Bible Concordance for NASB and KJV

  • ​Greek Interlinear with parsing tag;

  • Hebrew Interlinear with parsing tag;

  • All long-range prophecies flagged in the Old Testament;

  • ​More than a dozen commentary sets (interactive with Bible text): Cambridge, Barnes, Ellicott, Keil-Delitzsch, Jamieson-Fausset-Brown;

  • Topical Index, etc.


In the software market, individual components in this offer would total over $2,000 (USD). [We regularly discount it below $1,299 (USD) a unit and much further in Majority World countries. The ministry has already given $2 million of software during 2016.]

I have personally taken 30,000 pastors through exegesis/hermeneutics workshops in twelve countries, 25 Christian seminaries/colleges, and 20 Christian television/radio venues (it is amply road-tested). We would gladly explore ministering on-site, making sure users are not “orphaned at the door” but rather successfully trained to use the tool . . . for Life. Click here for quick info.

There is much more we could offer, such as massive certification in field-based theological education from The Discovery Bible / HELPS faculty: Drs. Eugene Merrill, Jerry Horner, Leland Ryken, and Gary Hill. The following video, less than 7 minutes, features a prominent pastor and Dr. Grant Osborne from TEDS together with me. We sketch out the pastoral training strategy using The Discovery Bible. Click here to watch it.

You will be able to plug this in ministry and anyone else you wish to share it with. We will customize our general syllabus and content to meet the needs on the fields. This will go far beyond the scope of a seminar and provide ad hoc certifications. (Our seminar is not presumed nor excluded for this.)

The Discovery Bible offers an efficient step forward in equipping Christian leaders to feed the flock. We live and breathe for world missions, desiring the Lord’s approval in carrying out His plan for His people.

Yours in Christ,

Gary Hill, President

(Click here for a 15-min video summary of the above information)

Backstory - Dr. Gary Hill


As I was beginning my 30 years of pastoring in the Chicago area, I approached Dr. Gleason Archer from TEDS ((where I did theological graduate studies, 1971-73)) in 1976 to tutor me on a regular basis in biblical Hebrew and Greek. He took me on with this proviso: I would drive to his house each month (60 miles away, I had young kids at the time) with at least 200 pre-prepared questions on the original (Heb-Gk) text, record his answers, have them input, and pass them on to future Bible students.

I did this for 9 years and discovered that most of the “beyond translation insights” fell into three categories:

  • ​Emphasis conveyed (principally) through the Heb-Gk word order,

  • Action pictures (Hebrew and Gk verb aspects etc), and

  • Word colors (lexical distinctions, particularly expanding on near-synonyms).

Backstory - Dr. Gleason Archer


Dr. Archer was an expert in 30 languages with:

  • ​three linguistic degrees from Harvard University (PhD summa cum laude comparative linguistics, concentration in ancient Greek),

  • a graduate degree in Semitics from Princeton Theological Seminary,

  • ​a law degree sandwiched between at Suffolk University Law School (and passing the bar in Massachusetts),

  • post doctoral studies at the University of Chicago (Oriental Institute),

  • ​Semitic studies in Beirut.


Additionally, he was a full-term translator and chief architect of the NASB translation, full-term senior translator of NIV, an academic dean, first at Fuller Theological Seminary then TEDS where he taught for 30 years as an OT professor.

Best of all, Dr. Archer read Scripture faithfully (with a revolving schedule in 17 languages in his devotions each morning) as a surrendered, born-again Christian and followed Christ as Lord. He loved me like a son — and I him as a father — until he died in my arms about 12 years ago.

This project bears his stamp and thumbprint every step of the way. At his urging, The Discovery Bible (TDB)/HELPS materials were submitted before and after publication for critique to many faculty members at:

  • ​Harvard Divinity School,

  • Dallas Theological Seminary,

  • Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS) / Trinity International University,

  • ​Northwestern University etc to mention a few.


During the course of the above, we are grateful for many, including the following men who made helpful contributions and criticisms:

  • ​Dr. Nigel Turner of Ely, Cambridgeshire

  • Dr. Bruce Metzger, professor Emeritus, Princeton Theological Seminary

  • Dr. Julian Hills of Marquette University

  • Dr. Kostas Kazazis of the University of Chicago


TDB was released in 1987, became a best seller, had enormous scholarly endorsement — but still went out of print for at least two major reasons:

  • ​No OT and

  • No graphics to “warm it up.”


After 20 plus years of more full-time work, the OT is finished along with HELPS graphics.

Praise be to God


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