A Bible study assistant for Claude that provides full scholarly lexicons (LSJ Greek, BDB Hebrew, Abbott-Smith NT Greek), morphologically-tagged biblical texts, cross-references, Theographic genealogy graphs, Aquifer Open Study Notes, a Bible dictionary, key theological terms, Ancient Near East cultural context, and hermeneutical methodology based on Fee & Stuart's "How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth".
Quick Start
Claude Desktop
- Open Settings → Connectors
- Click Add Custom Connector
- Paste:
https://studybible-mcp.fly.dev/sse - Restart Claude Desktop
That's it. No signup, no API keys, no downloads.
Claude Code
claude mcp add study-bible https://studybible-mcp.fly.dev/sse
ChatGPT (Developer Mode)
- Open Settings → Developer Mode → enable it
- Go to Actions → Add MCP Server
- Enter URL:
https://studybible-mcp.fly.dev/mcp
Cursor / Windsurf / Cline
Add to your MCP configuration (usually .cursor/mcp.json, .windsurf/mcp.json, or Cline settings):
{
"mcpServers": {
"study-bible": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://studybible-mcp.fly.dev/sse"]
}
}
}Install via pip / uvx (local stdio)
pip install studybible-mcp studybible-mcp --transport stdio
Or run directly without installing:
uvx studybible-mcp --transport stdio
Manual Config (Alternative)
If you prefer editing config files directly:
{
"mcpServers": {
"study-bible": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://studybible-mcp.fly.dev/sse"]
}
}
}Config file locations:
- macOS:
~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json - Windows:
%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json - Linux:
~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
How It Works
Architecture Overview
┌─────────────────────┐ ┌──────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Claude Desktop │ │ Study Bible MCP Server │
│ or Claude Code │ │ (Fly.io) │
│ │ │ │
│ ┌───────────────┐ │ MCP │ ┌─────────────┐ ┌───────────────────┐ │
│ │ User asks a │──┼─────┼─▶│ MCP Server │─▶│ SQLite DB (359MB) │ │
│ │ Bible question│ │ │ │ (Python) │ │ │ │
│ └───────────────┘ │ │ └─────────────┘ │ • Lexicons (LSJ, │ │
│ │ │ │ │ BDB, Abbott- │ │
│ ┌───────────────┐ │ │ ▼ │ Smith, Strong's) │ │
│ │ Claude uses │◀─┼─────┼── Tool Results │ • Tagged NT + OT │ │
│ │ 18 tools to │ │ │ │ • Names + ACAI │ │
│ │ look up data │ │ │ │ • Morphology │ │
│ └───────────────┘ │ │ │ • Study Notes │ │
│ │ │ │ • Bible Dictionary │ │
│ │ │ │ • Key Terms │ │
│ │ │ │ • ANE Context │ │
│ │ │ │ • Embeddings │ │
│ │ │ └───────────────────┘ │
└─────────────────────┘ └──────────────────────────────────────────┘
When you ask Claude a Bible question:
- Claude analyses your question and decides which tools to use
- Claude calls the appropriate MCP tools (e.g.,
lookup_verse,word_study,get_study_notes) - The server queries the pre-built SQLite database
- Results are returned to Claude
- Claude synthesises the data into a helpful response
See ARCHITECTURE.md for a full Mermaid flowchart of all 18 tools and how the agent chains them together.
The Database
The server includes a pre-built SQLite database (~600MB) containing:
| Table | Rows | Content |
|---|---|---|
lexicon |
19,391 | Greek (Full LSJ + Abbott-Smith NT) and Hebrew (Full BDB) word definitions with Strong's numbers |
verses |
31,280 | Every verse of the Bible with morphology tags |
passages |
5,290 | Verses grouped by ancient section markers |
names |
4,299 | Biblical people, places, and things |
morphology |
2,768 | Grammatical parsing code definitions |
thematic_references |
22 | Core theological theme cross-references |
aquifer_content |
102,673 | Study notes, dictionary articles, translation notes, key terms |
acai_entities |
3,175 | Rich entity annotations (people, places, groups, key terms) |
ane_entries |
87 | Ancient Near East cultural context entries across 12 dimensions |
ane_book_mappings |
314 | Maps ANE entries to biblical books and chapter ranges |
verse_vectors |
31,280 | OpenAI embeddings for semantic search |
passage_vectors |
5,190 | OpenAI embeddings for passage similarity |
You can download the pre-built database directly: study_bible.db (~600MB)
Available Tools (18)
Core Text & Language
1. lookup_verse
Retrieve a verse with its original language text and word-by-word analysis.
When Claude uses it: User asks about a specific verse, wants to see the Greek or Hebrew text, or asks about specific words in a passage.
What it returns: English translation, original Greek/Hebrew text, word-by-word breakdown with Strong's numbers, morphological parsing, genre-specific interpretation guidance.
Example:
User: "Look up Romans 8:28 with the Greek"
Claude calls: lookup_verse(reference="Romans 8:28", include_original=true)
Returns:
- Verse text in English
- Greek: πάντα συνεργεῖ εἰς ἀγαθόν...
- Word analysis: συνεργεῖ (G4903) = "works together" [V-PAI-3S]
- Genre guidance: "Epistles - What problem was being addressed?"
2. word_study
Deep dive into a Greek or Hebrew word's meaning, usage, and etymology. Greek entries include both the full Liddell-Scott-Jones (LSJ) definition for classical breadth and the Abbott-Smith definition for NT-specific insight (with LXX/Hebrew equivalents, synonym discussions, and NT occurrence counts). Hebrew entries include the full Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB) definition.
When Claude uses it: User asks about the meaning of a Greek/Hebrew word, wants to understand different translations of a term, or asks about theological concepts (love, faith, grace).
What it returns: Original word in Greek/Hebrew script, transliteration, Strong's number, brief definition, full LSJ or BDB scholarly definition, Abbott-Smith NT-focused definition (Greek words), LXX/Hebrew cross-references, synonym discussions, NT occurrence count, etymology, usage count, semantic range, related words, example passages.
Example:
User: "What does 'agape' mean in Greek?"
Claude calls: word_study(strongs="G26")
Returns:
- ἀγάπη (agapē, G26)
- Brief Definition: "love, goodwill, benevolence"
- Full LSJ Definition: [scholarly entry with classical and biblical usage]
- Abbott-Smith Definition: [NT-focused entry with sense hierarchy]
- LXX / Hebrew Equivalents: H0160 אַהֲבָה
- Synonyms: SYN.: φιλία — love which chooses its object...
- NT Usage: Occurs 116 times in the New Testament
- Related words: ἀγαπάω (to love), ἀγαπητός (beloved)
3. search_lexicon
Search across Greek and Hebrew lexicons by English meaning.
When Claude uses it: User wants to find the Greek/Hebrew word for an English concept, asks "How do you say X in Greek?", or is exploring related words.
Example:
User: "What are the Greek words for 'love'?"
Claude calls: search_lexicon(query="love", language="greek")
Returns:
- G26 ἀγάπη - divine, unconditional love
- G5368 φιλέω - brotherly, affectionate love
- G2309 θέλω - desire, wish
4. get_cross_references
Find passages related to a verse or theological theme.
When Claude uses it: User asks "What other passages talk about X?", wants to see Scripture interpreting Scripture, or is studying a theological theme.
Built-in themes: salvation_by_grace, deity_of_christ, atonement, resurrection, holy_spirit, justification.
Example:
User: "What passages support salvation by grace alone?"
Claude calls: get_cross_references(theme="salvation_by_grace")
Returns:
- Genesis 15:6 - Abraham believed, credited as righteousness
- Romans 3:21-26 - Righteousness through faith in Christ
- Ephesians 2:8-9 - Saved by grace through faith
- Titus 3:5-7 - Not by works of righteousness
5. lookup_name
Get information about biblical people, places, and things, enriched with ACAI entity annotations (variant names, roles, reference counts, speech attributions).
When Claude uses it: User asks "Who was X?", wants to know about a place's significance, or asks about relationships between biblical figures.
What it returns: Original Hebrew/Greek form, type (person, place, thing), description, key references, relationships (father, mother, children), ACAI annotations (variant names, roles, verse reference count, attributed speeches).
Example:
User: "Who was Abraham?"
Claude calls: lookup_name(name="Abraham")
Returns:
- Type: Person
- Original: אַבְרָהָם
- Description, key references, family relationships
- ACAI: Also known as "Abram", referenced in 275 verses, 52 attributed speeches
6. parse_morphology
Explain Greek or Hebrew grammatical parsing codes.
When Claude uses it: User asks what a morphology code means or wants to understand verb tense, mood, voice.
Example:
User: "What does V-AAI-3S mean?"
Claude calls: parse_morphology(code="V-AAI-3S", language="greek")
Returns:
- Part of Speech: Verb
- Tense: Aorist, Voice: Active, Mood: Indicative
- Person: 3rd, Number: Singular
7. search_by_strongs
Find all verses containing a specific Strong's number.
When Claude uses it: User wants to see how a word is used throughout Scripture or is doing a comprehensive word study.
Example:
User: "Show me all the places where 'hesed' (H2617) appears"
Claude calls: search_by_strongs(strongs="H2617", limit=20)
Returns:
- H2617 חֶסֶד (hesed) - "lovingkindness, steadfast love"
- Genesis 24:12, Exodus 34:6, Psalm 23:6, Psalm 136...
Scholarly Commentary
8. get_study_notes
Get scholarly study notes and translation notes for a Bible verse or chapter.
When Claude uses it: User wants commentary on a specific verse, help explaining a difficult passage, or translation and cultural background notes.
What it returns: Combined commentary from three sources: Aquifer Open Study Notes (66 books of concise verse-level scholarly commentary), unfoldingWord Translation Notes (translator-focused linguistic insights), and SIL Translator Notes (additional translation and cultural context).
Example:
User: "What do the study notes say about John 3:16?"
Claude calls: get_study_notes(reference="John 3:16")
Returns:
- Aquifer Open Study Notes: [verse commentary]
- Translation Notes (UW): [linguistic insights]
- Translation Notes (SIL): [cultural context]
9. get_bible_dictionary
Look up a topic in the Tyndale Bible Dictionary.
When Claude uses it: User needs background information on a biblical topic, historical or cultural context, or a detailed article about a person, place, or concept.
What it returns: Full dictionary article from a collection of 500+ topical articles covering biblical people, places, theological concepts, cultural practices, historical background, and archaeological findings.
Example:
User: "Tell me about the Pharisees"
Claude calls: get_bible_dictionary(topic="Pharisees")
Returns: Full Tyndale Bible Dictionary article with historical background,
beliefs, practices, and NT context.
10. get_key_terms
Look up a key theological term in the FIA Key Terms database.
When Claude uses it: User wants a precise definition of a theological term, or needs to understand how a concept is used across Scripture.
What it returns: Definition from a collection of 200+ carefully defined theological and biblical terms with biblical usage, cross-references, and translation guidance.
Example:
User: "Define the term atonement"
Claude calls: get_key_terms(term="atonement")
Returns: FIA Key Terms definition with biblical usage, cross-references,
and translation guidance.
Graph Knowledge (Theographic Bible Metadata)
11. explore_genealogy
Trace family relationships (ancestors or descendants) for a biblical person using genealogical data for 1,100+ persons.
What it returns: Family tree with generation numbers and relationship types, immediate family (spouse, siblings), Mermaid diagram.
Example:
User: "Show me the family tree of David"
Claude calls: explore_genealogy(person="David", direction="both", generations=5)
Returns: Ancestor chain (Jesse → Obed → Boaz...), descendants,
spouse(s), siblings, Mermaid flowchart diagram.
12. explore_person_events
Find all events a biblical person participated in, in chronological order.
What it returns: Timeline of a person's life events with locations and approximate dates, Mermaid timeline diagram.
13. explore_place
Explore the biblical history of a geographic location.
What it returns: Events at the location, people born or who died there, coordinates, Mermaid network diagram.
14. find_connection
Find the family relationship path between two biblical people.
What it returns: Shortest relationship path through parent, child, sibling, and partner relationships, Mermaid flowchart.
Example:
User: "How are Ruth and Jesus related?"
Claude calls: find_connection(person1="Ruth", person2="Jesus")
Returns: Ruth → child → Obed → child → Jesse → child → David → ... → Jesus
15. people_in_passage
Find all people, places, and events mentioned in a Bible passage.
What it returns: All entities mentioned in a chapter or verse according to Theographic Bible Metadata.
Cultural Context
18. get_ane_context
Retrieve Ancient Near East cultural and historical context that illuminates biblical passages. Covers 12 dimensions of ANE life across 9 time periods.
When Claude uses it: User asks about cultural background, customs, practices, or worldview behind a passage; when understanding the original context would prevent modern misreadings.
What it returns: Structured entries with title, summary, detailed explanation, ANE parallels from extra-biblical sources, interpretive significance, key references, and scholarly sources.
Dimensions: Cosmology & Worldview, Religious Practices, Social Structure, Legal & Covenant, Political & Imperial, Economic Life, Literary Conventions, Warfare & Military, Daily Life & Material Culture, Death & Afterlife, Gender & Family, Education & Literacy.
Periods: Patriarchal, Exodus/Conquest, Judges/Early Monarchy, United Monarchy, Divided Monarchy, Assyrian/Babylonian, Persian, Hellenistic, Roman.
Example:
User: "What's the cultural background behind Genesis 15 - the covenant ceremony?"
Claude calls: get_ane_context(reference="Genesis 15:1", dimension="legal_covenant")
Returns:
- Suzerainty Treaty Forms: ANE covenant structure (preamble, stipulations,
witnesses, curses/blessings) parallels Deuteronomy and Genesis 15
- Self-Maledictory Oath: Walking between animal halves = "may I become
like these animals if I break this covenant"
- ANE Parallels: Hittite suzerainty treaties, Mari covenant rituals
- Interpretive Significance: God alone passes through the pieces,
taking the covenant curse entirely upon himself
Hybrid Search
16. graph_enriched_search
Combine passage lookup with graph context for the most comprehensive single-query view of a verse.
What it returns: Verse text (English + original), all people/places/events mentioned, family relationships for each person mentioned.
17. find_similar_passages
Discover semantically similar passages across the Bible using vector embeddings.
When Claude uses it: User wants to find thematic connections not captured by explicit cross-references, or asks "What passages are similar to X?"
What it returns: Similar passages ranked by semantic similarity (%), genre warnings, hermeneutical cautions.
Important: Semantic similarity indicates shared vocabulary and concepts, but does NOT establish theological connection. The tool includes warnings to verify genre compatibility, authorial intent, and historical context.
Example:
User: "Find passages similar to Daniel 7:7"
Claude calls: find_similar_passages(reference="Daniel 7:7", limit=5)
Returns:
- Daniel 7:15-28 (70.0% similar) - interpretation of the vision
- Revelation 9:17-21 (61.1% similar) - locusts with lion's teeth
- Daniel 2:29-45 (60.8% similar) - Nebuchadnezzar's statue
How Users Interact
Natural Language Queries
Users don't need to know the tool names. They just ask questions:
| User Question | Claude Uses |
|---|---|
| "What does John 3:16 say in Greek?" | lookup_verse |
| "What's the Greek word for love?" | search_lexicon |
| "Study the word 'agape'" | word_study |
| "Who was Abraham?" | lookup_name |
| "What other passages talk about grace?" | get_cross_references |
| "Parse V-AAI-3S" | parse_morphology |
| "Where else does G26 appear?" | search_by_strongs |
| "What do the study notes say about Romans 8:28?" | get_study_notes |
| "Look up 'covenant' in the Bible dictionary" | get_bible_dictionary |
| "Define the key term 'atonement'" | get_key_terms |
| "Show me David's family tree" | explore_genealogy |
| "What events happened in Moses' life?" | explore_person_events |
| "What's the history of Bethlehem?" | explore_place |
| "How are Ruth and Jesus related?" | find_connection |
| "Who are the people in Romans 8?" | people_in_passage |
| "Give me everything about Genesis 22:1" | graph_enriched_search |
| "Find passages similar to Daniel 7" | find_similar_passages |
| "What's the cultural context of Genesis 15?" | get_ane_context |
Example Conversation
User: "I'm studying Romans 5:8. What does Paul mean when he says God 'demonstrates' his love?"
Claude's internal process:
- Look up the verse:
lookup_verse(reference="Romans 5:8") - Study the key word:
word_study(word="demonstrates")→ finds G4921 συνίστημι - Get study notes:
get_study_notes(reference="Romans 5:8") - Check cross-references for context
- Apply genre guidance (Epistles)
Claude's response:
In Romans 5:8, Paul uses the Greek word συνίστημι (synistēmi, G4921), which means "to stand together, to commend, to demonstrate." This is a present tense verb, indicating ongoing action.
The genre context is important here: Romans is an epistle, and Paul is building an argument. In the immediate context (Romans 5:1-11), he's explaining how we have peace with God through justification by faith. Verse 8 is his proof: God didn't wait for us to become worthy, but demonstrated his love "while we were still sinners."
The word "demonstrates" carries the sense of proving beyond doubt - not just telling us about his love, but showing it through action (Christ's death).
Related passages on God's love demonstrated through Christ: John 3:16, 1 John 4:9-10.
Example Questions
Try asking Claude:
What does John 3:16 say in Greek? Break down the key words.
Study the word 'agape' - how is it different from other Greek words for love?
What's the context of Romans 8:28? Who is Paul writing to and why?
Show me cross-references for Ephesians 2:8-9 on salvation by grace.
Who was Melchizedek and why is he significant?
Parse the verb morphology in Philippians 2:12 - "work out your salvation"
What does the Hebrew word 'hesed' mean? Where is it used?
Help me understand Revelation 13 - what are these beasts?
What do the study notes say about John 1:1?
Look up 'baptism' in the Bible dictionary.
Show me David's family tree going back 5 generations.
How are Abraham and Jesus connected genealogically?
What events happened in the life of Moses?
Find passages similar to John 3:16 - what other verses talk about God's love like this?
What Old Testament passages connect to Daniel's vision of the Son of Man?
What's the Ancient Near East background for the creation account in Genesis 1?
Explain the cultural context of covenant-making in Genesis 15.
Hermeneutical Framework
This isn't just a reference tool. It's designed to guide users toward sound biblical interpretation.
The Problem It Solves
Common interpretation errors include:
- Proof-texting: Using isolated verses to support predetermined conclusions
- Allegorizing: Finding hidden meanings not intended by the author
- Ignoring genre: Reading poetry as prose or prophecy as history
- Ignoring context: Ripping verses from their historical and literary setting
- Moralizing: Reducing narratives to "be good like David"
The Fee & Stuart Method
The interpretive framework is based on "How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth" by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart - the standard textbook for biblical hermeneutics used in seminaries worldwide.
About the authors:
- Gordon Fee (1934-2022): New Testament scholar, professor at Regent College, author of major commentaries on 1 Corinthians, Philippians, and Pauline theology. One of the translators of the NIV and TNIV.
- Douglas Stuart: Old Testament scholar, professor at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, author of commentaries on Hosea-Jonah, Exodus, and Old Testament hermeneutics.
Their book (first published 1981, now in its 4th edition) has sold over a million copies and is used as the introductory hermeneutics text at most evangelical seminaries. It teaches readers to interpret Scripture according to its literary genre, historical context, and authorial intent - avoiding both wooden literalism and uncontrolled allegorizing.
The server embeds genre-specific interpretation principles from this methodology:
Core Principles
-
Exegesis Before Application
- First discover what the text meant to its original audience
- Then determine what it means for us today
- Never jump directly to application
-
Context is King
- Historical context: time, culture, author, audience, occasion
- Literary context: genre, surrounding passages, book structure
- A text without context is a pretext for a proof text
-
Genre Determines Method Different biblical literature requires different approaches
Genre-Specific Guidelines
Epistles (Letters)
Key principle: Think contextually - what problem was being addressed?
- Read the entire letter to understand the argument flow
- Ask: What problem prompted this letter?
- Pay attention to logical connectors (therefore, because, so that)
- Distinguish between central argument and supporting points
- Not every statement is universally prescriptive
Common errors:
- Taking verses out of their argumentative context
- Ignoring the specific historical situation being addressed
- Treating every instruction as a timeless command
Old Testament Narratives
Key principle: Three levels (meta, national, individual); descriptive not prescriptive
- Narratives describe what happened, not necessarily what should happen
- Three levels: God's universal plan, Israel's story, individual accounts
- Characters are not always examples to follow - observe their flaws
- The narrator rarely makes direct theological statements
- God is the ultimate hero of every narrative
Common errors:
- Treating every character's action as a model to follow
- Allegorizing details that are simply historical facts
- Moralizing: "Be brave like David" without seeing God's work
Gospels
Key principle: Two-level documents (Jesus' original context + evangelist's purpose)
- Consider both Jesus' original meaning and the Gospel writer's purpose
- Each Gospel has a specific audience and theological emphasis
- Account for the already/not-yet tension of the Kingdom
- Compare parallel accounts to see each writer's emphasis
Common errors:
- Harmonizing too quickly without hearing each Gospel's voice
- Ignoring Jesus' audience (Pharisees, disciples, crowds)
- Applying teachings directly without considering the cross
Parables
Key principle: Find the main point; don't allegorize every detail
- Identify the one or two main points - parables are not allegories
- Consider the audience: Who is Jesus speaking to and why?
- Look for cultural background that illuminates meaning
- The unexpected twist often carries the main message
Common errors:
- Allegorizing every detail (the donkey represents X...)
- Missing the shock value for the original audience
- Creating theological systems from parabolic details
Prophets
Key principle: Covenant enforcement; check if "future" is now past
- Prophets were covenant enforcement officers - calling Israel back
- Most "predictions" were about events now in our past
- The prophetic lawsuit pattern: accusation, judgment, hope
- Distinguish near fulfillment from ultimate/eschatological fulfillment
- Poetry and metaphor are the normal mode of prophetic speech
Common errors:
- Reading all prophecy as about the end times
- Literalizing poetic and metaphorical language
- Creating detailed end-times timelines from prophetic poetry
Psalms
Key principle: Poetry/prayer; understand the types (lament, thanksgiving, praise)
- Psalms are inspired responses to God - poetry, not doctrine
- Identify the type: Lament, Thanksgiving, Praise, Royal, Wisdom
- Poetry uses metaphor, hyperbole, and parallelism
- The emotions are real and God-given - even the difficult ones
- Many psalms find their ultimate fulfillment in Christ
Common errors:
- Treating poetic expressions as doctrinal statements
- Ignoring the emotional dimension
- Literalizing metaphorical language
Wisdom Literature
Key principle: General truths, not guarantees; compare with full canon
- Proverbs are general truths, not unconditional promises
- Wisdom literature wrestles with life's complexity
- Job and Ecclesiastes challenge simplistic interpretations
- The fear of the Lord is the foundation of all wisdom
- Compare individual proverbs with the full biblical witness
Common errors:
- Treating Proverbs as unconditional promises
- Ignoring the dialogue format in Job (not all speeches are true)
- Missing the "under the sun" perspective in Ecclesiastes
Apocalyptic (Revelation)
Key principle: Apocalyptic imagery; already/not yet eschatology
- Apocalyptic is a literary genre with its own conventions
- Symbols are stock imagery (beasts, numbers) with recognized meanings
- The primary message is: God wins, evil is judged, Christ reigns
- Read in light of OT prophets and the already/not yet tension
- Multiple valid interpretive approaches exist
Common errors:
- Literalizing symbolic imagery (666 as a barcode)
- Creating detailed chronological timelines
- Missing the pastoral purpose: encouragement for suffering believers
The Reasoning Pattern
The server's hermeneutics module guides Claude through this sequence:
- IDENTIFY: What biblical text(s) are relevant?
- GENRE: What type of literature is this?
- CONTEXT: Historical, literary, canonical
- CONTENT: What does the text say? (Greek/Hebrew when helpful)
- CROSS-REFERENCES: Scripture interprets Scripture
- APPLICATION: Timeless principle behind temporal commands
- HUMILITY: Acknowledge uncertainty where it exists
Self-Hosting
Want to run your own instance? See docs/SELF_HOST.md.
Options:
- Local Python development
- Docker deployment
- Your own Fly.io instance
Project Structure
studybible-mcp/
├── src/study_bible_mcp/
│ ├── server.py # MCP server (stdio + SSE transports)
│ ├── database.py # SQLite queries (async)
│ ├── tools.py # 18 tool definitions
│ ├── hermeneutics.py # Genre detection & interpretation
│ └── parsers/
│ ├── lexicon.py # TFLSJ, BDB, Abbott-Smith, TBESG, TBESH parsers
│ ├── aquifer.py # BibleAquifer JSON parser
│ ├── acai.py # ACAI entity annotation parser
│ ├── ane_context.py # ANE cultural context parser
│ ├── tagged_text.py # TAGNT/TAHOT morphology parsers
│ └── proper_names.py # TIPNR name parser
├── scripts/
│ ├── download_stepbible.py # Download all source data (--aquifer flag)
│ ├── build_database.py # Build SQLite database
│ ├── generate_embeddings.py # Generate vector embeddings
│ ├── import_theographic.py # Import Theographic graph data
│ └── test_server.py # Manual test suite
├── tests/
│ └── test_tool_selection.py # Pytest: agent tool selection (71 tests)
├── prompts/
│ └── system_prompt.md # Full hermeneutical framework for agents
├── docs/
│ ├── SETUP.md # Quick setup guide
│ └── SELF_HOST.md # Self-hosting instructions
├── ARCHITECTURE.md # Mermaid flowchart of all 18 tools
├── Dockerfile # Multi-stage build with database
├── fly.toml # Fly.io deployment config
└── pyproject.toml
Data Sources
STEPBible - Tyndale House, Cambridge
Biblical text and brief lexicon data come from the STEPBible project (GitHub), developed by scholars at Tyndale House, Cambridge - one of the world's leading centres for biblical research. Licensed CC BY 4.0.
| File | Description | Content |
|---|---|---|
| TFLSJ | Full Liddell-Scott-Jones Greek Lexicon | 10,846 Greek words with full scholarly definitions |
| Abbott-Smith | Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT (TEI XML) | 5,896 NT-focused entries with LXX cross-refs and synonym discussions |
| TBESG | Tyndale Brief Lexicon - Greek (fallback) | 5,600+ Greek words with brief definitions |
| TBESH | Tyndale Brief Lexicon - Hebrew (fallback) | 8,600+ Hebrew words with brief definitions |
| TAGNT | Translators Amalgamated Greek NT (2 parts) | Every word of the Greek NT with morphology, Strong's numbers, glosses |
| TAHOT | Translators Amalgamated Hebrew OT (4 parts) | Every word of the Hebrew OT with morphology, Strong's numbers, glosses |
| TIPNR | Translators Proper Names | 4,299 biblical people, places, and things with references |
| TEGMC/TEHMC | Morphology Codes | Grammatical parsing code definitions |
BDB Hebrew Lexicon
The full unabridged Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew lexicon (8,090 entries) comes from eliranwong/unabridged-BDB-Hebrew-lexicon. The BDB is the standard scholarly Hebrew-English lexicon, originally published in 1906 and still widely used in academic study. Public domain text.
Abbott-Smith Greek Lexicon
G. Abbott-Smith's A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922) provides NT-focused definitions that complement the broader classical coverage of LSJ. The TEI XML edition (5,896 entries) comes from translatable-exegetical-tools/Abbott-Smith. Public domain text.
Abbott-Smith enriches 5,426 existing Greek entries with:
| Field | Description | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| NT-focused definition | Full definition with sense hierarchy | 5,871 entries |
| NT occurrence count | Word frequency in the New Testament | 5,480 entries |
| LXX/Hebrew equivalents | Hebrew words the Greek translates in the Septuagint | 3,317 entries |
| Synonym discussions | Scholarly notes distinguishing related Greek words | 398 entries |
BibleAquifer
Scholarly commentary and reference content from BibleAquifer (CC BY-SA 4.0):
| Resource | Description | Content |
|---|---|---|
| Aquifer Open Study Notes | Verse-level scholarly commentary | 66 books |
| Tyndale Bible Dictionary | Topical articles | 500+ articles on people, places, theology, history, archaeology |
| UW Translation Notes | unfoldingWord translator commentary | Linguistic insights for 49+ books |
| SIL Translator Notes | SIL International translator notes | Translation and cultural context |
| FIA Key Terms | Key theological terms | 200+ carefully defined terms with cross-references |
ACAI Entity Annotations
Rich entity annotations from BibleAquifer/ACAI (CC BY-SA 4.0):
| Type | Count | Content |
|---|---|---|
| People | ~2,500 | Family relationships, variant names, roles, speech attributions, verse references |
| Places | ~400 | Geographic entities with biblical references |
| Groups | ~200 | People groups, nations, tribes |
| Key Terms | ~75 | Annotated theological concepts |
Theographic Bible Metadata
Graph data for genealogy, events, and places from Theographic. Used by the explore_genealogy, explore_person_events, explore_place, find_connection, people_in_passage, and graph_enriched_search tools.
Ancient Near East Context
87 structured entries covering 12 dimensions of ANE cultural and historical context across 9 time periods, with 314 book-chapter mappings. Data is stored in data/ane_context/ as JSON files (one per dimension). Sources include Walton, Hallo, Matthews & Benjamin, Pritchard (ANET), and other standard ANE reference works.
Vector Embeddings
Semantic search uses OpenAI's text-embedding-3-small model via sqlite-vec for the find_similar_passages tool.
Contributing
Contributions welcome! Especially:
- Additional thematic cross-references
- Improved genre detection
- New translation support
- Better morphology parsing
- Documentation improvements
License
MIT License. See LICENSE.
Data from STEPBible is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Data from BibleAquifer and ACAI is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Acknowledgments
- STEPBible for the freely available biblical data
- BibleAquifer for study notes, dictionary, translation notes, and key terms
- eliranwong for the unabridged BDB Hebrew lexicon
- translatable-exegetical-tools for the Abbott-Smith Greek Lexicon TEI XML edition
- Theographic for genealogy and event graph data
- Gordon Fee & Douglas Stuart for the hermeneutical framework in "How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth"
- The MCP community for the protocol and tooling