Robert Payne Smith

This massive work of scholarly erudition is an authoritative Syriac lexicon that is essential for all students of the language. Now available with an English introduction, this monumental lexicographical work is of exceptional utility.

As the title of this work broadly indicates, it is the translation into English of St. Cyril of Alexandria’s commentary on the Gospel of Luke. This manuscript document had recently been acquired by Oxford University in Syriac. Payne Smith published an edition, but quickly realized that the work would largely go ignored if it were not translated into English. Cyril’s own interpretation of one of the Gospels focuses a crucial eye on a major source for understanding early Christianity.