Nave's Topical Bible

Orville James Nave (1841–1917) was a chaplain in the United States Army, and he compiled his Topical Bible during his years of army service, with his wife's help, before first publishing it in 1896. He kept revising it for the rest of his life. The module's title page carries his own statement of what he was trying to do:

The object of this book is to bring together in cyclopedic form and under familiar headings all that the Bible contains on particular subjects. The subjects formulated are of practical value to every profession and to all who desire to consult the Bible.

—Orville J. Nave, 1903

That is exactly what it is: a digest of Scripture arranged by subject. A concordance finds a word; Nave finds a subject, whatever words the Bible uses for it. Under each heading the references are sorted into subtopics, and where the Bible gives examples they are gathered under "Instances of." The entry on the shepherd shows the arrangement:

Shepherd

• One who cares for flocks of sheep Ge 31:38-40; Ps 78:52-53; Jer 31:10; Am 3:12; Lu 2:8
• David the, defends his flock against a lion and a bear 1Sa 17:34-35
• Causes the flock to rest Ps 23:2; Song 1:7; Jer 33:12
• Counts the flock Le 27:32; Jer 33:13
• Knows each one of his flock by name Joh 10:3-5
• …
• INSTANCES OF
  • Abel Ge 4:2
  • Rachel Ge 29:9
  • The daughters of Jethro Ex 2:16
  • Moses Ex 3:1
  • David 1Sa 16:11; 2Sa 7:8; Ps 78:70
• FIGURATIVE Ge 49:24
  • Of God's care Ps 23; Ps 78:52; Ps 80:1
  • Of prophets, priests, Levites, and civil authorities Eze 34
  • Of Christ Zec 13:7; Mt 26:31; Joh 10:1-16; Heb 13:20; 1Pe 2:25
  • A name given to Jesus Isa 40:11; Mr 14:27; Joh 10:11; 1Pe 2:25; 1Pe 5:4
  • A name given to Cyrus Isa 44:28

The SwordSearcher module has 5,321 topics, from Aaron to Zuzims, carrying some seventy thousand Scripture references, with cross-references from one topic to another. The longest articles are on Jesus the Christ, God, Israel, the church, the Christian minister, and prayer; the article on Christ alone runs to more than eight hundred subheadings and follows his life, offices, names, and teaching through both Testaments.

In SwordSearcher every reference in Nave is a link, so a subtopic can be read through passage by passage without leaving the book panel. The entries are also indexed by verse. That means the Verse Guide and Bible margin work in reverse: while you read a chapter, they show every Nave topic that lists the verse in front of you, which is often the quickest way to find what the rest of Scripture says about it.

Nave is the largest of the topical guides in the library. Torrey's New Topical Textbook covers fewer subjects and states each point as a proposition with its proof texts, which some readers prefer for lesson outlines, and the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge works from the other direction, verse by verse. Thompson Chain Topics is also included.