Having a commentary series taken from the best of Reformation writers is incredibly intriguing in itself. You don’t have to hold to all of the Reformers’ beliefs to see how captivating it really is. Within that series, Psalms holds the most enchantment. Those Reformers throbbed with the personal wrestlings of Christianity as found in the Psalms. Editor Herman Selderhuis has done us all a favor by sifting through all the extant writings of the era to bring us the cream of the crop.

This volume, then, is a great representative of this attractive series. From the cover design to the layout, this book looks beautiful on either the shelf or open on the desk as you are studying. It’s a large volume whose weight in your hand will remind you of the force its pages hold.

After the guide for using the series and a general introduction, we get a rich introduction on the Psalms from the Reformers’ point of view.  The most prevalent feature is their tracing Christ in the Psalms. That why this series holds value–something as apropos as Christ in the Psalms is grossly undervalued in many modern works. Not here!

The commentary proper doesn’t cover every word or phrase, but what it does explain is often as warm as the sun. That’s a great compliment to your exegetical commentaries.

Don’t miss the extras at the end of the volume: a map of Europe during the Reformation, a timeline, a broad review of the people of the Reformation, and a bibliography. They are well done.

This book is both helpful and enjoyable. (As of this writing in October 2018 we know that the followup volume on Psalm 73-150 is coming soon). This one is worth having!

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.