I’ve enjoyed books by Eugene Peterson over the years. On the one hand, he’s a great spiritual help in our out-of-control world while he is, on the other hand, a fine encourager for pastors. He knows how to make you slow down to think and always pushes you toward thoughtful reflection. What I’m not used to seeing is Peterson showing up in a commentary series. Since this series (Westminster Bible Companion) is directed at laymen I’m not as familiar with it as I am with others. Apparently, it aims to do for laymen what the Interpretation Bible Commentary series might do for pastors or students: give thoughtful theological commentary from a critical perspective. What I’ve learned from a little research is that Peterson has contributed this work and made it unlike the others in the series. Truth be told, nobody cares because Peterson is always worth reading, and for that matter, some may like his style more than the typical ones found in this series anyway.

You will see what I mean the moment you read the introduction. There are almost none of the issues you find in a typical introduction for a commentary. When he talks about story, history, or God, he’s not really talking about them as much about the books of Samuel as he is how we ought to think about them in general. It appears to me that with very little editing he could have written this introduction for any book of the Bible. For the record, he overplays the whole “storyteller” idea too.

In any event, his few paragraphs on every passage are a joy to read as they are so out-of-the-box and spiritually minded. To be sure, sometimes I think he’s talking about something that is not really in the passage at all, yet I’m usually happy to go digging for nuggets where I’m sure to find some. In this book, if you will dig among the stones, you will find those nuggets. This book may not be as valuable as some others I’ve read by Peterson, but as always, it is a good one.

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.