Marvin A. Sweeney, an author who has written several major exegetical works, turns out this volume on First and Second Kings in the Old Testament Library (OTL) series. There seems to be a consensus that this volume is an improvement on the earlier volume on Kings in this series by John Gray that it replaced. I’ve noticed several positive reviews on this volume, and if you wonder how it compares to others in the series, I’d say it’s stronger on exegetical matters and weaker on theological ones. Just as the others in the series, though, it well expresses the viewpoint of the critical camp.

After a lengthy bibliography, Mr. Sweeney begins his Introduction by explaining the big picture of First and Second Kings being a narrative history of Israel and Judah. In presenting his historical views that a conservative reader like me could never agree with, he explains that he feels these books are more designed to tell us why Israel and Judah were exiled rather than to present with historical accuracy. He further explains that the people and the kings have failed to obey the Lord and His word, and have brought God’s hand against themselves. While I could easily believe that along with the historical accuracy of these books, there is no doubt that the explanation of what happened to Israel and Judah is in view in these books.

With a peculiar confidence, he reviews sources, or as he calls it, deuteronomistic history. He will trace that through Josianic, Hezekian, Jehu Dynastic, and Solomonic histories. While I couldn’t get into that sort of thinking, it’s there if that’s your cup of tea. He well explains the textual history of Kings by looking at the Masoretic version, Hebrew manuscripts from Qumran, the Septuagint version, Peshitta and Syriac versions, and even the Vulgate. Which version you favor also plays into how he explains the chronology of Kings. To my mind, he seems antagonistic to the Masoretic text and arrives at a chronology I couldn’t agree with. Still, he explains the common critical assumptions with aplomb.

In the commentary proper, he commentates mostly on the final form of the text. He does at times mention some of these issues regarding sources, but the forte of this volume is its rigorous exegesis. As I see it, this is the best volume to grab to get a clear presentation of the critical viewpoint on the books of First and Second Kings.

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.

This jewel of a commentary and was first written in 1974 and revised in 1988 by the venerable Leon Morris. It will likely be replaced soon as the whole Tyndale New Testament Commentary (TOTC) series is under revision, but I suggest you secure a copy as it is the ideal brief commentary on Luke. Leon Morris was the editor of the whole series before this latest round of revision kicked in, and understood what made a good commentary. In addition, there’s always a glowing spiritual warmth that pervades good scholarship in his writings. This volume on Luke is one of his great ones.

In the Introduction, he discusses authorship, date, language, Luke as a theologian, and the relationship of Luke to the other Gospels. He is thoroughly conservative throughout. The commentary is sterling. In fact, I fail to see how any reader couldn’t benefit from this fine book. If I were reading Luke and just wanted to grab one volume to orient myself or ask a question about the passage, this is the one I would grab. I hope IVP prints this commentary as a standalone volume when it comes time for Luke to be replaced in their TOTC series. Just in case they don’t, you’d better grab a copy while you can.

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.

If you are like me, even though you are conservative Bible student, you like to turn to the Old Testament Library (OTL) series to get a good grasp of the critical position. Though there are some things you will greatly disagree with in the series, there often observations on structure and theology that others miss. This volume by Richard J. Clifford that replaced McKane’s earlier one accomplishes all those things. It does it in spite of the fact that the Book of Proverbs lends itself less to such observations.

After a bibliography, Clifford jumps into an Introduction of the Book of Proverbs. There’s a very interesting outline given. The discussion of dating and the editing of the text matches the critical position, as does the historical context. My least favorite aspect of the introduction that can also be found in the commentary itself is the author’s conviction that the book of Proverbs is modeled off Mesopotamian, Egyptian, and other such cultures. When Clifford addresses the distinctive ideas found in Proverbs he’s especially helpful. He has a unique way of expressing himself that really gets you to thinking.

Any commentary on the Book of Proverbs, including the best ones out there, is of necessity a little hit-or-miss on any specific verse. In any event, what’s found here is much helpful exegesis and theology, despite the sentences you may have to dismiss out of hand.

This book fully lives up to the OTL standard and is worth consulting if you can ignore his Mesopotamian obsession.

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.

This volume on Judges and Ruth by Mary J. Evans is the latest new one in the highly-respected Tyndale Old Testament Commentary (TOTC) series that is being completely revised. The volume it replaced was nearing 50 years old, and was done by Arthur Cundall and Leon Morris. Morris, who was a prolific scholarly writer on New Testament issues, handled Ruth in the older book, which I thoroughly enjoyed. No doubt, however, it was time for IVP to produce a new volume to keep the series up-to-date. Evans, who produced this new volume, has written a commentary on Samuel in IVP’s BST series several years ago.

As I read through the introduction to both Judges and Ruth by Evans, the strengths and weaknesses of the book became quickly apparent. When matters of history or sources were under discussion, I was completely unimpressed. When the discussion turned to background, theology, or other such matters, I found it quite readable and enjoyable.

In the Introduction to Judges, the author first tackles literary issues including overall structure. When she finally worked her way to recurring motifs, I found it quite interesting as well as a discussion of author’s intention. When overviewing canonical context, discussion of sources somewhat marred the relationship of Judges to Deuteronomy, Joshua, or Samuel. Particularly helpful was a discussion of all the surrounding tribes and nations and false gods found in Judges. The discussion of theological themes was solid, and even if I think more could have been said regarding the ethical issues facing readers today from the difficult Book of Judges, at least the questions were brought up. The commentary itself shared some of the same pluses and minuses as were found in the introduction, but there was real help to be found.

I found Evans more inspiring in the Book of Ruth. The background information was excellent as were the character studies. The theological discussion of themes found in Ruth was excellent, only falling short when discussing the Kinsman Redeemer. Her discussion of recurring motives brought up some things I hadn’t thought of before and was quite interesting.

This book is a solid entry in a great series!

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.

If you are looking for a quality textbook on Paul, then you should consider this second edition of “Rediscovering Paul” by David B. Capes, Rodney Reeves, and E. Randolph Richards. It addresses enough of modern scholarly debates on Paul to please students while being well-written enough to please pastors or Bible students.

I felt that chapter 1 about placing Paul in his times and world was worth the price of the book. It read so well, and so engages the reader, that it was a pure joy. Some works that explain to us how we err in viewing Paul through Western eyes are so dry, but that could not be said of this one.

The next chapter addresses what the authors call the Christophany. Some modern scholars almost paint Paul and Christ as rivals, but these authors do a good job of making them friends. Still, they reference and interact with some of those wild scholarly theories. In fairness, as a textbook they had no choice.

Chapter 3 looks at Paul as a letter writer and contains some interesting information I had not seen anywhere else. The next four chapters consider Galatians, the Thessalonian letters, the Corinthian letters, and Romans. The other Pauline letters are addressed in chapters 8 and 9. The final chapters consider Paul’s theology, his legacy, and then viewing his letters in modern times.

There are some maps, a very helpful glossary for students, a lengthy bibliography, and several helpful indices at the end of this attractive hardback.

There were some capitulations to some of the newer scholarly conclusions that I couldn’t agree with, but overall this is a quite helpful book. It succeeds on every level as a textbook, but as a pastor I’d label it an asset to the rest of us too. It’s engaging writing style was its best asset. Some of the interesting asides covering no more than a page or so were also appreciated. I warmly recommend this volume.

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.

These early volumes of the Evangelical Exegetical Commentary (EEC) series are impressive. Just think, if they hadn’t decided to start printing these formerly digital-only volumes, I would’ve missed it completely. This volume on the Book of Jude by Herbert W. Bateman IV is of the same high quality of the earlier volumes I’ve seen.

Bateman has turned out a fine Introduction to the Book of Jude. I love the way he clearly expresses his conclusion at the end of each section. He begins with discussing some of the textual issues before he jumps into authorship and place of writing. As you would expect, he discusses which Jude this book is about and other theories of authorship. His conclusions are conservative. When he addresses the recipients of the letter, he seems to feel that we are to decide between either Jewish or Gentile Christians. He concludes a Jewish ethnicity of Jude’s readers and that affects everything he discusses thereafter. He next discusses dating the letter and has an outstanding overview of other scholarly opinions. He sees it as written during the apostolic period.

He reaches a unique conclusion that the revolutionary forces of the Judean rebels are the false teachers, or opponents, of Jude. To be honest, I wasn’t convinced of his conclusion, but found it fascinating. You couldn’t accuse this volume of being a regurgitation of some other commentary for sure. The Introduction is thorough and including the bibliography almost reaches 100 pages.

The commentary is outstanding and holds up well with any major exegetical commentary. The depth is good, the options well-defined, and the conclusions are carefully stated. He interacts with scholarship both ancient and modern in this carefully researched volume. Every passage receives an introduction, textual notes, translation, and detailed commentary, followed by biblical theology comments and application and devotional implications.

If you pick up this commentary, I think you’ll agree that it has to be in the running for the best exegetical commentary we have on the Book of Jude today.

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.