This book is my new favorite exegetical commentary on the Epistles of John. It’s yet another notch in the belt for the trending Evangelical Exegetical Commentary (EEC) series. This volume compares favorably to other major series in the exegetical category while exceeding many of those same volumes in the evangelical category. Gary Derickson was an unknown author to me, but he makes a splash here with an outstanding commentary.

The Introduction given here on the Epistles of John is one of the better that I’ve read in a while. The author doesn’t beat around the bush. I loved that his first sentence read: “the author of this epistle is John, the beloved apostle”. That is not to say that he fails to thoroughly survey the scholarly landscape, but that he with equal adeptness evaluates it. As you would expect, he reviews both internal and external evidence in defending the conservative conclusion that he originally stated.

Next, he discusses recipients and date of I John, and after arriving at a conservative date, he smashes the scholarly idea of a “Johannine school”. Further, he works his way through the occasion and setting and deals with the proto-Gnosticism found in the epistle just as you would imagine. After discussing the order of composition of the writings of the Apostle John, he jumps into the purposes of the book of I John. This is yet another place the author turns out superior work. For years I have been disappointed with so many authors following Robert Laws’ tests-of-life view that ties everything we read in I John to salvation. The author is correct in seeing it a test of fellowship rather than that of relationship with God. He further discusses genre, theological emphases, literary design, and John’s love of dualism, before he dives into an outline.

The commentary section is impeccable. He shares both the Greek and English of each phrase and thoroughly exegetes it. There are ample textual notes and quality commentary for every passage. He provides the same quality Introduction and commentary for both II and III John.

I’m such a fan of this commentary that to me it could be offered as a prototype for commentary writing. If you plan to invest in only one quality commentary on the Epistles of John, without question this must be it!

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 book by Scott Kellum has many good things. It’s a hybrid of sorts, and so is quite hard to categorize. I can’t decide if it’s best to put on my shelves of books on preaching or on the one with my books on the Gospel of John. I finally leaned toward gleaning what I can from it regarding expository preaching, but then keeping it with the commentaries on the Farewell Discourse in John 13-17.

I don’t think I could do his exact method, but probably that would not matter to him. There’s just several careless mistakes made that he felt strongly that preachers should correct. In his first chapter, he tries to develop an expository theory and touches on all the important things. He does run slightly aground, as is so common in these type of books, to presenting a narrowness that more or less conforms to his own style. No one could disagree with the need of arriving at the proper interpretation, but he almost seemed to feel that the application (singular, it appeared he felt) was just as obvious. I’m not quite sure that’s true.

In the next chapter, he covers the analyzing of literary structure and flow of thought. He gives you an in-depth structure for John 13-17 such as you might find in a good commentary, but uses it as a teaching tool to say that that kind of depth is required of a book’s full context to preach one passage. Of course, a preacher must have an idea of the overall theme of the Bible book, but his method might never work for someone who has weekly sermons to produce. Still, what he shares is many of the things that we ought to be thinking about.

What follows is a lot of great information, sermon sketches, background information, and outlines for this important prayer of Jesus. How he presented all this information was a design that could have been more straightforward, but was helpful. Though the book is clearly useful overall, it’s final rating for you may depend on your own style of sermon preparation. As help on this portion of the Gospel of John itself, it rates even higher. Check it out.

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.

Charles Wanamaker contributes this volume on the Thessalonian Epistles in the reputed New International Greek Commentary (NIGTC) series. My own perusal of the book backs up what I’ve heard. Wanamaker has provided dependable evangelical work on these epistles with a lot of rhetorical and social scientific analysis while providing less theological insights. You might say, that he hits a home run for the scholars, but provides a little less value for pastors. In any event, this volume is going to be in the discussion for quality work with the Greek.

After a thorough bibliography, Wanamaker gives us an Introduction that is broken down in what appears to be three chapters. He first discusses the historical background for Paul and Thessalonica. My impression was that he excelled in highlighting Thessalonica’s relations to Rome. In that section, he explains why he believes Paul addresses the Parousia to such a significant degree.

The next section of the Introduction discusses literary questions. There’s a thorough overview of what the scholarly world has thought on the subject, including questions of authenticity. I didn’t find his conclusions very plausible, particularly on this ordering of the letters. Rhetoric must be one of his specialties. The depth of thinking on the subject is obvious. The final section of the Introduction that is entitled “historical setting” deals less with the political environment and more with the Thessalonian church issues. It is well researched. All in all, the Introduction runs to 63 pages.

The commentary proper is where this commentary gets its high reviews. The exegesis is very thorough. The English rendering is always near enough to the Greek that I feel it can help a larger audience than most anticipate. If I had to summarize this commentary in a word, it would be: important. I recommend this volume to anyone trying to build a quality exegetical library.

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.

Lindsay Wilson has produced this replacement volume in the Tyndale Old Testament Commentary (TOTC) series. It replaces the much-beloved volume by Derek Kidner. Since IVP is reprinting most of Kidner’s volumes as classic commentaries, we can embrace this new volume by Wilson without forsaking the old Kidner standby. Lindsay has turned out a well-written, up-to-date commentary that will explain the Book of Proverbs. In case you’re wondering, it’s substantially thicker than the Kidner volume.

The Introduction is as substantial as any that you will find in the highly respected TOTC Series. After a bibliography of several pages, Wilson jumps into historical issues. In that section, he succinctly discusses authorship, date of writing, and its relation to ANE literature. In the section on literary issues, he answers the question of what kind of literature we have in a proverb, and delves into parallelism. I thought that section covered the bases well, but got straight to the point. The next section was on structure. As you would expect, he looked at the structure in chapters 1-9, then in chapters 10-22, followed by chapters 22-31. The conclusions in all these sections were thoroughly conservative.

Wilson gave several pages to discussing theological issues. He began by making a case for Proverbs being a very theological book. Then he discussed subjects like retribution, the fear of the Lord, God’s active kingly rule in everyday life, and Proverb’s connection to biblical theology. The theological emphasis continued in the section about thematic issues. There he discussed wealth and poverty, family and marriage, friends, speech and words, work and laziness, the good life, and the heart. The Introduction ended with an interesting section entitled ministry issues. That whole section was an attempt to offer suggestions for teaching and preaching the book of Proverbs. It was helpful.

The commentary proper was both thorough and enlightening. It can take its place beside Kidner without shame. To my mind, it’s one of the better volumes in the already highly- rated TOTC Series. Make a point to look this one up!

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.

The Book of Ruth gets its own small volume in the Old Testament Library (OTL) series. Written by Kirsten Nielsen, this commentary meets the aims of the series in providing a critical take in a mid-length commentary. Though I do not hold to the author’s viewpoint, I did appreciate its thorough presentation of a critical position as well as several reflections that you won’t find anywhere else.

In the Introduction, the author first discusses contents and structure. The author seems impressed with the outstanding, tight structure of this little book. Though a short section, I found the comments on structure helpful. Next, there’s the typical discussion of genre found in most commentaries on Ruth. The rest of the Introduction focuses intensely on inter-textual reading. In other words, the author loves tracing out connections to other parts of Scripture. Some seem more plausible to me than others, but this is clearly an area where the author has carved out a niche. I couldn’t follow the thinking presented in the historical context, but it matches what you would expect in a critical commentary. Much better is a discussion of theological themes. Finally, there’s a short discussion about the text of Ruth.

The commentary well matches what I’ve come to expect from the OTL series. In several places, you will glean much food for thought. I appreciated the emphasis of hesed not being overlooked. On the downside, the discussion of Ruth’s behavior at the threshing floor that included a confidence of sexual activity and of that sexual activity being praiseworthy was more than I could take! Fortunately, the commentary on other parts of the narrative is much more reasonable.

This book is one of the best to gain the perspective of the critical camp. It’s not prolix, it’s easy to follow, and it will stretch your mind in places. If you can overlook that one offensive section, you will find this a nice book to add to your library.

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.

Volume 3 of the Expositor’s Bible Commentary (EBC revised) covers the books of Samuel and Kings. In this case, the original commentators were given the opportunity to update their material. I had used the original editions extensively on these four books of the Bible, and I’m glad to see their usefulness extended by this revision. Just think, you get over 950 quality pages on Samuel and Kings!

The books of Samuel were handled by the respected scholar Ronald Youngblood. His work on Samuel was one of the highest rated volumes in the original set, and it appears he will be able to keep that designation. His introduction is not extensively revised, but is well done.

In the introduction, he covers the title of the book, authorship and date, historical context, literary context and unity, purpose, literary form, canonicity and text, and theological values. His conclusions are wonderfully conservative, particularly on dating. He feels that Edwin Thiele is quite accurate in the chronology he developed. The bibliography is extensively updated.

The commentary is outstanding. In every section, he gives an overview, a translation, commentary on the verses, and exegetical notes. It is truly one of the better commentaries on Samuel that we have available today.

The commentary on Kings is a joint effort by Richard Patterson and Hermann Austel. It was never rated quite is highly as the work on Samuel, and was somewhat briefer, but I always found it a solid help. I always checked it when I was working in Kings. In any event, it did receive more of a revision in the commentary section.

As was the case with Samuel, the introduction is not extensively revised either. It covers historical background, unity, authorship, and date, origin, occasion, and purpose, literary form, theological values, canonicity, text, and chronology. You will notice several conservatives quoted in the introduction, and though no one really knows who the author of Kings is, you find some pretty conservative conclusions here.

The commentary section mirrors the style found in Samuel. It’s really good at drawing out the details of the story itself. You can glean much from its pages.

I grow ever more impressed with the EBC series. Here’s another outstanding, economical value for the pastor or Bible student. It would not be wise to be without it.

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 13 in the Expositor’s Bible Commentary (EBC) series, revised edition, thoroughly updates the old volume 12 of the original series. In fact, only one author from the original series is retained in this volume. What you have here is an outstanding commentary covering nine books of the New Testament.

On the book of Hebrews, R. T. France has replaced Leon Morris. Though I love the writings of Leon Morris, I must admit that it was in need of updating as it was never rated as highly as Mr. Morris’s other commentaries. Mr. France is a highly respected scholar who has written major exegetical commentaries on other books of the New Testament. In the Introduction, he covers an overview of what sort of writing Hebrews is, which is basically a discussion of genre. From there, he discusses author, destination, and date, basic theme and structure, Hebrews as an expositor of other biblical text, its use of the Old Testament, and theology. He also gives a bibliography and outline before he jumps into the commentary. The commentary proper is a success, though if you’re familiar with his other writings his brevity might seem out of place. Actually, he hits perfectly on what this commentary series aims for.

The Book of James is handled by George Guthrie, who is another highly respected New Testament scholar who has written several major commentaries. The introduction only comes in at eight pages and discusses authorship, date, destination on occasion, structure and main themes, before jumping into a bibliography and outline. The commentary itself is well done.

The Books of First and Second Peter and Jude are handled by J. Darrell Charles, who replaces Edwin Blum. He gives a separate introduction and commentary for each of these three books. The outline of the introduction is similar in all three cases. He will discuss, in one way or the other, history of interpretation that will include authorship and dating questions, canonical considerations, composition and literary form, literary relationship to the other two letters, recent scholarship, and purpose and prominent themes. It’s an outstanding work for pastors.

Tom Thatcher handles the Epistles of John. With brevity and clarity, he provides another solid conservative commentary. The introduction offers some opening comments, discusses authorship and historical setting, followed by structure and summary. He also gives a short bibliography and outline.

Alan F. Johnson revises his work on Revelation. Though it is not a major revision, it gives new life to one of the most respected pre-millennial interpretations in a nice scholarly vein on the Book of Revelation. The EBC series has been unjustly criticized by some reviewers because pre-millennial scholars were given the main prophecy books of the Bible in the series. What can’t be overlooked, however, is the quality of good writing and scholarship that are present in these books. Johnson does a marvelous job here. His introduction discusses the general nature and historical background of the book, unity, authorship and canonicity, date, purpose, theological problems, text, interpretive schemes, use of the Old Testament, and structure. I count this book a major success.

Volume 13 holds up to the lofty standards and reputation of the EBC series. It is an economical, helpful commentary on the last nine books of the New Testament. Pastors and Bible students will love it and I highly recommend it!

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.

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.