I get emails —
I have never owned any Bible commentaries, always resorting to borrowing as needed. As of late I have decided to purchase, or start to purchase, such items. Do you have any suggestions for sets that would be suitable for a lay-person such as myself? If you don’t recommend complete sets, do you have any particular authors that you would recommend? I look forward to your advice.
This is a tough one, because there are so very many commentaries and commentary sets out there. They vary in terms of the level of expertise they assume the reader has, the denomination of the author, the target audience, and all sorts of things.
For example, I own William Barclay’s New Daily Study Bible, which was very popular when I was in college (1975-78), but it takes a very liberal perspective on many questions and is nearly 40 years old — meaning it doesn’t benefit from an entire generation of scholarship.
Nonetheless, it’s written for the ordinary church goer, and does a masterful job of making the scriptures practical. It’s great for preparing devotionals. It’s of little use for very serious study, such as trying to sort out some of the more difficult passages. But it only costs $117 on Amazon, which is very inexpensive as commentary sets go. There’s also an Old Testament set, but it was issued after Barclay’s death and is written by other authors. I wouldn’t bother with that, myself because Barclay himself had a rare abundance of knowledge about ancient literature and culture that greatly enriched his writings.
I also own the Tyndale New Testament Commentaries
One of the most respected and influential commentaries is the New International Commentary on the New Testament. Unlike any other series I’m familiar with, the editors issue replacement volumes so that the scholarship remains fresh, taking advantage of the latest research. Again, these commentaries do not require expertise in Greek, largely handling the language issues in footnotes.
I bought my set on sale around 1980, and several volume have since been issued to complete the set and to replace some of the volumes. The New Testament set costs about $725, which is a fair price but outside of many budgets. These are the commentaries that have taught me the most of the years, and many of the individual commentaries are classics.
I have volume 10 of the New Interpreter’s Bible. I bought it for N. T. Wright’s seminal commentary on Romans. My impression is that this is an excellent commentary set. It’s not heavy on Greek and is much more thorough than many. The New Testament set sells for around $540. This is for the serious student, although Greek is not a prerequisite.
I have in electronic form (through Logos) the The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, which was published in 2004. I’ve not used it much yet, but what I’ve seen is good, although I wouldn’t rank it ahead of the New International or New Interpreter’s series for my taste and needs.
Wright has written a commentary set called New Testament For Everyone, and it’s only $120 dollars. You might think of it as replacement of Barclay’s Daily Study Bible. Wright is brilliant, of course, and often takes the reader in a very unexpected direction. Like Barclay’s, it’s designed for you to read front to back, rather than to use only as a reference.
I’ve occasionally used the NIV Application Commentary. It’s written for Sunday school teachers, and so not very deep, but it works hard to help the reader apply the text to real life. It could be very helpful for a small group leader. Unfortunately, the set costs $1,100, which is too high for the value, in my opinion. However, if I were asked to teach on a particular book, I would likely buy the volume that covers the book.
There are many, many other series out there. Here’s how I’d proceed —
1. Do you want hard copies or electronic versions? If you own Logos or a similar program, you may want to buy the electronic version so that you can easily access a section as you write or do research. Logos will also display the books on an iPad or smartphone. Logos pricing is close to Amazon’s, and so there won’t be much savings, but Logos sometimes has some very attractive sales. (And the electronic versions don’t take up so much shelf space that your wife gets upset with you.)
2. Don’t buy until you borrow. Borrow from friends, your church library, or a local university library and see how well the commentary suits your needs. It can be quite a lot of money — do your homework.
3. I often buy piecemeal. If I’m teaching James at church, I may buy 3 or 4 individual commentaries, giving me different perspectives and allowing me to build my collection over time. You lose the discount that comes with buying a complete set, but there’s no reason to buy commentaries until you need them.
I frankly read the Amazon reader reviews to help me decide which to buy, as well as considering the author and the reputation of the series.
4. I’d buy some commentary sets, but they do tend to be uneven. For example, the New International commentary on John is a classic work, whereas some of the original volumes were very weak. (They’ve since been replaced.)
5. Amazon and Barnes and Noble often offer used sets at large discounts. I wouldn’t hesitate to buy some of my books or sets used.
6. Do not buy commentaries put out by a denomination, whether ours or someone else’s. It’s very unlikely that any one denomination has the best scholars in all 66 books, and I want to see both sides of any dispute. There’s just so much to be gained by a series designed for all of Christendom.
7. Don’t be put off by the fact that a commentator comes from a Calvinist or other background that differs from the Churches of Christ. You’ll have no trouble seeing his biases, and in a good commentary, he’ll present both sides. Some of my favorite books are by Calvinist authors — and yet I’m not a Calvinist.
8. Don’t start with commentaries earlier than 1970 or so. Later is often much better. The old Barnes Notes and Clark Commentary sets that our parents and grandparents used to use are way out of date. We’ve learned a great deal about Greek and the historical backgrounds in the last 100 years. And New Testament scholarship dramatically improved in the last 30 or so years.
Any Paul commentary that predates the seminal work of E. P. Sanders (1985 or so) is out of date. E.P. Sanders is not a commentator I’d buy, but he opened up a whole new way of understanding Paul, faith, and works, which led to the “New Perspective” of such authors as Richard Hays, James D.G. Dunn, and N.T. Wright.
Obviously, some of the older, even ancient, commentaries have real merit, but if I were starting a new collection of commentaries, I would start with new and add old later.
If you’re looking for particular authors, here’s a very incomplete list —
a. N. T. Wright. Of course. And James D.G. Dunn and Richard Hays. Wright sometimes writes at a popular level, and sometimes at a very scholarly level, and at all points in between. Dunn and Hays tend to work mainly at the very scholarly level — meaning they are not light reading at all.
b. D. A. Carson. Carson is a Calvinist but a great scholar and writer. I’m a big fan.
c. Leon Morris. His commentary on the Gospel of John in the New International series is very readable and taught me a lot.
d. Scot McKnight. Famous for his Jesus Creed blog and several popular Christian books. He’s now writing commentaries for multiple series.
e. F. F. Bruce. Long a favorite of conservative Christians and a great scholar.
f. Ben Wetherington. Ben is a great writer and scholar, and like Wright, his books may be very accessible or very dense, for the experts only.
I’m sure the other readers will be able to add a lot to the discussion. As I said, there are a lot of great commentaries out there that I’ve never read. I’d love to hear what others have to add.
I once had a huge inventory of commentaries but there are so many resources online I no longer see the need to keep that many books. There are tons of completely free resources such as seminary and university libraries and others.
My method of study is to get all I can directly from the Bible and only then do I search to see what someone else says.
I have several sites bookmarked and go to them again. For my purposes I don’t need one hard copy of a commentary.
In my view Google is a Bible students best friend. May your studies cause you to love and treasure Christ more and more.
Beware the temptation to collect resources that reinforce your biases.
The “For Everyone” series is indeed excellent, especially since it is being expanded to the Hebrew Scriptures as well.
I also recommend the “Bible Speaks Today” expository commentary series — some of my favorite reading.
Jay,
For the average person I would recommend Warren Wiersbe’s BE Series of commentaries, both Old and New Testaments. It isn’t the cheapest set available, but it can be accessed in shorter 2-4 Volume sets. It is more about the content overall and much less about verse-by-verse commentary. Still, it is useful to see what one perspective (and often more) is about whole passages. He also has a one volume expository notes approach published, for those wanting something about the size of a Halley’s Bible Handbook. Henrietta C. Mears also has a good one-volume commentary, What The Bible Is All About..
I once owned the Pulpit Commentary, which is a great and very thorough commentary from the late 19th century. While it does suffer from a lack of updated scholarship, its depth and breadth of commentary makes it a good source for many of the theologies we might encounter today, especially since there really is nothing truly new under the sun. Unfortunately, it is not the kind of thing one might read straight through and it will likely require the majority of a good-sized bookshelf. When I got Logos several years ago (version 3 at that time, and I now have version 5) I no longer needed that set and gave it to a preacher friend for next to nothing and received much thanks from my wife for freeing so many bookshelves. I paid less than a penny per page and took something like a dollar per volume when I sold/gave them away. But with Logos, I haven’t missed them at all.
G
I’d suggest not buying a set unless the price makes them a steal. For instance, I recently bought an entire Kindle edition commentary set (Genesis to Revelation) for $50. Typically, though, you’re far better off buying the best individual commentaries you can find for each book of the Bible.
These comments assume that the one who wants to understand the Bible has time and money in hand for re-learning by private study what he studied in college or for learning what is taught in schools. It might seem that is the kind of thinking that caused Al Maxey and ones who admire him to turn away from Bible truths as we learned them in previous years. I was blessed to be able to attend a Bible college where teachers knew and taught Greek. I barely passed 2nd-year Greek, and surely cannot depend on remembering what I learned there or in any college class.
Yet I was helped in early writing by editing help from a competent teacher who knew well what the scholars taught and what the writers of the Bible said and meant. I strongly recommend that ones who want to understand Bible teaching study the BIBLE itself, and talk with friends who also love the Word to see if what has been learned agrees with what the friends have learned from their study. College Press offers many Bible study helps. I can’t afford to buy any of them, nor do I have shelf space to house such commentaries.
But on the internet I can access comments on any Bible passage and learn what others have written on that subject. So far internet access in the U.S.A. is free. That fits my budget.
So much of what Jay says resonates with me!
While going through seminary, whenever I had a paper to write or a sermon to prepare for, I’d go to our theological library and check out the specific book I needed from all the commentary sets the library had. Over the 4 years I slowly figured out which ones I liked and didn’t like, which authors I respected, which authors were overly bias, which ones were more scholarly, which ones were more conservative or progressive, which ones had the most diverse ideas, etc. Easily the best ones were the newest ones – like Jay says, start new and go old. So now that I’ve graduated and don’t have access to a theological library (thus I have to buy my own commentaries), I know which ones to buy. Out of the 15 or so commentaries I used back in school, I’ve whittled it down to 4 or 5 that I will spend money on:
– New International Commentary
– Baker Exegetical Commentary
– Expositors’s Bible Commentary
– NIV Application Commentary
Like Jay says, buy them piecemeal instead of an entire commentary all at once. For instance, last year I preached a sermon series on Luke. So I bought (only) the book of Luke from each of the above commentary series.
Borrow before you buy is good advice. If, in a very short time, you do not find anything in a commentary that makes you consider a line of thought you have never considered before, you probably don’t need the commentary. Pick out a few controversial passages and look for something that does not line up with your existing understanding. If you don’t find it, don’t buy the set. You don’t need it. If all a commentator does is rehash what you already think, what’s the point? It’s like spending your life listening carefully to an echo.
Not a commentary, but I suggest everyone read this at least once. http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/history/ath-inc.htm Both the text and the intro. In the intro by C.S. Lewis he makes the point that “There is a strange idea abroad that in every subject the ancient books should be read only by the professionals, and that the amateur should content himself with the modern books….This mistaken preference for the modern books and this shyness of the old ones is nowhere more rampant than in theology….Now this seems to me topsy-turvy. Naturally, since I myself am a writer, I do not wish the ordinary reader to read no modern books. But if he must read only the new or only the old, I would advise him to read the old. And I would give him this advice precisely because he is an amateur and therefore much less protected than the expert against the dangers of an exclusive contemporary diet. A new book is still on its trial and the amateur is not in a position to judge it. It has to be tested against the great body of Christian thought down the ages, and all its hidden implications (often unsuspected by the author himself) have to be brought to light. Often it cannot be fully understood without the knowledge of a good many other modern books…..Every age has its own outlook. It is specially good at seeing certain truths and specially liable to make certain mistakes. We all, therefore, need the books that will correct the characteristic mistakes of our own period. And that means the old books. All contemporary writers share to some extent the contemporary outlook—even those, like myself, who seem most opposed to it….”
For that reason, I would also recommend old commentaries. Besides, when reading old commentaries you are not just reading them to get some interpretation of scripture with some scholar’s approval on it, but you are also engages in a sort of study of history. The history of the evolution of Christian dogma is way more interesting and in the end way more illuminating than one guy’s opinion of what some passage means. And older commentaries will have more depth. Modern writers tend to waver between being shills for Calvinism and functional agnostics. So head over to google books and find some commentaries from way back.
“Don’t start with commentaries earlier than 1970 or so. Later is often much better.”
Though the English translation is as late as 1995, Pelagius’ commentary on Romans (written in the 4th century obviously) is one of the best. In fact, way better than any modern commentary on Romans despite his bad press. Its available on amazon, although a little pricey so not likely to attract the attention of anyone looking for a commentary on Romans unless they are deeply interested in seeing Pelagius’ side of the story in the controversy between Pelagius and Augustine. (And a hint, the claim that Pelagius denied the need for grace is a misconception. It stems simply from Augustine defining grace as a power that enables belief [this type of grace Pelagius does deny the need for] while Pelagius defines grace as God’s mercy [which Pelagius obviously says is needed].)
David B,
Why would anyone be limited to choosing between older sets of commentaries and newer sets? Many commentaries that are more than 50 years old can be found and used free online. Newer sets are likely incomplete and not even available yet.
There are many free online resources and some outlets like the E4 Bible Study software that costs only shipping & handling for a CD. E4 is constantly being updated and updates are usually free downloads.
So again … why choose between older and newer? And don’t forget your local bibliophiles who may be happy to share their collected libraries with you.
G
Good point. That’s also why I mentioned google books. You can build an e-library of old books and a physical library of new ones.
I too recommend Google. I strongly recommend searching Google with:
“alternate views” “whatever topic it is you are searching”
This is how I learn different views and approach the scriptures fresh daily.
For us old folks, it was a short time ago that only the King James Version was allowed in the churches of Christ. I remember when attempting to answer a question in an adult class the most progressive (liberal) person among us answered from another interpretation and the scolding was embarrassing.
The other, how many, interpretations are actually pretty new after all aren’t they?
Now at least 27 different sects of the church of Christ, all condemning and arguing among each other.
With all our superior education and better, easier to understand written versions of the Bible, we’ve come a long way in 50-60 years haven’t we?
For better or worse?
To follow up on David Brainerd’s reference to Pelagius, a few years ago I came across an interesting article by a convert to the Greek Orthodox church who gives an account of how Pelagius was unfairly maligned. I always find these stories to be interesting and educational. Perhaps this is a dispute that was less a matter of substantial differences and more about power and influence and ego.
http://silouanthompson.net/2010/02/pelagius-to-demetrias/
@ davidbrainerd2: It isn’t necessary to search much to find a fair treatment of Pelagius. Most will agree that he was maligned but a heretic none the less. Being largely semi-Pelagian many in the CofC still think more highly of him and his views than some many more orthodox minded Christians.
@ Steve Allison: The Augustine – Pelagius dispute is widely recognized as being about substantial issues. Given the fallen nature of man one can never rule out “power, influence and ego” but they play at most a minor role in this dispute. Thus Pelagius is still regarded as a heretic to this day.
Hesed,
Randall
Jay,
Not sure if this link would be of help, but I have used it for a while now. Good way to compare some of the leading commentary sets out there.
http://www.bestcommentaries.com/
WELL GUYS.
4 DIFFERENT BIBLE’S
ONLY 6 VERSES.
????????
IS SALVATION (deliverance from death) BY GOD’S PROMISE, (GRACE)THROUGH CHRIST’s
( “THE SEED OF ABRAHAM” ) righteous faithfulness to God’s word.
or as the niv and the asv. state “THROUGH FAITH IN CHRIST”
I learned a phrase not long ago.
WHEN THE GREEK GAMMERIAN IS AT WORK ON SCRIPTURE …
THE THEOLOGIAN (in him) ALREADY HAS THE SUBJECTIVE OR THE OBJECTIVE GENITIVE WORKED OUT.
and in this case
justification is through faith in Christ.
or
through the FAITH OF CHRIST
NET. Bible gAL. 2
Jews and Gentiles are Justified by Faith
2:15 We are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners, 2:16 yet we know that no one is justified by the works of the law but
1. by the faithfulness of Jesus Christ.
And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified
2. by the faithfulness of Christ
and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.
2:17 But if while seeking to be justified in Christ we ourselves have also been found to be sinners, is Christ then one who encourages sin? Absolutely not! 2:18 But if I build up again those things I once destroyed, I demonstrate that I am one who breaks God’s law.
2:19 For through the law I died to the law so that I may live to God. 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So the life I now live in the body,
I live because of
3. the faithfulness of the Son of God,
who loved me and gave himself for me. 2:21 I do not set aside God’s grace, because if righteousness could come through the law, then Christ died for nothing!
NIV Bible
Gal.2
15 “We who are Jews by birth and not sinful Gentiles 16 know that a person is not justified by the works of the law,
1. but by faith in Jesus Christ.
So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be
2. justified by faith in Christ
and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.
17 “But if, in seeking to be justified in Christ, we Jews find ourselves also among the sinners, doesn’t that mean that Christ promotes sin? Absolutely not! 18 If I rebuild what I destroyed, then I really would be a lawbreaker.
19 “For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by
3. faith in the Son of God,
who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!
ASV Bible
15 We being Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, 16 yet knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but
1. through faith in Jesus Christ,
even we believed on Christ Jesus, that we might be
2. justified by faith in Christ,
and not by the works of the law: because by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. 17 But if, while we sought to be justified in Christ, we ourselves also were found sinners, is Christ a minister of sin? God forbid. 18 For if I build up again those things which I destroyed, I prove myself a transgressor. 19 For I through the law died unto the law, that I might live unto God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me: and that life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith,
3. the faith which is in the Son of God,
who loved me, and gave himself up for me. 21 I do not make void the grace of God: for if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died for nought.
KING JAMES VERSION
15 We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles,
16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law,
1. but by the faith of Jesus Christ,
even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be
2. justified by the faith of Christ,
and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
17 But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.
18 For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.
19 For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.
20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live
3. by the faith of the Son of God,
who loved me, and gave himself for me.
21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
When we embrace the idea that faith is not of our own producing but is the gift of God, and that faith is initiated by God’s speaking, as Romans 10:17 says, then the real difference between “faith in Christ” and “the faithfulness of Christ” turns out to be pretty small.
Charles,
Jesus being a Jew, with out Sin,righteous in every way toward the Father.
born subject to the Torah covenant,Gal.4:4
IF….
you answer the question “”Was Jesus Righteous under the old convent,? “{YES}
perfect by the Law’s Standard of defining Sin and the consequences of Sin which is” Death.”…
and hopefully you just don’t Parrot that answer…
the answer is NO!!!!
you do not pass go and must go directly back to the CROSS
IT ALSO ANSWERS THE QUESTION OF baptism uneqivitably
10:17 says something about producing trust,and has everything to do with Rom 3 1-4
which Jesus’ Faithfulness is predicated upon…ya know we call that the good news of the COMING kingdom.
ACTS 1: 2,3
P.S.
should have put down…
and after acts 1:2,3
it becomes the good news of the established kingdom predicated upon Jesus’ faithfulness (trust in the scripture and obedient to the words.
beginning of romans
1:5 Through him we have received grace and our apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles on behalf of his name.
3:21 But now26 apart from the law the righteousness of God (which is attested by the law and the prophets) has been disclosed – 3:22 namely, the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction,
end of romans
16:26 but now is disclosed, and through the prophetic scriptures has been made known to all the nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith –
????????????????
WHO’S LIFE of Faithfulness to the father AM I TO EMULATE…
FAITH IN
OR FAITHFULNESS OF THE FATHER SON AND THE SPIRIT
IT’S REALLY NOT ALL ABOUT us
Charles,
I hope that you have incorrectly stated your understanding about faith, it does not appear to agree with Jesus’ comments about faith. Notice a few of Jesus’ communications.
(Mat 6:30 NIV) If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little FAITH?
(Mat 8:10 NIV) When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, “I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great FAITH.
(Mat 8:26 NIV) He replied, “You of little FAITH, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.
(Mat 9:2 NIV) Some men brought to him a paralytic, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their FAITH, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.”
(Mat 9:22 NIV) Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your FAITH has healed you.” And the woman was healed from that moment.
(Mat 9:29 NIV) Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your FAITH will it be done to you”;
(Mat 13:58 NIV) And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of FAITH
(Mat 14:31 NIV) Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
(Mat 14:31 NIV) Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little FAITH,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
(Mat 15:28 NIV) Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great FAITH! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
These are the first 10 occurrences of (faith) found in Matthew. Jesus was speaking in each one and each one is holding the individual or individuals responsible for the magnitude or amount of faith they have.
God’s Word does not create faith in the hearers or all that hear would have a perfect faith regardless if they desired it or not. God’s work is perfect. Hearers should develop faith in abundance as they hear God’s perfect Word. God is not responsible for the amount of faith in any individual.
A reader sent me an email pointing out this list http://hst.edu/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/COMMENTARY-RECOMMENDATIONS.pdf at the library site for the Harding Graduate School of Religion. It’s a very lengthy list and appears very thoughtful.
Romans 10:17 teaches us about the genesis of faith and how it comes to us. First, God speaks. Not us, God. That speaking creates “hearing”, actually, the capacity to comprehend, to internalize that word. This, in turn, produces faith. A man may choose to ignore or disregard what God gives, but he does not believe on his own initiative or of his own power. We err when we believe that we are the creator of anything. God creates, we steward. It is this way of all things.