Personal Thoughts about Commentaries (6): GENESIS

Commentaries on the Book of Genesis are ten-a-penny.  But some of them are too concerned with ANE parallels that they forget to teach the Book itself.  Some are over speculative, while others too critical and unbelieving.  The pastor who wants to get at the meat without spitting out too many bones might do worse than study the following:

1.  Kenneth A. Mathews (NAC) – These two volumes are the best thing I have read on the text of Genesis.  They are up to date, readable, and conservative.  The writer pays attention to the NT uses and deals fairly with the literature.  The book has a refreshing quality about it that makes it interesting to read.

2. Gordon J. Wenham (WBC) – This is the one most commentary lists will put first for Genesis, and with good reason.  It is written by an expert, and it is clear that he is at home in the details.  The style is terse and clear.  Some critical stances bring this two volume work down a notch to second spot.

3. Victor Hamilton (NICOT) – Another two volume work at about the same level as Mathews and Wenham.  I like Mathews better on the first chapters, but this is an excellent commentary.  It provides a lot of background material.

Personal Thoughts about Commentaries (5): MATTHEW

Here are my personal picks for the most profitable commentaries on Matthew.  I favor a modified Dispensational approach to the book which takes seriously the way Matthew provides lines of continuity and discontinuity with the Old Testament.  But I have little problem with including studies which do not handle eschatological issues as satisfactorily as I would like.  There is, after all, more to Matthew than eschatology:

1. Donald A. Hagner (WBC) – This was a hard choice as I don’t hold to ‘Q’.  But there is so much great exegetical, historical, and practical material in these two volumes that I cannot think of being without it.  Eat the meat and spit out the critical bones!

2. D. A. Carson (EBC) – I rarely find Carson as helpful or as clear as Hagner, but this is a first-rate work.  More tentative on ‘Q’s’ influence than Hagner though.  The revised work in this set is sure to keep Carson at or near the top of everyone’s list.

3. R. C. H. Lenski – Scoff if you must, but then get over it!  It teems with solid exegesis and outstanding preaching values.

Personal Thoughts about Commentaries (3): ROMANS

The Best Commentaries on Romans:

Remember, this list has preachers primarily in mind:

1. Douglas Moo (NICNT) – Somewhat dense, which may hinder readers somewhat, but interaction with the text and the literature is very impressive.  Deals well with the ‘new perspective’, and even manages some applications (but see Moo’s contribution to the NIVAC series).  His Introduction is on the short side, but there are numerous excurses.  Not all will like his treatment of Chapter 7.

2. Thomas Schreiner (BECNT) – I might have put this first because of its accuracy and usability.  Still a big book, but not as intimidating as Moo.  Pastors should purchase both works.

Personal Thoughts about Commentaries (2): JOHN

I said in my first post in this series that I am not primarily interested in writing commentary lists for would-be scholars.  The audience I have in mind are pastors and Bible teachers who are concerned about what these books mean and how their meaning can be brought to bear on contemporary living.  The question I am concerned to answer is, “How will these people be most helped?” For this reason some will not agree with my recommendations.  Most Christians cannot afford to purchase more than a few commentaries upon any book of Scripture they wish to study.  Therefore, an expensive commentary, while desirable, would need to be essential, in the true sense of the word, to make it high on my list.  

Personal Thoughts about Commentaries (1)

There are many commentary booklists around nowadays. Some are very useful, others less so. This series of posts will contain my personal appraisals of Bible commentaries on individual books, beginning in the next installment with the Gospel of John. I have in view the God-called preacher, not the would-be scholar. For this reason my opinions will at times cross those of such luminaries as D.A. Carson and Craig A. Evans. I could not hold a candle to these men as a scholar, but, for all that, and since it has been requested of me, I shall give my halfpenny’s worth.

What Kind of Commentaries Should I Use and How Many?

If a preacher is going to study a book of the Bible seriously he needs good commentaries. Assuming his familiarity with Scripture and his prior study of a book or passage, he will need two different kinds of commentaries: exegetical, and expositional/theological.

SEQUEL BOOKLIST FOR THE MORE ADVENTUROUS

This list of books is for those believers who wish to dig more deeply into their faith without getting bogged down in a load of footnotes and scholarly conjecture. Some of these works will make demands of the reader, but nothing is listed which will be beyond the average mature Christian reader.

BEGINNERS BOOKLIST FOR BIBLE STUDY AND PERSONAL GROWTH

This booklist is meant to serve those believers who are either new to the faith or are not used to reading and may feel inhibited at the prospect of beginning to study or at a loss as to what pick up and read in a day when we are awash with Christian books.

I should say immediately that there must be a willingness to read good books. We live in a day when many Christians are reluctant to take advice on such matters. We also live in a day when many of God’s people underestimate themselves and their ability to comprehend so-called “serious” Christian literature. There is great release in realizing the truth that this is just not the case.

I have chosen those books which I think will both inform and encourage the reader while not leading them astray and not over-taxing them. This is not to say that these works are somehow inferior or of less value than “scholarly” tomes. On the contrary, any who read these books, whether new to the faith or seasoned student, will be blessed. Happy reading.

Review of “The Apologetics Study Bible”

The Apologetics Study Bible, Ted Cabal, General Editor, Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishing, Hbk, 2007.

At the risk of showing my age, I can remember a time when considering which Study Bible to purchase was an easy affair. One had only a few to choose from: Scofield, Thompson, Nave, and a few more. Well, those days are well and truly gone. What is one to make of the current situation? Options fill out the pages of Bible catalogs. Within the long lists of contemporary Study Bibles there are good and not so good choices. I’ve even come across ones with metal covers (who dreams up these things?) But in our consumer-culture there’s always room for one more, right? How, then does the new Apologetics Study Bible rate?

It would be helpful in a review of a work like this to first provide a general overview of what one will encounter in The Apologetics Study Bible (hereafter TASB).

First, the translation is the Holman Christian Standard Bible, a fairly formal correspondence version done by the Southern Baptists, usually accurate and quite vivid (especially in the Prophets). The study notes and book introductions are provided by recognized Bible scholars, many of whom were contributors to the New American Commentary series. This feature of TASB does not appear to be geared towards the subject of apologetics, but the material is good, reflecting a wise decision to expound the text itself instead of affixing clipped apologetic digressions to a biblical passage.

On Reading Slowly

C.S. Lewis once said that if a book is worth reading it is worth reading slowly. Since coming upon his observation I have tried to follow his advice. Formerly, I tried to rush through books; commentaries, histories, theologies. And although I certainly learned a lot that way (speed-reading does work. One often can take in more than one thinks one can) I have to say that I am a true believer in the “Lewis method.”

Sir Francis Bacon advised, “Read not to contradict and confute, not to believe and take for granted, not to find talk and discourse, but to weigh and consider.” He was also the man who observed that, “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested: that is, some books are to be read only in parts, others to be read, but not curiously, and some few to be read wholly, and with diligence and attention.” Those latter works are the ones which Christian readers need to be most concerned with. There are so many time-wasting volumes out there, it behooves us to take responsibility for what we run our eyes over.

When I am asked to recommend books (as I quite often am) I always tell the questioner, “You don’t have time to read bad books. You must read the best books. And if you read them you should read them slowly.” I say that because I have noticed that those who read books like they are throwaway ads tend to have a rather superficial notion of what it was that the author was trying to put across. They may glean some useful thoughts here and there, but nothing of real substance can permeate a brow that has not had time to furrow, even just a little, before the next page is turned. One cannot ’skim’ any worthwhile author, be he Calvin or Owen or Baxter or Edwards or Warfield or Lewis.

Reading “slowly” doesn’t hold up the consumption process as long as one might think. But the extra time and effort will bring its rewards. One must get in a good book and not just through it. A good book is worth marking up. Not rudely with yellow highlighters, but carefully with a nice pen or even a pencil. I use a self-devised code: T = Theological, Q = worth quoting, ! = an arresting thought, ? = possibly dubious/spurious, etc. This helps me when I am researching something later. Again, I don’t see how one can do this if one is flying through the contents so as to “finish it.”

The verb “to read” is at home with terms like “consider,” “meditate,” “muse,” “ruminate,” “ponder,” and “think.” So slow down. If a book is really worth reading, it is worth reading slowly.

A General Bibliography for Systematic Theology

SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY:

We are in the midst of a general surge of interest in the writing of Systematic Theologies. I say “writing” since any examination of the state of the churches would indicate a lack of interest in the pursuit of Systematic Theology in general, perhaps unmatched in the whole history of the Church. Still, it is encouraging that a list such as this can be drawn up today.

It is hard to place one’s finger on the single best work in any field, and for that reason I have decided to recommend those works which I find myself returning to again and again.

The first of these is John Calvin’s classic Institutes of the Christian Religion, the definitive edition of the 1559 work is translated by F.L. Battles and is superb. It is well known that Calvin employed a Biblico-theological method (according to John Murray this is the reason for the continual appeal of the work). Since Calvin is probably the greatest non-inspired theologian, no self-respecting student of theology will be without this set.

While I’m with the golden oldies I must mention the recent translation of Francis Turretin’s Institutes of Elenctic Theology in three volumes. This is a storehouse of solid theology set out by way of an affirmation or denial to a stated proposition. This scholastic approach makes it a bit ponderous, but it is filled with scriptural references and good Protestant reasoning, and avoids overmuch speculation. Along with this is the famous Marrow of Theology of William Ames. Not as long, but still a little tough to get through, although definitely worth the effort.