critical bible commentaries

So what exactly is a critical commentary? In critical bible commentaries, authors take a “critical” view of Scripture. They often don’t accept the text at face value. Instead, they argue that the text has been manipulated in some way — edited, enhanced, erased, etc. — before acquiring its current and final form.

Full Answer

What is the best commentary on the whole Bible?

Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible (Concise) The codensed one-volume classic commentary. Originally written in 1706, Matthew Henry's six volume Complete Commentary provides an exhaustive look at every verse in the Bible. Also included is the one volume.

What is the international critical commentary?

The International Critical Commentary NT (or ICC) is a series of commentaries in English on the text of the New Testament. Initially started over one hundred years ago, the International Critical Commentary series has been a highly regarded academic-level commentary on the Bible.

What is the Bible comment series?

This series is an edited collection of early Christian writers' comments on the Bible in English translation. Depending upon the volume, short descriptions and chronologies of authors and anonymous works may be included in an appendix. An author index is included, along with a bibliography of original sources.

What is the purpose of this commentary in the Bible?

The purpose of this commentary, available for every book in the Bible, is to encourage people to read the Bible and to aid in their personal study of God's Word. Theological Stance: Unknown Church Affiliation: Non-Denominational

What are the 4 types of commentary?

Types of CommentariesTechnical or Critical or Exegetical: Includes very detailed, technical discussion of text. Requires some understanding of the original languages. ... Expositional or Essential or Semi-Technical: Includes less technical, but still extensive discussion. ... Homiletical: Intended to aid in sermon preparation.

What is the most comprehensive Bible commentary?

To accomplish this, the ESV Study Bible combines the best and most recent evangelical Christian scholarship with the highly regarded ESV Bible text. The result is the most comprehensive study Bible ever published--with 2,752 pages of extensive, accessible Bible resources.

How do I choose a Bible commentary?

9 Rules For Choosing A Bible CommentaryAvoid whole Bible commentaries. ... Avoid a set of commentaries by one author. ... Pick a scholarly commentary, not a devotional/expository/popular commentary. ... Verse by verse. ... Interacts with extra-Biblical literature. ... Original languages. ... Newer. ... Go digital.More items...•

Is Bible commentary an exegesis?

Commentaries help explain the Bible passages and are a useful tool in conducting biblical exegesis. The Libraries have a number of Biblical Commentaries which can be checked out. Find how you can locate these resources.

What is the oldest Bible commentary?

The earliest known commentary on Christian scriptures was by a Gnostic named Heracleon in the 170s CE. Most of the patristic commentaries are in the form of homilies, or discourses to the faithful, and range over the whole of Scripture. There are two schools of interpretation, that of Alexandria and that of Antioch.

What is the easiest Bible to understand?

The Holy Bible: Easy-to-Read Version (ERV) is an English translation of the Bible compiled by the World Bible Translation Center.

What is a good commentary?

For commentary purposes, cite only works absolutely essential to support your point. Use a short title that emphasizes your key message. (It should be clear in context that all commentaries are a reaction to a particular paper). Do not include an abstract. Make clear your take-home message.

Is there a app for Bible commentary?

One of the best Bible study apps for iPhone and Android users, The Bible App gives people the tools to explore God's Word daily. They can read, listen to, watch, and share Scripture from 2,000+ Bible versions.

What is an example of commentary?

The definition of commentary is discussion of opinion about something that is going on, or a spoken account of some event as it is happening, or a set of notes or explanations about something. When a political pundit is discussing the president's vote on a new bill, this is an example of political commentary.

What are the four types of biblical criticism?

Historical-biblical criticism includes a wide range of approaches and questions within four major methodologies: textual, source, form, and literary criticism.

Is Matthew Henry's commentary reliable?

Although somewhat antiquated language by today's standards, the MH commentary is by far one of the best commentaries out there.

What's the difference between exegesis and hermeneutics?

Biblical exegesis is the actual interpretation of the sacred book, the bringing out of its meaning; hermeneutics is the study and establishment of the principles by which it is to be interpreted.

What is a Bible commentary?

Written by well-known and popular theologians, Bible commentaries aid in the study of Scripture by providing explanation and interpretation of Biblical text. Whether you are just beginning to read Scripture or have been studying the Bible daily, commentaries offer greater understanding with background information on authorship, ...

Who wrote the commentary on the Bible?

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. This one volume commentary was prepared by Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown and published in 1871.

How many volumes are in the Exposition Commentary series?

Edited by David Platt, Daniel L. Akin, and Tony Merida, this the Christ-centered Exposition Commentary series, includes 47 volumes when complete and takes a Christ-centered approach to expositing each book of the Bible. Rather than a verse-by-verse approach, the authors have crafted chapters that explain and apply key passages in their assigned Bible books. Readers will learn to see Christ in all aspects of Scripture, and they will be encouraged by the devotional nature of each exposition presented as sermons and divided into chapters that conclude with a "Reflect & Discuss" section, making this series ideal for small group study, personal devotion, and even sermon preparation.

When was Matthew Henry's commentary written?

Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible (Concise) Originally written in 1706, Matthew Henry's six volume Complete Commentary provides an exhaustive look at every verse in the Bible. Also included is the one volume.

When was the Bible first printed?

Originally printed in 1560, believers can read the Scripture along with study assistance unashamedly rooted in the theology of Calvin, Luther, Zwingli, and other Reformation leaders.

Who painted the word pictures of the New Testament?

Robertson's Word Pictures of the New Testament. A.T. Robertson, a renowned scholar of the Greek New Testament, takes through the New Testament, verse by verse, painting word pictures from the Greek to bring to light the words and actions of Jesus and the early Christians.

What is the fourfold gospel?

W. McGarvey and Philip Y. Pendleton is a complete chronology of the life of Christ, divided into titled sections and sub-divisions, with comments injected in the text.

What is a critical commentary on the Bible?

Critical commentaries are scholarly works that usually examine the passage in great detail. They will often discuss the pros and cons of numerous viewpoints, and may tell you everything you needed to know about the passage but didn’t even know to ask! The downside is that you may be overwhelmed with technical, scholarly details like discussion of sources, literary styles, critical theories, grammatical constructions (in the original Greek and Hebrew) and other issues that may or may not have immediate relevance to ministry. Critical commentaries can sometimes focus so much on the “trees” they lose site of the forest. Commentaries in our Reference section that can be classified as “Critical” include the following:

What is a Bible commentary?

A Bible Commentary explains the Bible either verse-by-verse, or section-by-section. There are numerous types of Bible Commentaries and numerous ways to categorize them. For the purposes of this guide, they are grouped into critical, exegetical, pastoral, popular, and specialized sections. The Crown College Library has a large selection ...

What is the New International Greek Testament Commentary?

The New International Greek Testament Commentary. A multi-volume, in-depth, scholarly, theologically conservative Evangelical commentary on the New Testament covering all aspects of interpretation but focusing specifically on the Greek Text.

What is the complete Bible library?

The Complete Biblical Library is an Evangelical commentary series on the whole Bible written to help people with little or no knowledge of Greek and Hebrew. The commentary provides the text of the Old Testament in Hebrew and New Testament in Greek, with English words underneath.

What is a popular level commentary?

A popular-level commentary may or may not be written by a biblical scholar. Those in our reference section were written by scholars, so these commentaries have a scholarly background but written so average Christians can understand them. The positive side is their understandability. The downside is that they are often quite brief in their discussion of each passage and may not really answer the questions you have. In other words, whereas technical commentaries may focus so much on the trees they lose sight of the forest, popular-level commentaries may focus so much on the forest, they don’t pay much attention to the trees.​

What is the text commentary series?

For each passage there is a section on 1) “Understanding the Text” which includes context, background, interpretive and theological insights, 2) Teaching the text and 3) Illustrating the text.

Who wrote the Old Testament commentary?

Commentary on the Old Testament. The authors, C.F. Keil and F. Delitzsch lived in the 1800’s. Though some of their observations may be outdated by more recent archaeological discoveries (like the Dead Sea Scrolls), this set is a classic in scholarly Old Testament Commentaries. Keil was a conservative Lutheran scholar.

What is the purpose of the commentary in the Bible?

The purpose of this commentary, available for every book in the Bible, is to encourage people to read the Bible and to aid in their personal study of God's Word.

How many pages are in the popular commentary of the Bible?

Kretzmann) The Popular Commentary of the Bible by Paul E. Kretzmann, Ph. D., D. D., has been a favorite among confessional Lutherans since publication of the first volume in 1921. The four volume work, completed in 1924, consists of nearly 3,000 pages.

What is the companion Bible?

The Companion Bible is sometimes touted by proponents of the KJV as a free and compelling Study Bible that remains immune to the trends of modern Study Bibles and translations.

How many volumes of the Bible did Calvin write?

Indisputably one of the most influential figures of the Christian Reformation, Calvin's lasting impact on Christian study, theology, and thought can be experienced through this 22-volume exposition of the Bible. (Calvin did not include exposition on Judges to Job, Proverbs to Song of Solomon, 2 & 3rd John, and Revelation.)

What was Foy Wallace's influence on the Church of Christ?

Through his writing and speaking, Foy Wallace gathered a considerable following among the autonomous group of Church of Christ; his combination of the skilled use of logic combined with charisma propelled him to the forefront of at least three major controversies within the denomination.

Why is the Galatians comment important?

The importance of this Commentary on Galatians for the history of Protestantism is very great. It presents like no other of Luther's writings the central thought of Christianity, the justification of the sinner for the sake of Christ's merits alone.

Who created the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge?

This highly respected and nearly exhaustive compilation was developed by R.A. Torrey from references in Thomas Scott's Commentary and the Comprehensive Bible. With nearly 500,000 cross-references it is the most thorough source available.

Why are there so many Bible commentary series?

There is a wide variety of commentaries series today, because readers have a wide variety of purposes for using them. Some are written for pastors and preachers, others for professors and scholars, and still others for lay people.

What is a commentary volume?

Commentaries. volumes are technical, but not so dense as to overwhelm readers; employ s a wide variety of critical approaches to the text that are light on theology ; certain volumes are well-reviewed for the biblical book they cover. See on. Amazon.

What are the denominations in the Bible series?

Some series reflect denominational distinctiveness, such as Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Lutheran , and many more. In some series, authors explain the original languages of the Bible, while in others they comment on the English text. Some devote a lot of space to history, others to theology, and still others to application.

What is tier one commentary?

The commentary series in tier one have multiple well-reviewed volumes that are considered among the very best for the particular book of the Bible that they cover. The series are, on the whole, consistently helpful and sound.

What is the perspective of the commentaries?

These commentaries are written from the perspective of Reformed theology. While theologically motivated, the commentaries are conversant with modern, critical scholarship. The introduction and main exposition of texts are in English, with more technical philological matters dealt with in footnotes, special notes, and appendixes. Revisions of some volumes have been published.

What are the sections of the commentary?

Treatment of texts is divided into four sections: transition, notes, form/structure/setting, and comment.

What is the JPS Torah Commentary?

Linguistic matters along with Near Eastern literary and archeological discoveries are well treated. Detailed texts on particular topics are included in each volume. The JPS Bible Commentary series is a continuation of the JPS Torah Commentary, offering volumes on books from the Writings and Prophets.

How many commentaries are there for each passage of the Bible?

These commentaries facilitate the use of critical scholarship in practical, pastoral applications. There are two commentaries for each biblical passage, one exegetical and the other homiletical or reflective. The King James and Revised Standard versions of the Bible are placed side by side for comparison in the older series; the New International Version and the New Revised Standard Version are used in the new series.

What is the Bible series?

This series treats theological and literary dimensions of the Bible within the methodological framework of modern critical scholarship. Some volumes are translations of older works from the German series Das Alte Testament Deutsch. Others are commentaries original to the Old Testament Library, and still others are studies of themes and genres, as opposed to individual texts.

When was the Bible series first published?

The original series was begun in 1895, and the new series was inaugurated in 1975 to take advantage of more recent scholarship, discoveries, and methodology. Even though the original series is older, many volumes are still relevant to the field of biblical studies.

What are the two schools of interpretation of patristic commentaries?

There are two schools of interpretation, that of Alexandria and that of Antioch.

Who was the most powerful writer against the Karaites?

Saadiah of Fayûm (died 942), the most powerful writer against the Karaites, translated the Bible into Arabic and added notes. Besides commentaries on the Bible, Saadiah wrote a systematic treatise bringing revealed religion into harmony with Greek philosophy. He thus became the forerunner of Maimonides and the Catholic Schoolmen.

What are the three periods of Christian exegesis?

The history of Christian exegesis may be roughly divided into three periods: the Age of the Fathers, the Age of Catenæ and Scholia (seventh to sixteenth century), and the Age of Modern Commentaries (sixteenth to twentieth century). The earliest known commentary on Christian scriptures was by a Gnostic named Heracleon in the 170s CE. Most of the patristic commentaries are in the form of homilies, or discourses to the faithful, and range over the whole of Scripture. There are two schools of interpretation, that of Alexandria and that of Antioch.

What did John Paul II teach about the Pentateuch?

He taught that many passages of the Pentateuch were not intended to be taken literally. In fact, he said that they were literally false, but allegorically true.

What Bible did the Jews use to enter the Great Synagogue?

A visitor to Alexandria at the time when Christ was preaching in Galilee would find there and in its vicinity Jews using the Septuagint as their Bible, and could enter their Great Synagogue. Whoever had not seen it was not supposed to have beheld the glory of Israel.

Who was the Jewish patriarch who wrote the book The Prince?

The work of systematization was completed and probably committed to writing by the Jewish patriarch at Tiberias, Rabbi Jehudah ha-Nasi "The Prince" (150-210).

Who was present at the Temple when Christ visited?

Farrar, in his "Life of Christ", says that it has been suggested that when Christ visited the Temple, at twelve years of age, there may have been present among the doctors Jonathan ben Uzziel, once thought the author of the Yonathan Targum, and the venerable teachers Hillel and Shammai, the handers-on of the Mishna.