BUILDING A NT LIBRARY: HEBREWS—REVELATION

There are many excellent commentaries available for each of these books, and the challenge is only to narrow the list. I recommend that, if at all possible, students of the Bible use two or more commentaries together. This provides the opportunity for insights from multiple perspectives and different interpretive approaches to the biblical text. I have tried to pick three solid commentaries for each biblical book—commentaries that are aware of both the horizon of the historical past and the need to read for the church today.

Hebrews is an extended argument that presents Jesus as the perfect sacrifice for sin and as the high priest who intercedes for the salvation and sanctification of believers. Each of the recommended commentaries provides strong insights on the Christology of Hebrews. D. deSilva’s commentary, Perseverance in Gratitude (Eerdmans, 2000), does an excellent job of tracing the argument of Hebrews, laying out the Greco-Roman background of the book (particularly Hebrews as a work of rhetoric), and gives solid suggestions for “bridging the horizons” between the text and teaching Hebrews today. C. R. Koester offers a commentary that addresses each verse in Hebrews phrase-by-phrase in Anchor Bible (AB [Yale University Press, 2001]). He works carefully through the Greek while also providing a very readable overview of each section. In the overview, he lays out the argument of that portion of the book, connects it to other parts of Hebrews, and makes astute theological observations. In addition, his introduction provides an extensive overview of the history of interpretation of Hebrews. More recently, L.T. Johnson adds another scholarly voice to the mix in the New Testament Library (NTL; Westminster John Knox, 2006). Although he is indebted to the historical-critical method, it is his theological insights about Jesus as son, priest, and sacrifice that are most helpful. These are derived from his engagement with the OT, Greco-Roman literature of the period, and his engagement with the history of the study of Hebrews.

James is a piece of wisdom literature in letter form. Some scholars have treated James as small, disconnected pieces of advice, but L.T. Johnson, in what I consider the best commentary on James (AB; 2005), shows that the book demonstrates the difference between friendship with God and friendship with the world. R. Wall’s Community of the Wise (Trinity, 1997) provides easy access to James with limited comment on the Greek text. He sees the book as a series of essays designed to help a beleaguered audience practice obedience to God, wisdom in speech, and faithfulness in the face of abuses of power and wealth by outsiders. The work of P.H. Davids in the New International Greek Testament Commentary (NIGTC; Eerdmans, 1982) provides good parallel resources (e.g., references to the OT, Gospels, and wisdom literature that help set the book in its literary context).

1 Peter clearly takes up the themes of Christian identity and ethics. Both J.B. Green in the Two Horizons New Testament Commentary (THNTC; Eerdmans, 2007) and K. Jobes in the Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (BECNT; Baker, 2005) address these two themes in different but complimentary ways. Jobes focuses more on the historical background to the text and careful verse-by-verse exposition. She makes occasional suggestions for preaching or teaching. Green’s commentary takes the text paragraph by paragraph and gives less attention to the Greek, but it has an extensive final section that draws out the theological implications of Christian identity and ethics for the church today. The work of P.H. Davids in the New International Commentary on the New Testament (Eerdmans, 1990) presents 1 Peter as a model for applying established theological truth, and also draws out significant theological points that are helpful for pastors and teachers.

2 Peter and Jude are often in the same volume because 2 Pet 2 and Jude 5-19 share a remarkable similarity. The classic critical commentary on these books is R. Bauckham’s Word Biblical Commentary (Word, 1983). His work explored the importance of genre for both books and is the foundation of many significant commentaries that follow. The work of M. Green in the Tyndale New Testament Commentary (reprint ed.; InterVarsity, 2009) is shorter and less technical than Bauckham’s work while also engaging and critiquing Bauckham’s commentary. It offers easy access to the two epistles. The commentary by R.A. Reese in the THNTC (2007) focuses on the theology of the epistles while examining the details of the text paragraph by paragraph. The commentary is oriented toward addressing the church today in light of the theology of the epistles. Most recently, G. Green provides fine attention to the cultural context and rhetorical structure of the books in the BECNT (Baker, 2008).

Several recent commentaries are now available on 1-3 John. S. Smalley, in the WBC (1984), provides translation, notes, and comments phrase by phrase while also including helpful attention to theological detail, particularly as it concerns Christology. The work of J. Painter in the Sacra Pagina series (Liturgical, 2002) situates the letters in the history of twentieth-century scholarship in order to limit scholarly engagement in the commentary itself. This allows a singular focus on the text (translation, notes, and interpretation) and its theology via verse-by-verse exegesis. In the NTL, J. Lieu provides a very readable historical-critical commentary on these letters (2008) with helpful references to the rest of the canon and extra-biblical literature. Her reading offers perceptive insights into the theology of the epistles, and the implications of these insights are quite suggestive for preachers and teachers.

Solid teaching and preaching from the book of Revelation is crucial for the church. Disagreement over the proper interpretation of this book abounds, but one helpful aspect of the commentaries recommended here is that they provide an overview of interpretive strategies used to understand this book. The most extensive commentary available is D. Aune’s quite technical work in the WBC (3 vols.; 1997-1998), which provides an enormous amount of information and addresses the literary composition and linguistic meanings of the book. G.K. Beale, in the NIGTC (1999), is another comprehensive volume written from the perspective that Revelation speaks both to God’s sovereignty now, and his final victory in the days to come. It is eclectic in its use of historical data, literary structure, and the interpretation of symbolism. Specifically designed for pastors is G.R. Osborne in the BECNT (2003). It too takes an eclectic view that covers historical referents from the first century, the use of the OT, and literary structure. Each section ends with a summary and suggestions for appropriation and contextualization.

In addition to the individual commentaries above, the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture is available for Hebrews, James-3 John, and Revelation (InterVarsity, 2005, 2000, 2005). This helpful series brings together quotations from the work of the patristic fathers in the first seven centuries of the church. The quotations are arranged in a verse-by-verse format for easy reference.

By Ruth Anne Reese, Associate Professor of NT, Asbury Theological Seminary.