New Testament commentary survey

193 Pages·2013·2.451 MB·English

by  Carson, D. A.

New Testament
Commentary
Survey
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New Testament
Commentary
Survey
Seventh Edition
D. A. Carson
K
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These websites are hyperlinked.
www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
www.bakeracademic.com
www.brazospress.com
www.chosenbooks.com
www.revellbooks.com
www.bethanyhouse.com
© 1986, 1993, 2001, 2007, 2013 by D. A. Carson
Published by Baker Academic
a division of Baker Publishing Group
P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
www.bakeracademic.com
Printed in the United States of America
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy,
recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is
brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Carson, D. A.
New Testament commentary survey / D.A. Carson. —Seventh edition.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8010-3990-4 (pbk.)
1. Bible. New Testament—Commentaries—History and criticism. 2. Bible. New
Testament—Commentaries—Bibliography. I. Title.
BS2341.52.C37 2013
016.2257—dc23 2013019127
13 14 15 16 17 18 19 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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Contents
Preface vii
Abbreviations xi
1. Introductory Notes 1
1.1 The Need for Several Types of Commentary 1
1.2 Individual Commentaries or Series 3
1.2.1 General Principles 3
1.2.2 Series Worth Noting but Not Pursuing 4
1.2.3 More Substantial Series 7
1.2.4 One-Volume Multiauthor Commentaries 18
1.3 Older Commentaries 22
1.4 One-Author Sets 23
2. Supplements to Commentaries 27
2.1 New Testament Introductions 27
2.2 New Testament Theologies 34
3. Individual Commentaries 41
3.1 Gospels 41
3.2 Matthew 42
3.3 Mark 51
3.4 Luke 57
3.5 John 64
v
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vi Contents
3.6 Acts 75
3.7 Romans 82
3.8 1 Corinthians 92
3.9 2 Corinthians 98
3.10 Galatians 102
3.11 Ephesians 108
3.12 Philippians 114
3.13 Colossians/Philemon 118
3.14 Thessalonians 123
3.15 Pastorals 127
3.16 Hebrews 133
3.17 James 139
3.18 1 Peter 145
3.19 2 Peter and Jude 149
3.20 Johannine Epistles 151
3.21 Revelation 156
4. Some “Best Buys” 167
Name Index 169
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Preface
In its first edition, this little book was written by Dr. (now Emeritus
Professor) Anthony C. Thiselton and appeared under the title Personal
Suggestions about a Minister’s Library. In 1973 it was revised, and
shortly after that the “Best Buys” section was brought up-to-date.
That revision also introduced the change in title and format: New
Testament Commentary Survey was born, the NT analogue of Old
Testament Commentary Survey (both published, at the time, exclu-
sively by British Theological Students’ Fellowship). In 1976, I brought
the book up-to-date again simply by adding additional paragraphs and
by inserting new prices and publishing information where relevant.
Apart from such modifications, Professor Thiselton’s comments were
left unchanged. In 1984, the Theological Students’ Fellowship asked
for another revision, and this time it was thought unwise simply to
add a few more paragraphs. It seemed more sensible to recast the
entire work and enter it on a computer so that subsequent revisions,
including price changes and the like, could be accomplished with less
work than would otherwise be the case. With Professor Thiselton’s
kind permission, his text was sometimes incorporated into that third
revision—occasionally with changes, especially on those rare occa-
sions where I found myself mildly disagreeing with his assessment
of a book. In the United States, Baker brought out the third edition.
The fourth edition of this book appeared in 1993, the fifth in 2001,
vii
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viii Preface
and the sixth in 2007. The years fly by, and new commentaries keep
appearing—and so we have arrived at the seventh edition.
The purpose of this short book is to provide theological students
and ministers with a handy survey of the resources, especially com-
mentaries, that are available in English to facilitate an understanding
of the NT. On the one hand, the mature scholar is not in view. On
the other hand, commentaries that are written at the popular level
are generally given less attention than more substantive works. Theo-
logically I am an evangelical, but many of the positive assessments
offered in these notes are in connection with books written from the
vantage point of some other theological tradition: the usefulness of a
commentary sometimes turns on something other than the theological
stance of its author—assuming, of course, that commentaries are
read critically, as they should be whatever one’s theological heritage.
Conversely, just because a commentary stands within the evangeli-
cal tradition does not necessarily mean it is a good book. It may be
thoroughly orthodox but poorly written, uninformed, or quick to
import from other biblical passages meanings that cannot rightly be
found in the texts on which comment is being offered. In other words,
this Survey is a guide to commentaries, not orthodoxy. Nevertheless,
I have not hesitated on occasion to draw attention to the theological
“slant” of particular works. Such information is often as useful as
comments on the work’s level, general competence, and so forth.
The restriction to English works is not absolute: occasionally I have
included a foreign language work where nothing of a similar nature
or stature exists in English. If I have not included more of them, it is
because of my envisaged readership.
In previous editions I provided British and American prices of
almost all the commentaries, or a note to the effect that the work
was out of print. In this edition I have removed all prices and most
indications that a work is out of print. The reasons are obvious to
almost everyone who keeps abreast of current publication and sales
practices. At one time, book prices were a great deal more stable than
they are now, and editions were either hardback or paper. Nowadays,
however, readers commonly have the option of various digital edi-
tions. Books can be purchased not only through retail outlets (which
are declining) but also through massive online companies offering
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Preface ix
considerable discounts. Some of these companies are digitally linked
to hundreds of secondhand outlets, making it possible to find many
used books that are officially out of print or to purchase “as new”
books at secondhand prices. As an experiment, I just selected one
of my books, still available as a “new” product, and found that its
secondhand price varies from $22.95 to $62.03. Moreover, some com-
panies specialize in making many, many books available, even when
they are officially out of print, as a specially ordered photocopy. So the
price and availability information I used to provide in earlier editions
when such data were reasonably stable now seem to reflect market
conditions that no longer exist.
It is still important for readers to recognize that when publishers
indicate new editions of commentaries, one must constantly examine
what a “new edition” means. During the early 1980s, many of the
TNTC and NCB volumes came out in new paperback editions, there-
fore boasting a new date even though all that had changed was the
cover; the text was that of work done ten or twenty or more years
earlier. The latest TNTC editions, however, are either work updated
by the same author or commentaries by new authors replacing the
earlier contributors.
Those interested in keeping up with the endless stream of com-
mentaries need to consult the book review sections of journals. Of the
print journals, the Expository Times is often first to appear. Reviews
that usually keep the theological student in mind, and that are writ-
ten from an evangelical perspective, are found in Themelios—and
because this is now an online journal, its reviews are among the first
to appear. More comprehensive and similarly rapid are the reviews
in the online publication Reviews of Biblical Literature. Paper jour-
nals with significant review sections include the Catholic Biblical
Quarterly, Churchman, Journal of the Evangelical Theological So-
ciety, Trinity Journal, and Westminster Theological Journal. Older
commentaries are treated to entertaining and sometimes profound
comment in C. H. Spurgeon, Commenting and Commentaries, oc-
casionally republished by Banner of Truth. Of the various relevant
online services, I recommend www.bestcommentaries.com. Two books
that provide helpful guides to commentaries on both Testaments are
John Glynn, Commentary and Reference Survey: A Comprehensive
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