Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible [Hardcover]

James D. G. Dunn (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 19, 2003

No one familiar with the Bible needs to be told that it is a truly remarkable work. But it takes help to understand this ancient collection of diverse forms of literature written by different people across many centuries. The Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible (ECB) is the finest, most up-to-date single-volume Bible handbook now available. Written by world-class Bible scholars, the ECB encapsulates in nontechnical language the best of modern scholarship on the sixty-six biblical books plus the Apocrypha. The only one-volume Bible commentary to cover all the texts (even including 1 Enoch) regarded by one or more Christian churches as canonical, the ECB provides reader-friendly treatments and succinct summaries of each section of the text that will be valuable to scholars, students and general readers alike. The primary objective of this work is to clarify the meaning of each section of the Bible. Rather than attempting a verse-by-verse analysis (virtually impossible in a one-volume work), the ECB focuses on principal units of meaning narrative, parable, prophetic oracle, section of argument, and so on highlighting their interconnectedness with the rest of the biblical text. The volume also addresses and answers major issues including the range of possible interpretations and refers readers to the best fuller discussions. Beyond providing reliable, informative commentary, this hefty volume also includes thirteen introductory and context-setting articles that do justice to the biblical documents both as historical sources and as scriptures. The sixty-seven contributors to the ECB come from a wide variety of backgrounds and are acknowledged leaders in the field of biblical studies. Their contributions stand out either for their fresh interpretations of the evidence, or for their way of asking new questions of the text, or for their new angles of approach. While the translation of choice is the New Revised Standard Version, many of the contributors offer their own vivid translations of the original Hebrew or Greek. Cutting-edge, comprehensive, and ecumenical, the ECB is both a fitting climax to the rich body of interconfessional work undertaken in the latter part of the twentieth century and a worthy launching pad for biblical study in the twenty-first.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

An international team of 63 biblical scholars offers this judicious and solid introduction to the varieties of biblical literature. Like similar one-volume commentaries from Oxford and HarperCollins, this one covers the Apocrypha, though the Eerdmans commentary is more comprehensive, adding an expansive chapter on the oft-overlooked pseudo-epigraphical book of 1 Enoch. Each entry begins with some kind of overview of the biblical or apocryphal book in question, then proceeds to analyze the book section by section rather than verse by verse (a real boon for nonspecialists who often get lost in abstruse, highly technical discussions). The commentary uses the New Revised Standard Version, though some contributors add their own insights about the meanings of contested Hebrew or Greek terms. The essayists draw upon and summarize previous biblical scholarship and sometimes offer revisionist explanations (as with Morna Hooker's passionate and well-argued reinterpretation of Philemon).
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1649 pages
• Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (November 19, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802837115
• ISBN-13: 978-0802837110
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.7 x 2.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #77,092 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

58 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A worthy volume..., January 8, 2004

By 

FrKurt Messick "FrKurt Messick" (Bloomington, IN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible (Hardcover)

The Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible, edited by James D.G. Dunn (University of Durham) and John W. Rogerson (University of Sheffield), is a monumental work, the latest in one-volume commentaries on the Bible. This is a huge book, over 1600 pages (any larger and it would have had to have been split, making it no longer a one-volume commentary).

My general practice is to disapprove of reliance on one commentary only. For depth and breadth of interpretation, one really needs to consult many different treatments of texts. However, for many, the limitations of time and finances prevent having a number of separate commentaries on individual biblical books, much less a range of commentaries on each one. I think that the Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible will be a good investment for those looking for insight and interpretation but who do not have the cause to invest in individual commentaries on each book of the Bible. It is best coupled with a Bible dictionary; fortunately, Eerdmans produced just a few years prior to this commentary a high-quality Bible dictionary, also, which would be a good companion.

The Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible claims to be the most complete one-volume commentary - actually, it claims to be the only one-volume commentary to include all canonical texts (which is a claim that depends upon your definition of canonical). It includes all 66 of the traditional Protestant Bible arranged in typical Christian order, with the books of the Old Testament Apocrypha, and the Pseudepigraphic text of I Enoch. There are essays introducing each broad area of textual type or division:

Pentateuch
Prophetic Literature
Pseudepigrapha
Gospels
New Testament Letters
New Testament Apocrypha
Dead Sea Scrolls and the Hebrew Bible
Dead Sea Scrolls and the New Testament

There are also more general essays on each of the testaments dealing with tradition, history, literary, and other considerations. These give brief but helpful histories of the development of the canon, the history of interpretation, and other context-setting information.

This work does not attempt a verse-by-verse explication of the biblical text; such would be beyond the scope of a one-volume commentary generally. It instead breaks the biblical text into sections of natural meaning (pericopes) and works to clarify each, also relating it back to the rest of the wider text. When there are subjects that beg for further clarification but are beyond the scope of this work, the authors include key questions or topics as well as suggestions for further readings.

Among the more useful features of the text are wonderful, up-to-date bibliographies at the conclusion of each book or essay, general essays on various topics throughout the text, and a very extensive index making subject referencing easy to do. One suggestion would be the incorporation of more maps and diagrams; particularly when talking about texts that relate to each other (the Joshua-Kings history vs. Chronicles; the synoptic gospels, etc.) a more graphical layout occasionally could help. While this text is the work of nearly 70 biblical scholars of note, it has a well-done common readability and engaging style, a credit to the editors.

The primary translation as the basis for this commentary is the New Revised Standard Version, but most scholars contributing used original language texts as a primary source for their analysis, so many ideas will be fresh and new, unique to this volume.

This text will be useful to students, pastors, scholars and interested laypersons. The language is primarily non-technical without being lacking in informative power. The interpretations presented include traditional and modern views, and the commentators are generally fair at presenting the strengths and weakness of all views presented.

This is a good text to have on one's shelf, and I already find myself reaching for it on a regular basis to supplement my other commentaries, or for quick overviews for insight and clarity.

55 of 70 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Mixed Review, June 19, 2006

By 

Joe DiAlcamo (Colorado) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible (Hardcover)

This commentary is difficult to describe. Overall it's one of the best I've read (and I've read my fair share), but at the same time it's not for the undiscerning reader. One must be studied enough to `separate the wheat from the chaff'. The editors make no apology for including contributors from "a wide variety of backgrounds and faith traditions." (Preface), some of them quite liberal in their view of Scripture.

For example, in the introductory article to the Pentateuch, David Noel Freedman explicitly rejects Mosaic authorship ("...a Mosaic date for the composition of the Pentateuch [is] untenable." p. 26) and instead embraces the Documentary Hypothesis, which he proceeds to cover at length.

Likewise, in the introduction to Isaiah, Margaret Barker discusses how "modern scholarship" (a favorite phrase of many contributors) has revealed what we know as the book of Isaiah to be the work of three separate authors (of whom Isaiah is one and the other two are unknown) at three separate periods of history.

I've found these kinds of theories to be based on dubious grounds when closely scrutinized, but that's another discussion.

Likewise, miracles are sometimes called into serious question. Consider David Tomes' commentary regarding Elijah on Mt. Carmel:
"Did such a decisive confrontation really take place? The major difficulty lies in believing that a miracle of this kind could have occurred. But there is also the problem that a generation later Baal worship had to be eradicated from Israel all over again, in a much more down-to-earth way (2 Kgs 10:15-27). Perhaps we should regard the story as a dramatization of beliefs and hopes about the relationship between Yahweh and other gods rather than as verifiable history." P. 263

Some comments are down right scary. Regarding Elisha's miracle of making the axe head float (2 Kings 6:1-7), he even suggests that, rather than God, the author wants us to believe that some inherent metaphysical force of nature was responsible for the miracle:
"... we are probably intended to understand that the new stick (cf. the new bowl in 2:20) had magical properties which made the ax head float." P. 268

How does one approach such a commentary? It contains some of the best scholarship I've seen anywhere, yet also some of the worst. From the same contributor can come comments that shock, yet at other times remarkable insight and genuine scholarship. As I said before, the reader must separate the wheat from the chaff.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars lovely commentary for the layman, October 27, 2005

By 

T. Franz (Eagle River, Alaska) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible (Hardcover)

I am a beginner in bible study, although I have been reading and praying Scripture for several years. The Eerdman's Commentary has clear articles, well written and yet not too lofty, so that a person with my scholastic background can reap much fruit. As I am Catholic, the articles on the Deuterocanonical books--the Apocryphal Books to non-Catholic or non-Orthodox Christians--are most appreciated. I would recommend this commentary to any of my fellow Catholics as a useful addition to their research libraries.