The Epistles of John (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) [Hardcover]

I. Howard Marshall (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 14, 1978

The three Epistles of John are concerned with the fundamentals of Christian belief and life, faith and love. This volume includes an invitation to general readers and an introduction addressed to students and specialists. Another fresh feature is a rearrangement of the traditional order of the three letters: 2 John and 3 John are studied before 1 John.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 274 pages
• Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.; 2nd edition (July 14, 1978)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802825184
• ISBN-13: 978-0802825186
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #179,931 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Treats each epistle in its own rite, September 7, 2006

By 

Matthew Gunia (Justice, Illinois) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Epistles of John (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) (Hardcover)

I. Howard Marshall is a professor of New Testament at the University of Aberdeen (Scotland), an author in numerous conservative commentary sets, and contributor to many scholarly journals. This work, in the New International Commentary on the New Testament Series, was found to be an excellent read--not only because of its fluid prose, but also because of its excellent scholarship.

Commentators approach a text with certain assumptions. The positions that Marshall begins with include: that John, Son of Zebedee and disciple of Jesus wrote these three epistles as well as the Gospel of John (but not Revelation); that these letters were written to address certain schisms in local churches, but that they were not necessarily all written to address a single crisis; and that they were written between the 60s and 90s AD, with 2 John written first, followed by 3 John, and finally 1 John.

One unique characteristic of Marshall's commentary is that he treats each of the three epistles individually (as opposed to trying to matrix the theology of each--reading each through the window of the other) and in the order in which he believes they were written (2 John, 3 John, 1 John). The result is that the New Testament's briefest books--2 John and 3 John--receive a much more complete treatment than they normally receive. It was refreshing for this reader to see Marshall esteeming these often ignored books as divinely inspired Holy Scripture--which is what they are.

This reader also enjoyed Marshall's treatment of 1 John. He treats the epistle holistically, commenting on the particular verses while always keeping in mind what has preceded it and what will follow. The result is that (even though outlining the epistle is difficult) the reader sees 1 John as a logical, progressive whole. Marshall also does an admirable job as he wrestles with the most difficult passages of 1 John--statements that seem to indicate that Christians cannot sin (3:4-6, cf. 1:8-9), sins that do or do not lead to death (5:16-17), and the work of the antichrist (3:18ff), and the threefold witness of the Spirit, the water, and the blood (5:6-8). The author addresses each of these in a thoughtful, pastoral way. While I'm not sure I necessarily agree with all of his conclusions, I am thankful for them as they have given me much to think about and wrestle with as I continue my study of 1 John.

The flaws in this book are few, but one does merit mention. In the above mentioned "difficult passages" of John, this reader often had to go back and re-read certain sections because Marshall's position was difficult to pin down. For example, it took three reading to finally understand that Marshall views John's word that the Christian is free from sin as an eschatological reality, a process of sanctification that has already begun, and also a command for the Christian to keep himself free from sin. The fault either lies with this reader (which is entirely possible) or an editor could have asked Marshall to make his position more clear.

But on the whole this is an excellent commentary on some often-neglected (yet valuable) books of the New Testament. I highly recommend them to anyone who wants to study them as this book is equally accessible to pastors as well as laymen. Highly recommended.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very helpful for a wide range of teachers & preachers, July 2, 2008

By 

David A. Bielby "Ev Xpistw" (Normal, IL USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Epistles of John (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) (Hardcover)

This commentary is worth owning for a number of reasons. (I'm a pastor working in the Greek text developing sermons right now on John's letters).

Marshall's expository comments are well supported with clearly linked cross references that would fit well into any expository sermon. Sometimes he gives illustrations for the less transparent points of the text, which results in superior clarity for most readers. The augments which one reviewer called 'fluff' are not fluff at all. They are helpful meditative points that can be used in preaching. I love it when commentators bear their intended audience in mind and give a helping hand in context. That makes this commentary better than most.

If you desire to deal in the Greek text, his footnotes are an excellent add on to that study. He also references a number of other scholars in the footnotes for more on any crucial points Marshall brings out.

Overall, this is a five star commentary that anyone doing serious exegesis for a sermon ought to consult.

5.0 out of 5 stars Another good NICNT Commentary, June 12, 2011

By 

William D. Curnutt "Pastor Dan" (Wichita, KS, United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Epistles of John (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) (Hardcover)

The Epistles of John are a set of three short works towards the end of the New Testament. Two are just short letters and one is a longer (what I would term) teaching document.

I appreciated Howard Marshalls treatment of the three works. He did something I had not considered before. He talked about his belief that 2 and 3 John were written before 1 John. So, his commentary starts with an introduction to the three works and then proceeds with the commentary on 2 John, then 3 John and finally 1st John.

Why does he do that way you ask? Because he feels that 2nd and 3rd John are short letters, one to the 'beloved lady" and the other to his dear friend "Gaius." They deal with two subjects. 2nd John deals with the subject of some teachers claiming that Christ was not both God and Man. They did not believe that Christ (God) could take on human form. Or they put a spin on it that the Holy Spirit descended on Christ at His Baptism and then left him before the crucifixion.

Either way, their teaching was wrong and disruptive to the church. The short letter instructs the lady and her children to not give hospitality to those and thus aid in their false teaching. Marshall believes this is a short letter to address the issue and that the Apostle John wanted to visit the church to correct the teaching in person. But when he couldn't get there in person he wrote 1st John as a longer treatment of the problem and addressed it in ink on paper.

In 3rd John we have 'The Elder' addressing the problem of Demetrius wanted to take over control of the church and not share what the Elder and other traveling missionaries were teaching. Again it is a short work addressing a problem. In the letter itself the Elder states I don't want to put on paper in ink what I want to say, I would prefer to come in person and address it then.

But then when he couldn't come in person he then wrote 1st John to address both issues.

Well, I don't know whether you will agree with Howard Marshall, I'm not sure I am in full agreement (but I like how he addresses it) but I know this, the commentary is well written. The issues are well developed and addressed and much of what he says is very helpful for teaching others.

Marshall does not flaunt his theory and make it a major issue. He just addresses it as well as other theories and then goes on to give us good teaching on the issues the 3 documents address.

This is well worth your time to work through and use if you are going to teach a series on the Epistles of John.

Enjoy!