Psalms (Baker Commentary on the Old Testament Wisdom and Psalms) [Hardcover]

John Goldingay (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0801036070 | ISBN-13: 978-0801036071 | Publication Date: November 1, 2008

The Baker Commentary on the Old Testament Wisdom and Psalms series is tailored to the distinctives of poetry and Wisdom literature. Goldingay's translation of a particular psalm shows in English some of the salient features of the Hebrew text. Also included is an extensive glossary section treating the vocabulary of Psalms and noting how certain words are used to convey critical concepts.

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About the Author

John Goldingay (PhD, University of Nottingham) is David Allan Hubbard Professor of Old Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. He is the author of numerous books and articles, including Old Testament Theology and commentaries on Daniel and Isaiah.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 2208 pages
• Publisher: Baker Academic (November 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801036070
• ISBN-13: 978-0801036071
• Product Dimensions: 16.2 x 11.8 x 5.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #405,899 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Really great piece of work, December 27, 2011

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Richard Hong (Irvine, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Psalms (Baker Commentary on the Old Testament Wisdom and Psalms) (Hardcover)

I know that there is some debate regarding Goldingay's commentary on the Psalms on Amazon reviews. Some think that his wording is unnecessarily difficult and frustrating. Others think that Goldingay is not Christo-centric enough in his theological insights. I actually have never written a review, but I had to for this one, because I felt that Goldingay wasn't getting his fair due!

I love and have read Vos, Belcher (Messiah and the Psalms), Futato (ITP), and Beale (NT on the OT). However, understandably so, those books do not deal with the Hebrew for every Psalm. I can read the English Bible and have cross references to understand how Jesus used the Psalms.

However, I am not an Old Testament Scholar. I am not sure which out of the 4 usages of ahnah is being used in Psalm 88 (to answer, humble, be troubled, or sing). Ahhh...but Goldingay is an OT scholar! And he does a phenomenal job of breaking down the meaning, from the Hebrew, in the Psalm. From there, he is able to give theological insights, almost as if he was the Psalmist himself! I have looked at Tate, Vangemeren, Kidner, Wilson, Craigie, and I know this will come as a shock, but if I had to buy one, it would be Goldingays. Just because his commentary is 2200 pages! He deals with every psalm, every line, and practically every verb! It's great. I was using Vangemeren and Tate and Kidner, and I spent a lot of time with HALOT, BDB, Kugel and NIDOT because I was so confused with the Hebrew. And at the end, I still wasn't sure or convinced I came to the right conclusion. Vangemeren and Tate and Kidner barely touch upon the options and why they reached their conclusion. Sometimes, Tate didn't even have a conclusion; just a bunch of options (though very helpful they are). But Goldingay walks you through all the hard work in a very concise and correct way, not getting sidetracked with this or that author's opinion. I think he's spot on in making eliminations and then making his decision. It's almost as if you have a brilliant OT Professor there with you answering all your questions.

For example: I have EJ Young's commentary on Isaiah. I LOVE IT. It is Christo-centric like no other. If you don't have it, go get it. He answers all the tough questions in regard to promise and fulfillment, exile and return. Young is the man in this regard. However, he is not as contextually and gramatically focused on the Hebraic world. So, I also got Oswalt in the NICOT. He is more focused on the details and gives you invaluable information to bring the OT world home to the congregation. You don't want to flatten out the text. If you skip this step, the congregation is detached from the principles that arose out of the concrete life experiences. What's the point of even having the OT? Just preach from the NT. Then, with Young, you bring the text to another level as the NT authors did, showing that God's sovereign plan is worthy to be praised.

If you want to get into the contextual and theological mindset of the Psalmist, you're going to need to do the grunt work. You need to get to the Hebrew. And Hebrew Poetry is a beast. It's not like narratives. The construction of words and tense usages can throw you in for a loop. However, the reward is delightful. As you enter the world of the Psalmist, you can see that much more how Jesus fulfills and how crazy it really is that he did to every jot and tittle! How this Jewish Rabbi named Joshua actually understood the Psalms. If I could make my own personal recommendation, I would recommend: Goldingay, Vangeremen (because anything by him is great though in the Psalms not as thorough as I would like), and the WBC series (the WBC for the notes and biblical cross references).