Customer Reviews

Revelation (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

More accessible for the student than Beale, he is very readable and lucid and the layout is clear. He compares the views of different commentators (useful because he cites Beale and Aune). He deals with most options on difficult passages before coming to his own conclusion. Despite its size he is not over detailed. His interpretation is eclectic, i.e. he combines preterist, idealist and futurist, with the futurist being primary rather than idealist. Premill on chap 20. Uses his own translation of the Greek, which is better than the NIV. He is very useful on the Greek and Greek text is transliterated. Footnotes are kept to a minimum and textual variants are left to the end of each section. There is a good bibliography and four indexes. The introduction is short (49 p) but adequate for the student. Comments on a paragraph at a time, individual verses are not indicated, which is a pity. He is a little weak on numerology and sometimes fails to see or mention contrasts such as the new Jerusalem the Bride and Babylon the whore.

Overall however, a very useful commentary, which I highly recommend for students, teachers and preachers. I found him hard to put down, he reads so well. He bodes well to become the standard evangelical commentary for students.

NB. Most seminary students should own Osborne and Mounce. A good starter on Revelation would be Koester Revelation and the End of All Things.

As a pastor who is studying and preaching from the Greek text through Revelation, and who audited Beale at Wheaton on Revelation, I find that this commentary is used on every sermon.
It's a first rate commentary with opinions that true scholars and regular pastors learn to respect even if they do not agree with him on every point. Sometimes when reading Beale there are so many references to apocalyptic literature and other sources that one can get overwhelmed. Osborne doesn't give as many references, but the other reviewer is correct...he's easier to read than Beale or Aune. I have several hundred dollars of the best commentaries I could find on Revelation. This one is one of the few that almost always makes it in my book bag (and it's pretty thick). I am unwilling to go without it when I have the potential of preparing a sermon at home rather than my office.

He sets apart special comments and exegetical points in shaded frames for quick reference. One time when we were discussing a particularly detailed and crucial point in class Dr. Beale excitedly said, I've got to call Osborne about this....which shows that if one of the top scholars in the world on Revelation is excited about calling Osborne...he must be great. And as I've used him, I agree. His stuff is great.

When they diverge, I usually go with Beale, but Osborne makes one think carefully and helps you work through issues in a different way than Beale does. The big differences are that Osborne has smooth reading, fewer references to research on most points, but about as much material in general as Beale.

Any pastor who is preaching from Revelation should refer to Osborne as well as Beale for indepth background on almost every nuance of the text one can imagine. So although I cannot say I agree with every single point in this book...it's easily a five star commentary that you need in your library and open on your desk as you research the textual issues and depths of this incredible grand finale of the bible...the book of Revelation.

As a Bible teacher I have read many commentaries on the Revelation. I have taught every verse of the Revelation 3 times and have a different view than the one Osborne has. But in saying that I find this particular commentary the best balanced and clearest thinking of any I have read. It is not a technical commentary but I find it as useful as those that major in handling the original language. So read commentaries that agree with whatever view of interpretation you hold to - then sit back and really enjoy and be challenged by this clear writing scholar.

Grant Osborne described himself at the time of writing this commentary as an idealist (symbolic interpretation) first and then a preterist (what has already taken due to the fact that Revelation was not written directly to 21st century Americans, but to the 7 churches in Asia and thus would be partially comprehensible to them) while allowing for futurist elements as well in his interpretation of Revelation. Before he finished his own very fine and readable commentary Aune's 3 volume and Beale's one volume commentary came out and so he was able to interact with some of the finest of the most recent Revelation commentaries to appear at that time. Osborne does a fine job of wrestling with the text and like most Trinity professors is always as fair as possible to competing views before stating his own conclusions. Osborne appreciates Revelation as an apocalyptic text, but it does not overwhelm his interpretation of it as might be the case with Aune. Aune is interesting, but perhaps excessively detailed. If you want an additional commentary to complement Osborne's than buy Beale's. If you are looking for an excellent single volume theology of Revelation then see Bauckham.

Grant Osbourne has done an excellent job with this commentary on Revelation. He takes an eclectic, though mainly symbolical, interpretive approach, and his extensive surveys of many of the different interpretations are fair, well done, and very helpful. The explanations he gives for his own interpretive decisions are generally clear, his exegesis is good (though I don't always agree), his writing is easy to read and understand, and the commentary is not overly technical (no knowledge of Greek needed, though it does help; all Greek is transliterated and translated).

Though I generally use a different interpretive method than does Osbourne, and so arrive at many different conclusions, nonetheless, I highly recommend this commentary for anyone looking to do serious study of the book of Revelation.

As one who has published a book of sermons from Revelation,(Revelation Plain and Simple) I really appreciate the fine work Dr. Osborne has done on this commentary. He deals with all of the controversial issues, giving all the options, and then presents his own view. He deals clearly with the text, but the best parts of his commentary, from my vantage point, are the "application" parts of his book. Grant Osborne recognizes that the book of Revelation was written to believers throughout world history, and so he does a masterful job of applying the text to this lives of everyday believers. This is what so many miss. The book of Revelation is incredibly applicable to people of every time and place. Osborne has uncovered the deep theology of this book, and I believe that is the very best thing he has brought to the table. There are many commentaries on the book of Revelation, but few apply it so well to the lives of saints everywhere.

After 20 years of not understanding John's Revelation, I began a nine month study on the book, then I started reading this book. I wish I had started with it. Mr. Osborne is a "master". He provides a very well thought and researched approach to each and very issue. He brings in the other great writers and discusses their positions fairly and then provides his best understanding of each issue. After reading Osborne's book and The Church & the Last Things by M. Lloyd-Jones, the reader will learn to truly enjoy their next read of the last book in the New Testament.

If you've read other books in the Baker Exegetical series, you know pretty much what to expect here: Deep analysis with appreciation for multiple scholarly viewpoints, and every effort made to provide a precise interpretation. Often, this means resorting to the original New Testament Greek, which does make the text difficult to read ... especially if you don't know any Greek! You don't have to, but if you know just enough Greek to be dangerous, without being a scholar of Biblical languages, this book will be perfect for you.

This approach, with liberal references back to the Old Testament, is particularly appropriate for one book of the Bible: Revelation. Its deep symbolism makes it a daunting book for most Bible readers.

In my own book about Revelation [...] I discuss primarily the historical setting of which John of Patmos wrote. I believe the only way to truly understand Revelation is to first immerse yourself into the beliefs and struggles of first-century Christianity in Asia Minor (where the seven churches of Revelation reside). But when you're ready to dig deeper into the Apocalypse's Hebrew roots and symbolism, this is a great book ... whether read as complete study or used as a reference. Osborne doesn't neglect the historical essentials, he just delves much deeper and takes a much more scholarly approach. It must have taken forever to compile. 869 pages with plenty of ink on each.

Five stars for Osborne's vast, no-nonsense research, a necessity for every Revelation scholar.

Dr. Osborne has helped me to better understand and teach the Book of Revelation. His approach is balanced, scholarly, and yet practical. It is well worth the investment.

I use this commentary to write a Sunday School lesson plan. It is a wonderful reference, and although he presents his views and reasoning it is balanced enough to let you do your own thinking.