Customer Reviews

Word Biblical Commentary Vol. 44, Colossians-Philemon

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Much praise has already been laid down by others concerning this commentary. The five star rating I gave it should confirm to the reader my agreement. With this in mind, I'm going to focus on one particular aspect of the book.

If I could have any complaint about this commentary, it is that it is too scholarly and thorough. O'Brien interacts with so many sources and views, one can get a little too bogged down in all the reasoning. Some parts are hard to follow lucidly with so much material being compared and contrasted. The sheer number of inline references and sources can make following the text with your eyes rather difficult. This is my general complain of the Word Biblical Commentary series as a whole, and this one seems especially representative.

O'Brien commentary is a gold mine for those serious in academics, or pastors who are series about having a broad base. O'Brien offers a huge (indeed, perhaps exhaustive) bibliography of the different works dealing with the text. O'Brien could be you one stop source for all your researching needs. For the layman though (like myself), it might be a little too much.

That said, I wholly recommend this commentary for all those serious about study.

This is the best commentary available on Colossians. Like O'Brien's commentaries on Ephesians and Philippians, this work features in-depth exegesis, summaries and critiques of all exegetical options, interaction with the best contemporary scholarship, and clear writing. O'Brien argues for Pauline authorship, and his theological perspective is broadly in the Reformed tradition.

O'Brien's commentaries on the prison epistles have never failed to help me when I have consulted them to understand Paul's letters better than I had before. The author writes from a theologically conservative and complementarian viewpoint but is always prepared to evaluate other views, while also clearly articulating his own.

This is one of the most helpful of the Word Biblical Commentary series.

If you read commentaries to help you to understand the text, so that you can better serve Jesus Christ, you will really appreciate this one, as well as the author's commentaries on Philippians and Ephesians.

If you have not studied New Testament Greek, you may find some of his argumentation hard to grasp.

[If you are serious about understanding the New Testament, a couple of years studying the language it is written in will be enlightening, and will at the very least open up for you the majority of the best commentaries!]

This being his first commentary on his way to becoming one of the most respected commentary writers and scholars today should be consulted if doing any sermon or serious study on Colossians. His comments are usually profound with a clarity not often found in technical commentaries. I read this book straight through and sometimes didn't want to put it down. I've now dabbled into Douglas Moo's Pillar Commentary on Colossians which I find also to be great, but it gives me a fresh appreciation for the precedence that O'brien set with this work nearly 25 years ago. Many don't like the layout of the "Word Biblical Series" I find it to be helpful. O'briens Summary section at end of each segment is amazing, a perfect remedy for a tired brain after plowing through the rigorous exegetical section. He basically ties the translation, structure, and exegetical sections into a nice bow (explanation section.) Many regard this to still be the best commentary on Colossians.

I have studied through two of Peter T. O'Brien's commentaries, this one and his Pillar New Testament Commentary on Ephesians. In both commentaries O'Brien comes across as a very capable scholar with a broad knowledge of primary and secondary resources and a strong grasp of the original Greek. His exegetical and syntactical insights have helped illuminate my understanding and appreciation of Colossians greatly. Even when I inevitably found that I agreed with another scholar on particular points, it was his fair and respectful treatment of that scholar's point of view that facilitated my decision. The format of this volume is the only reason I have withheld a five star rating. It is sometimes difficult to follow the authors stream of thought. The inline notes and references interrupting the main text so often do not help. Others have commented that this is the fault of the publisher and the WBC format. I agree to an extent, but have found the same trouble to a lesser degree with the other commentary on Ephesians. That commentary has footnotes and foot-references. At least some of the difficulty is his writing style. All in all though this is a great commentary and I am happy to have it on my shelf where I know I will refer to it again and again.

If you are familiar with O'Brien's other commentaries you know that his exegetical precision and scholarly explanation are invaluable. In this commentary O'Brien maintains his position as the `answer book' for Colossians. If you can only buy one commentary for this book...buy this one.

I bought this commentary to help supplement my sermons, but I didnt realize how in depth it was. This was the best commentary on this book by D.A. Carson's commentary reviews and he is right. There is Greek and sometimes it is not translated so if you know Greek it wont bother you. Other than that its a great commentary that looks at all perspectives but breaks it down to make it manageable to the layman and strong enough for the scholar, pastor.

Surely there will be someone else writing about this book, so I'm going try to help you in another way.

When you start reading biblical commentaries you will need to be aware that the thoughts expressed by the author deal with facts and speculations that should of happened. You can NEVER rely on only one commentary to affirm something about the Bible. You need at least three good commentaries.

Try to read biblical commentaries from different confessions of faith (e.g., Calvinism vs. Arminianism; Pentecostal vs. non-Pentecostal; Catholic vs. Protestant; Egalitarian vs. Complementarian; Amillennialism vs. Premillennialism vs. Postmillennialism; etc). Look for their arguments: What do they agree or disagree on? Which of them is closest to the biblical text? It's not a sin to read commentaries written from other points of view. You will notice that what is fact or solid argument will be seen over and over on different commentaries, so you will start learning what is speculation and what is not.

As Haddon W. Robinson said in his book, Biblical Preaching, (second edition, page 22), "In approaching a passage, we must be willing to reexamine our doctrinal convictions and to reject the judgments of our most respected teachers."

Remember, a commentary is not the biblical text. Do not replace the authority of the Bible with a commentary. The same apply for Study Bibles. The study notes there are not written by "apostles and prophets," so never confuse the "gospel" with the teacher or preacher. Learn to separate it.

Commentaries are important because nobody can get a poem from one language and translate it with the same structure to another language. This simply does not exist. Words, phrases, and sentences are rooted in a specific time, culture and custom. About Bibles, the best way is to check different translations, but be cautious about a very loose translation.

For you to appreciate any biblical commentary you need to know what level of reading you are. I'm going call them beginner, intermediate and advanced. I recommend the following biblical commentaries that you can start from. All of them have both Old Testament and New Testament. (If you're thinking of buying the whole set, look for the CD edition; it's cheaper and you can take it with you where you go.)

Beginner - NIV Application Commentary (NIVAC) by Zondervan.
(or) The Bible Speaks Today Series (BST) by IVP (This is a growing series and not yet complete.)

Intermediate - New International Commentary on the New Testament (NICNT) and New International Commentary on the Old Testament (NICOT) by Eerdmans

Advanced - Word Biblical Commentary (WBC) by Thomas Nelson

These are basic commentaries on their own level, but there are a lot of commentaries today, so don't forget to look for more information. Maybe you can get information from one of these: (1) Commentary and Reference Survey: A Comprehensive Guide to Biblical and Theological Resources by John Glynn, (2) New Testament Commentary Survey by D. A. Carson, (3) Old Testament Commentary Survey by Tremper Longman.

There are good and expensive commentaries such as the Anchor Bible (AB); International Critical Commentary (ICC) or Hermeneia (HERM). [Do not forget of Calvin and Luther].

I don't know about catholic commentaries, but you can check reviews on "Sacra Pagina" and "Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture."

Other than those mentioned above (NIVAC; BST; NICNT; WBC; AB; ICC; HERM) you can also check: Expositor Bible Commentary (EBC); New American Commentary (NAC); Pillar New Testament Commentary (PNTC); New International Greek Testament Commentary (NIGTC); Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (BECNT); and others.

Another thing, it can be a very good commentary, but it does not mean that you will agree with everything in it. Remember, "new" does not mean it's updated, and "updated" does not mean it's better.

Purpose - You can read a book to get information, even if you are not interested in a deep study of the biblical text. In this case it's better to start reading something from your own confession of faith and always on your level of reading. If after some time you become interested in more, go check other commentaries, but please, do not skip "How To Read A Book" by Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren.

Responsibility - It is your responsibility study the biblical text before checking a commentary. Sometimes this is not an easy task so I'm giving you some other references that you can check at the end of this review. If I had read a review like this before, I would know how to prevent some mistakes.

Do not let you knowledge kill your faith! - "For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith." Hebrews 4:2 NIV - (Read also 1 Corinthians 1:21-24; 2:13-14; 3:18-23; Jude 1:3).

I can't leave without suggesting some other tools to help you: (1) How To Read A Book by Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren; (2) Hermeneutics: Principles and Processes of Biblical Interpretation by Henry Virkler and Karelynne Ayayo; (3) New Testament Exegesis: A Handbook for Students and Pastors by Gordon Fee; and (4) Old Testament Exegesis: A Handbook for Students and Pastors by Douglas Stuart. [Although book #3 and 4 deals with Biblical languages (Greek and Hebrew), you can learn a lot from them even if you do not know the languages]. (5) "Basics of Biblical Greek" Grammar by William D. Mounce [after you start reading it maybe you can add "Biblical Greek Survival Kit" and "Sing and Learn New Testament Greek" audio CD by Kenneth Berding]; (6) "English Grammar in Use" by Raymond Murphy (Third Edition with Cd-Rom). (7) Eusebius' Ecclesiastical History: Complete and Unabridged. - All of these will help you to understand HOW a good commentary must be written. Good Luck!

Excellent work from O'Brien as usual. I purchased this book on the recommendation of Dr. Roscscup and it has proved to be an excellent resource. This books is targeted to those interested in an exegetical work on Colossians and Philemon. Recommended for those with a working knowledge of NT Greek.

Word Biblical commentaries are good in general for their interaction with the origianl languages and their analysis of the form of the text. O' Brien has a good overview of the hypothesises for the writng of colossians.