The letter to the Philippians is one of the most quotable and memorable of Paul’s epistles. Written from prison, Paul provides exhortation, theological instruction, and personal reports about his journeys, and conveys deep personal gratitude to the Philippians for their services to him. In Philippians [NIVAC], top New Testament scholar Frank Thielman illuminates the instructional […]

The second letter Paul addressed to the eminently troubled church in Corinth is the most ministerially difficult and personally complex of all Paul’s letters. It brims with passionate self-defense, intense concern for the eternal destiny of the Corinthians, and even anger. In 2 Corinthians [NIVAC] Scott J. Hafemann reconciles three key themes to one another […]

Readers of 1 and 2 Kings commonly approach these books as a straightforward chronology of post-Davidic Israel: the inauguration of Solomon’s reign, the division of the kingdom following his death, and Israel’s and Judah’s ensuing kings, conflicts, captivities, and overarching spiritual decline. In reality, however, the books of the Kings fall into the collection known […]

Why do the books of Samuel pack such broad appeal? Taken together as a single narrative, they certainly offer something for everyone: kings and prophets, great battles and greater heroes, action and romance, loyalty and betrayal, the mundane and the miraculous. In Samuel, we meet Saul, David, Goliath, Jonathan, Bathsheba, the witch of Endor, and […]

Scot McKnight has emerged as one of the most popular and influential NT scholars of the last decade. His popular blog (Jesus Creed) attracts thousands of daily readers, and his books are perennial bestsellers that prove to be informative, edifying, and challenging. 1 Peter [NIVAC] is no exception to this rule. McKnight does an excellent […]

Although separated by nearly two thousand years of history, there are many similarities between the church in Corinth and the world of today. As we read Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians and Craig Blomberg’s excellent commentary, one underlying similarity stands out: the Corinthians church was riveted by factions that threatened to tear it apart. […]

Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs have always presented particular challenges to their readers, especially if those readers are seeking to understand them as part of Christian Scripture. Ecclesiastes regularly challenges the reader as to grammar and syntax. The interpretation even of words which occur frequently in the book is often unclear and a matter of […]

1&2 Thessalonians [NIVAC] by Michael W. Holmes presents what are perhaps Paul’s most unique letters with stunning historical clarity. Holmes, also a scholar of the earliest non-canonical writings of the early church provides a rich contextual framework for the Thessalonian letters which then provides the grounds upon which he derives a rich application of the […]

In 2 Peter & Jude [NIVAC] Douglas Moo unpacks a surprising number of insights and practical lessons from two of the New Testament’s least used and most underrated books. While these epistles are short, Moo shows that they remain important for the modern Christian by applying them to modern life. About the Series This unique […]

Most Bible commentaries take us on a one-way trip from our world to the world of the Bible. But they leave us there, assuming that we can somehow make the return journey on our own. They focus on the original meaning of the passage but don’t discuss its contemporary application. The information they offer is […]