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What Makes a Good Commentary

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Image-CommentaryMatt Smethurst at The Gospel Coalition recently interviewed New Testament scholar D.A. Carson about what makes a good commentary. Carson pointed out a few things to look for and a few pitfalls to avoid.

As far as what to look for, Carson begins, “Good all-round commentaries help readers think their way through the text.” He gives some helpful details on what that looks like, but notice what he considers most important: The best commentaries serve our study of the text. They never replace it.

Carson mentions the following pitfalls:

  1. Turning to commentaries too soon in your study.
  2. Turning to commentaries too late (or not at all).
  3. Relying on commentaries instead of developing a robust understanding of biblical, historical, systematic, and pastoral theology.
  4. Allowing commentaries to supplant close study and desperate prayer (trusting the commentators more than the Lord).

I wrote a post a while back about four mistakes to avoid when using commentaries, where I had some similar ideas. But Carson puts it better than I did.

These concepts are not just for full-time preachers, but also for Sunday School teachers, Bible study leaders, and leaders of all stripes.

Check it out!

Bible Study is Less Common than Bible Study Study

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Knowable Word LogoMeetings for Bible study may be at an all-time high (just my hunch), but how many of them are studying the Bible? From my observation, groups are more likely to study a Bible study than study the Bible.

In other words, groups of people with open Bibles are out. Groups of people with open study guides are in.

I’m not the only one to notice this trend. Dave Miller, writing at SBC Voices, asks an insightful question in his recent post entitled “Whatever Happened to Bible Study“:

Could there be value to a teacher sharing the fruit of his own studies of God’s Word as compared to just being a “facilitator” for a discussion of opinions about the third chapter of the latest John Piper book?

Miller doesn’t mind benefitting from the help of Piper (or David Platt or Beth Moore). Instead, he laments the habit of bouncing from one study guide to the next without learning to study the Scripture directly. He relates this counsel from his mentor Howard Hendricks:

Read the text, observe it – before you check other peoples’ opinions and insights. Let the Spirit be your first teacher. After you have studied, after you have labored over the text and figured it out, then you consult the wisdom of the wise (often to see where you went astray).

For further reflection on these points, see my posts on Four Mistakes When Using Commentaries and What Materials Do You Use.

And I recommend Miller’s post at SBC Voices. Check it out!

Tim Challies Recommends Good Commentaries

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Knowable Word LogoTim Challies just began a series of posts where he plans to collect strong recommendations on good commentaries on each book of the Bible.  His first post on Genesis is here.

He’s done a lot of work researching which volumes pastors and scholars have found most helpful.  If you’re looking to get a commentary to help you prepare for a study or class, you may want to check out Challies’s recommendations.

We’ll plan to post here when we find his recommendations particularly helpful.

Check it out!

4 Mistakes When Using Commentaries

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Image-CommentaryWhenever I teach people how to study the Bible (this OIA stuff), the question usually arises: What about using commentaries or study Bibles?

It’s a great question, because we’re surrounded by great resources.  But every blessing can become a curse when we rely on the blessing and not on the Lord, so here are some common mistakes regarding commentary usage.

Mistake #1: Ignore what others have said

We need to learn in community with others, and Study Bibles and commentaries (at least good ones) represent the best Christian thinking over thousands of years.  We need to learn from the wisdom of others.

Mistake #2: Allow commentaries to do your Bible study for you

It’s tempting to read a portion of Scripture and then go right to the study notes or commentary.  Once we’ve seen what the experts have said, we think we understand the passage.

This practice is not much different from what the Jewish rabbis used to do.  They’d debate interpretation by quoting different schools of thought, referring to the relevant commentaries to support their position.  When Jesus came along, he astonished his generation because he refused to teach this way (Matt 7:28-29).  He went right back to the Scripture itself, and he observed, interpreted, and applied it for the people (Matt 21:16, 42; Mark 2:25).

Jesus passed his authority on to his followers, so they could interpret his Word for succeeding generations (Matt 28:18, 20; John 14:12, 25-26; 2 Cor 5:20).  With the help of Jesus’ Spirit, you, too, can read and understand God’s knowable Word.

Mistake #3: Go to commentaries too quickly

When the meaning of a passage isn’t intuitively obvious, it’s tempting to grab a commentary right away.  But I recommend that you carefully observe the Scripture and work to interpret it on your own.  Spend time thinking about it.  Learn how to ask questions and then answer them.  Try to determine the author’s main point.

Then read some study notes or commentaries to “check your work.”  See if others have already come to similar conclusions from the text.  If they have, terrific.  If they haven’t, then you may want to reconsider your own conclusions.  Either way, you’ll get the help you need without short-circuiting the process of learning how to handle the Scripture yourself (2 Tim 2:15).

Mistake #4: Believe everything you read

Remember that paper doesn’t say “no” to ink.  Cyberspace excludes no fools.  Just because something has been published doesn’t mean it’s true.

The point of the OIA method of Bible study is to teach you how to think and how to draw near to the Lord.  As you compare your study of Scripture to that of the experts, be humble but also be wise.  Always ask if what you’re reading in the commentary is faithful to the text or not.

May we always let the word of Christ dwell in us richly, that we might teach and admonish one another in all wisdom (Col 3:16).