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Acts: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible)

Willie James Jennings

4.66 · Rating details · 95 ratings · 20 reviews

In this new commentary for the Belief series, award-winning author and theologian Willie James Jennings explores the relevance of the book of Acts for the struggles of today. While some see Acts as the story of the founding of the Christian church, Jennings argues that it is so much more, depicting revolutionlife in the disrupting presence of the Spirit of God. According t ...more

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Hardcover, 272 pages

Published May 5th 2017 by Westminster John Knox Press

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Sep 04, 2017 Robert D. Cornwall rated it it was amazing

Shelves: bible, new-testament, theology

Karl Barth's commentary on Romans proved to be theologically provocative and even disruptive. From time to time theologians have followed Barth's lead and have written theologically rooted biblical commentaries, but for the most part the task of biblical commentary has been left to the specialists. Yes, theologians engage with scripture, but more often in thematic ways, rather than tackling the text itself in an extended manner. Fortunately, there are a growing number of commentaries being writt Karl Barth's commentary on Romans proved to be theologically provocative and even disruptive. From time to time theologians have followed Barth's lead and have written theologically rooted biblical commentaries, but for the most part the task of biblical commentary has been left to the specialists. Yes, theologians engage with scripture, but more often in thematic ways, rather than tackling the text itself in an extended manner. Fortunately, there are a growing number of commentaries being written by theologians who take biblical scholarship seriously, but bring their own perspective to the conversation. One of those series is being published by Westminster John Knox Press under the series name: "Belief: A Theological Commenary on the Bible." I have made use of several of the volumes in the series and have generally found them thoughtful and thought-provoking. This is especially true of Willie James Jennings contribution on the Book of Acts.

For many Christians, the Book of Acts is the formative text. In my own tradition, this book provided, for many a blueprint for church order and for church mission. Having spent time in Pentecostal communities, a tradition that has influenced my own thinking, I know that this tradition also finds this book to be formative. Jennings brings to this conversation his own life experiences. One of the things it's important to affirm when we engage theologically is that our own realities influence the way we look at God and life. For Willie Jennings, part of that life experience involves being African American. Throughout the commentary, he brings his own context into the reflections, seeing things that I might not see from my own vantage point. Yes, it makes sense once it's pointed out, but it's likely I would miss the point. That's one of the reasons why a theologically-informed commentary has value. Academic specialists often try to look at the text from a neutral vantage point, providing scholarly distance. There is value in that, but it can't be the only lens through which to read the text.

Jennings writes that "The book of Acts speaks of revolution." That's provocative. It is a book about revolution, because the Holy Spirit is a disruptive force. (p. 1). This is the story of God in action, moving by the Spirit, engaging humanity along the way. As for history, the book of Acts invites us into a particular form of history, not a history of monuments, but as a story that invites us toward God's future.

As a biblical commentary, this one performs many of the same functions as any other commentary. Jennings begins in chapter one and moves onward to the end of chapter twenty-eight. He engages in exegesis, but does so in conversation with the specialists, upon whom he depends. What is more important is the theological analysis, through which he invites us into the story. That story is written in the context of empire, more specifically the Roman Empire, which he notes desired to "shape the world in its own image" (p. 5). This is an important word for us today, for we live within empires that seek to form us in its image. It seeks to assimilate us. The story of Acts is written in the context of an empire seeking to assimilate, but also in the context of a Jewish diaspora trying to remain faithful in an often hostile environment, creating dissonance with the Christian community emerging from their midst. He writes that "diaspora means scattering and fragmentation, exile and loss. It mean s being displaced and in search of a place that could be made home" (p. 6). You can understand why a movement that seeks to engage the Gentile community might be perceived as a threat. This leads us to one of the important themes of the book, the joining of Jew and Gentile. It is the formation of a people caught between empire and diaspora. But, it is also the story of God's desire for fellowship with humanity.

With that concern the journey begins. It is the story of a movement of the Spirit that confronts nationalism and tribalism. It is a challenge to empire and its attempts to constrain the Spirit. Jennings will address throughout the book our attraction to the nationalist fantasy that seeks to form us. It is a word that is especially pertinent to the American situation, which seeks to build walls, draw borders, and protect status quo for the powerful. So we take the journey that leads to Pentecost and beyond, until eyes are opened through visions and experiences for Peter and then the call of Paul. All along the way we see encounters with the powers that be, attempts to constrain the Spirit, but which are consistently overcome.

In the postcript to the commentary, Jennings writes that in the end what see is the creation of a form of assimilation very different from the one envisioned by empire. There is a joining of Jew and Gentile here, but not in a way where uniqueness and difference are eliminated. He speaks of a form of assimilation in which "out of love and desire, disciples take on the ways of others. Disciples allow themselves to be assimilated for the sake of love; they do not demand or request others to be assimilated to them" (p. 255). In this segregation is overcome not by pressing everyone into one mold, but letting our differences flow from one to the other in the Spirit.

It is difficult to describe fully the nature of a biblical commentary. All I can really do is invite others to take up the commentary and engage the text in conversation with this particular conversation partner, one who sees things in the text I never saw before, and having taught the book of Acts in a college setting as well as a congregational one, having read a number of very good commentaries, I still missed aspects of the story, which Jennings brings out, and which I find helpful.

One element of this commentary series, which I especially like, are the occasional "Further Reflections," that appear regularly in the commentary. Through these extended essays, the authors, in this case Willie Jennings, can take up elements of the story that have important theological implications. Among the topics covered are "Christians, Jews, and Nationalism," "Marriage, Money, and Discipleship," Evangelization and Loving Difference," "Word of God against Word of God," "The Seduction of Segregation," "Intercultural and Interracial Life," "Christian Witness against the Prison," "Citizenship and Struggle," and finally, "Alternative Space and Alternative Desire." These essays provide rich theological work, that invite the reader to stop and ponder the meanings developed.

I highly recommend both this commentary and the series in which it appears. There are great riches to be found, especially for preachers, who are called not only to exegete an ancient text, but to bring a word for today that is rooted in the text. ...more

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Jul 15, 2019 Adam Shields rated it it was amazing

Takeaway: Commentaries are under-appreciated forms of devotional literature.

In general, I do not read the Bible straight through in a reading plan. I generally read the bible either with the Book of Common Prayer or with a Liturgy of the Hours (this is the one I use right now mostly). I prefer dated versions where I read that day and that day only. If I get behind, I get behind.

But almost two months ago now I went on a silent five-day retreat. And I brought Willie James Jennings’ commentary on A Takeaway: Commentaries are under-appreciated forms of devotional literature.

In general, I do not read the Bible straight through in a reading plan. I generally read the bible either with the Book of Common Prayer or with a Liturgy of the Hours (this is the one I use right now mostly). I prefer dated versions where I read that day and that day only. If I get behind, I get behind.

But almost two months ago now I went on a silent five-day retreat. And I brought Willie James Jennings’ commentary on Acts, along with the Liturgy of the Hours and Reggie Williams’ Bonhoeffer’s Black Jesus as my reading content. I had wanted to read Jennings’ commentary on Acts, and I had just finished (really the first day I finished) Jennings’ Christian Imagination. So I wanted more from Jennings.

Reading his commentary on Acts alongside his constructive theology in The Christian Imagination was exactly what I needed for that retreat. Being able to read slowly, and have lots of time to stop and pray through the commentary was perfect. Jennings is upending many White Evangelical readings of Acts. This was not my first book that approached Acts in a similar way, Amos Yong prepared me to read Jennings.

We often read Acts as a hero tale. We have hero Peter and then hero Paul that follow God and bring the good news of Jesus Christ to the gentiles. And that is undoubtedly part of the story. But Acts was not oriented toward individual hero stories. Acts was primarily about a community, one that was grappling with a God that had upended their concept of what it meant to be a follower of God.

Early Jewish followers of Christ understood God as the only God. But God the Father was also a particular God of their small ethnic group. To be a follower of God also meant to be Jewish. And if you were not Jewish ethnically, there was a category for people that would do everything possible to become culturally Jewish so that you might follow God.

But Acts, pretty much story by story disrupts that understanding. Pentecost, the first real miracle of Acts communicates the gospel to those that no longer could speak Aramaic. Peter and John’s healings show that the power of the spirit that was in Jesus was now also in his human disciples. Economics and community are upended with Ananias and Sapphira. Internal ethnic division within the early Christian community was disrupted with the distribution of resources to the windows. Peter’s message to Cornelius and then the Holy Spirit coming upon the household before baptism showed that the gospel was not just for Jewish Christians. The Ethiopian eunuch showed that the gospel was for someone that would have been permanently ritually unclean. And the book keeps going.

Part of the importance of Jennings’ book Christian Imagination was the rejection of supersessionism. In his commentary on Acts, Jennings builds on that but also works through how Acts has been misunderstood to allow for supersessionism. Jennings also works through the role of the state, the inherent violence of state power and prisons, the movement of power in economics and social control and the way that all of that is subverted into new ethic based on Jesus’ reimagined understanding of authority and service.

As you can assume from what I have said so far, this is not a book that is without controversy. But regardless of any disagreement, Jennings is taking seriously the text as his starting point. He is pointing out how we have allowed the book to be sanitized and misread because of our individualism.

I do rarely wait so long between reading a book and writing a post, but this is a book that I needed to marinate on. And it is a book I need to re-read. I commend it strongly. ...more

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Sep 11, 2018 Dwight Davis rated it it was amazing

Of course Willie Jennings wrote the best commentary I’ve ever consulted. Of course he wrote a commentary that I sat down and read from cover to cover, a thing I’ve literally never done with a commentary on a book of the Bible. Of course Willie Jennings, a systematic and constructive theologian, is also a brilliant biblical scholar.

This commentary isn’t you’re typical commentary. Jennings doesn’t delve into the context or linguistics of the text. Rather, he leans into the narrative form of Acts ...more

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Jan 09, 2021 Helen rated it it was amazing

‘Maybe our goal should be to form common life along the lines of Paul waiting for his day before the emperor - in a house where the struggle for justice meets radical hospitality and where people from every walk of life wander into a space filled with hope, surprise, and very good news.’ 257

This is a disruptive, challenging and vital commentary shedding new light on the Book of Acts. A must read for all Christians and especially those who would teach and preach in the church today.

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Sep 07, 2020 John Medendorp rated it it was amazing

Shelves: biblical-studies

This isn’t your grandpa’s commentary! If you’re looking for how Luke uses the subjunctive, how heavily he relies on Q, or whether there is a chiastic structure to Acts, you’ve come to the wrong place. If you want to see how the Spirit bridges cultural divides, shakes the foundations of prisons, and pushes God’s people to the edge of grace in divine embrace of human bodies throughout time and space, read on!

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Jan 06, 2021 Joseph Yoo rated it it was amazing

One of the best commentaries on Acts I've ever read. ...more

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Mar 30, 2020 Matt rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2017_release, read-in-2020, acts, commentary, author-male, author-non-white, christian, thought-provoking, race, mass-incarceration

This book is unlike most modern commentaries. Most commentaries give you an understanding of what the text is saying, often with engagement with past interpretations and full of historical background details. These commentaries are valuable tools to help the interpreter understand what the text is saying, but they lack the interpretive judgements and conclusions that are necessary for any preacher. This commentary, and the series it is a part of seeks to address these weakness. As a result, whil This book is unlike most modern commentaries. Most commentaries give you an understanding of what the text is saying, often with engagement with past interpretations and full of historical background details. These commentaries are valuable tools to help the interpreter understand what the text is saying, but they lack the interpretive judgements and conclusions that are necessary for any preacher. This commentary, and the series it is a part of seeks to address these weakness. As a result, while the commentary is aware of the modern scholarship, it is more concerned with understanding how God speaks to us through Acts. This makes for a unique, and often riveting commentary.

The format of the book follows many conventional commentaries. Each chapter is split up, sometimes into smaller chunks of verses and discussed. It is not a verse by verse commentary but rather provides a theological interpretation of the section being discussed. These interpretations are often insightful and provoking in their interpretations.

In addition to the commentary on the text there are also several further reflection sections which records Jennings's thoughts on certain issues which arise from the text. This includes the logic of incarceration and the idolization of the couple. These are fascinating in their own right, and they provide a welcome supplement to the commentary itself.

There is much to like in this book, and in almost every chapter I found myself challenged by his insights. Even when I disagreed with him, I still found that the disagreements were challenged because he took the text with the utmost seriousness, and he believes that God speaks to us today through Acts. That starting point is necessary because it means that even when we disagree, we are agreeing on essential elements.

By taking it seriously, he is able to see modern day implications that most commentaries do not. His is truly a commentary which is able to say something for the modern man, not merely a beginning of a commentary like most of what passes off for commentaries today. Before reading this commentary, I had never even thought about the implications that Acts has for our understanding of mass incarceration. I find myself struck by my own reservations in drawing conclusions from Acts to the present age beyond missions and contextualization. After reading this I am confronted by the text's ability to speak out against several of our modern American idols, including white supremacy. If I cannot teach on Acts and denounce white supremacy, then I have no business teaching scripture in America.

I would be presenting an incomplete picture of this commentary if I made it seem like it was only concerned with contemporary applications. That is a gross misrepresentation of the commentary. It is a commentary which is above all concerned with the relentless, overwhelming love of God. This love is made manifest in the joining of Jew and Gentile, and in the repeated chances for Israel to repent and turn towards Christ. This is the theme that flows through the book more than contemporary implications.

Another strength of the text is the types of authors Willie Jennings engages with. He engages with a wide variety of different sources, both in theological background and non-theological sources. This diversity of sources leads to a much stronger book. It is also appreciated that he engages with the interpreters of the past in John Calvin and John Chrysostom showing he lacks the historical allergy that plagues much of modern evangelicalism.

As I mentioned above, my disagreements are few. Even when I did disagree with him, I still found myself challenged by his views and logic to see where it leads. His section on the idolization of marriage for example is fascinating and thought provoking, but I can't follow him to affirming same-sex marriage. Nor does this book or his aside give a defense of it, but it made me consider whether his critique of the idolization of marriage is possible without his affirming stance.

Minor disagreements aside, I would gladly recommend this book to others. It is a rare theology book, and an even rarer commentary, that makes me want to worship. This book served as a devotional, but not in the way most modern devotionals are. It filled me with awe and wonder at who God is and the new things He was and continues to do. Willie Jennings continues to produce fascinating theological works, and ones that need to be mined more than once to gain all of their insights. ...more

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Jul 01, 2018 Matthew Codd rated it it was amazing

I can’t imagine preaching again out of Acts without having first engaged Jenning’s piercing and challenging insight. A true gift to the church in its reading and interpreting of Scripture.

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Nov 23, 2020 David Smith rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

A political theological reading

Most commentaries on Acts delve into the history of the events themselves. Jennings commentary goes beyond this to the sociological and political domains. He broadens the horizon by reading the history portrayed in Acts anew that speaks to incarceration and individualism in our postmodern era. A worthy read for the biblical scholar as well as a pastor looking to push their congregation beyond the self help mentality.

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Sep 28, 2019 nate added it

Shelves: 2019, preaching, theology

Another one of the commentaries I read throughout a 48 part sermon series I did in the book of Acts. Unlike any of the other commentaries I read. Jennings writes with a compelling zeal and urgency. While I didn't agree with all of his conclusions, I loved reading this. ...more

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Dec 08, 2020 Linda rated it it was amazing

Exquisite and profound. I am happy beyond all expression that Willie James Jennings has agreed to be part of the writing project for which I am lead author, a feminist commentary on Acts for the Wisdom series (Liturgical Press). Look for it in 2022.

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Sep 03, 2019 Sam rated it it was amazing

“Maybe our goal should be to form common life...a house where the struggle for justice meets radical hospitality and where people from every walk of life wander into a space filled with hope, surprise, and very good news.”

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Apr 24, 2018 Catharine rated it really liked it

Shelves: books

The language is rich and poetic, sometimes wearyingly so, but this is a sharp, fresh, anti-colonial, and critically aware commentary. It's refreshing to read even if some of it is not directly preachable in my parish context. ...more

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Sep 04, 2020 Jonathan Griffiths rated it it was amazing

Brilliant, sharp, passionate. Would that all commentaries had the same life in them! No doubt many readers will find some ideas to challenge, but it's well worth the wrestling and the processing. ...more

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Sep 28, 2018 Rob rated it it was amazing

Paradigm shifting book

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Dec 13, 2020 Van Jones added it

Fantastic book. Eye opening. Very informative.

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Dec 30, 2020 Eric Clapp rated it it was amazing

Shelves: my-bookshelf

I can’t say I’ve ever read a commentary straight through, but his insights made every page worthwhile.

It changed the way I see Acts, Paul, Scripture, God in such life-giving ways. I’ll be referencing this constantly and can’t wait to read everything else he’s written.

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Jul 22, 2019 Christian Sawyer rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2019-reading-list

A great commentary, especially relevant for the time in which we are nowing living!

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Oct 07, 2019 Sooho Lee rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, important-reads, theology, biblical-studies

What prophetic roar, what fiery witness! This, Willie James Jennings’s commentary on Acts, is without a moment’s hesitation one of the best theological works I have ever read.

“The revolution of the intimate is here!”

Jennings heralds. And how profound is this unseemly way of flipping the world right-side. It is not one of violence, forcing the Kingdom of God like the Roman Empire (or any other empires). It is also not one of cowardice, succumbing to the fears—real fears, nevertheless—of diaspora. ...more

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