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Song of Songs Lamentations
The Word Biblical Commentary delivers the best in biblical scholarship, from the leading scholars of our day who share a commitment to Scripture as divine revelation. This series emphasizes a thorough analysis of textual, linguistic, structural, and theological evidence. The result is judicious and balanced insight into the meanings of the text in the framework of biblical theology.
These widely acclaimed commentaries serve as exceptional resources for the professional theologian and instructor, the seminary or university student, the working minister, and everyone concerned with building theological understanding from a solid base of biblical scholarship.
These widely acclaimed commentaries serve as exceptional resources for the professional theologian and instructor, the seminary or university student, the working minister, and everyone concerned with building theological understanding from a solid base of biblical scholarship.
496 pages, Hardcover
First published March 12, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 10, 2017
Exceptional commentary on two often ignored and sometimes very difficult to apply books of the Bible. I stayed in Lamentations for over a month. Provides a very good summary of views, easy to follow translation in acrostic format. Bigger vision of God. Heartfelt lament is for the purpose of renewal ultimately.
March 6, 2024
Concerning the Lamentations portion of this commentary by Paul House.
House writes probably the most accessible, heartfelt, and theological entry to the Word Biblical Commentary I've ever read. His verse-by-verse comments on Lamentations are helpful and especially adept at drawing in canonical and linguistic parallels from across the Hebrew Bible and from within Lamentations itself. Like with many evangelical commentaries Old Testament scholarly commentaries, one might wish for explicit Christian and christological connections. Yet like a superb offensive line, House opens up a wide hole for Christological interpretation to run through.
I thought House's introduction on lament was particularly strong. His attention to most literary conventions and structure is found in the introduction. He gives attention there to connections across the entire book that are not re-highlighted in each chapter's comments on "form/structure/setting."
This commentary can be used effectively by a non-Hebrew specialist, but that may be biased. I will say, even if your Hebrew is rusty, you'll be able to follow along.
My favorite part from the Introduction:
"The Christian community in the West may not have totally forgotten how to lament over sin, but it is certainly well into the process of forgetting how to do so, even in the light of shattering world events. This slide into theological amnesia resulst in part from a general failure to read and interpret the whole of the Bible consistently, carefully, realistically, and theologically. Traditionalists are guilt as nontraditionalists in this matter. Conservative scholars and pastors are sending out the sort of distress signals about lack of biblical knowledge that characterized books and articles written by mainline denominational scholas generation ago...
Considering Lamentations could bring the church back into the real world depicted in Scripture. In Lamentations, sin is destructive; it must be confessed or there is no forgiveness for it. In Lamentations, sin has consequences. In Lamentations, God cares about sin, suffering, and depravity and does something about them. In Lamentations, there is no ease regardless of what the people of God do. In Lamentations, God is fair, tough, caring, and ultimately faithful. Without question, these and other themes found in Lamentations are biblical ideas that question, these and other themes found in Lamentations are biblical ideas that course through the whole of Scripture. If so, then one's attitude toward this book may be an indication of how one views much of the rest of the Bible’s teachings. Thus, accepting this small book could well lead to the embracing on, more thoroughly biblical Christian worldview."
House writes probably the most accessible, heartfelt, and theological entry to the Word Biblical Commentary I've ever read. His verse-by-verse comments on Lamentations are helpful and especially adept at drawing in canonical and linguistic parallels from across the Hebrew Bible and from within Lamentations itself. Like with many evangelical commentaries Old Testament scholarly commentaries, one might wish for explicit Christian and christological connections. Yet like a superb offensive line, House opens up a wide hole for Christological interpretation to run through.
I thought House's introduction on lament was particularly strong. His attention to most literary conventions and structure is found in the introduction. He gives attention there to connections across the entire book that are not re-highlighted in each chapter's comments on "form/structure/setting."
This commentary can be used effectively by a non-Hebrew specialist, but that may be biased. I will say, even if your Hebrew is rusty, you'll be able to follow along.
My favorite part from the Introduction:
"The Christian community in the West may not have totally forgotten how to lament over sin, but it is certainly well into the process of forgetting how to do so, even in the light of shattering world events. This slide into theological amnesia resulst in part from a general failure to read and interpret the whole of the Bible consistently, carefully, realistically, and theologically. Traditionalists are guilt as nontraditionalists in this matter. Conservative scholars and pastors are sending out the sort of distress signals about lack of biblical knowledge that characterized books and articles written by mainline denominational scholas generation ago...
Considering Lamentations could bring the church back into the real world depicted in Scripture. In Lamentations, sin is destructive; it must be confessed or there is no forgiveness for it. In Lamentations, sin has consequences. In Lamentations, God cares about sin, suffering, and depravity and does something about them. In Lamentations, there is no ease regardless of what the people of God do. In Lamentations, God is fair, tough, caring, and ultimately faithful. Without question, these and other themes found in Lamentations are biblical ideas that question, these and other themes found in Lamentations are biblical ideas that course through the whole of Scripture. If so, then one's attitude toward this book may be an indication of how one views much of the rest of the Bible’s teachings. Thus, accepting this small book could well lead to the embracing on, more thoroughly biblical Christian worldview."
May 1, 2019
Best introduction by miles on the Song.
March 18, 2017
I am coming to the close of a class on the Song that I've been teaching for the last few months. I chose a number of sources to assist in gaining a deeper understanding of this often neglected book of the Bible.
Like the Hermeneia series, Word Biblical Commentary has many very good volumes. I found this volume to the most thorough of the sources I used in this study. Garrett tackled some of the trickier portions of the Song in a manner that kept them consistent with the rest of the book. He gives a very carefully considered interpretation that I found most helpful in my own study. If I were to limit myself to three sources, I'd choose Murphy along with Longman and Garrett (WBC).
Like the Hermeneia series, Word Biblical Commentary has many very good volumes. I found this volume to the most thorough of the sources I used in this study. Garrett tackled some of the trickier portions of the Song in a manner that kept them consistent with the rest of the book. He gives a very carefully considered interpretation that I found most helpful in my own study. If I were to limit myself to three sources, I'd choose Murphy along with Longman and Garrett (WBC).
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews