We continue our series of commentaries on the New Testament: today we look at the Fourth Gospel.I always look to RE Brown first; it's getting old, but I've learned so much from him I start with his 2-volume commentary: The Gospel According to John (I-XII) (The Anchor Yale Bible Commentaries)
.CK Barrett's commentary is still a must-read: The Gospel According to St. John: An Introduction With Commentary and Notes on the Greek Text
.Leon Morris, the first commentary I ever read on John, still rewards the pastor and student: The Gospel According to John (New International Commentary on the New Testament)
.GR Beasley-Murray's Word Biblical Commentary is solid and is now in a second edition: Word Biblical Commentary Vol. 36, John (revised).
C. Keener's commentaries are fast becoming favorites for many of us: The Gospel of John: A Commentary - 2-Volume Set
.DA Carson, a student of B. Lindars (another John scholar), built his commentary on John in interaction with the text and those who had gone before him (The Gospel According to John
) and his own student, A. Koestenberger, continued that work: John (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament)
.
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I absolutely love Brown's and Barrett's commentaries. I personally found Rudolf Schnackenburg's 3 volume work the most helpful in terms of detailed exegesis.
I love Brown, but agree w Ann, he isn't all the way there on every point. (He does do better as i recall on women in his short book on Johannine Community).
Haven't seen Meye Thompson's book ref'd here. But have her earlier The Incarnate Word, and her IVP commentary on 1-2-3 John, both v good.
There are other good women scholars readable at least a little on-line -- see the scripture index for John at www.textweek.com -- (Sandra Schneiders (sp?) one of the best, imo)
I start usually w Alan Culpepper's short Abingdon commentary on John and 1,2,3 John. Brief but deep. (Can click to from the same amazon page as Ann refs in #8 above)
I often go next to Beasley Murray who, like Brown, i love reading.
Then Morris, who gets the seven days of new creation riffs in John better than the others i've seen, but gets more distracted than others with trying to make it all harmonize more than necessary(imo)
I skim Sloyan (interpreter) if i have time, and Barclay...
end up w Brown to see how he sees it...
thanks again for this series.
blessings,
Oh, also. Brown rewrote the Introduction to his commentary where he changed his positions on composition and authorship a bit. Really good stuff. Maloney edited/finished it and really helps put it into perspective with some other research. It is a must-have for anyone studying John (I believe it now comes as part of the Anchor Bible release on REB's commentary).
I want to put a word in for Andrew Lincoln. I haven't read all the way through his Black's commentary, but his Truth on Trial book on John is really good, with lots of interesting contemporary connections to Camus and other writers at the end.
It calls itself an exposition rather than a commentary, but Lesslie Newbigin's "The Light has come" (Eerdmans 1982)stands out for its simplicity and clarity.
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