The apostles Peter and Jude wouldn't have made good postmodernists. They insist that there is such a thing as absolute, non-negotiable truth, as well as error and deception. They speak of false doctrines and those who teach them as if they actually believe that eternity hangs in the balance and that God, far from shrugging his shoulders like a good relativist, takes the matters of truth and spiritual authority very seriously. Today the fiery, unapologetic language of 2 Peter and Jude can open our eyes to stark spiritual realities. Like few other apostolic writings, these two letters shake...
The apostles Peter and Jude wouldn't have made good postmodernists. They insist that there is such a thing as absolute, non-negotiable truth, as we...
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. In other words, they focus on the original meaning of the passage but don't discuss its contemporary application. The information they offer is valuable--but the job is only half done The NIV Application Commentary Series helps us with both halves of the interpretive task. This new and unique series shows readers how to bring an ancient message into a modern context. It explains not only what the Bible means...
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 m...
A unique commentary that explores each passage from three vital perspectives: original meaning, bridging context, contemporary significance.Isaiah wrestles with the realities of people who are not convicted by the truth but actually hardened by it, and with a God whose actions sometimes seem unintelligible, or even worse, appears to be absent. Yet Isaiah penetrates beyond these experiences to an even greater reality. Isaiah sees God's rule over history and his capacity to take the worst of human actions and use it for good. He declares the truth that even in the darkest hours, the Holy One of...
A unique commentary that explores each passage from three vital perspectives: original meaning, bridging context, contemporary significance.Isaiah wre...
The books of Jeremiah and Lamentations cannot be separated from the political conditions of ancient Judah. Beginning with the righteous king Josiah, who ushered in a time of glorious but brief religious reform, Jeremiah reflects the close tie between spiritual and political prosperity or disaster, between the actions and heart of Judah and her kings and their fortunes as a nation. While few of us today have any firsthand understanding of what it means to live in a theocracy, the central theme of Jeremiah and Lamentations remains clear and still holds true: God first, politics second. The...
The books of Jeremiah and Lamentations cannot be separated from the political conditions of ancient Judah. Beginning with the righteous king Josiah, w...
The Bible begins and ends with a revelation of God that gives redemption its basis. From the first verse of Genesis, the book of origins, we encounter a God of personality, character, purpose, and activity. Only in the light of what he shows us of himself as the Creator of our world and the Interactor with human history does the salvation story assume its proper context. Genesis sets things in order: God first, then us. In the words of the general editor's preface, "Especially after the Tower of Babel it became evident that people had forgotten who God was. They needed reminding. The moves...
The Bible begins and ends with a revelation of God that gives redemption its basis. From the first verse of Genesis, the book of origins, we encounter...
Perhaps more clearly than any other part of the biblical canon, the Psalms are human words directed to God. Yet, through the Holy Spirit, these honest, sometimes brutal words return to us as the Word of God. Their agonies and exaltations reflect more than the human condition in which they were created. Within the context of the canonical Psalter, they become the source of divine guidance, challenge, confrontation, and comfort. However, it is possible to misapply them. How can we use the Psalms in a way that faithfully connects God's meaning in them and his intentions for them with our...
Perhaps more clearly than any other part of the biblical canon, the Psalms are human words directed to God. Yet, through the Holy Spirit, these hon...
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 we can somehow make the return journey on our own. In other words, they focus on the original meaning of the passage but don t discuss its contemporary application. The information they offer is valuable -- but the job is only half done The NIV Application Commentary Series helps us with both halves of the interpretive task. This new and unique series shows readers how to bring an ancient message into a modern context. It explains not only what the Bible meant but...
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 we can somehow make the ...
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 other unforgettable characters. And we encounter ourselves. For while the culture and conditions of Israel under its first kings is vastly different from our own, the basic issues of humans in relation to God, the Great King, have not changed. Sin,...
Why do the books of Samuel pack such broad appeal? Taken together as a single narrative, they certainly offer something for everyone: kings and pro...
The NIV Application Commentary Ecclesiastes/Song of Songs. 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 dispute, partly because there is frequent word-play in the course of the argument. The argument is itself complex and sometimes puzzling and has often provoked the charge of...
The NIV Application Commentary Ecclesiastes/Song of Songs. Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs have always presented particular challenges to their readers...
