1 & 2 Kings (Apollos Old Testament Commentary Series) 2016

The Apollos Old Testament Commentary takes its name from the Alexandrian Jewish Christian who was able to impart his great learning fervently and powerfully through his teaching (Acts 18:24–25). He ably applied his understanding of past events to his contemporary society. This series seeks to do the same, keeping one foot firmly planted in the universe of the original text and the other in that of the target audience, which is preachers, teachers and students of the Bible. The series editors have selected scholars who are adept in both areas, exhibiting scholarly excel­lence along with practical insight for application.Translators need to be at home with the linguistic practices and semantic nuances of both the original and target languages in order to be able to transfer the full impact of the one into the other. Commentators, however, serve as interpreters of the text rather than simply its translators. They also need to adopt a dual stance, though theirs needs to be even more solid and diversely anchored than that of translators. While they also must have the linguistic competence to produce their own excellent translations, they must moreover be fully conversant with the literary conventions, sociological and cultural practices, historical background and under­standing, and theological perspectives of those who produced the text as well as those whom it concerned. On the other side, they must also under­stand their own times and culture, able to see where relevance for the original audience is transferable to that of current readers. For this to be accomplished, it is not only necessary to interpret the text, but one must also interpret the audience.Traditionally, commentators have been content to highlight and expound the ancient text. More recently, the need for an anchor in the present day has also become more evident, and this series self­consciously adopts this approach, combining both the traditional and the modern. Each author analyses the original text through a new translation, textual notes, a dis­cussion of the literary form, structure and background of the passage, as well as commenting on elements of its exegesis. A study of the passage’s interpretational development in Scripture and the church concludes each section, serving to bring the passage home to the modern reader. What we intend, therefore, is to provide not only tools of excellence for the academy, but also tools of function for the pulpit.David W. BakerGordon J. Wenham

[membership level=”1″]Will only show up for level 1 users.[/membership]