Hey everyone, so I’ve been digging into this “Bible Knowledge Commentary” thing lately. Let me tell you, it’s been quite a journey! I started out just wanting to get a better grip on some Bible passages, you know, the usual stuff. Figured a commentary might help, but boy, there are tons of them out there. It’s kind of overwhelming.
First, I spent some time figuring out what I really needed. I realized there’s a difference between those study Bibles and actual commentaries. Study Bibles have some notes, but commentaries, they go way deeper. Then I found out there are actually two separate commentaries for each passage in the Bible in this thing I’m using. It’s crazy!
I learned you should really avoid those commentaries that try to cover the whole Bible. I mean, how can they really get into the details, right? So, I started looking for commentaries that just focused on the specific books I was interested in.
Then I dove into the different types of commentaries. It’s like a whole new world. Some of these things are super technical, talking about the original Greek and Hebrew and all that grammar stuff. They call them “exegetical” commentaries. I tried one of those, but honestly, it was way over my head. A little too academic for me.
Then there are others that are more about explaining the text, but still pretty detailed. They call them “expositional” or “semi-technical”. I found these to be a good middle ground. You get a lot of insight without needing a degree in ancient languages. Plus, each section of the text gets a summary, which is super helpful to just get the main ideas.
- Technical or Critical or Exegetical: These are the deep dives. Lots of technical details, original language discussions. You probably need some background knowledge to really get the most out of these.
- Expositional or Essential or Semi-Technical: Less technical, but still thorough. They explain the text, give you the context, but you don’t need to be a scholar to understand them.
I ended up trying out this “Expositor’s Bible Commentary (EBC)”. I heard good things about it, and I gotta say, it’s pretty good. It’s well-written, easy to follow, and it’s scholarly without being boring. It actually makes you think about things in a new way.
So yeah, that’s my adventure with Bible commentaries so far. It’s been a learning experience, for sure. I’m still figuring things out, but I’m definitely getting more out of my Bible study now. It’s pretty cool to see how much you can learn when you start digging deeper. It’s like I’m not just reading the words anymore, I’m actually understanding the meaning behind them.
Final thoughts
If you’re thinking about using a Bible commentary, I’d say go for it. Just take some time to figure out what kind you need, and don’t be afraid to try a few different ones. It’s all about finding what works best for you. It is a real eye-opener.
