I had a professor who had a little ceremony for the beginning of each of his class sessions. It went like this:

Professor:  “Good morning, class!”

Class:  “Good morning, Jay!”

Professor:  “Start with the Bible…”

Class:  “…not with the commentary.”

Professor:  “Context…”

Class:  “…is king.

Why did he use this litany, burning into our minds that we need to “start with the Bible, not with the commentary” and that “context is king”

He did it because we tend to forget what a biblical commentary actually is. Too often we see commentaries as “answer books” that interpret the Bible for us. We see them as thick books for pastors and theologians.

But really, a Bible commentary, in any format, is just a voice in the conversation.

The richest conversations will come when everyone in the circle has read, re-read, thought about, questioned, and read again, the Scripture itself.  A commentary is like having another member of a small group sitting in your circle.

That process of reading, re-reading, and asking questions is actually how a commentary comes into being. Let me explain.

Someone (usually a pastor-scholar) reads the Scripture a lot. They write down all their questions and then they look for answers to the questions that are the most important to them and most important to the audience for whom they are writing (be it academics, pastors, lay people, or a combination thereof). They read and re-read, pray, edit, revise, and eventually publish their “voice in the conversation” about a particular book of the Bible.

Commentaries are meant to be a helpful voice to the audience for whom they’re intended.

Before you are able to listen well to the voice of a particular commentator, you yourself need to read, re-read, think about, pray over, and question the Scripture.

Otherwise a commentary may be a voice answering questions that you’re not asking. That’s not helpful, is it?

So, start with the Bible, not with the commentary. Read and re-read. Keep a sheet of paper nearby and write down every question that comes to mind as you read. Don’t worry about the answers yet. Just get the questions down.

On your second read-through, question your questions. What I mean is, ask yourself whether or not your question arose from a misreading or misunderstanding? Maybe the first time you thought Scripture said one thing, but the second time you realize it could be saying something else and that makes more sense. A lot of my initial questions about a Scripture passage are answered in two read-throughs.

However, some of your questions will be left unanswered. They will burn in your brain. Start by praying over that list. “God, I want to understand you and love you more through applying your word to my life. Give me understanding through the Holy Spirit.”

Those questions are the ones I like to bring to my small group. But sometimes a group can’t come up with answers even after some good conversation. That’s when I invite another voice, a more trained voice, a commentary.

In that instance it’s like inviting a pastor or scholar to visit your group and answer a single question. In other words, a commentary is a reference book, or a reference voice.

That’s why there are so many commentaries and so many kinds of commentaries. They are written with different kinds of questions and different types of people in mind. Diverse people are reading and they have diverse questions. No one commentary definitively answers them all.

To get practical, here are my “go-to” voices after I have read a Scripture passage at least twice, questioned my questions, and then prayed:

1. ESV Study Bible notes

2. The New Bible Dictionary (2nd or 3rd edition)

3. The New Bible Commentary (2nd or 3rd edition)

After those three voices, I look for particular commentaries specific to the Scripture I’m reading. (This book by John Evans has helped navigate my search for particular commentaries.)

One of my jobs as a pastor is to help people bring the right voice to the conversation. This is the time of year that groups and classes are forming and re-starting. As you engage Scripture with your mature mind, it’s my privilege to help you find a good voice to bring to the conversation.

That’s why we have each other in the church, and that’s why I study with and for the church.

I look forward to hearing the questions for which you and your groups have trouble finding answers. I look forward to prayerfully and practically helping you find those answers.

I look forward to praising God for how He will grow us as we engage His word together.

in Him,

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