I was glad to see a very positive review of Lynn Cohick’s NCCS volume on Ephesians posted at RBL. Cohick provides a very accessible, nontechnical commentary that is geared toward the nonspecialist. She rarely delves into the Greek text but occasionally has discussions of grammar that require some basic knowledge; the reader is expected to know what a dative or an aorist is, for example. She occasionally weighs interpretive options for contested passages. For someone wanting a comprehensive analysis of... Read more

Anthony R. Petterson Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi (Apollos Old Testament Commentary; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2015) Available at Amazon.com By Len Firth Anthony R Petterson’s Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi is a gem. It forms part of the Apollos Old Testament Commentary series which seeks to meet the needs of those who preach from the Old Testament. The series also aims to be of use to those who engage in serious study of the OT. This commentary is fit for this... Read more

Mark Yarhouse Understanding Gender Dysphoria: Navigating Transgender Issues in a Challenging Culture Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2015. Available at Amazon.com Reviewed by Chris Porter Gender dysphoria (GD) and transgender issues are currently a hot topic in the media and everyday discourse, thanks in no small part to the topic being thrust into the limelight by celebrity events. However, the current media focus on the topic doesn’t do justice to the complexity of the issue. Especially given the superficial gloss awarded... Read more

Constantine R. Campbell Advances in the Study of Greek: New Insights for Reading the New Testament Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2015. Available at Amazon.com Time to get your Greek geek on cause there are two great books out about the study of NT Greek. The first is by my friend and TEDS professor Con Campbell. He’s an Aussie, so you know he’s cool and always correct. This is a great book that should be mandatory reading for anyone who teaches Greek... Read more

Brendan O’Neill, the editor of Spiked, by his own admission a “godless Brit,” argues that the liberal left is illiberal and intolerant on how it treats dissenters of same sex marriage. See his article at The Australian on The New Dark Ages, Where the Perfectly Normal are Branded Bigots. Plus, his superb monologue on the Aussie socio-political talk show Q&A below: Read more

I just got my hands on a new NIV Zondervan Study Bible. There are some great one’s around, the ESV Study Bible and the HCSB too. The new NIV Zondervan Study Bible is edited by D.A. Carson, it has the usual maps and charts one would expect, plus a great set of notes, but also some great short articles in the back by folks like Tim Keller, D.A. Carson, James Hamilton, Pual Williamson, Sam Storms, Graham Cole, Doug Moo and more.... Read more

A great piece by Russell Moore on Catacombs, Cathedrals, and the Kingdom. There’s a lot in church history that went wrong. The people who build the majestic cathedrals were sinners deserving of hell. So were the martyrs of the catacombs. So are we. Lots of bad decisions were made, and some of them persist. But the biblical story too was filled with sinful people making stupid decisions, and, in all that, God was working everything out toward the glory of... Read more

My interview with Rachael and Jonathan Lopez, who leave this weekend to join a monastic community in London for a year! How does a Filipino boxer and a Post-Pentecostal Anglican end up going on a one year monastic retreat in Canterbury? Jonathan – Well coincidentally there is a boxing gym on the same block as Lambeth Palace that has been there for 100 years! So I am hoping to get a few rounds in between prayers. I too am post-pentecostal, born... Read more

Matthew W. Bates The Birth of the Trinity: Jesus, God, and the Spirit in New Testament & Early Christian Interpretations of the Old Testament Oxford: OUP, 2015. Available at Amazon.com In a fresh approach to Christian trinitarian interpretation, Bates proposes that the doctrine of the Trinity emerged, partly, out of how NT readings of OT texts, specifically, prosopological exegesis, whereby several OT texts were regarded as reporting intra-trinitarian conversations. This is what specifically contributed to the idea of the plurality of God... Read more

Wesley Hill Paul and the Trinity: Persons, Relations, and the Pauline Letters Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2015. Available from Amazon.com This is a bold and and breath-taking volume that attempts to show that Paul was a genuinely trinitarian theologian, not merely binitarian with some charismatic worship. For a start, Hill take issues with the standard taxonomy of “low” and “high” views of christology. Instead – following Nils Dahl, Leander Keck, Kavin Rowe, and Francis Watson – he argues for a... Read more