Commentary Guide
Call Number Regions
Major Commentaries on 1 & 2 Samuel
2 Samuel (Word Biblical Commentary) by
The Book of2 Samuel, which tells the story of David, Israel's greatest king, declares A. A. Anderson, is a central book in Scripture. It has served as a direct source for or influence on the books of Kings and Chronicles, the Prophets, and the Psalms, as well as the New Testament, and references to David can even be found in Gen. 49:10 and Num. 24:17, as Anderson has documented. Although 2 Samuel begins with the death of his predecessor, Saul, and follows through to David's old age, the so-called Succession Narrative comprises most of the story in the book, telling how David built his kingdom and survived all threats to its continuity. It culminates in the final act of placing Solomon on the throne, which spills over into 1 Kings 1-2. Anderson considers the Succession Narrative to be an apology-an official interpretation of significant events, not a eulogy written to the greater glory of either David or Solomon. Rather, it was intended to show that David, in spite of a series of near disasters, was not under a curse; and it maintains that Solomon was the rightful heir to David's throne, even though popular expectations as well as Solomon's youth and parentage apparently led many contemporaries to question that judgment. The issue was not "Who of David's sons will be king?" the author points out, but more likely " Is there any of David's sons fit to sit on the throne of David?" The commentary offers a full general bibliography with additional specialized listings of up-to-date bibliographies at the beginning of each chapter and of each section of the Introduction. The Introduction discusses: The literary history of2 Samuel Samuel's relation to the books of Joshua, Judges, and Kings The Succession Narrative The text of2 Samuel and its research The use of2 Samuel in the Scriptures. The volume provides a fresh translation with detailed explanatory notes concerning original word choices. Carefully evaluating textual evidence from the Masoretic Text, the Septuagint, Qumran texts, the Targums, and Latin texts, Anderson holds that no one of these has a monopoly as "the best witness" to the original text. Each variation is thus evaluated for the contribution it can make.
Call Number: BS1325.3 .A44 1989ISBN: 084990210XPublication Date: 1989
1 and 2 Samuel (NIV Application Commentary) by
The NIV Application Commentary helps you communicate and apply biblical text effectively in today's context. To bring the ancient messages of the Bible into today's world, each passage is treated in three sections: Original Meaning. Concise exegesis to help readers understand the original meaning of the biblical text in its historical, literary, and cultural context. Bridging Contexts. A bridge between the world of the Bible and the world of today, built by discerning what is timeless in the timely pages of the Bible. Contemporary Significance. This section identifies comparable situations to those faced in the Bible and explores relevant application of the biblical messages. The author alerts the readers of problems they may encounter when seeking to apply the passage and helps them think through the issues involved. This unique, award-winning commentary is the ideal resource for today's preachers, teachers, and serious students of the Bible, giving them the tools, ideas, and insights they need to communicate God's Word with the same powerful impact it had when it was first written.
Call Number: BS1325.3 .A76 2003ISBN: 0310210860Publication Date: 2003
1, 2 Samuel (New American Commentary) by
THE NEW AMERICAN COMMENTARY is for the minister or Bible student who wants to understand and expound the Scriptures. Notable features include:* commentary based on THE NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION;* the NIV text printed in the body of the commentary;* sound scholarly methodology that reflects capable research in the original languages;* interpretation that emphasizes the theological unity of each book and of Scripture as a whole;* readable and applicable exposition.
Call Number: BS1325.3 .B47 1996ISBN: 0805401075Publication Date: 1996
First and Second Samuel (Interpretation) by
With critical scholarship and theological sensitivity, Walter Brueggemann traces the people of God through the books of Samuel as they shift from marginalized tribalism to oppressive monarchy. He carefully opens the literature of the books, sketching a narrative filled with historical realism but also bursting with an awareness that more than human action is being presented. Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching is a distinctive resource for those who interpret the Bible in the church. Planned and written specifically for teaching and preaching needs, this critically acclaimed biblical commentary is a major contribution to scholarship and ministry.
Call Number: BS1325 .B78 1990ISBN: 0804231087Publication Date: 1990
1 and 2 Samuel (New International Biblical Commentary) by
Identifying three streams of concern in the books of Samuel (politics, people, and preaching), Mary Evans demonstrates how each of these manifests itself in the underlying and unifying theme of power-and powerlessness. She then uses this concept of power as a fascinating matrix for interpreting the events God ordains and the characters God uses in biblical history. Evans defends her case for the unity of the books that we divide into 1 and 2 Samuel with a sensitivity to the composition of the text and the intentionality of the various writers who had a hand in bringing the different accounts together. The discussion interacts with the parallel material in Chronicles and Kings and recognizes the importance of the themes of covenant and law, especially from the Deuteronomic perspective. The commentary, with its additional notes, also includes a good breadth of references to scholarly debate and discussion on various issues. Evans brings the often theologically difficult text of Samuel and the complex characters of Samuel, Saul, David, and others into sharp focus for the contemporary reader while offering fresh insights and perspectives on the ancient text.The commentary by Mary J. Evans on the books of Samuel, based on the NIV, isclearly cognizant of the issues being debated in biblical studies today andpresents its findings in a very accessible format. Evans focuses onpolitics, human character, and the relationship between God's purposes forIsrael and the failure of the people to live in obedience to God's will. Inher view, the books of Samuel are an examination of and a reflection on thenature, accession, use, and abuse of power. Ralph W. Klein, Christ Seminary-SeminexProfessor of Old Testament, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago
Call Number: BS1325.3 .E83 2000ISBN: 156563215XPublication Date: 2000
1 and 2 Samuel (Library of Biblical Interpretation) by
Robert P. Gordon has provided us with a substantial commentary on the English text of the books of Samuel, concentrating on exegesis, but also paying attention to linguistic and textual problems. "I have not tried to "Christianize" 1 and 2 Samuel at every conceivable point. Often as I have sought to show in the brief introductory section comparison; and the only way to arrive at sensible conclusions in this matter is first to appreciate the Old Testament for its own sake- that is in its own literary, historical, cultural and theological contexts. That is principally what this commentary is about."
Call Number: BS1325.3 .G66 1988ISBN: 0310230225Publication Date: 1999
Commentary on the Books of Samuel (Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament) by
"Keil and Delitzsch's "Commentary on the Old Testament" is a classic of the nineteenth century. It is popular with conservatives because of its theology. But its sharp insights mean it is by no means just conservatives who find it helpful--it is not uncommon, for example, to see it cited in the bibliography of an academic study. It is therefore welcome that Hendrickson have made it available in a lightly corrected version."
--"Anvil"
Call Number: BS1151.2 .K29 1996 v.2ISBN: 0913573884Publication Date: 1996
1 Samuel (Word Biblical Commentary) by
Dr. Ralph Klein interprets 1 Samuel in its literary context as part of the Deuteronomistic History, the epic account of Israel's history from the settlement in the land (Joshua and Judges) through the rise of kingship (1 & 2 Samuel) to the history of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah to their end in exile. He expounds the stories about Samuel, Saul and David within the context of this exilic composition that recounts the high and low points of Israel's history in the land. Now, in a new supplement to the introduction, Dr. Klein interacts with recent studies of the history reflected in 1 Samuel, and of the history of both the text and composition of 1 Samuel itself. He also adds extensive reviews of the literary studies that have marked scholarship on Samuel in the last twenty-five years. Klein evaluates the contributions of narratology and feminism to understanding the stories of 1 Samuel, especially the characterization of Saul and David. The result is a fresh assessment of the book's contribution to biblical theology, especially in its focus on David as the man after God's own heart.
Call Number: BS1325.3 .K53 2008ISBN: 9780718025311Publication Date: 2009
I & 2 Samuel (Anchor Bible) by
The two books of Samuel narrate the establishment and expansion of the Kingdom of Israel. From Samuel's providential birth, to his appointment of Saul as Israel's first king, to the demise of Saul and the rise of David as his successor, I and II Samuel are filled with the stuff of Israel's everyday experience. Religious, political, economic, military, agricultural, and many other features of the Middle Eastern landscape populate this sacred narrative. A thorough analysis of textual and literary sources, as well as an examination of the larger ancient Near Eastern context of the period, leads P. Kyle McCarter, Jr., to descriptions of the people, places, customs, and noteworthy features of the language of I Samuel. For McCarter, a key issue is accounting for the historical circumstances that led to the composition of the books of Samuel. In dialogue with major schools of thought pertaining to the origin and transmission of I Samuel, the author offers his scholarly opinions on its composition. McCarter presents a unique new translation based upon the latest and most extensive textual sources available, including scrolls and fragments from Qumran. Furthermore, he disentangles the complicated textual history of Samuel.
Call Number: BS1325.3 .M327 1980ISBN: 9780300139501Publication Date: 1980-1984
The First and Second Book of Samuel (New International Commentary on the Old Testament) [2 vols.] by
David and Goliath, the call of Samuel, the witch of Endor, David and Bathsheba -- such biblical stories are well known. But the books of 1 and 2 Samuel, where they are recorded, are among the most difficult books in the Bible. The Hebrew text is widely considered corrupt and sometimes even unintelligible. The social and religious customs are strange and seem to diverge from the tradition of Moses. In this first part of an ambitious two-volume commentary on the books of Samuel, David Toshio Tsumura sheds considerable light on the background of 1 Samuel, looking carefully at the Philistine and Canaanite cultures, as he untangles the difficult Hebrew text.
Call Number: BS1325.3 .T78 2007ISBN: 9780802823595Publication Date: 2007-2019
1, 2 Samuel (The Expositor’s Bible Commentary) by
This is a completely revised edition of Gold Medallion Award-winning Expositor's Bible Commentary. This revised commentary has undergone substantial revisions that keep pace with current evangelical scholarship and resources. Just as its previous edition, it offers a major contribution to the study and understanding of the Scriptures. Providing pastors and Bible students with a comprehensive and scholarly tool for the exposition of the Scriptures and the teaching and proclamation of the gospel, this ten-volume reference work has become a staple of seminary and college libraries and pastors' studies worldwide. Its fifty-six contributors--thirty of them are new--represent the best in evangelical scholarship committed to the divine inspiration, complete trustworthiness, and full authority of the Bible.As before, The Expositor's Bible Commentary features full NIV text, but also refers freely to other translations and to the original languages. In addition to its exposition, each book of the Bible has an introduction, outline, and an updated bibliography. Notes on textual questions and special problems are correlated with the expository units; transliteration and translation of Semitic and Greek words make the more technical notes accessible to readers unacquainted with the biblical languages. In matters where marked differences of opinion exist, commentators, while stating their own convictions, deal fairly and irenically with opposing views.
Call Number: BS1325.3 .S26 2009ISBN: 9780310234951Publication Date: 2010
First and Second Samuel (Interpretation) by
With critical scholarship and theological sensitivity, Walter Brueggemann traces the people of God through the books of Samuel as they shift from marginalized tribalism to oppressive monarchy. He carefully opens the literature of the books, sketching a narrative filled with historical realism but also bursting with an awareness that more than human action is being presented.
ISBN: 9780664238681Publication Date: 2012- Commentary on the Books of Samuel (Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament) by
"Keil and Delitzsch's "Commentary on the Old Testament" is a classic of the nineteenth century. It is popular with conservatives because of its theology. But its sharp insights mean it is by no means just conservatives who find it helpful--it is not uncommon, for example, to see it cited in the bibliography of an academic study. It is therefore welcome that Hendrickson have made it available in a lightly corrected version."
--"Anvil"
ISBN: 0913573884
- The First Book of Samuel (New International Commentary on the Old Testament) by
David and Goliath, the call of Samuel, the witch of Endor, David and Bathsheba -- such biblical stories are well known. But the books of 1 and 2 Samuel, where they are recorded, are among the most difficult books in the Bible. The Hebrew text is widely considered corrupt and sometimes even unintelligible. The social and religious customs are strange and seem to diverge from the tradition of Moses. In this first part of an ambitious two-volume commentary on the books of Samuel, David Toshio Tsumura sheds considerable light on the background of 1 Samuel, looking carefully at the Philistine and Canaanite cultures, as he untangles the difficult Hebrew text.
ISBN: 9780802823595Publication Date: 2007
The Second Book of Samuel (New International Commentary on the Old Testament) by
Second Samuel includes some of the most well-known and theologically layered episodes in the Old Testament, such as the Lord's establishment of an eternal covenant with David, David's sin with Bathsheba, and the subsequent account of Absalom's rebellion. In this second part of an ambitious two-volume commentary on the books of Samuel, David Toshio Tsumura elucidates the rich text of 2 Samuel with special attention to literary and textual issues. Tsumura interprets the book in light of the meaning of the original composition, and he provides a fresh new translation based on careful analysis of the Hebrew text.
ISBN: 9780802870964Publication Date: 2019
- 1 & 2 Samuel Commentaries in the E-Book CatalogDiscover many more e-book commentaries on 1 and 2 Samuel.
- 2 Samuel. Word Biblical Commentary. Dallas, TX: Word Books, 1989.
- 1 & 2 Samuel. NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003.
- 1, 2 Samuel. New American Commentary. [Nashville, TN?]: Broadman & Holman, 1996.
- First and Second Samuel. Interpretation. Louisville, KY: John Knox Press, 1990.
- 1 and 2 Samuel. New International Biblical Commentary, Old Testament. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2000.
- I & II Samuel: A Commentary. Library of Biblical Interpretation. Grand Rapids, MI: Regency Reference Library, 1986.
- Biblical Commentary on the Books of Samuel. Translated by James Martin. Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1956.
- 1 Samuel. 2nd ed. Word Biblical Commentary. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2008.
- I Samuel: A New Translation with Introduction, Notes & Commentary. Anchor Bible. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1980.
———. II Samuel: A New Translation with Introduction, Notes and Commentary. Anchor Bible. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1984.
- The First Book of Samuel. New International Commentary on the Old Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2007.
- “1, 2 Samuel.” In The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, edited by Tremper Longman III and David E. Garland, rev. ed., 3:21–614. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009.