The Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible encourages readers to explore how the vital roots of the ancient Christian tradition should inform and shape faithfulness today. In this addition to the series, highly acclaimed author, speaker, and theologian Robert Barron offers a theological exegesis of 2 Samuel. He highlights three major themes: God's non-competitive transcendence, the play between divine and non-divine causality, and the role of Old Testament kingship. As with other volumes in the series, this book is ideal for those called to ministry, serving as a rich resource for preachers, teachers, students, and study groups.

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.

Eminently qualified to write this groundbreaking book, Philip King is known as both an archaeological and biblical authority. Defining biblical archaeology as the "process of correlating archaeological evidence with the biblical record," he sees the function of this discipline as the illumination of the events recorded in the Bible in order to clarify the text. In Amos, Hosea, and Micah, King offers an enlightening and elegant commentary on the eight-century prophets from an archaeological perspective.

The book of Amos holds a unique and central place among the canonical prophetic literature and presents a special array of issues for scholarly discussion. This book provides a thorough and balanced overview of the history of scholarship on the book of Amos, two essays that trace the history of scholarship and offer promising lines for further inquiry, a substantial anthology of readings of the multiple ways Amos has been analyzed and appropriated, an extensive and current bibliography, and notes on doctoral dissertations conducted in recent years. The result is a comprehensive compendium of resources for scholarly writing on the book of Amos.

From Creation to Our Story Today

The first five books of the Bible--known as the Pentateuch or the Law--form the foundation for our heritage, our faith, and relationship with God today.

In this detailed, highly researched exploration of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, Dallas Theological Seminary professors help us understand the theological and historical context for the first five books of the Bible. From creation to the Ten Commandments to the beautiful reminders to follow God's ways, the biblical books of law offer us rich insight into how to live well in today's world.