Text and commentary alternate with each other in the style of the series.
Canon Robinson suggests that the editors of 1 Kings compiled their history to teach the Hebrews that their existence as the covenant people of God depended on their continuing loyalty to their traditions.
The five Old Testament books dealt with in this volume of the Commentary occupied a special place in Hebrew tradition as selected readings for major festivals and were accordingly brought together in Hebrew manuscripts to form a group of five scrolls. The books of The Five Scrolls vary greatly; debate about their holiness and authority is recorded from the second century AD onwards, and they po…
Dr Clements' volume, like others in the series, contains the text in the New English Bible translation, divided into sections, with introductory material preceding, and a commentary directly following each section of the text. Dr Clements discusses the content and historical background of the book, and the theories about the authorship of Exodus, identifying briefly the four main sources. Altho…
The book of Leviticus originally formed part of a larger whole comprising what are now the first four or five books of the Old Testament. Its name is descriptive - 'the Levitical book' being about the personnel of the temple, all of whom were supposed to be descended from Levi. In one way the description is accurate, since the material was produced among the priesthood which had survived the fa…
The New English Bible translation, with introductory material and commentaries.
Like the other Cambridge Bible Commentary volumes, this contains an introduction followed by the texts of the N.E.B. translation divided into sections. Each section of the text is followed by the commentary upon it. Mr Surdy discusses the the content, structure and authorship of the book, pointing to material from two distinct periods: 500-400 BC and some 500 years earlier.
The plan of this volume of commentary on the New English Bible texts of the shorter books of the Apocrypha follows the pattern of the now well established New Testament series. The main divisions of the text are those provided by the New English Bible itself, but these are further subdivided for the purposes of the commentary which is printed in short sections following the relevant portion of …
The book of Job, which deals with deep-seated conflict between the integrity of God and the integrity of man and belongs to a group of writings known as wisdom literature, surpasses any of its known Babylonian or Egyptian forerunners in the beauty of its poetic discourses and in its insight - the poet struggles to probe the meaning of life, especially life where suffering and injustice prevail …
This volume is part of The Cambridge Bible Commentary.