The Complete New Testament Commentary Set, All 5 Volumes (QuickNotes Commentaries)

Compiled by Lisa Harris
Barbour Books (2009)
ISBN 9781602604797
Reviewed by Cherie Fisher for Reader Views (01/10)

 

After reviewing Volumes 8-12 of the QuickNotes Simplified Bible Commentary Series, I found it to be very user-friendly for the layman who wants to explore the Bible.  In my capacity as a Spiritual Coordinator of a Church, I often find that people are overwhelmed when they first pick up the Bible and don’t know where they should start reading.  The QuickNotes series takes that problem away by demystifying the Bible in a simple way for the reader.

This commentary presents the reader with a practical manual of spiritual development by thoroughly describing each book and adding sections of explanation such as critical observation, setting up the section, demystification and taking it home.  Each section contains valuable insights and information to assist the reader with a better understanding of the Bible’s intent.  I also really enjoyed the way that they editors set up each book by describing what was happening at the times outside of the religious teachings.  

The books in the QuickNotes that I reviewed are:

Volume 8 – “Matthew & Mark: Good News for Everyone” – The gospel of Matthew was believed to have been written by Matthew and was written around 70AD.  It contains a lot of background information that is important to Jesus genealogy and became the early church’s favorite gospel.  It is also well-known because of its description of the Jesus “Sermon on the Mount.”  The gospel of Mark is the shortest of all the gospels written and was believed to have been written from Rome.  It may be the most overlooked of the gospels but the editors point out that Mark’s fresh approach to what happened should not be overlooked. 

Volume 9 – “Luke & John: Life That Lasts Forever” – The gospel of Luke is probably the most sophisticated and descriptive when it comes to Jesus’ works.  The fact that he was a physician and highly educated is attributed to this fact.  I especially like the editor’s comment that he had a high regard for women, which was not common during those times.  The disciple James, who is commonly known as the disciple that Jesus loved is believed to be the author of John.  His teachings focus more on Jesus as the Messiah than on the kingdom of God.

Volume 10 – “Acts thru 2 Corinthians: What About Church” - This book contains the gospels of Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians. The Acts were believed to be written by Luke and the editors thought an appropriate name for this book is the “Acts of the Holy Spirit.” The Romans is not actually a gospel but a letter to the Romans written by Paul and his focus is on God’s righteousness. 1 Corinthians is another letter written by Paul to the Roman Colony of Corinth. Corinth was a wealthy city that was full of immorality and Paul’s letter is written from the point of integrity for the early church in that area. 2 Corinthians once again is written by Paul with more detailed information and advice for the early church, a lot of which is still used today.

Volume 11 – “Galatians thru Philemon: Putting Faith Into Practice” – This volume contains numerous letters from Paul to various people and ministries. These include letters to the Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians, Timothy, Titus and Philemon.

Volume 12 – “Hebrews thru Revelation: Wisdom for Today – and Forever” – No one is sure who wrote the letter to the Hebrews or where exactly it was written. But it was written during the time when the faith of the early Christians was starting to return to their old faiths and the intent was to keep them on the path of the Early Church. This volume also contains letters written by James, Peter, John and Jude. The final book written in this volume is the Book of Revelations, which talks about the end times. Its purpose was to encourage Christians to stay the course when persecution was at its worst during those times.

If you are thinking about studying the Bible and not sure where to start, I highly recommend the QuickNotes Commentary series, which includes this 5-volume set, “The Complete New Testament Commentary Set,” compiled by Lisa Harris.

 

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