The New Jerome Biblical Commentary

Rating:
Summary: An outstanding scholarly commentary. . .
Review: . . .which is equally useful for the Protestant or Catholic academic.

If you desire an academic commentary which covers the entire corpus of Scripture in a single volume, this is the book for you. Named after the premier Scripture scholar of the Patristic period, it is an update of the Jerome Biblical Commentary of more than a quarter century ago.

Not only is every book of the Bible discussed in detail, there are numerous scholarly articles dealing with history, critical methods, contemporary issues and the like. It's perspective is honestly centrist; catering to neither the fundamentalist, nor to the deconstructionist. Controversial issues are handled in an appropriate manner, giving numerous bibliographic citations representing a wide range of learned opinions.

Although Catholic in orientation, the book is equally valuable to believers from other faith traditions, and indeed, to non-believers as well. Its editors, especially the late Raymond Brown and Joseph Fitzmyer represent the very best of Catholic critical scholarship.

This book is probably not the best choice for the average layman; it presupposes a certain familiarity with theological academics. However, it is indispensible for the seminarian, the graduate student, the clergy, and the academic.

(For an "informed layman's" version, please see my review of the excellent "New Jerome Biblical HANDBOOK").

I heartily endorse this book.

Rating:
Summary: A must for seriously studying the Scriptures . . .
Review: A paperback version of the NJBC was a brilliant idea! The commentary is a must for any student of Sacred Scripture, Catholic or Protestant, due to its scholarly articles and exegesis by some of the best Catholic scholars in the world. The quality and extent of the exegesis varies from book to book: Sometimes it's quite detailed; other times, I was left wanting more. Nevertheless, just about any and every topic in Biblical studies comes up between this book's covers. What is more, helpful bibliographies are ubiquitous throughout each section. Of course, only the NJB text is used throughout the commentary, which I regard as a definite drawback. The NJB is a translation of a French translation from the original languages. So, the text exegeted does not even deal with primary sources. The commentary is not always user-friendly either, especially in regards to the odd use of abbreviations by commentators (i.e., they aren't always self-explanatory): The editors will sometimes shorten words that one would not usually expect to be abbreviated and leave other words alone which have common and recognizable abbreviations. It can be annoying. The NJBC is a flat-out commentary, a work of scholarship. Since it was put out by Roman Catholic scholars, it does tip its hat in many places to the authority of the Roman Catholic Church. (For example, in regards to Marian teachings) This commentary is really a must in any priest, minister, or rabbi's personal library.

Rating:
Summary: a lot of stuff...some of it being really useful
Review: As God says in Hosea 4:6, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge." Bearing this in mind, I must give credit where credit is due whenever anyone sits down, opens up God's word, and tries to see what it says. So, in that regard at least, a commentary like this one is always a blessing.

I received "The New Jerome Biblical Commentary" as a Christmas present (I'll try not to let that cloud my judgment). It is truly a massive tome...parts of which are really useful.

I have referred to the commentary frequently since receiving it (in fact, it came in handy more than a few times as I've worked through a study of James' letter). Being as large as it is, the commentary has plenty of strong points and plenty of weaknesses. I'll only focus on the big ones.

The thing I found most useful about this volume was the actual textual commentaries...there are some useful insights to be found in these pages. In particular, as a non-Roman Catholic, I found the commentaries on the apocryphal books most interesting.

The most glaring weakness, as far as I am concerned, is the tendency of some of the authors (especially in the Pentateuch section) to get on a hobbyhorse of some sort or other and ride it to death. I don't know, maybe its just me, but I'd rather learn more about what the book says about people (God's message to us) than what people say about the book (academic theories).

Another interesting thing about this book is that it is really well written. In fact, I should give it a medal for being the first book with Ray Brown's name on the cover that did not put me to sleep.

All in all, "The New Jerome Biblical Commentary" is a book that is well worth acquiring. I recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: The BEST Catholic Commentary
Review: Excellent scholarship! Not intended for mere entertainment... Great for most informed believers!!

Rating:
Summary: Un magnífico comentario
Review: Hasta donde la he leido y consultado esta obra me parece un magnífico comentario bíblico, muy útil para todos aquellos que deseen profundizar en el conocimiento del contenido de la Biblia, de sus problemas y de su mensaje. Para enjuiciar la obra se me ocurre citar algunas de sus características:
1.- Se trata de una obra, que a pesar de estar escrita en colaboracón, por un gran número de autores diferentes, sabe mantener una homogeneidad de fondo y sorprende por la gran calidad de casi todos sus trabajos, algo dificil de lograr en obras de dichas características. Ello, sin duda, es obra de sus editores, que han demostrado una gran competencia a la hora de coordinar la elaboración de la obra y de elegir a los autores de la misma.
2.- No es una obra para quienes desean iniciarse en los estudios bíblicos, sino, más bien, para quienes tienen ya una base en los mismos. Para estos últimos la obra constituye tanto un magnífico instrumento de consulta y estudio. Especialmente recomendable nos parece para los estudiantes de teología.
3.- La obra presenta tres clases de artículos: Las introducciones a cada libro bíblico, los comentarios a los mismos y los estudios de temás monográficos. Los primeros son de extensión suficiente (mayor que en otras obras del mismo tipo), bien informados sobre los problemas que cada libro bíblico presenta y las principales líneas de respuesta que se suele dar a los mismos, y, generalmente, bastante moderados en sus conclusiones. Los segundos que también son suficientes en su extensión, llegan a comentar versículo a versículo muchos de los libros, son serios y de gran calidad. Los terceros son, frecuentemente, lo mejor de la obra y lo que distingue a esta de otras obras del mismo tipo. Costará encontrar en otros comentarios bíblicos en un solo volúmen artículos monográficos tan bien elegidos, tan bien sintetizados y de tanta calidad.
4.- El talante de la obra es católico, como se ve en la elección de muchos de sus temás, en la forma de abordar los problemas y en las respuestas que da a muchos de los mismos (todo ello es especialmente visible en los artículos monográficos). En este sentido la obra se situa en la mejor tradición de la exégesis católica: estudio crítico y "cientifico" de los problemas y textos bíblicos (con todos los medios que para ello proporciona la ciencia bíblica actual), pero, a la vez, respeto y diálogo con la tradición y magisterio de la Iglesia. Se consigue, con ello, una obra de enfoque interesante para todos aquellos que deseen superar la ingenuidad y falta de seriedad con que los fundamentalistas católicos y protestantes abordan el estudio de la Biblia, pero que a la vez se sientan frios y poco atraidos hacia el hipercriticismo liberal del que muchos especialistas protestantes y no creyentes hacen gala, y que amenaza con vaciar de contenido a la Fe cristiana.
5.- Finalmente, hay que destacar el acierto de haber publicado esta obra en rústica (paperback), ya que de esta manera el libro es mucho más manejable y cómodo para la manipulación que un estudio a fondo del mismo requiere.

Rating:
Summary: The most comprehensive, authoritative commentary I've found
Review: I am a librarian, and our tiny budget limited me to the choice of a single new Bible commentary this year. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary edited by Raymond E. Brown was my happy choice.

This book takes a bit of practice to learn to use, but once the use of it is mastered, it is of incomparable value. The scholarship is masterful, trustworthy and scrupulously honest. Nothing Raymond E. Brown writes is anything less than first-class...in fact, there should be a superclass to rate him in. If you buy only one Bible commentary in your lifetime, this is the one to buy. Worth every penny.

Rating:
Summary: Most thorough single-volume Bible commentary available.
Review: I have older The Jerome Biblical Commentary. It is the most scholarly and detailed single-volume Bible commentary I have (and I have lots). It is a bit difficult to read because of all the notes and references; and it seems to be written for scholars so it doesn't "dumb down" anything. Written by Roman Catholics but valuable for everyone (even United Methodists like me).

Very thorough, very detailed, verse by verse commentary, but a tough read.

Rating:
Summary: Everything in one volume, WOW!!!
Review: I have several commentaries and this is the most complete for a one volume edition. Worth twice the weight of others in this class. Written exclusively by Catholics but fair and objective in presenting latest developments in biblical scholarship-perhaps to a fault. Easy to use once aquainted with it. May be a tough read but, worth it!

Rating:
Summary: Addendum
Review: I just want to correct a single inaccuracy in an earlier review that described the New Jerusalem Bible as a translation of the French New Jerusalem Bible rather than from the original languages. That is not true. While the Jerusalem Bible was based on a French translation, the New Jerusalem Bible was translated directly from the ancient texts, referring to the French translation only in order to clarify certain words.

Rating:
Summary: My ultimate source.
Review: I use other commentaries such as the Navarre Bible, Collegeville and Barclay's. I even refer to some Protestant commentaries for another point of view. But when I do not get enough detail or the references are too ambiguous I always end up going back to the New Jerome Commentary. It can get overly detailed sometimes so it is probably not your first source, but it will be your authoritative source when other lighter commentaries fail you.