All right, folks! I can’t believe it’s already that time again: Let us examine my reads of this month.

I have been privileged to start the M.A. in Old Testament program at Freed-Hardeman University. I initially intended to start in the fall semester, but Dr. Rick Brumback (who heads the Graduate School of Theology and who accidentally talked me into applying) was scheduled to teach the Epistle to the Hebrews during the summer…so I began a little early and took a minimester.

As a result of my academic self-flagellation, future lists will be increasingly school-flavored. You’ll notice the influence has already begun.

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Hebrews Readings

Attridge, Harrold. Hebrews: A Commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrews. Hermeneia. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1989.

The assigned text for the class over Hebrews. This is possibly the worst commentary I’ve ever read and that’s the most impressive thing about it.

DNF. 0/5

Kistemaker, Simon J. Exposition of the Epistle to the Hebrews. New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1984.

Having rejected the assigned textbook, I discovered this gem. Kistemaker remains scholarly and exegetical, seeing no reason to abandon his evangelical heritage for skepticism. Accessible to a ministerial audience, but includes details and exegetical comments appreciable by a more technical reader as well.

4/5

Buy hardcopy on eBay. Logos edition. Accordance edition (whole NT only).

Kistemaker, Simon J. Psalm Citations in the Epistle to the Hebrews. Amsterdam: Van Soest, 1961.

The same author as the previous. His doctoral thesis on the Old Testament citations¹ within the Epistle to the Hebrews. He astutely notes their strategic arrangement and observes that their meaning would be even more powerful to the original audience than we realize. The psalms (and several of the other OT passages recalled by the Hebrews author) were sung liturgically by Jews and early Christians, and they probably had them memorized in entirety.

I learned a lot from this, although I only completed the first two sections. (The rest was more technical than I wanted to explore.) 5/5

Buy here.

Lightfoot, Neil R. Jesus Christ Today: A Commentary on the Book of Hebrews. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1976. Repr., Abilene, TX: Bible Guides, 2001.

Dr. Brumback recommended this highly alongside Attridge’s commentary. While I cannot suppress my utter distaste for Attridge, Lightfoot was refreshingly bright.

Buy here or on eBay.

5/5

Other Books

Richards, Lawrence O., and Gary J. Bredfeldt. Creative Bible Teaching. Chicago: Moody, 2020.

Another recommendation from Dr. Brumback. It was first recommended to me, however, by a dear preacher friend from Stephenville, Texas. This book provides some excellent instructions on how to study; how to build out a curriculum and lesson plan; how to cater to the various needs of child, adolescent, and adult learners; and how to deliver interesting, applicable Bible classes.

Buy here if you’re interested.

Read most of the applicable chapters. 5/5

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Read well and read often, my friends. And remember,

“The books that influence the world are those that it has not read.”

G.K. Chesterton

‌Your friend,

Andrew

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1. Contra the title, it is not limited to the references to the psalms, but to the Old Testament citations specifically. These are those references which are not allusions, but explicit citations. ↩︎