The Pastoral Epistles (International Critical Commentary | ICC)

by I. Howard Marshall; Philip H. Towner

Publisher:

T&T Clark

, 1999

Overview

This addition to the ICC series is an introduction to the Epistles to Timothy and Titus, treating their structure, origin and character, followed by a detailed investigation of the texts. Professor Marshall concludes that the composition is not as unstructured as some commentators have suggested, but rather is carefully conceived. Each section of the Epistles is discussed on the basis of the Greek text. Scholars and students will find the commentary particularly helpful with its lexical information on the Greek words and its careful discussion of the syntactical problems. This is a fresh and comprehensive commentary on the Pastoral Epistles from a scholar of international renown.

About the International Critical Commentary | ICC

For over one hundred years, the International Critical Commentary series has held a special place among works on the Bible. It has sought to bring together all the relevant aids to exegesis—linguistic and textual no less than archaeological, historical, literary and theological—with a level of comprehension and quality of scholarship unmatched by any other series.

No attempt has been made to secure a uniform theological or critical approach to the biblical text: contributors have been invited for their scholarly distinction, not for their adherence to any one school of thought.

The depth of analysis found in the International Critical Commentary (ICC) Series has yet to be surpassed in any commentary collection. One of the best features of this series is the extensive amount of background information given in each volume's introduction, where all of the analysis is provided before the actual commentary begins. Each volume packs more information into the introduction than you will often find in the body of most commentaries! Also consider that with the electronic versions of each volume, you will never need to leaf through the hundreds of pages in each volume searching for the passage you are studying.

The editors at the time of publication were John Adney Emerton, Charles E. B. Cranfield, and Graham Norman Stanton. The original series editors were Samuel Rolles Driver, Alfred Plummer, and Charles Augustus Briggs.

Contents

• Preface
• Abbreviations and Bibliography
• Introduction
• The Letter to Titus
• The First Letter to Timothy
• The Second Letter to Timothy
• List of Excursuses
• Indexes

Top Highlights

“It is best to conclude that the word here refers to an individual ‘Scripture’, i.e. ‘a passage in the collection identified as the Scriptures’ (Oberlinner;, 147).” (Page 792)

“The term may in fact mean anything from allowing others to take the lead¹⁴¹ to willingly practising Christian humility.¹⁴² It carries different shades of meaning in different contexts. Submission here is descriptive of the attitude or posture appropriate to learning; it implies acceptance of the teaching and of the authority of the teacher. Presumably men who were not teaching would also be expected to learn in quietness and in submission to the leaders (1 Cor 16:16; cf. Gal 6:6), just as women who pray must do so like the men by lifting holy hands without anger and dispute.” (Page 454)

“These problems disappear if we accept the other possible translation, ‘to be precise, namely, I mean’ (Skeat: 1979, 173–7). ‘All’ is thus limited here to believers’ (Knight, 203; cf. Ger. erst recht, Jeremias, 32; Holtz, 98),⁹⁷ but the universal emphasis remains: all people are potentially believers.” (Pages 556–557)

“Despite some dissent,¹ the three letters are by one author.² Any differences in character between them are due to the different situations addressed rather than to differences in authorship or thinking.³ This means that the letters can be considered together as a group of writings. They represent a common outlook with the kind of variations that one would expect to find in any group of writings by one author whose thought was liable to change and development.” (Page 1)

From the Preface

I have tried to present the message of the letters as they are ostensibly meant to be understood, as letters from Paul to Timothy and Titus, but I am well aware that right from the beginning of their ‘canonical’ history the letters were intended to be read for their relevance to the church and its leaders, and it is therefore also on that level that they are interpreted. I am conscious that only to a very limited extent has the commentary attempted to ask questions about the history of exposition or about the significance of the letters for the modern reader, but I hope that the exegesis has been done in such a way that expositors will find it a helpful basis for application. A recent commentator on another epistle has stated that ‘commentaries should be a resource for worship rather than a self-indulgent exploration of the biblical text’. Like him I write from a self-consciously Christian set of presuppositions, and it is my hope that this commentary will help readers to appropriate the message of this particular part of Holy Scripture.

Endorsements

This is a very welcome addition to the ICC. It will become a standard work and more popular commentaries will draw freely from its conclusions. Dr Marshall has tackled an unenviable task with his usual erudition and honesty. The careful and positive treatment of the text will enable many to take these letters more seriously as the Word of God."-- Edward Burrows, Baptist Ministers' Journal "This long-awaited commentary fully meets one's expectations both of this series (ICC) and of this commentator. It is thorough, careful, clear in its analysis of the issues, fair in its judgements, conservative in its conclusions. It is extremely well-informed. "-- Alastair Campbell, Spurgeon's College London, Anvil "This volume, in this series, by this author, needs no commendation: it is an essential component of every scholarly library.

Peter Doble, University of Leeds, Theological Book Review

For the professional New Testament scholar this at once becomes an essential book.

-Kenneth Grayson, The Methodist Recorder

Marshall succeeds in his stated aim of producing a readable and 'user-friendly' commentary . . . His tactful balancing of issues succeeds in preventing any alienation of readers from other backgrounds and traditions.

-Novum Testamentum (2000)

This commentary belongs to the best biblical scholarship currently available and is always worth consulting.

--International Review of Biblical Studies (1999/2000)

Product Details

• Title: A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Pastoral Epistles
• Authors: I. Howard Marshall, Philip H. Towner
• Series: International Critical Commentary
• Publisher: T&T Clark
• Print Publication Date: 1999
• Logos Release Date: 2005
• Pages: 869
• Era: era:contemporary
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Bible. N.T. 1 Timothy › Commentaries; Bible. N.T. 2 Timothy › Commentaries; Bible. N.T. Titus › Commentaries
• ISBNs: 9780567084552, 0567084558
• Resource ID: LLS:ICC_PAST2
• Resource Type: Bible Commentary
• Metadata Last Updated: 2024-03-25T20:04:38Z

About I. Howard Marshall

I. Howard Marshall is currently Emeritus Professor of New Testament Exegesis and Honorary Research Professor, University of Aberdeen, in Scotland. Formerly, Chair of the Tyndale Fellowship for Biblical and Theological Research; President of the British New Testament Society and Chair of the Fellowship of European Evangelical Theologians. He holds a DD, from Asbury, a MA, BD, & PhD, from the University of Aberdeen, and a BA from Cambridge.

Among his many published works, Marshall has also written a volume on 1 Peter for the The IVP New Testament Commentary Series.