Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy (Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary - Volume 1 | ZIBBC)
Overview
Many today find the Old Testament a closed book. The cultural issues seem insurmountable and we are easily baffled by that which seems obscure. Furthermore, without knowledge of the ancient culture we can easily impose our own culture on the text, potentially distorting it. The Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary (ZIBBC) series invites you to enter the Old Testament with a company of guides, experts that will give new insights into these cherished writings.
Volume 1 of the ZIBBC series brings to life the world of the Old Testament Pentateuch through informative entries and full-color photos and graphics. Here readers find a premier commentary for connecting with the historical and cultural context of the Old Testament.
- Numerous photographs, drawings, maps, diagrams, and charts provide a visual feast which breathes fresh life into the text
- Passage-by-passage commentary presents archaeological findings, historical explanations, geographic insights, notes on manners and customs, and more
- Analysis into the literature of the ancient Near East will open your eyes to new depths of understanding both familiar and unfamiliar passages
Top Highlights
“though it is speculated that crescent shaped earrings may be symbolic representations of the moon god.” (Page 119)
“Yahweh in Genesis 28, Jacob commands several activities, each with ritual significance. Jacob’s vow had included not only the payment of a tithe, but the promise that Yahweh would be his God. Consequently, he instructs his household to bury their foreign gods (v. 4), whose presence is indicative of divided loyalty. Burial is one of the approved methods of discarding images.530 These are not the household gods Rachel brought with her, for those were not strictly divine images but images of the ancestors (see comment on 31:19). Instead, the buried images are most likely ones plundered from the town of Shechem.” (Page 118)
“The mythology of the ancient world encapsulated contemporary thinking about how the world worked and how it came to work that way. It features the gods prominently because the ancients found the answers to their questions about the world in the divine realm. If we describe mythology functionally in this way, we can conclude that our modern mythology is what we call science. That is our culture’s way of encapsulating how the world works and how it came to work that way. Contrary to the divine orientation of the ancients, our scientific worldview is naturalistic and empiricist.” (Page 9)
“Perhaps I can build a family through her (16:2). The solution proposed by Sarai is not as shocking or outlandish as it would seem to us today. In the ancient world, barrenness was a catastrophe (see comment on 11:30) because one of the primary roles of the family was to produce the next generation. The survival of the family line was of the highest value, and it depended on producing progeny. Whatever threat a second wife might pose to harmony in the family paled in comparison to the necessity of an heir being produced.” (Pages 86–87)
This is a unique and important commentary. It is a milestone in the collection and comparative interpretation of ancient Near Eastern texts, pictures, and other archaeological materials as well as geographical, historical, and cultural information as they relate to the Old Testament. There is nothing else like it available today. . . . There will always be disagreements between scholars on such matters, but the many comparative and archaeological resources assembled in these volumes make it a veritable gold mine for those who desire to take the ancient context of the Lord’s work and word seriously in their study, teaching, and preaching of Holy Scripture.
—Richard E. Averbeck, Ph.D., Professor of Old Testament and Semitic Languages, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School
As a pastor, I am certain that the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary: Old Testament is a deeply valuable tool for ministry. With rock-solid scholarship, relevant commentary, and gripping visual illustrations, this will be a great tool for believers for years to come.
—Kevin G. Harney, pastor and author of Organic Outreach for Ordinary People
To me, every Christian should own these commentaries. I say that very seriously because when you study Scripture without looking into the historical and cultural background of what was happening when each part of the Bible was written, we miss incredibly so much meaning, understanding and depth. Using these commentaries when studying Scripture turns our study into a multi-dimensional and extremely colorful study. You will have so many ‘Oh! That’s what that means!’ or ‘Now that makes sense!’ moments when studying with this commentary. I cannot imagine doing any study of the Bible without it quite honestly and couldn’t recommend a commentary of this type any higher.
—Dan Kimball, pastor and author of They Like Jesus but Not the Church
- Title: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy: Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary (Old Testament), Volume 1
- Author: John H. Walton
- Series: Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary
- Publisher: Zondervan
- Print Publication Date: 2009
- Logos Release Date: 2010
- Pages: 571
- Era: era:contemporary
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subjects: Bible. O.T. Leviticus › Commentaries; Bible. O.T. Numbers › Commentaries; Bible. O.T. Deuteronomy › Commentaries; Bible. O.T. Exodus › Commentaries; Bible. O.T. Genesis › Commentaries
- ISBNs: 9780310427346, 9780310255734, 9780310255727, 9780310255741, 9780310255758, 9780310255765, 9780310255772, 0310427347, 0310255732, 0310255724, 0310255740, 0310255759, 0310255767, 0310255775
- Resource ID: LLS:ZIBBCOT01
- Resource Type: Bible Commentary
- Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-30T04:33:10Z
Dr. John H. Walton, professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College, spent 20 years teaching at Moody Bible Institute.
In his college years, he developed a passion for archaeology and Bible history. Instead of training to be an archaeologist, though, he focused his attention on studies comparing the culture and literature of the Bible and the ancient Near East. He has never lost his fascination with this subject, but comparative studies only provide one of the means by which he tries to get people excited about the Old Testament. He’s saddened by how little exposure to and understanding of the Old Testament many Christians have, but he’s passionate in doing whatever he can to remedy this spiritual and theological loss.
For 25 years, Dr. Walton was active at South Park Church in Park Ridge, Illinois—teaching at every level, from adults through preschool. He’s driven by the desire to offer people a greater familiarity with God’s Word and a greater confidence in understanding God’s revelation of himself in its pages. Since moving to Wheaton, he has gotten involved in the same areas of ministry at Glen Ellyn Bible Church.
Whether in teaching or writing, he’s constantly challenged in his own life because the material he’s presenting stretches him as much as it stretches his students and readers. Whatever he’s writing or teaching also has a way of infiltrating his family. His wife, Kim, was trained as a biochemist, which made for interesting dinner conversations—especially when he was working on his Genesis commentary. His three kids have often gotten involved in the discussions, and he’s had fun responding to them and seeing his family grow together.