Romans (Believers Church Bible Commentary | BCBC)
Overview
The Believers Church Bible Commentary Series is published for all who seek more fully to understand the original message of Scripture and its meaning for today—Sunday school teachers, members of Bible study groups, students, pastors, and other seekers. The series is based on the conviction that God is still speaking to all who will listen, and that the Holy Spirit makes the Word a living and authoritative guide for all who want to know and do God’s will.
Each volume illuminates the Scriptures; provides historical and cultural background; shares necessary theological, sociological, and ethical meanings; and, in general, makes "the rough places plain." Critical issues are not avoided, but neither are they moved into the foreground as debates among scholars. The series aids in the interpretive process, but it does not attempt to supersede the authority of the Word and Spirit as discerned in the gathered church.
The Believers Church Bible Commentary is a cooperative project of Brethren in Christ Church, Brethren Church, Church of the Brethren, Mennonite Brethren Church, and Mennonite Church.
Overall Outline
The commentaries are organized into sections according to the major divisions of the text. Each section comprises five parts:
- An introductory preview
- A summary outline of the section
- Explanatory notes
- The text in its biblical context
- The text in the life of the church
Romans
This commentary on Romans is a rich gift to the contemporary church, its lay leaders, pastors, and scholars. John E. Toews gives new eyes for readers to see what the central message of Romans really is.
I have waited a long time for this commentary! For over a generation, scholars have been challenging the tradition interpretation of Romans based on Martin Luther's emphasis on justification by faith. But until now, few commentaries have thoroughly embraced the emerging paradigm, which seeks to read Romans in its original historical and social context. Even less has percolated into the life of the church at large. John Toews' commentary fills that gap.
—Reta Halteman Finger, Messiah College, Grantham, Pennsylvania
At the center of every movement toward church renewal has been the rediscovery of Romans. Just after the World War, Karl Barth wrote a commentary on Romans which renewed church life. In the believers' church the book of Romans has always held a central place. John Toews makes it possible for all thinking Christians to understand Romans. That 'strange warming of the heart,' renewal of the mind, empowering of the will, and obedience faith all come together in this book. The interpreters of the believers' church have come of age.
—William Klassen, University of Waterloo, Ontario
- Title: Romans
- Author: John E. Toews
- Publisher: Herald Press
- Publication Date: 2004
- Pages: 464
Reviews
2 ratings
Ian Packer
3/4/2024
Excellent commentary that is alive not only to contemporary scholarship (e.g. New Perspective on Paul, apocalyptic), but also ethical and missional dimensions. Theological essays on topics such as the Righteousness of God, The Faith of Jesus, and so on discuss some important issues of interpretation. There is depth in this commentary without getting lost in the details. I have enjoyed using about 30 other commentaries on Romans (Cranfield, Wright, Longenecker, Moo, Byrne, Fitzmyer, Talbert, Luke T. Johnson, and others; but this commentary and Michael Gorman's really bring the text to life and clarify the argument well. (Also recommend A. Katherine Greib's 'The Story of Romans'.)Ken McClurkin
9/20/2022