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Commentary on Genesis, Volume 2: Luther on Sin and the Flood
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409 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 1960
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About the author
Martin Luther
5,138 books822 followersMartin Luther (1483-1546) was a German monk, theologian, university professor and church reformer whose ideas inspired the Protestant Reformation and changed the course of Western civilization.
Luther's theology challenged the authority of the papacy by holding that the Bible is the only infallible source of religious authority and that all baptized Christians under Jesus are a spiritual priesthood. According to Luther, salvation was a free gift of God, received only by true repentance and faith in Jesus as the Messiah, a faith given by God and unmediated by the church.
Luther's confrontation with Charles V at the Diet of Worms over freedom of conscience in 1521 and his refusal to submit to the authority of the Emperor resulted in his being declared an outlaw of the state as he had been excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church. Because of the perceived unity of the medieval Church with the secular rulers of western Europe, the widespread acceptance of Luther's doctrines and popular vindication of his thinking on individual liberties were both phenomenal and unprecedented.
His translation of the Bible into the vernacular, making it more accessible to ordinary people, had a tremendous political impact on the church and on German culture. It furthered the development of a standard version of the German language, added several principles to the art of translation, and influenced the translation of the English King James Bible. His hymns inspired the development of congregational singing within Christianity. His marriage to Katharina von Bora set a model for the practice of clerical marriage within Protestantism.
Much scholarly debate has concentrated on Luther's writings about the Jews. His statements that Jews' homes should be destroyed, their synagogues burned, money confiscated and liberty curtailed were revived and used in propaganda by the Nazis in 1933–45. As a result of this and his revolutionary theological views, his legacy remains controversial.
Luther's theology challenged the authority of the papacy by holding that the Bible is the only infallible source of religious authority and that all baptized Christians under Jesus are a spiritual priesthood. According to Luther, salvation was a free gift of God, received only by true repentance and faith in Jesus as the Messiah, a faith given by God and unmediated by the church.
Luther's confrontation with Charles V at the Diet of Worms over freedom of conscience in 1521 and his refusal to submit to the authority of the Emperor resulted in his being declared an outlaw of the state as he had been excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church. Because of the perceived unity of the medieval Church with the secular rulers of western Europe, the widespread acceptance of Luther's doctrines and popular vindication of his thinking on individual liberties were both phenomenal and unprecedented.
His translation of the Bible into the vernacular, making it more accessible to ordinary people, had a tremendous political impact on the church and on German culture. It furthered the development of a standard version of the German language, added several principles to the art of translation, and influenced the translation of the English King James Bible. His hymns inspired the development of congregational singing within Christianity. His marriage to Katharina von Bora set a model for the practice of clerical marriage within Protestantism.
Much scholarly debate has concentrated on Luther's writings about the Jews. His statements that Jews' homes should be destroyed, their synagogues burned, money confiscated and liberty curtailed were revived and used in propaganda by the Nazis in 1933–45. As a result of this and his revolutionary theological views, his legacy remains controversial.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 13, 2025
I have read a couple of books by Martin Luther that I really enjoyed, including his commentary on Galatians, to which I gave 5 stars. However, this commentary is so inferior to that commentary as to wonder how it could have been written by the same man. This book is full of so much speculation and so much material that is not related to the text of Genesis at all. There are so many much better commentaries than this one.
July 5, 2020
Should be read by everyone, I mean everyone who reads the bible even some Roman Catholics can read if you ignore papacy hatred and racism of Luther you can find insightful things he quotes from Augustine of Hippo and others.
October 8, 2017
New insight on Noah
Until I had read this book I had never looked at the gospel.aspects of the flood. There was New insight on Cain and on Noahs sons and offspring.
Until I had read this book I had never looked at the gospel.aspects of the flood. There was New insight on Cain and on Noahs sons and offspring.
September 11, 2018
Love Martin Luther commentaries, very insightful.
September 21, 2023
Powerful insights, simply handled.
March 26, 2012
Its free on Amazon for the Kindle. I like Luther (more his earlier stuff, before he went all crazy). It is a good reference work, with many others, for Genesis.
December 23, 2014
Excellent reading. New insights on the old story of Noah and the Flood.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews