1 Peter

Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament

by Greg W. Forbes, Robert W. Yarbrough (Editor), Andreas J. Köstenberger (Editor)

The Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament (EGGNT) closes the gap between the Greek text and the available lexical and grammatical tools, providing all the necessary information for greater understanding of the text. The series makes interpreting any given New Testament book easier, especially for those who are hard pressed for time but want to preach or teach with accuracy and authority.

Each volume begins with a brief introduction to the particular New Testament book, a basic outline, and a list of recommended commentaries. The body is devoted to paragraph-by-paragraph exegesis of the Greek text and includes homiletical helps and suggestions for further study. A comprehensive exegetical outline of the New Testament book completes each EGGNT volume.

Genres: Reference

202 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2014

About the author

Greg Forbes is Lecturer in Greek and New Testament at the Bible College of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia.

Reviews

[Jonah Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn’t agree with every exegetical choice in this book, but by the end, I can say that it was an invaluable resource to have for studying and preaching through 1 Peter.

[VladimirAnastasia Konovalchuk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am thankful to God, to the EGGNT workers, to Dr. Greg W. Forbes and B&H Academic for this volume on 1 Peter. Though it "is not a full-scale commentary," it provides “the necessary information for understanding of the Greek text" (p. xvi).

This volume consists, first, of an introduction that addresses the standard questions along with some that are more peculiar to 1 Peter, including authorship, historical setting and date, this epistle's use of the imperative and imperatival participles, together with an outline and recommended commentaries. Next is the main body of the commentary, which is “devoted to paragraph-by-paragraph exegesis of the text” (p. xvi), including the Greek text, a structural analysis, discussion, various translations of significant words or phrases, suggested topics for further study with bibliography for each topic, and homiletical suggestions. Finally, the concluding section of the book offers a comprehensive exegetical outline and grammatical and Scripture indexes.

I have been researching and preaching on 1 Peter during the past few months, and this volume is the best commentary I have encountered for this epistle. It may be small in size but it is deep in research value. Many thanks!

[Peter Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not a commentary per se. But rather a explanation of the Greek text. It goes word by word or line by line through the Greek text explaining the verbs, nouns, adverbs, adjectives and conjunctions and how the various options might impact interpretation. I like this one better than the similar Baylor series because it has a short summary, nice outline of the structure, a "for further study section," and a homiletical suggestions. You may not need this if you are using NIGTC. But for a short reference on the Greek text it is excellent.

[Adam Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very helpful companion as I've been preaching through 1 Peter. The EGGNT series offers an accessible lexical and grammatical guide, as well as assessing some of the main interpretative questions, and Forbes has given us a particularly strong volume. I don't see much value in the "homiletical suggestions" sections, but everything else is excellent.

[CJ Bowen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely useful resource for working through NT Greek. I don't agree with every exegetical decision, but this is a helpful companion that spends more time on grammar and syntax than many commentaries are able to do. I'll be using more in this series in the future.

[Jeff Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very, very good. Not a traditional commentary and hard to work through but it was extremely helpful to me.

[Gage Terrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

While the EGGNT is a hit or miss depending on which volume you get, this volume is excellent. I recommend this over the Baylor handbook if you are dealing with the Greek text of 1 Peter.

[John Kight · Rating 5 out of 5]

Greg W. Forbes is the head of the Department of Biblical Studies at Melbourne School of Theology (MST) in Melbourne, Australia. Forbes teaches a number of important course at MST, including, New Testament Introduction, Greek and Intermediate Greek, Hermeneutics, as well as James and First Peter. Forbes received a B.Th. and M.Th. from Australian College of Theology, as well as a Ph.D. from Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia. In this contribution to the EGGNT series, the third volume, Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament: 1 Peter (B&H Academic, 2014), Forbes demonstrates himself as a skilled exegete of the Greek text of 1 Peter and a competent scholar with pastoral sensitivity.

The Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament series seeks to bridge the gap between the text of the Greek New Testament (UBS4) and the available lexical and grammatical resources being utilized by pastors and teachers today. Forbes begins, like the other volumes in the series, with a brief introduction on the epistle, including authorship (in which he affirms the Petrine authorship of the epistle), historical setting, and date. Unique to this volume is Forbes’ discussion on the use of the imperative and imperatival participles in 1 Peter. Both are helpful introductory discussions for the reader to overall thrust of the book. As the commentary on the epistle opens the reader is met with block diagramed Greek text that is then carried through on the clausal level and dissected in detail. Each unit of the commentary closes with a “For Further Study” section that includes a topically organized bibliography, as well as a “Homiletical Suggestions” segment which provides the reader with a number of text-derived preaching and teaching suggestions.

The benefit of this volume are many for the serious student of the epistle. First, Forbes isn’t going to tell the reader what to think about the text, but rather he is going to show the reader around the grammatical and exegetical landscape of current scholarship and guide their thinking amid the forest. Second, the reader will find Forbes’ Homiletical suggestions helpful, especially considering the practical nature of 1 Peter. Third, Forbes is concise and judicious in his interaction with the text. He shows himself as one who knows the landscape of the epistle well and gives the reader what is needed to navigate the Greek text of 1 Peter. Still, consulting with other commentaries on the epistle is going to remain a needed part in the student’s current workflow. However, now, this will occur more often after one has already consulted Forbes and established the text. In other words, Forbes has not sought to replace traditional commentaries, but rather prepare the reader for deeper discovery therein.

The Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament: 1 Peter by Greg W. Forbes is a welcomed addition to the grown EGGNT series. Forbes has displayed the excellence that this series requires and provided the reader with a gold mine of exegetical insights. If you are a pastor, teacher, student, or trained laymen interested in 1 Peter, Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament: 1 Peter is a resource you will not want missing from your bookshelf.

I received an advance review copy of this book in exchange for and honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

[Craig Hurst · Rating 4 out of 5]

With Murray Harris’ inaugural book on Colossians and Philemon the potential for success of the Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament series was looking bright – and it continues to be so. Though only in its third of twenty books, this series has already made its mark as a standard Greek text commentary series for serious students of the Greek New Testament.

The most recent installment is on 1 Peter by Greg W. Forbes who is the head of the Department of Biblical Studies at Melbourne School of Theology in Australia. In his contribution to the series, Forbes shows himself to be an able exegete of what many regard to be the some of the most difficult Greek in the New Testament.

In keeping with the aim of the series, Forbes book accomplishes two primary services for the reader. First, the commentary is solely based on the Greek of the New Testament primarily using the fourth edition of the United Bible Societies’ Greek New Testament with some minor variations (xvi). 1 Peter is divided into pericopes by its Greek text, block diagrammed and then exegeted phrase-by-phrase. A good grasp of New Testament Greek is required to benefit from this book as well as an ability to understand the grammatical abbreviations used in the book.

Second, as a guide, the reader is presented with a number of helps in their own study of the Greek text. The purpose of the book is not to do all of the work for the reader, but, rather, to “provide all the necessary information for understanding the Greek text.” (xvi) Having a lot of the time consuming work done for you helps the reader to focus more on interpreting the information and developing the sermon. By breaking the book up into pericopes the reader already has a good idea as to how to lay out their sermons. There are suggested homoletical outlines (often giving more than one) as well as suggested further reading based on the subject matter of each verse or group of verses examined. When more than one suggestion is offered by commentators Forbes presents them along with his reasons for which one seems to fit the text best.

All of the books in The Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament are must haves for every pastor, student and teacher who is a serious student of the Greek. Murray Harris started a remarkable series and I trust that each successive contributor will be able to follow suit in his ability to handle the Greek New Testament. Forbes book is a must have for preachers and teachers of 1 Peter who want to dig into the original Greek.

I received this book for free from B&H for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

[Michael Sanelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first commentary/guide in the B&H "Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament" (EGGNT) series that I have used to make my way through an entire NT book. I've touched a few other books in the series before, but this is the first I've worked with so extensively. I'm sure, as with every series, there will be a level of hit-and-miss. However, Forbes on 1 Peter is a definite HIT!

This series is designed to not give you all the answers you need, but points you in the right directions to better attack a passage exegetically for the purpose of exposition. As I approach about a year out of seminary, I have found this book invaluable as I've been preaching through the book of 1 Peter. It has sped up some of my exegetical work without doing the work for me... which I need! It uses the grammatical language I became accustomed to in seminary which is very helpful.

The book is not designed to be the only resource you use, but it is the first. After I have worked through the passage myself in English and in the Greek, I see if I have the general idea of where the passage is going, what the main point is and where are the places I need some answers. Then I go to this book. It sets me off in a good direction where I had questions, confirms where I had been going or tweaks/refines my thoughts a bit. Then I'll move on to the bigger commentaries on 1 Peter like Michaels, Jobes, Davids, Achtemeier, Schreiner, etc. (in no particular order).

I recommend this guide to any pastor who wants to continue to refine his greek, any student still working on getting a handle on greek, and even any pastor who already has pretty sharp greek who wants to continue working deeply with the text without getting all the answers from a full commentary. Great book. I look forward to utilizing others in the EGGNT series in the future.

[Elissa Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having studied basic Greek at Bible College, I've enjoyed reading through 1 Peter in Greek alongside this detailed analysis of the text. I found it helpful and enjoyable.

My two criticisms are 1) that the kindle font size changes constantly throughout the book 2) their interpretation of 1 Peter 3:19 and 4:6 didn't sit right with me personally