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Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on The New Testament
1 Corinthians
Concentrate on the biblical author's message as it unfolds. Designed to assist the pastor and Bible teacher in conveying the significance of God's Word, the Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament series treats the literary context and structure of every passage of the New Testament book in the original Greek. With a unique layout designed to help you comprehend the form and flow of each passage, the ZECNT While primarily designed for those with a basic knowledge of biblical Greek, all who strive to understand and teach the New Testament will benefit from the depth, format, and scholarship of these volumes.
- GenresTheology
816 pages, Hardcover
Published April 3, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 21, 2018
This latest release in the Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (ZECNT) series on I Corinthians by Paul Gardner grows my appreciation for this series. It is at once warm and pastoral as well as showing excellent scholarship. This volume is a candidate for the first choice among pastors!
The Introduction is briefer than many I’ve seen in this series. What we have is well done, but it lacks a section on, for example, structure. Every passage in the commentary proper addresses structure, but there’s not an overview of it like has been an emphasis in others of this series. His conclusions are conservative: he sees Paul as the author without reservation, he follows the traditional outlook of Paul’s ministry and dates the letter at AD 54. He digs into the church divisions present in the epistle since that has been widely debated in scholarly circles. He dismantles some of the attacks on the integrity of the letter because so many of the theories floated are hopelessly subjective. He presents a balanced take on the city of Corinth and explains the social and religious context. After discussing the rhetorical and literary context, which he probably sees as covering structure, he returns to defining the divisions mentioned in the letter as the key to its interpretation.
His commentary is where my appreciation blossomed for this commentary. He used the typical format of this series and in my opinion excelled in the “explanation of the text” section. That’s probably the section most used by commentary uses too! As you know, there are several highly-debated passages in this epistle and he was at his best in each of them. Not only did I often agree with what he said, but also did I find his thoroughness, logic, and argumentation done with more care than many others. In fact, I reviewed another good, conservative, major commentary on this letter recently, and was surprised to see how completely Mr. Gardner surpassed that work.
In many places, he added special “in-depth” sections in shaded boxes that were superb. He wasn’t afraid to take some conservative viewpoints that are less in vogue these days. I loved it!
I Corinthians is blessed to have several excellent commentaries on its contents. This one is as good or better than any of them: I give it the highest recommendation.
I received this book free from the publisher. 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.
The Introduction is briefer than many I’ve seen in this series. What we have is well done, but it lacks a section on, for example, structure. Every passage in the commentary proper addresses structure, but there’s not an overview of it like has been an emphasis in others of this series. His conclusions are conservative: he sees Paul as the author without reservation, he follows the traditional outlook of Paul’s ministry and dates the letter at AD 54. He digs into the church divisions present in the epistle since that has been widely debated in scholarly circles. He dismantles some of the attacks on the integrity of the letter because so many of the theories floated are hopelessly subjective. He presents a balanced take on the city of Corinth and explains the social and religious context. After discussing the rhetorical and literary context, which he probably sees as covering structure, he returns to defining the divisions mentioned in the letter as the key to its interpretation.
His commentary is where my appreciation blossomed for this commentary. He used the typical format of this series and in my opinion excelled in the “explanation of the text” section. That’s probably the section most used by commentary uses too! As you know, there are several highly-debated passages in this epistle and he was at his best in each of them. Not only did I often agree with what he said, but also did I find his thoroughness, logic, and argumentation done with more care than many others. In fact, I reviewed another good, conservative, major commentary on this letter recently, and was surprised to see how completely Mr. Gardner surpassed that work.
In many places, he added special “in-depth” sections in shaded boxes that were superb. He wasn’t afraid to take some conservative viewpoints that are less in vogue these days. I loved it!
I Corinthians is blessed to have several excellent commentaries on its contents. This one is as good or better than any of them: I give it the highest recommendation.
I received this book free from the publisher. 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.
August 25, 2018
My fuller review can be read at Spoiled Milks (8/25/18).
Paul Gardner has written the newest volume in the ZECNT series on 1 Corinthians, a book that always requires a massive undertaking to study, teach, and exegete. Gardner says the “main underlying issue that Paul addresses concerns the possession of wisdom and knowledge…. [T]he Corinthians regarded these as spiritual gifts and gave them a significance that caused spiritual arrogance among some” (36). As a result, “Paul’s response is to return to the humbling centrality of the gospel message in which Christ is preached as the crucified Lord” (36).
The highlight for many pastors and teachers, the Theology in Application section discusses how a particular section contributes to the overall theology of the book and provides some suggestions for application to the church. It will be incredibly helpful to the pastor/teacher in drawing out the text’s implications for the Christian community founded on solid exegesis.
For example, In 15.20–28, Jesus is the conquering King who saves us from death, the great enemy of all people from the very beginning (at least since the third chapter). Paul writes of “Christ” (Messiah) four times, and this Christ represents his people who belong to him by being in him and are in his kingdom. He is currently destroying all powers and authorities, and he will destroy death itself. Thus, sin cannot be treated lightly. It must be preached so that Christ’s saving power over broken relationships, death, diseases, and corruption can be longed for.
Recommended?
There are an overwhelming amount of 1 Corinthian commentaries one could buy. There is no ‘right’ commentary. Excellent commentaries have been written by Fee, Garland, Hays, Blomberg, Ciampa/Rosner, Thiselton, with most of these (especially Ciampa/Rosner) being pretty long. Gardner has provided one that is worthy of purchase and could be paired with Schreiner's upcoming volume in the TNTC series, which is shorter than most of the above.
Gardner provides explanations, the main points, flow of thought, and a commentary that abounds with application sections. Gardner is to be commended and his volume recommended. His volume is an excellent addition to the ZECNT series.
Disclosure: I received this book free from Zondervan. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not required to write a positive review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa....
Paul Gardner has written the newest volume in the ZECNT series on 1 Corinthians, a book that always requires a massive undertaking to study, teach, and exegete. Gardner says the “main underlying issue that Paul addresses concerns the possession of wisdom and knowledge…. [T]he Corinthians regarded these as spiritual gifts and gave them a significance that caused spiritual arrogance among some” (36). As a result, “Paul’s response is to return to the humbling centrality of the gospel message in which Christ is preached as the crucified Lord” (36).
The highlight for many pastors and teachers, the Theology in Application section discusses how a particular section contributes to the overall theology of the book and provides some suggestions for application to the church. It will be incredibly helpful to the pastor/teacher in drawing out the text’s implications for the Christian community founded on solid exegesis.
For example, In 15.20–28, Jesus is the conquering King who saves us from death, the great enemy of all people from the very beginning (at least since the third chapter). Paul writes of “Christ” (Messiah) four times, and this Christ represents his people who belong to him by being in him and are in his kingdom. He is currently destroying all powers and authorities, and he will destroy death itself. Thus, sin cannot be treated lightly. It must be preached so that Christ’s saving power over broken relationships, death, diseases, and corruption can be longed for.
Recommended?
There are an overwhelming amount of 1 Corinthian commentaries one could buy. There is no ‘right’ commentary. Excellent commentaries have been written by Fee, Garland, Hays, Blomberg, Ciampa/Rosner, Thiselton, with most of these (especially Ciampa/Rosner) being pretty long. Gardner has provided one that is worthy of purchase and could be paired with Schreiner's upcoming volume in the TNTC series, which is shorter than most of the above.
Gardner provides explanations, the main points, flow of thought, and a commentary that abounds with application sections. Gardner is to be commended and his volume recommended. His volume is an excellent addition to the ZECNT series.
Disclosure: I received this book free from Zondervan. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not required to write a positive review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa....
May 23, 2018
While there is no lacking for solid commentaries on the book of 1st Corinthians there is always room for a great commentary to supplant a slowly ageing one. 1st Corinthians, of the Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament is one of those great commentaries in an up and coming commentary series which will at some point be counted as one of the standards in all scholarly and pastoral libraries. This commentary is written by famed pastor-scholar Paul Gardner.
Gardner's commentary begins with the traditional induction in which he argues for Pauline authorship while destroying augments for non-Pauline authorship. This is a complete introduction yet not as in depth as I was hoping for, just shy of 40 pages. With regard to the commentary proper, Gardner, uses the typical ZECNT format which delves into the Greek but not to a point that non-Greek readers will struggle. Furthermore there is a specific goal to draw out application from the text, which Gardner does flawlessly. While Gardner was not afraid to draw uncommon application he always seems to connect them back to conservative augments and conclusions. This is will be of great aid to a pastor preaching exegetically through the book of 1st Corinthians. In addition Gardner has many "in depth" sections which dig deeper into the text and context of the epistle.
In the end I would recommend this commentary as in mid-level work which will suit the needs of pastors and scholars alike.
This book was provided to me free of charge from Zondervan Publishing in exchange for an unbiased, honest review.
Gardner's commentary begins with the traditional induction in which he argues for Pauline authorship while destroying augments for non-Pauline authorship. This is a complete introduction yet not as in depth as I was hoping for, just shy of 40 pages. With regard to the commentary proper, Gardner, uses the typical ZECNT format which delves into the Greek but not to a point that non-Greek readers will struggle. Furthermore there is a specific goal to draw out application from the text, which Gardner does flawlessly. While Gardner was not afraid to draw uncommon application he always seems to connect them back to conservative augments and conclusions. This is will be of great aid to a pastor preaching exegetically through the book of 1st Corinthians. In addition Gardner has many "in depth" sections which dig deeper into the text and context of the epistle.
In the end I would recommend this commentary as in mid-level work which will suit the needs of pastors and scholars alike.
This book was provided to me free of charge from Zondervan Publishing in exchange for an unbiased, honest review.
August 15, 2024
This was by far the most helpful title I had when preaching through 1 Corinthians. This series in general I have always found to be exceptionally helpful in structure, analysis, and theological application, but this one in particular was wonderful. Thorough structure in English and Greek without being over complicated, excellent commentary that was insightful to all levels from textual criticism issues to pastoral applications. The author tackles deep theological issues and complex textual arguments in an accessible and non-partisan way. Must have for anyone studying 1 Corinthians in depth.
Want to Read
September 22, 2025Ligonier
May 18, 2025
Excellent!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews