What do you think?
Rate this book
Pillar New Testament Commentary
The Second Letter to the Corinthians
Newest volume in the acclaimed Pillar New Testament Commentary series
The question that Paul set before the ancient church in Corinth -- Do you not recognize that Jesus Christ is in and among you? (2 Cor 13:5) -- remains a critical question for the church today. This commentary by Mark Seifrid seeks to hear Paul’s message afresh and communicate it to our time.
Seifrid offers a unified reading of 2 Corinthians, which has often been regarded as a composite of excerpts and fragments. He argues that Paul’s message is directed at the “practical atheism” of the Corinthian church -- the hidden heresy that assumes God’s saving work in the world may be measured by outward standards of success and achievement.
Like all of the Pillar volumes, Seifrid’s commentary on 2 Corinthians offers careful grammatical analysis and exegesis with clear pastoral application.
The question that Paul set before the ancient church in Corinth -- Do you not recognize that Jesus Christ is in and among you? (2 Cor 13:5) -- remains a critical question for the church today. This commentary by Mark Seifrid seeks to hear Paul’s message afresh and communicate it to our time.
Seifrid offers a unified reading of 2 Corinthians, which has often been regarded as a composite of excerpts and fragments. He argues that Paul’s message is directed at the “practical atheism” of the Corinthian church -- the hidden heresy that assumes God’s saving work in the world may be measured by outward standards of success and achievement.
Like all of the Pillar volumes, Seifrid’s commentary on 2 Corinthians offers careful grammatical analysis and exegesis with clear pastoral application.
- GenresTheology
560 pages, Hardcover
First published November 9, 2014
14 people are currently reading
27 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 22, 2017
One of the best commentaries that I have ever used.
September 1, 2017
The Second Letter to the Corinthians, written by Mark A. Seifrid and published by Eerdmans, is one of the well written modern commentaries on this book of the Bible. The Second Letter to the Corinthians is the most recent volume of the Pillar New Testament, edited by D.A. Carson, a series which is synonymous with superior scholarship and excellent exegesis, and this volume continues this legacy. Seifrid is no stranger to studious commentaries series on scripture yet this is his first foray into the Pillar New Testament Commentary series.
The Second Letter to the Corinthians begins with the typical study into the introductory matters of this book of the Bible, yet while introductions are common; this introduction is atypical of most commentaries. It is not that this work doesn’t dive into history and recent scholarship, which The Second Letter to the Corinthians does a phenomenal job of; rather, it is the thoroughness that Seifrid takes with these introductory matters which makes this commentary atypical. In a day where these matters are either glossed over to get to the exegesis of the text or are so cumbersome that they become useless, Seifrid has found a good balance in being thorough, communicating depth and attention to recent scholarship, all without losing the forest in the trees.
In reference to the commentary on the text of this Gospel, Seifrid takes great care in carefully showing the original context of passage while sprinkling practical application to the reader throughout the textual commentary. With regard of recommending The Second Letter to the Corinthians, to others I would wholeheartedly recommend this commentary to students of scripture, with one caveat. By this I mean I recommend this work to Pastors, Scholars, Bible Teachers, Bible College Students, and Seminary Students, there is enough scholarly weight to this text to understand a particularly issue in the text while giving aid to pastors in preaching the text. The caveat is to the lay person who is looking for a commentary to read as a devotional, while a basic knowledge of Greek is not needed for understanding The Second Letter to the Corinthians, it is helpful and would not be suitable for devotional reading. There are many commentaries about the 2nd Corinthians available at this moment but Pillar’s New Testament commentary TThe Second Letter to the Corinthians, is a step above the herd.
This book was provided to me free of charge from Eerdmans Publishing in exchange for an unbiased, honest review.
The Second Letter to the Corinthians: Pillar New Testament Commentary
© 2014 by Mark A. Seifrid
Publisher: Eerdmans
Page Count: 569 Pages
ISBN: 978-0802837394
The Second Letter to the Corinthians begins with the typical study into the introductory matters of this book of the Bible, yet while introductions are common; this introduction is atypical of most commentaries. It is not that this work doesn’t dive into history and recent scholarship, which The Second Letter to the Corinthians does a phenomenal job of; rather, it is the thoroughness that Seifrid takes with these introductory matters which makes this commentary atypical. In a day where these matters are either glossed over to get to the exegesis of the text or are so cumbersome that they become useless, Seifrid has found a good balance in being thorough, communicating depth and attention to recent scholarship, all without losing the forest in the trees.
In reference to the commentary on the text of this Gospel, Seifrid takes great care in carefully showing the original context of passage while sprinkling practical application to the reader throughout the textual commentary. With regard of recommending The Second Letter to the Corinthians, to others I would wholeheartedly recommend this commentary to students of scripture, with one caveat. By this I mean I recommend this work to Pastors, Scholars, Bible Teachers, Bible College Students, and Seminary Students, there is enough scholarly weight to this text to understand a particularly issue in the text while giving aid to pastors in preaching the text. The caveat is to the lay person who is looking for a commentary to read as a devotional, while a basic knowledge of Greek is not needed for understanding The Second Letter to the Corinthians, it is helpful and would not be suitable for devotional reading. There are many commentaries about the 2nd Corinthians available at this moment but Pillar’s New Testament commentary TThe Second Letter to the Corinthians, is a step above the herd.
This book was provided to me free of charge from Eerdmans Publishing in exchange for an unbiased, honest review.
The Second Letter to the Corinthians: Pillar New Testament Commentary
© 2014 by Mark A. Seifrid
Publisher: Eerdmans
Page Count: 569 Pages
ISBN: 978-0802837394
February 21, 2020
I've always enjoyed 2 Corinthians and this is a very fine commentary. Concordia Commentary doesn't have a 2 Corinthians edition yet, but this is pretty good. I read it devotionally over a period of time and it unwrapped the treasure of this letter and what Paul says about the challenges and opportunities of the Christian life.
May 4, 2015
My full review can be read here: spoiledmilks dot wordpress dot com/2015/04/15/review-2-corinthians-pntc/
While he does take up conversation with Hays, Hafemann, and Mitchell in chapter 3, for the most part Seifrid sticks to the text rather than repeating or arguing against the theories of other commentators. And I quite enjoyed this. While, yes, I would liked to have seen more interaction with other commentators, I’m glad Seifrid refrained from filling his book with references to the ideas of others and filled it with his own words.
Seifrid gives the reader theological reflection where believers carry their cross daily. Seifrid works off of Luther's theology of the cross. God’s power is seen in his working through human sinfulness, rather than grand miracles, flashy teachers, and great speakers. The Christian not only proclaims the cross, but lives the cross too.
Seifrid keeps the literary context in mind, always being aware of key texts both before him and behind him (including 1 Corinthians). This volume is shorter than some of the other 2 Corinthians commentaries, but Seifrid packs a lot in. Seifrid is attentive to the concepts that lie behind the text and brings them into the view of the reader with great ease.
The Spoiled Milk
Seifrid seems to speak with a certain kind of jargon. Not that of scholarly jargon, but of his own. At times he is usually easy to read, and other times he speaks in a very roundabout way. He spends fourteen paragraphs discussing over Hafemann's interpretation of the letter and Spirit, yet I was left confused when all was said and done. He explained Hafemann’s position well, yet I still don’t really know what Seifrid’s argument was, except that he didn’t agree with Hafemann.
Also, there's no information provided on the Corinthian geography, history, and culture in the Introduction. Readers will have to go elsewhere for that information.
Recommended?
Anyone who wants a serious study of this letter should get this commentary. While helpful, I disagreed with both Hafemann and Garland on 2 Corinthians 3 (finding Meyer’s The End of the Law to be most helpful). While Meyer still proved helpful here Seifrid still does an excellent job on this commentary. Seifrid brings a good amount to the table that is of excellent quality. Top pick.
[Special thanks to Christine at Think IVP for allowing me to review this book! I was not obligated to provide a positive review in exchange for this book.]
While he does take up conversation with Hays, Hafemann, and Mitchell in chapter 3, for the most part Seifrid sticks to the text rather than repeating or arguing against the theories of other commentators. And I quite enjoyed this. While, yes, I would liked to have seen more interaction with other commentators, I’m glad Seifrid refrained from filling his book with references to the ideas of others and filled it with his own words.
Seifrid gives the reader theological reflection where believers carry their cross daily. Seifrid works off of Luther's theology of the cross. God’s power is seen in his working through human sinfulness, rather than grand miracles, flashy teachers, and great speakers. The Christian not only proclaims the cross, but lives the cross too.
Seifrid keeps the literary context in mind, always being aware of key texts both before him and behind him (including 1 Corinthians). This volume is shorter than some of the other 2 Corinthians commentaries, but Seifrid packs a lot in. Seifrid is attentive to the concepts that lie behind the text and brings them into the view of the reader with great ease.
The Spoiled Milk
Seifrid seems to speak with a certain kind of jargon. Not that of scholarly jargon, but of his own. At times he is usually easy to read, and other times he speaks in a very roundabout way. He spends fourteen paragraphs discussing over Hafemann's interpretation of the letter and Spirit, yet I was left confused when all was said and done. He explained Hafemann’s position well, yet I still don’t really know what Seifrid’s argument was, except that he didn’t agree with Hafemann.
Also, there's no information provided on the Corinthian geography, history, and culture in the Introduction. Readers will have to go elsewhere for that information.
Recommended?
Anyone who wants a serious study of this letter should get this commentary. While helpful, I disagreed with both Hafemann and Garland on 2 Corinthians 3 (finding Meyer’s The End of the Law to be most helpful). While Meyer still proved helpful here Seifrid still does an excellent job on this commentary. Seifrid brings a good amount to the table that is of excellent quality. Top pick.
[Special thanks to Christine at Think IVP for allowing me to review this book! I was not obligated to provide a positive review in exchange for this book.]
July 26, 2015
This volume faithfully extends the respect afforded the prestigious Pillar New Testament Commentary series published by Eerdmans and edited by D. A. Carson. It has several features to commend itself to pastors, perhaps even more than for scholars, though it is without question a scholarly volume.
He has an unusually short Introduction. It is clear and penetrating, but much shorter than we are used to. That is not, however, a liability as he just works the discussion into the commentary. He also just ignores the more ridiculous and unfounded discussions that clutter many commentaries. I find that refreshing as some of those discussions do not merit one drop of ink.
Some have criticized Seifrid for not interacting enough with other scholars. His focus was clearly more on expounding the text than esoteric scholarly rabbit trails. Again, that is a plus too! It seems to me that he was only sticking to the design of the series he was contributing to. I have heard others criticize him for some “Lutheran” theology. I am not a Lutheran, but hearing viewpoints that don’t exactly match every other commentary is not a bad thing either.
Taking the commentary here on its own, you will find well written and helpful exegesis to help get at the meaning of the text. I predict pastors will actually prefer it, as I do, over some of the other volumes out there. He gives us more insight into Paul and to what is going on in this second letter. I appreciate his taking this letter as a unified whole as well.
The positives here are many and I highly recommend this volume for teaching and preaching Second Corinthians.
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.
He has an unusually short Introduction. It is clear and penetrating, but much shorter than we are used to. That is not, however, a liability as he just works the discussion into the commentary. He also just ignores the more ridiculous and unfounded discussions that clutter many commentaries. I find that refreshing as some of those discussions do not merit one drop of ink.
Some have criticized Seifrid for not interacting enough with other scholars. His focus was clearly more on expounding the text than esoteric scholarly rabbit trails. Again, that is a plus too! It seems to me that he was only sticking to the design of the series he was contributing to. I have heard others criticize him for some “Lutheran” theology. I am not a Lutheran, but hearing viewpoints that don’t exactly match every other commentary is not a bad thing either.
Taking the commentary here on its own, you will find well written and helpful exegesis to help get at the meaning of the text. I predict pastors will actually prefer it, as I do, over some of the other volumes out there. He gives us more insight into Paul and to what is going on in this second letter. I appreciate his taking this letter as a unified whole as well.
The positives here are many and I highly recommend this volume for teaching and preaching Second Corinthians.
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.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews