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The Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible enlists leading theologians to read and interpret Scripture for the twenty-first century, just as the church fathers, the Reformers, and other orthodox Christians did for their times and places. In this addition to the well-received series, esteemed theologian R. R. Reno offers a theological exegesis of Genesis. This commentary, like each in the series, is designed to serve the church--providing a rich resource for preachers, teachers, students, and study groups--and demonstrate the continuing intellectual and practical viability of theological interpretation of the Bible.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
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About the author
R.R. Reno
41 books67 followersRussell Ronald Reno III is the editor of First Things magazine. He was formerly a professor of theology and ethics at Creighton University.
A theological and political conservative, Reno was baptized into the Episcopal Church as an infant and grew up as a member of the Church of the Redeemer in Baltimore, Maryland. As an adult he was an active participant in the Episcopal Church, serving as Senior Warden of the Church of the Resurrection in Omaha, Nebraska from 1991–1995, as deputy to the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 1993, 1996, and 1999, and as a member of the Theology Committee of the Episcopal Church's House of Bishops from 2001-2003. On September 18, 2004, he was received into the Roman Catholic Church.
A theological and political conservative, Reno was baptized into the Episcopal Church as an infant and grew up as a member of the Church of the Redeemer in Baltimore, Maryland. As an adult he was an active participant in the Episcopal Church, serving as Senior Warden of the Church of the Resurrection in Omaha, Nebraska from 1991–1995, as deputy to the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 1993, 1996, and 1999, and as a member of the Theology Committee of the Episcopal Church's House of Bishops from 2001-2003. On September 18, 2004, he was received into the Roman Catholic Church.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 15, 2013
Covers the whole book of Genesis. If you like Reno, you'll appreciate this commentary. I have given it out to friends for Christmas, and they loved it.
October 30, 2016
Of the books I read in my Gensis study, this was the most disappointing. I usually enjoy R.R. Reno's writing in First Things and had heard good things about the Brazos commentary series. A lot of the content here was quite excellent, but I feel the book could have benefited from a change in structure and significant edits.
The book is written as a traditional linear commentary (i.e., comments on Genesis 1:1, then comments on Genesis 1:2, etc.). But that structure forces Reno to repeat many of the same points throughout the book. He's right to see those various patterns across Genesis, but I think the book would have been significantly improved by restructuring as a sequence of thematic essays where the material relating to each theme could be discussed in one place. That would have reduced the amount of repetition and increased the coherence.
The book also reads much like an early draft where Reno is still organizing his thoughts. It reads in many ways like he put down everything he could think about saying for Genesis 1:1, then moved on to Genesis 1:2 and wrote down all the thoughts he had there. For example, there are entire paragraphs comprised of rhetorical questions. Much of the material is good, but in conjunction with the suggested restructure above, could have benefited significantly from another pass to clean out some of the fluff and focus in on the interesting observations (which were many!).
So there's a lot to like here, but I don't think getting to it is worth the time investment of 300 pages reading that this volume required. Each book in the Brazos series is written by a different author, so I've picked up the Exodus to see if I like it any better. (I've particularly heard that Bishop Robert Barron's commentary on 2 Samuel is brilliant.)
The book is written as a traditional linear commentary (i.e., comments on Genesis 1:1, then comments on Genesis 1:2, etc.). But that structure forces Reno to repeat many of the same points throughout the book. He's right to see those various patterns across Genesis, but I think the book would have been significantly improved by restructuring as a sequence of thematic essays where the material relating to each theme could be discussed in one place. That would have reduced the amount of repetition and increased the coherence.
The book also reads much like an early draft where Reno is still organizing his thoughts. It reads in many ways like he put down everything he could think about saying for Genesis 1:1, then moved on to Genesis 1:2 and wrote down all the thoughts he had there. For example, there are entire paragraphs comprised of rhetorical questions. Much of the material is good, but in conjunction with the suggested restructure above, could have benefited significantly from another pass to clean out some of the fluff and focus in on the interesting observations (which were many!).
So there's a lot to like here, but I don't think getting to it is worth the time investment of 300 pages reading that this volume required. Each book in the Brazos series is written by a different author, so I've picked up the Exodus to see if I like it any better. (I've particularly heard that Bishop Robert Barron's commentary on 2 Samuel is brilliant.)
April 10, 2025
(4.5 stars)
This is a really good commentary, one of the most quotable commentaries I've ever read, as long as the reader remembers that it is a theological commentary. Mr. Reno doesn't set out to exegete every passage of Genesis and while he pays attention to the narrative sweep of the story, it's mainly in regards to the theological concepts they contain. This probably wouldn't be a suitable as a first commentary to read if you're studying through Genesis, but it is a great assistant to your study.
He quotes Augustine in regards to the fall: "“From the misuse of free will,” writes St. Augustine of the long shadow cast by the original transgression, “there started a chain of disasters." Truer words were never spoken.
In regards to the tragic murder of Abel by Cain: "As Cain′s murder of Abel epitomizes, evil is the desire for anything other than the fulfillment of God′s purpose from the beginning. In the perverse blindness of this desire, even murder and death are better than the triumph of divine love."
The consequences of the fall: "God does not pour out an alien wrath or muster an invading force. He opens the floodgates of our desire for things of the earth. The flood is what happens when the decision of Adam and Eve is given free rein."
The pernicious effect of sin: "As “slaves of corruption” (2 Pet. 2:19), we have a striking ability, day after day, to give ourselves over to sin. God intervenes not to protect his power, but in order to protect us from the tenacious power of our own corruption."
The tragic sin of making politics of the right or left our central focus and the final aim of the gospel: "The history of the twentieth century is littered with the bodies of those sacrificed to a particularly powerful form of the covenant of the lie: that the finite human project of politics can be brought to fulfillment in the universal dictatorship of the proletariat. The failure is plain to see. But even in the rubble we continue to build strange new towers. The only alternative to the worship of a finite good made into an idol is the worship of the one true God, the lord and creator of all. Without a predominating love of God, love of neighbor will become a limitless project, and the good things we seek for each other “is only the beginning of what [we] will do” (11:6). What begins as a fitting philanthropy ends with us rallying all the forces at our disposal to serve whatever god of worldly flourishing we have made for ourselves."
And again: "Moreover, secular government often misconceives the blessing it seeks, imagining that God prospers a nation or a people solely by strengthening its power. But the most threatening danger concerns the church itself. The warm embrace of alliance can place the church in a perilous situation. It is very tempting to accept the “thousand pieces of silver” (20:16) that the secular world offers, the rights and privileges and other forms of social reward that worldly powers provide, and then over time to imagine the silver to be a birthright more decisive and crucial for the church then God′s promises."
And this fascinating insight into the tragic rape of Dinah and consequent slaughter of the men of Shechem: "They protest that it “would be a disgrace to us” for Dinah, and for the rest of the clan, to marry into a community not marked by circumcision. But the unspoken falsehood is plain to see. Those not called cannot make themselves chosen by adopting the sign of circumcision as their own. Circumcision may be necessary, but it certainly is not sufficient."
This is an excellent commentary, but it is a theological commentary, so understand that. I find I'm really enjoying reading theology in the context of a scriptural book rather than as a systematic theology.
This is a really good commentary, one of the most quotable commentaries I've ever read, as long as the reader remembers that it is a theological commentary. Mr. Reno doesn't set out to exegete every passage of Genesis and while he pays attention to the narrative sweep of the story, it's mainly in regards to the theological concepts they contain. This probably wouldn't be a suitable as a first commentary to read if you're studying through Genesis, but it is a great assistant to your study.
He quotes Augustine in regards to the fall: "“From the misuse of free will,” writes St. Augustine of the long shadow cast by the original transgression, “there started a chain of disasters." Truer words were never spoken.
In regards to the tragic murder of Abel by Cain: "As Cain′s murder of Abel epitomizes, evil is the desire for anything other than the fulfillment of God′s purpose from the beginning. In the perverse blindness of this desire, even murder and death are better than the triumph of divine love."
The consequences of the fall: "God does not pour out an alien wrath or muster an invading force. He opens the floodgates of our desire for things of the earth. The flood is what happens when the decision of Adam and Eve is given free rein."
The pernicious effect of sin: "As “slaves of corruption” (2 Pet. 2:19), we have a striking ability, day after day, to give ourselves over to sin. God intervenes not to protect his power, but in order to protect us from the tenacious power of our own corruption."
The tragic sin of making politics of the right or left our central focus and the final aim of the gospel: "The history of the twentieth century is littered with the bodies of those sacrificed to a particularly powerful form of the covenant of the lie: that the finite human project of politics can be brought to fulfillment in the universal dictatorship of the proletariat. The failure is plain to see. But even in the rubble we continue to build strange new towers. The only alternative to the worship of a finite good made into an idol is the worship of the one true God, the lord and creator of all. Without a predominating love of God, love of neighbor will become a limitless project, and the good things we seek for each other “is only the beginning of what [we] will do” (11:6). What begins as a fitting philanthropy ends with us rallying all the forces at our disposal to serve whatever god of worldly flourishing we have made for ourselves."
And again: "Moreover, secular government often misconceives the blessing it seeks, imagining that God prospers a nation or a people solely by strengthening its power. But the most threatening danger concerns the church itself. The warm embrace of alliance can place the church in a perilous situation. It is very tempting to accept the “thousand pieces of silver” (20:16) that the secular world offers, the rights and privileges and other forms of social reward that worldly powers provide, and then over time to imagine the silver to be a birthright more decisive and crucial for the church then God′s promises."
And this fascinating insight into the tragic rape of Dinah and consequent slaughter of the men of Shechem: "They protest that it “would be a disgrace to us” for Dinah, and for the rest of the clan, to marry into a community not marked by circumcision. But the unspoken falsehood is plain to see. Those not called cannot make themselves chosen by adopting the sign of circumcision as their own. Circumcision may be necessary, but it certainly is not sufficient."
This is an excellent commentary, but it is a theological commentary, so understand that. I find I'm really enjoying reading theology in the context of a scriptural book rather than as a systematic theology.
September 8, 2013
It took me almost a year to finish this book (which, yes, I read cover to cover) and the main reason it took my so long was because I kept running into sections I wanted to re-read, copy down, and think about for a while before I kept going. I enjoyed seeing who Reno returned again and again to several themes while he discussed Genesis, including God's plan for the whole world to enter his Sabbath rest and the scandal of particularity. I really need to read this again someday.
March 24, 2014
Great commentary on Genesis. I loved this book. R. R. Reno shows the importance of the first book in the canon and how it carries from ancient time through our current era. This is an important book that thinking Christians must read.
February 11, 2011
This commentary is Awesome! R. R. Reno has done an excellent exegesis of the first book of Moses.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews