Colossians-Philemon

Word Biblical Commentary #44

by Peter T. O'Brien

The Word Biblical Commentary delivers the best in biblical scholarship, from the leading scholars of our day who share a commitment to Scripture as divine revelation. This series emphasizes a thorough analysis of textual, linguistic, structural, and theological evidence. The result is judicious and balanced insight into the meanings of the text in the framework of biblical theology. These widely acclaimed commentaries serve as exceptional resources for the professional theologian and instructor, the seminary or university student, the working minister, and everyone concerned with building theological understanding from a solid base of biblical scholarship.

Genres: Theology, Reference, Biblical Studies, Christian, New Testament

382 pages, Hardcover

First published August 15, 1982

About the author

O'Brien is senior research fellow in New Testament at Moore Theological College in Sydney, Australia. He is well-known for his major biblical commentaries, including The Letter to the Ephesians (Apollos), and several publications on the subject of mission.

Reviews

[Laurent Dv · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, concise and excellent summary explanation (which rephrase the main points of the ver by verse notes) for each pericope of Colossians. Only problems, the Greek make problems for me and no applications for modern readers.

I know that this commentary is now found nowhere (except on amazon for at least 70 €). So for those who want I can share the photos that I took, I have all the pericopes summary of the commentary. Just send me a message with your mail.

[Simon O'Mahony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Regardless of plagiarism, it is an excellent technical commentary.

[Tsegaye]

Great book to understand Colossians- Philemon.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

O'Brien is very thorough in his presentations of different theories of the meaning of the text of Colossians to the point of dragging you through multiple nuanced theories of specific meanings of specific words tucked away in the depths of this biblical text. I am not complaining, just noting, there were plenty of times that good insight and enlightening content came from these thorough dealings. O'Brien postulates and defends Paul as the author of Colossians although I am not convinced by his arguments. Ultimately, while I appreciate the work and the thoroughness I felt that the text didn't say enough about the heresy and just skirted making a direct claim as to what it was. I found Dunn more convincing.

[Gavin Breeden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recently taught through the book of Colossians and this was the most in depth commentary I read. O'Brien is very solid and definitely knows his stuff. It's certainly a technical commentary so a little Greek is probably needed to get the most out of it, but it's a rich resource and O'Brien sheds a lot of light on Colossians and Philemon. This commentary falls on the more academic side so it would work best being used alongside a more pastoral commentary as well (I also used Calvin and Hendriksen and enjoyed both). This one will help uncover the meanings of words, phrases, and passages, the more pastoral commentaries will help you apply those meanings to life. Highly recommended.

[Brian Pate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent resource for personal use. Due to recent allegations of plagiarism, it would be inappropriate to cite this commentary in an academic work.

This was the first full-length commentary that O'Brien produced (WBC, 1982). It is good, but I think he improved over time. His commentaries on Philippians (IGNTC, 1991), Ephesians (Pillar, 1999), and Hebrews (Pillar, 2010) are even better. He excels at concise summaries and demonstrating the progression of logical thought by the biblical author.

Zondervan's statement on O'Brien's plagiarism: https://zondervanacademic.com/blog/st...

[Travis McNeely · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had to read this with my Greek class, I only read the Colossians part, but if Philemon's commentary section is as good as it is in Colossians in O'Briens work then it is probably amazing. I had to translate Colossians from Greek to English and this book did very good at providing good exegesis and syntax. Also gave multiple views on controversial parts of Colossians with tons of other resources to study from. Love this series and commentary.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Caught up in the technical and scholarly arguments (and I found myself, with the aid of other commentaries, disagreeing with him more than I anticipated), his exposition is thin and a bit too Calvinist for me. Still useful as a reference book due to its detail. Certainly made me appreciate Moo's commentary more.

[Marshall Walter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid Colossians commentary to have on the shelf. I like most of O'Brien's stuff and believe he's gotten better over time.

[Geoff Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I read this book, it was probably the top commentary on Colossians by a conservative scholar. Very helpful.