Featured Commentary on Acts

I purchased Bock's commentary on Acts. Overall, I have found it good and useful. Very big and thick, with perhaps a few too many brief references to what some other theologian says, with only enough that it isn't super-helpful and makes me want to see the context. I am pleased that I got it. In addition to Bock, I purchased the following Acts-related books, for various reasons.

• Exemplary Life: A Theology of Church Life in Acts, Andy Chambers, 2012
• Issues in Luke-Acts: Selected Essays, Sean A. Adams, Michael Pahl, editors, 2012
• Studies in Luke-Acts, Leander E. Keck, James Louis Martyn, editors, 1966/1980
• The Acts of the Apostles with Notes, Chiefly Explanatory, Henry Jones Ripley, 1843
• The Randall House Bible Commentary: Acts, Danny L. Dwyer, 2018
• Treatise on the Book of Acts, Jay Elmer Wright, 1982

Chambers is primarily a study of the summary narratives in Acts, and related scriptures. Adams/Pahl and Keck/Martyn are on the high muckity end of theology, tending to reject the historicity of Acts. For example, in Keck/Martyn, Eduard Schweizer has a detailed analysis of several of the speeches in Acts, good in his compilation of facts, but positing that it proves all the speeches were composed by Luke (i.e., as opposed to Peter, Paul, etc.), that is, of course, if Luke is really Luke at all! Dwyer and Wright represent different traditions (Free Will Baptist & Church of Christ), and Ripley is an American Baptist from the 19th century. Some I picked deliberately, and some I happened up on and decided to buy. Also picked up a couple of new books on tongues in Acts, and a study of Acts 2:38.

 

Thanks. I was able to view the “Preface” and first chapter with the Amazon “Look Inside” feature for the Kindle Edition of The Book of Acts (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) by Peter S. Ruckman. On the up side, he often comments on things the so-called scholars miss because they are so busy straining at gnats of minutiae while swallowing camels. He has mentioned several things I have found useful. One simple one -- while many commentators wrangle over the distance of a Sabbath day’s journey and search for errors, they miss the simple fact that Bethany/Mount of Olives is a Sabbath day’s journey from Jerusalem, and that distance is spelled out in John 11:18. Peter Ruckman, on the other hand, did not miss it. One of the downsides for me is the constant name-calling and name-dropping. I mention the later in that many times he seems to just mention “scholars” to show that he knows who they are! If the entire book is like the first chapter, it could probably be downsized by almost half by removing the paragraphs that string together lists of names of 30 or 40 “scholars” to no particular end, that benefits me in the least. Also, some things are just sort of strange to my way of thinking, such as highlighting the fact that The Acts of the Apostles is correctly named in the King James Bible, while titling his work The Book of Acts and often referring to The Acts of the Apostles as The Book of Acts.

If I find a bargain somewhere I may purchase it. At present I am not currently prepared to spend $20 to $30 for the print edition. The Kindle Edition at Amazon is only $9.99, but I like to have print books.