For the past few weeks I have been preaching from Revelation 4 and 5, the throne-room scene of heaven. I have been challenging myself and my church to think about how heaven should impact our own corporate gatherings. I have received some wonderful responses from people, particularly over the fact that I am methodically teaching through a very neglected portion of Scripture: the book of Revelation. I plan to preaching through another section of Revelation later this year also.
In light of my recent time spent in studying and teaching Revelation, here are the commentaries I have been using with a few comments on them.
Detailed Exegetical Commentaries
- Word Biblical Commentary, Revelation, David E. Aune. 3 Volumes. Amillennial in perspective. This is a solid commentary on the exegetical side of things. Aune tends to miss the impact the book should have on the Christian community in his conclusions, however.
- The New International Greek Testament Commentary, The Book of Revelation, G. K. Beale. Beale is eclectic in his approach, landing on the futuristic side of things at times while preterist and idealistic in other sections. His exegesis is excellent throughout and is the best commentary in showing Old Testament connections. While I don”™t agree with many of his conclusions, his arguments are thorough and detailed. I never missed reading this one.
- The New International Commentary on the New Testament, The Book of Revelation, Revised, Robert H. Mounce. Ecclectic in perspective. Not as detailed for this series as I would have hoped, but good exegetical insights in places.
- Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, Revelation, Grant T. Osborne. I usually expect more from this series than I found in this volume. Osborne tends to summarize what the other major commentaries say. He takes an eclectic approach and leans toward a futuristic view of Revelation.
- An Exegetical Commentary, Revelation, 2 Volumes, Robert L. Thomas. Dr. Thomas was a professor of mine at The Master”™s Seminary. His commentary is quite detailed and interacts with all of the major view points and commentators. He lands on a more Dispensational, futuristic view, though much more exegetical in nature than Walvoord. This is one of the best commentaries on the book in my estimation.
Expositional Commentaries
- The Daily Bible Study Series, The Revelation of John, William Barclay.
- Holman New Testament Commentary, Revelation, Kendell H. Easley. Basic treatment of the passages; fair job in presenting most viewpoints.
- The Faithful Witness, Ken Gore. Ken is a personal friend who was a member of my church in Granada Hills, California. He writes from a preterist perspective.
- New Testament Commentary, Revelation, Simon J. Kistemaker. A solid exposition of the text from an Amillennial perspective.
- The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Revelation, 2 Volumes, John F. MacArthur, Jr. A good detailed exposition and demonstration of how the book was preached by Dr. MacArthur. Good argumentation in a general expository format. Dispensational, pre-millennial perspective.
- The Revelation Record, Henry M. Morris. Pre-millennial in perspective. As expected from Dr. Morris, this book tries to fit in scientific information in assisting the interpreter. Morris makes a number of helpful contributions, but I found it overstated in places and too brief to be most helpful.
- The Revelation of Jesus Christ, John F. Walvoord. A heavy Dispensational viewpoint that is well articulated at points, but so brief that it lacks necessary detail to be convincing at times.
Devotional Commentaries
- The Unveiling, James T. Draper. These are devotional expositions of the book, reflecting how Dr. Draper preached through the book in his own church. Pre-millennial perspective.
- What Would Jesus Say About Your Church, Richard Mayhue. These are a series of sermonic expositions of Revelation 2-3. Dispensational in perspective (differs from Walvoord), but good and healthy reviews of the messages of Jesus to the 7 churches.
