This commentary by Robert Chisholm Jr., a professor at Dallas Theological Seminary, is one of the first entries in the Kregel Exegetical Library, a new series of commentaries published by Kregel (this is the second entry after Allen Ross’s Psalms). Kregel has not published a preface for the series, but it appears that it will be written by conservative evangelical scholars and will be for pastors. Chisholm is a good choice to write this volume, as he has published extensively on Judges, Ruth, and Old Testament narrative.

The introduction for Judges includes material on literary structure, date of the text and events (dating is evidently an important topic for Chisholm, as he dedicates 20 pages to the topic), the main themes of the book, the role of judges and women in the book of Judges, the narrative structure of Judges, opinions of other commentaries on the book, and guidelines for preaching the book. He suggests that Judges has three main purposes: (1) a defense of YHWH’s reputation that had been endangered by Israel’s disobedience; (2) a warning to Israel of assimilating its environment (though Chisholm does not use the term, this is what Daniel Block helpfully calls the “Canaanization” of Israel); and (3) a demonstration of the need for talented and righteous leaders. He argues that the book has a strong anti-Benjamin and anti-Ephraim agenda with a slightly pro-Judah perspective (although that positive stance about Judah is qualified in many ways). The section on the role of women is particularly helpful, as Chisholm shows the changing role of women in the book as Israel sinks deeper into its sin.

Chisholm begins each pericope with a translation (very similar to Chisholm’s NET Bible translation), narrative structure, which consists of his description of each clause (such as sequential, consequential, initiatory, focusing, supplemental, and contrastive), and textual notes (in footnotes). This section occupies a considerable amount of space (about 20% of the text for each pericope). Chisholm’s clause descriptions could be a helpful guide for those who do not know Hebrew, but it will take work for some readers to interpret his terminology and know how it will help them understand the text better (Chisholm briefly explains his terminology on pp. 81–86; a footnote to the much longer descriptions in his book From Exegesis to Exposition: A Practical Guide to Using Biblical Hebrew [Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1999] would have been helpful). This kind of discourse analysis seems to be becoming more prominent in commentaries (for example, see the new Zondervan series Hearing the Message of Scripture), but the current diversity within the field of discourse analysis will make it difficult to standardize its findings and make it accessible for pastors.

The introductory section on Ruth follows a similar format. Chisholm argues that the book of Ruth demonstrates God’s concern for the needy, the importance of loyalty and kindness, the reward for “those who are faithful in their God-given relationships” (p. 564), and David’s divine election.

After a brief look at the literary structure of each pericope in Judges and Ruth, Chisholm spends the majority of his time working through the text in standard commentary style. He concludes each pericope with a section entitled “Message and Application,” which was the highlight of the book for me. While many commentary series that portray themselves as being for preachers fall short of that goal, this commentary clearly succeeds in helping pastors preach the text. For each pericope Chisholm traces for the reader how he moves from the story to an exegetical idea that summarizes the main point of the text. For example, part of the exegetical idea for the Samson pericope is that “God was at work among his people, even when they were insensitive to his presence. He accomplished his purpose through unwise Samson, though Samson failed to understand his role as God’s deliverer and was motivated by personal gratification and vengeance, not some sense of higher calling” (p. 434). Chisholm then draws a theological principle that is applicable to all the people of God throughout history: “God is always at work among his people, even when they are insensitive to his presence” (p. 434). Finally, Chisholm presents various ways that a pastor could preach the text, including aspects such as sample sermon titles (“A Sovereign God Can Win with His Hands Tied Behind His Back” [p. 435]) or summarizing in a paragraph what a sermon might contain. This detailed work demonstrating how to move from the text to a sermon is excellent.

Overall, the commentary is a helpful work for explaining the books of Judges and Ruth. The greatest problem with the book, in my opinion, can be seen when Chisholm’s work is contrasted with another recent commentary on Judges by Barry Webb in the New International Commentary on the Old Testament series (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012). Webb is far weaker in the application category, but his discussion of the text is more organized and readable. Chisholm becomes somewhat too encyclopedic in categorizing various views (although he very rarely refers to anything not written in English) and his prose jumps around without finding the smooth flow that Webb exhibits.

While Chisholm’s may not be the best commentary for explaining the text (I would recommend the commentaries by Block and Webb), it surpasses other commentaries in showing how to apply Old Testament narrative to today’s world and will provide much helpful direction not only for those wishing to preach Judges and Ruth, but also for those wishing to teach any Old Testament narrative.

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