Bible Study Tools: Bible Background Commentary

In the world of Bible study, a commentary is a very helpful tool, however, there are so many of them that the average Christian doesn’t know where to start. In addition to this, many different types of commentaries are available: technical, semi-technical, expositional, devotional, etc. These additional types of commentaries tend to further alienate a believer from ever considering the value of a commentary, let alone buying one. However, let me encourage you, commentaries have immense value, especially ones that are called background commentaries, which I would place near the top of the list.

A Bible background commentary is intended to help the reader with questions of culture that they might come across while reading the Bible. Many people experience cultural issues when visiting another country, another people group, or even another city. For example, it is impossible to visit the ancient Philistine city of Gath because that city is long gone, although archaeologists have some theories about where it might have existed. However, we can know quite a bit about the Philistine culture by looking at ancient records, collecting samples from archaeological dig sites, and examining contemporaneous people groups that lived near or around them. Now, the average Bible student doesn’t have access to those records nor the dig sites, so the next best idea would be to acquire a Bible background commentary wherein experts have collected all the pertinent information into a readable format.

The go-to resource for a Bible background commentary comes from Inter-Varsity Press called The IVP Bible Background Commentary (one volume for the OT and one for the NT). This resource is laid out in a verse-by-verse format allowing you to go right to a verse and read about its cultural significance. The resource also includes a glossary of important cultural terms, maps and charts, and an introductory essay of cultural background for all Bible books. Consider adding this type of resource to your library, I have a feeling it will be a standard resource you will grab time and time again as you dig deeper into God’s Word.