The Letters to the Colossians and to Philemon (2nd ed.)

Simply phenomenal. Moo has quickly become the standard for me in terms of what the ideal commentary for pastors looks like. I'd interacted with his NICNT on Romans for Rom. 4, 6, & 7, but this was the first time actually sitting down and working through an entire work of his. If you are a pastor preaching expositionally through the book, this is what you're looking for. Moo simply works through the text, makes various syntactical observations, points to differing options, presents the best arguments for them, comes to his own reasoned conclusion, and offers theological insights all along the way. I essentially stopped consulting Dunn's NIGTC commentary because Moo would say what his conclusions were when relevant. If you could only have one commentary on Colossians (or Philemon), this would be my pick. As I mentioned previously, Arnold's new WBC work on Colossians is a VERY close second. If you can grab both, I think you're very well set to work through Colossians. Moo gets the nod for: 1) the format & layout of the WBC is awful, 2) I enjoy Moo's concise writing style more (he typically says more in saying less), and 3) You also get a great commentary on Philemon.

Moo’s revised PNTC is now the commentary I would most readily recommend as the best single current all-round working volume on Colossians and Philemon. The second edition incorporates another fifteen years of scholarship while retaining the basic judgments of the first, and Moo’s characteristic strength is careful adjudication rather than the pursuit of novelty for its own sake. He recognizes the substantial Jewish component in the Colossian problem without forcing all the evidence into a single Jewish-mystical reconstruction, handles the Christ hymn with appropriate caution about hypothetical earlier forms, and consistently keeps the supremacy and sufficiency of Christ at the centre of the letter. His Philemon is especially good: Moo allows that Paul does not straightforwardly command emancipation, yet concludes that legal freedom probably belongs to what Paul ultimately hopes Philemon will grant Onesimus. The commentary’s originality lies less in one spectacular thesis than in its exceptionally independent and reliable judgments. Current, comprehensive, theologically serious and consistently useful.

Doug Moo’s excellent commentary represents an optimal blend of exegetical competence, theological insight, and careful handling of interpretational issues. As is typical with all Moo publishes, he writes clearly and engagingly. Tabb notes that Moo’s lengthy introductions to both letters provide “a very thorough defense of Pauline authorship” and helpful proposals for the situation behind Philemon. [Full Review]