Numbers 1–19

Anyone familiar with the author's work on Leviticus (Who Shall Ascend the Mountain of the Lord?) will know what to expect from his commentary on Numbers. It is a thoroughly engaging commentary that will surprise and help to enlarge your appreciation for a difficult and neglected book. As with his book on Leviticus, Morales includes many illustrated diagrams to assist in visualizing theological concepts. This is a commentary of deep faith that will reward the reader's time and effort. I would refer people to Thomas Creedy's complete review of both volumes. Although he was the editor on the books, I find his enthusiasm and assessment fully justified.

[Biased as I w as the in-Publisher editor on this!] Morales has done something genuinely impressive with this major new commentary. In this first volume he introduces his project, and engages with chapters 1-19. But don't take my word for it - here's what some early readers had to say: "Michael Morales has marshaled a breathtaking spectrum of Jewish, Christian, and critical perspectives unprecedented in commentary to Numbers - or to any book of the Hebrew Bible. His attention to the ways structure, themes and vocabulary create a unified whole within chapters and across the book makes this an indispensable resource." - Joshua Berman, Bar-Ilan University, author of Inconsistency in the Torah: Ancient Literary Convention and the Limits of Source Criticism "With close attention to the text, and deeply informed by classical and modern sources, Michael Morales offers a theologically rich and informative reading of Numbers. By highlighting the importance of Israel's Camp he demonstrates the literary integrity of the book. Far from Numbers being the junk room of the priestly material, he demonstrates that it is a coherent work. This substantial commentary will therefore be a key point of reference for all future work on Numbers." - David G. Firth, Trinity College Bristol "Michael Morales's work on Numbers is a breathtaking achievement. It is a rare thing for a work of this scale (or any scale) to marry depth of scholarship, breadth of reading, clarity of expression and an evident commitment to the gospel of Christ, but this book has it all. It's worth having for the introduction alone, which brilliantly outlines a theological approach to Numbers that is both dramatically fresh and yet historically rooted, particularly in the rich Jewish tradition of reading the book as a keystone of the Pentateuch. Morales's careful and thoughtful exegesis is married with a profound commitment to biblical theology. Judicious insights and stimulating suggestions are presented with a beautiful lightness of touch. This deserves to be the standard evangelical work on Numbers for many years to come, and will repay careful study by pastors, scholars and students alike." - J. Gary Millar, Principal, Queensland Theological College, Brisbane, Australia "Page-turner and game-changer! I never expected to say that of a book about Numbers. Michael Morales's commentary on Numbers changes everything. No commentary or study opens up Numbers more richly than these two volumes - from the census of the first generation to the second ruling about the inheritance of the daughters of Zelophehad. Every page of Morales's interpretation leads me to re-study Numbers as though I have never read it before. The exciting engagement with rich Judaic interpretative traditions sets every part of Numbers within the entire book and the entire Torah as well as within all of the Christian Scriptures. Pastors, students and scholars will want to set aside the latest paperback in order to take to the beach or to the park Morales's page-turner of a commentary and find out what's next. Morales invites all of us back into the wilderness sojourn of Numbers as though for the very first time." - Gary Edward Schnittjer, Distinguished Professor of Old Testament, Cairn University, Philadelphia, and author of the award-winning Old Testament Use of Old Testament: A Book-by-Book Guide