The Message of James

Though some of his illustrations are dated, Motyer is one of the few commentators whose applications do justice to the socio-economic dimension of James’s setting. Teachers and church members will deeply benefit from his incisive treatment of the letter. [Full Review]

Thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated this classic. Motyer is a pleasure to read. Scholarship is dated now, so pair with a more recent commentary.

Excellent preachers commentary with strong insights into structure of the text and theological and pastoral implications of the text.

I always find it valuable to have one entry-level, reader-friendly commentary for each book. When it comes to James, you may not do better than Motyer’s contribution to the BST. Carson says this volume “displays the strengths we have come to expect from this series, along with some thoughtful suggestions as to the structure of James.” Rosscup and Mathison also give it high praise. [Full Review]

Motyer's BST on James is very good. For what is a relatively popular level commentary, it is pretty thorough with the text, by which I mean most of the disputed questions are discussed with reasons given for the views put forward - although you can find more elsewhere. Motyer is also interesting on his analysis of the structure. At times I found it a little over-complicated to be convincing, but it was good to have a commentary wrestling with the "why has James put that here?" question. One of the joys of a good BST is that it moves all the way through to application and I have to say I found this to be a good BST. The application was regularly challenging and was tied to the text. It's worth saying that it makes a good companion to Moo (in the Tyndale, I haven't got his more recent Pillar), partly because he often takes a different view and so you can compare the reasoning. This is a good commentary to resource the bible study leader and to help the preacher (who may want a more detailed resource as well).

Very helpful and thorough exposition of the book of James. Motyer is not content to merely explain the text, but drives home the challenge of the message of James [Full Review]

Motyer's works should never be skipped by those seeking insight into the meaning of Scripture. His commentaries on Isaiah and Exodus are particularly valuable, and the same is true for this introductory level commentary on James. [Full Review]

This is a very simple devotional style commentary on the book of James. I can see this a being an OK book to use for a Bible Study group just looking to have a practical study on James. Though I loved Motyer on Philippians, I personally found less help here.

Excellent popular exposition Alec Motyer is one of the best biblical expositors out there. His greatest strength in biblical scholarship has been in the structure of biblical works, something most people have found entirely lacking in James. Motyer reconstructs what may well have been the connections in the mind of James between seemingly unrelated teachings. In this book, James no longer seems to be a collection of miscellaneous proverbs but is more a summary of a thought process that moved from one thought to the other very quickly and without explicitly tracing the connections, but Motyer shows the connections behind such moves. [Full Review]