The Gospel of Matthew

France’s commentary may be the best single-volume commentary on the Gospel of Matthew for the pastor-scholar who is proficient in Greek. It doesn’t require a mastery of Greek but proficiency enables one to use it to full effect. The commentary presents a detailed discussion of the text that is the product of a lifetime of study and is attentive to the theological implications of each section. There are few things France has not considered in Matthew, and all his mature reflection, scholarly erudition, and pastoral wisdom help an exegetically-minded pastor think carefully about the text. [Full Review]

The single best commentary on Matthew available today.

I have now read both this volume and the same author’s volume on the gospel of Mark. Though that volume is rated as the best commentary on the gospel of Mark, I would consider this Matthew volume to be the better of the two. I am using this commentary to teach through the gospel of Matthew alongside Carson and Osborne, and I find this one to be the most valuable of the three by far. It really makes the other two unnecessary most of the time. If you are only getting one commentary on the gospel of Matthew, this should be your choice. 5 stars.

I have now read both this volume and the same author’s volume on the gospel of Mark. Though that volume is rated as the best commentary on the gospel of Mark, I would consider this Matthew volume to be the better of the two. I am using this commentary to teach through the gospel of Matthew alongside Carson and Osborne, and I find this one to be the most valuable of the three by far. It really makes the other two unnecessary most of the time. If you are only getting one commentary on the gospel of Matthew, this should be your choice. 5 stars.

Amazing. France knows how to be interesting while style being faithful to the text.

I am a pastor and a studious one. I use commentaries extensively to help me prepare carefully for my sermons. I have used other Matthew commentaries a lot. I really like Blomberg's, and even more so Carson's. I will continue to use both of them. But I have to say that (in agreement with Carson in his Commentary Survey), this commentary by R.T. France is absolutely superb. His writing is clear and utterly helpful. The quality of the scholarship is impressive. It is very helpful to the preacher. It is a pleasure to read. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. My first pick on Matthew.

I am a pastor and a studious one. I use commentaries extensively to help me prepare carefully for my sermons. I have used other Matthew commentaries a lot. I really like Blomberg's, and even more so Carson's. I will continue to use both of them. But I have to say that (in agreement with Carson in his Commentary Survey), this commentary by R.T. France is absolutely superb. His writing is clear and utterly helpful. The quality of the scholarship is impressive. It is very helpful to the preacher. It is a pleasure to read. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. My first pick on Matthew.

France has a volume in the Tyndale series that is highly regarded, but it has since been eclipsed by his much longer and more significant contribution to the NICNT. That series, like so many, is somewhat uneven, but France’s is said to be excellent. Keith Mathison says the “work is thorough and solidly evangelical and will be beneficial to pastors and all serious students of Scripture.” I expect to find a greater number of endorsements as the commentators catch up with newer volumes like this one. [Full Review]

Best exegetical and theological commentary, a stand-out especially in its handling of the Olivet Discourse. [Full Review]

Very solid commentary.

This is a lucid, stimulating volume from a scholar whose interest in Matthew spanned several decades – and whose mature reflections are evident on most every page. [Full Review]

My preferred choice on Matthew, hands down. Current, impeccable scholarship, but accessible for pastors.

Great resource!

Shortest introduction I’ve ever seen for a comprehensive commentary: barely 22 pages, after which France gets down to the verse-by-verse exposition. All the information is exactly where I want it to be in this volume. So good. France finished this volume in 2005, in his late sixties, and I love his ability to shrug off some of the unnecessary complications of gospel criticism. Though he knows everything about synoptic parallels, he refuses to speak simply of Matthean redaction in a “rigid x-copied-y approach.” The result is a great reading of Matthew’s own gospel. France also has more to say about the Galilee-versus-Jerusalem dynamic than other commentators, which I found fascinating and illuminating. [Full Review]

This is the best commentary on Matthew from the Evangelical tradition. While not as thorough as Davies and Allison, the level of detail is certainly adequate. His strength is following the flow of the narrative. France is excellent at placing each pericope within its broader context and helping you see how the different pieces of the gospel fit together. I would definitely recommend that every pastor and serious lay student of the Bible own this commentary.

Third, I recommend R.T. France's new commentary in the NICNT series [Full Review]

A short commentary on the Gospel of Matthew has been available by R.T. France in the Tyndale New Testament Commentary series since 1985, but in 2007, France published a much more comprehensive commentary on this Gospel in the NICNT series -- The New International Commentary on the New Testament. France's work is thorough and solidly evangelical and will be beneficial to pastors and all serious students of Scripture. His commentary is distinctive in that he takes a largely preterist approach to much of the Olivet Discourse. [Full Review]

[Full Review]