The Book of Jeremiah

I am a "layman." The sheer length of Jeremiah seemed intimidating. I began with Irving Jensen, moved next to F.B. Huey, and landed on J.A. Thompson. I enjoyed all three COMMENTARIES and now understand why Thompson's is so highly rated. Beautifully written...accessible (even to me!)...packs powerful punches...great!

I have become a collector of commentaries ever since my seminary days in the 1990s. As such, I am only going to recommend the best overall commentary for each book of the Bible on this site. For Jeremiah, for preachers/teachers, I lean toward Thompson's contribution. As I mentioned in my recommendation of Craigie for Deuteronomy, I am not always a fan of the NICOT series, but I think Thompson to be more readable than some of the others in the series while engaging with the text in as a through a manner as the student of Jeremiah honestly needs. Thompson serves as my go-to commentary for Jeremiah; if you only had one in your pastoral library on this biblical book, I think he would serve your needs well. (Note: It is totally worth your investment to get and read Eugene Peterson's book "Run with the Horses" before doing a series through Jeremiah).

It appears that Jeremiah is not one of those books where there is clear and unanimous consensus on the top commentary. However, with that said, most of the experts, and especially the more conservative among them, do commend Thompson’s work. It contains detailed historical and exegetical examinations of the book and is suitable for pastors, scholars and general readers alike. It seems like it is as good a place to begin as any. [Full Review]

Certainly not the best commentary on Jeremiah. Lundbom is more thorough and gives better lines for exegesis than the sometimes insufficient explanations that Thompson gives. Nice as third choice commentary (Lundbom first, Fischer (Herder Th. Kommentar, German second), but after combining Lundbom and Fischer, you don't need Thompson

Probably the best overall commentary on the book of Jeremiah is J.A. Thompson's work in the NICOT series. Although it is moderately technical in places, all Hebrew is transliterated and fully explained. It is therefore accessible to most readers. Thompson writes from an evangelical perspective and offers numerous helpful insights into the meaning of this book. [Full Review]

Provides much more detailed exegetical and historical discussions than Ryken. The two compliment each other nicely.

The standard Evangelical commentary for the last two decades. [Full Review]