Isaiah

Motyer masterfully helps readers to grasp how the message of the book fits together as a whole. As Longman observes, “Motyer and Oswalt provide the most lucid exposition of Isaiah from a traditional viewpoint that sees the whole book as coming largely from the eighth century.” This volume is more than a summary of Motyer’s more technical work; it also provides many additional insights. [Full Review]

This is something of a condensed version of a longer and more complex commentary by a superb scholar with the good and bad that this implies. Dr. Motyer is clearly a good writer with an amazing grasp of his subject. In some ways, this feels like the capstone of a lifetime study. Sometimes however the book is much more like an in-depth word study than an introductory commentary. The intro is fine though brief as it sets the stage for the lion's share of the volume which is commentary. This signals a work that requires attention and sometimes re-reading. To be worth the effort, the thoughts and explanations need to be educational and even at times inspiring and Dr. Motyer does this well. Especially in the later chapters that are more prophetic, the commentary really shines. Worth the effort.

An abbreviated form of the larger 1993 publication, with some revision. Evangelical. [Full Review]