Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther

McConville is one of those rare commentators whose brevity seems to sharpen rather than diminish his exegetical insight. The volume cannot compete with Williamson, Harrington or Smith for technical detail, but it repeatedly notices theological and literary features that larger commentaries pass over. Particularly memorable is his observation that Ezra invokes Jeremiah while refraining from exploiting the full splendour of Isaiah’s restoration prophecies: the return is genuinely an act of fulfilment, but it is deliberately not presented as the final or messianic restoration, leaving Israel with “some way to go.” His handling of Ezra 10 is likewise admirably balanced, neither minimizing the severity of the divorces nor treating Ezra simplistically, but interpreting the action within the perceived threat to the survival of the covenant community. McConville offers an exceptional amount of original theological insight per page and remains one of the best complementary commentaries in the field.

McConville’s commentary on Esther is scholarly but not technical, informed (though a bit dated) without being too academic. His present-day application may fall a little flat, but he situates Esther in its canonical context expertly. [Full Review]

For the book of Esther, I read a chapter of this book each night with my wife. It is a wonderful devotional commentary. McConville gives enough background and scholarly comments to really help one understand the text. He then goes on to give wonderful thoughts on implications and applications for our own day. He does all this with the space constraints of this devotional commentary. Highly recommended for the commentary series it is in.

I have benefited from many of McConville's works, and this brief introductory level commentary is no exception. I find Kidner somewhat more useful, but McConville should not be ignored. [Full Review]