I love the book of Proverbs and often feel bewilderment when I think of how few Christians, and Christian parents in particular, rely on the wisdom it contains—knowledge that is at once deep and wide. Proverbs is, in so many ways, a manual for raising wise, discerning, godly children. Why then don’t we turn to it more often?

Don’t be scared away by the title. After all, commentaries are not only for pastors. So read on!

I do not have an extensive collection of commentaries (though, for a guy who has only preached once, I’m doing alright, thanks primarily to my father trimming down his library). But of the volumes I do have, among the ones I’ve enjoyed the most are titles in the Reformed Expository Commentary series. These are not the kind of commentary that rely on extremely thorough and scholarly treatments of the passages. Rather, they are pastoral (though still scholarly) in their tone and read much like application-heavy expositional sermons (which, I suspect, is where many of them had their origins).

Buying commentaries is often a difficult proposition. There are so many available and yet so few that are really solid. A good commentary is an invaluable aid in leading the reader to the cross; a poor commentary tends to lead anywhere but. With commentary prices being what they are, it hurts to purchase one only to find that it is a poor choice. New Testament Commentary Survey, edited by D.A. Carson and now in its sixth edition, seeks to provide guidance on the best options available.

Originally written by Anthony C. Thiselton under the title Personal Suggestions About a Minister’s Library, the book was revised in 1973 and renamed to New Testament Commentary Survey. In 1976 D.A. Carson assumed authorship and updated it in 1976, 1984, 2001. “They years fly by,” writes Carson, “and new commentaries keep appearing—and so we have arrived at the sixth edition” published in 2007 by Baker Academic.

My wife has a bad habit of forgetting what she has requested for her birthday and Christmas. We celebrated her birthday just a few weeks ago and, upon opening a study guide for the book of Ephesians she looked a little bit surprised. I had to remind her that she had asked for just such a guide. Unfortunately, as with so many similar books, it proved to be a little bit disappointing. It went through the book of Ephesians, but seemed to ask many disjointed and nearly irrelevant questions. It did teach many of the major themes of the book, but it was not a very satisfying or edifying experience.

I have learned to expect to be underwhelmed with study guides. Sadly, it was with this expectation that I began to read The Story of Joseph and Judah, a guide written by Warren Gage, Associate Professor of Old Testament at Knox Theological Seminary and Christopher Barber, a lawyer who is also a graduate of Know Theological Seminary. I am glad to say that this guide, which promises to provide a “fresh look at Genesis 37-50,” does just that and does it very well.

It was only through the providence of God that Sinclair Ferguson’s new book Faithful God came to be. The chapters of the book were originally written as a series of messages delivered at the conference of the Evangelical Movement of Wales in Aberystwyth in August 1996. But the spoken word and the written word are sufficiently different that, when asked if he would consider turning the messages into a book, Ferguson, who serves as Professor of Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Dallas, was not optimistic, for the amount of work in converting the spoken word to the written is at least as great as preparing a book from scratch. Years later the rediscovery of a computer disk marked “Ruth—Aberyswyth 1996” compelled Ferguson to finally commit the messages to book format. God was good to allow him the opportunity.