Title: The Message of the Twelve (Hearing the Voice of the Minor Prophets)
Author: Richard Alan Fuhr, Jr. & Gary E. Yates
Pages: 384
Year: 2016
Publisher: B & H
My rating is 5 stars.
A timely commentary if there ever was one! Why? So many focus on the New Testament to the exclusion of the Old Testament; some don’t understand the Old Testament and there are those who struggle through reading let alone studying it. The reason I wanted to read this book was twofold: one is because, “All Scripture is God- breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16 NIV). The second reason is that being curious I wanted to read, learn and hoped to use what the authors said as a means of growing in my walk with the Lord.
Right from the Preface readers will be able to glean nuggets of truth in the easy manner of the presentation of the material. I would recommend reading the sections that they are teaching from in the Bible before reading the commentary. I found it really encouraging when reading the Preface to learn the authors’ purpose in writing The Message of the Twelve, which was “We have written this overview of the Book of the Twelve for students, Pastors, and all who seek to understand this neglected segment of God’s Word…….Yet, the message of the Twelve is extremely relevant, and its material, while challenging is quite approachable with a little direction.” (pg. XIV-XV).
Here is commentary that is written with the academic community in mind, but more for the everyday person seeking to understand what the Word of God is saying and what it speaks to their hearts today. I found that making time to read and study the Word with such aids as this book really helped me grasp the message of the Word. We don’t have to have doctorates to read or understand the Word, God used ordinary, and in many cases, unlearned men to be His vessels to speak the Word and then to write the Word.
Thankfully, we now have another tool to help us see that while these twelve books are in the Old Testament they are just as chock full of meaning today as they were way back when. I appreciated the purpose and hard work the authors put into the message the commentary contains so I can expand my understanding. Plus, above all, with The Holy Spirit indwelling believers we have the best Teacher of all to lead us into all truth. I can’t recommend this commentary enough. In the coming year (2017), perhaps you can gift this book to someone you know or ask for it when people want to know what you want to see under the tree!
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