Best Commentary on the Psalms- NIVAC by Gerald H. Wilson

Selecting “the best” commentary on the Psalms is challenging because so many good volumes exist. But for the preacher preparing a sermon or a serious Bible student preparing a lesson for class, there seems to be no better choice than Gerald H. Wilson’s Psalms Volume 1 in the NIV Application Commentary series.

Following the standard NIVAC format, Wilson actually does something many other writers in the series don’t: he spends more time on exegesis than application. Each psalm is discussed in three categories: Original Meaning, Bridging Contexts and Contemporary Significance (or application). While there is useful material in the Contemporary Significance sections, the real meat of this volume is often in the exegetical sections.

The Psalms are, of course, poetry. That’s a fact that many teachers and preachers overlook when teaching from the book using it instead to buttress doctrinal arguments. Wilson’s 60 page introduction spend much of its time exploring the issues of poetry and form, helping the reader understand the intricacies of Hebrew poetry. More than that, Wilson strives to understand the Psalms in their Hebrew context, something that is hard for Christian readers to do with many of the familiar phrases and texts.

In Psalm 22, for example, the phrase quoted by Jesus, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” is very familiar to Christians. Wilson cautions against thinking of the Psalm only in light of Jesus’ use of it. Doing so, he says, causes us to ignore “its long history within the community of faith before Jesus…used it.” He adds, “Only as we understand what the psalm means on its own are we better able to understand why Jesus chose these words to reflect his own agony of abandonment by the Father” on the cross.

No knowledge of Hebrew is required to benefit from this study as only transliterated Hebrew appears, generally in footnotes.

Wilson had been scheduled to write volume 2 in this series but passed away in 2005 before writing the second volume. This volume covers Psalms 1-72.

Psalms, Volume 1 (NIVAC) by Gerald H. Wilson is 1024 pages in hardcover. The book is thoroughly footnoted and contains a scripture index and a subject index. Wilson was Professor of Biblical Studies at Azusa Pacific University. List price is $39.99. Available from Amazon.

Our take: Recommended