A New Commentary on Acts (Matthew Skinner)

Series: An Interpretation Bible Commentary

A New Commentary on Acts (Matthew Skinner)

I’ll admit it—I love commentaries; not everyone does, but I use them all the time and I admire and respect great commentary writers who pour themselves into Scripture and plumb the depths of its riches.

I was glad to see the launch of a new version of Westminster John Knox’s “Interpretation” series. Here is the new series description:

Emphasizing sound critical exegesis with strong theological sensibilities, the Interpretation Bible Commentary series features innovative interpretive approaches that help readers engage the biblical text as a source for participating in the larger social world. These new volumes, written by an array of new and diverse authors, are designed to meet the needs of clergy, teachers, and students by inviting readers into the lively work of careful biblical interpretation for the purpose of faithful exposition. Through its engagement with Scripture, the Interpretation Bible Commentary series illumines our relationship with God, one another, and creation so that readers are propelled with new understanding and energy for fulfilling God’s claims on us in our rapidly changing contexts.

There are 2 volumes released (Matthew and Acts), with a third coming soon.

The Book of Acts

In the old Interpretation series, William Willimon wrote the excellent ~200pp volume on Acts.

Matthew Skinner is a worthy successor, as Skinner has written extensively in the Gospels and Acts and can write in a winsome and engaging manner. One of my favorite pieces of scholarship on the book of Acts is Skinner’s 2015 work, Intrusive God, Disruptive Gospel: Encountering the Divine in the Book of Acts.

But this new commentary is much more detailed and comments on every passage in the Book of Acts.

Here’s my quick take on Skinner’s commentary, having spent a good bit of time in this volume in the last few weeks.

• First, the commentary is beautifully produced—WJK did not cut corners on the quality of the production. It is a delight to hold in your hands and to read with layout and design.

• Skinner knows Acts forwards and backwards and is an engaging writer. This is an enjoyable commentary to read.

• Methodologically, Skinner’s emphasis is on a literary-theological approach to the text.

• A couple of concerns or drawbacks: Skinner touches on preaching tips, but it is not as big a part of the commentary as I was expecting. In excurses scattered throughout the book, Skinner often provides wise warnings about how NOT to preach on Acts (e.g., anti-semitic readings), which is important, but I was looking for more explicit advice on sermon themes and topics.

• Second concern: the introduction is very short and doesn’t touch much on the historical reliability of Acts. Skinner briefly mentions that Acts is not written as an objective historical account of facts, but the genre issue is a big one for interpreters and preachers, and I think it deserved much more space.

This is a great resource to have on your shelf—this would be great as a “staff reading” option if your church is preaching and teaching through Acts.

I am very delighted to see the reboot of the beloved Interpretation series launching so well.

Lastly check out this high commendation for Skinner’s work from the Willie James Jennings!

Among the many commentaries on the book of Acts, add this one to the category of the most beautiful and most insightful” ~Jennings