Kick Off: Reading Group Starts TODAY! (Reading Gaventa's Romans)

Reading Beverly Gaventa's Romans Commentary Together!

Today (July 23, 2024), we are kicking off the Engaging Scripture book club. We are going to spend several weeks reading through Beverly Gaventa’s brand new ROMANS commentary. If you want to follow along, it is ideal if you buy the book. If you can’t afford it or don’t have the time to read it, you can still read my weekly reflections, what I appreciate from Gaventa’s scholarship, and where I might have questions or differences.

Reading Schedule

If you have Gaventa’s new book (print or digital), here is the reading plan that I suggest.

Week of July 22: Read Introduction (pp. 1-20)

[So, go ahead and read the introduction this week]

Week of July 29: Romans 1:1-12 (pp. 21-40)

Week of August 5: Romans 1:13-2:29 (pp. 41-88)

Week of August 12: Romans 3:1-4:25 (pp. 89-136)

Week of August 19: Romans 5:1-6:23 (pp. 137-190)

Week of August 26: Romans 7:1-8:39 (pp. 191-264)

Week of September 2: Romans 9:1-10:21 (pp. 265-299)

Week of September 9: Romans 11:1-36 (pp. 300-331)

Week of September 16: Romans 12:1-13:14 (pp. 332-380)

Week of September 23: Romans 14:1-15:13 (pp. 381-411)

Week of October 1: Romans 15:14-16:27 (pp. 412-446)

Book Club Plan

Here is how the reading club will work. On Mondays or Tuesdays I will post the reading for the week. On Thursdays, I will post my review and personal thoughts. Heads up: the review will be free, but my personal thoughts (including disagreements) will be for paid subscribers only. I warmly welcome comments and questions in the Substack for the week, but I will keep my replies brief for the sake of manageability.

Romans

Her new commentary, released July 16, 2024, is part of Westminster John Knox’s respected New Testament Library series, which offers insights on literary, historical, and theological aspects of the text, and includes the scholar’s own personal English translation. The commentary is nearly 500+ pages and is mostly Gaventa’s exposition and her teaching through the text (with some engagement with scholarship). I prefer this approach, because it is “clutter-free” and doesn’t end up being a commentary on other commentaries.

Where to Get Gaventa’s Book

Even though Gaventa’s book has technically already released, it is not in stock everywhere, and some stores are offering better discounts than others, so I encourage you to shop around. Here are some options:

PCUSA Bookstore $45.50

Bookshop.org (independent bookstores aggregate) $65.10

Barnes & Noble $70

Amazon $54

Christianbook.com $56 (in stock on 7/31)