His NIGTC Mark commentary is second to none, but I think his Matthew volume is the NIC series is perhaps even better. France on Matthewįrance is my all-time favorite commentator on scripture. In this post, I’ll demonstrate why I value it so highly and why the I think the Accordance version is the best platform on which to access it. If I could have only one commentary set, this would be the one. NIC delivers insight time and time again.
I would say the best overall commentary series, therefore, is the one that answers most people’s questions most of the time.
But what does “best commentary” mean? The best individual commentary for you is the one that satisfactorily answers the questions you have at a particular moment. NIC has always been the series I consider to be the overall best. NIC stands out in my mind in a different way. Some are memorable because of the copious marginal notes of protest I’ve written in them and the classroom arguments they instigated. Some of the Word Biblical and Hermeneia volumes are memorable because they are substantial and helpful and best in class. I was assigned multiple volumes to read cover to cover and discuss in class. Word Biblical and Hermeneia were the commentaries I was directed to by college professors about twenty years ago. There are three commentary series I think of with this way: Word Biblical, Hermeneia, and the New International Commentary (NIC). You’ve graduated together, and you’ve even shared drinks and travelled together. You have worked with them in the trenches to meet important deadlines. You have sat and talked with them late into the night. Many people think of Bible commentaries similar to the way they think of friends. The second and third posts are here and here. This is the first post in a series on NICOT/NT in Accordance Bible Software.