EEC Update
Comments
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I know this has been said quite a few times by many over the years, but as a purchaser of the entire set back in 2011, I have been strongly disappointed by the continuous postponements of volumes being released.
Agree 100%. Below shows a post of Logos' EEC site from 3/22/2011. At that time, 33 volumes had dates, and 32 were to be released by 2017 - 6 1/2 years later! One volume was 2019, and 11 volumes were TBA.
What do we have today? 12. By publication date:
2011 - 2
2012 - 3
2013 - 2
2014 - 1
2015 - 3
2016 - 0
2017 - 1
Per my Library publication dates, ONE volume in the last two years. For a $700 up front purchase. For me, I wish I could get out of this deal. I doubt I'll ever see the entire set completed.
The web page from 3/22/2011:
https://web.archive.org/web/20110322061424/http://www.evangelicalexegeticalcommentary.com/volumes/
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Yikes... I didn't realize it has been that long. Time flies
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Per my Library publication dates, ONE volume in the last two years.
This is a big part of why I expressed my comments and gave my two questions: 1) Is anyone at Faithlife taking the production of this commentary set seriously? 2) Is any Faithlife employee actively in contact with authors prodding them along to finish their volumes?
I really hope the answer to both questions is not no one. If the answer is honestly no one or hardly anyone, can we know that? And can a remedy for it be made a priority?
Maybe this is asking too much, but will someone at Faithlife please give us some honest clarity as to the present level of involvement in getting this commentary set produced? I, and I'm sure many others, would love some clear specifics. We have invested so much for so little return (so far). I still have high hopes for the potential of this series, and I am asking all of these questions in that spirit. I love Faithlife and I want to see the EEC be the success that it should be.
eChristianResources.com - Connecting Christians With Quality Evangelical Resources Available For FREE On The Internet (including links to free Logos/Vyrso resources!)
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The About link at the EEC web archive had this to say:
“Most of the top commentary series from the past century have taken two or more decades to complete.”
That article mentions that FL chose “an ambitious publication schedule,” “an unprecedented publication timetable,” with the expectation that “Logos, a digital publication company was able to do what no print publisher could do anymore.”
Perhaps the expectation that many scholars would have already completed their EEC volume was... unrealistic?
Thanks to FL for including Carta and a Hebrew audio bible in Logos 9!
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I doubt I'll ever see the entire set completed.
Being 10 months past four score, I hope my grandson—who will inherit my Logos library—will live to see the completion of the set. Not sure how secure that hope is, as he is already 33 [:P]
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I have to wonder if the Amos, Jonah, Micah volume will be release at the end of the month. I think it was originally scheduled for December 2017, pushed back to January 2018 then to March.
We'll see.
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Is it worth buying the set on sale? Even though not many volumes released?
Keith Pang, PhD Check out my blog @ https://keithkpang.wixsite.com/magnifyingjesus
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I bought the set upon its initial release and even though the release dates have changed, I've not regretted my purchase.
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I agree with Ronald. The volumes I own are excellent. I just wish updates were more forthcoming. I look forward to the next update next week
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Is it worth buying the set on sale? Even though not many volumes released?
Some of the volumes can be chosen as your free FL Connect original books. If you can wait to acquire the set, that would be your best option.
The released volumes also appear in some base packages at 90-95% off. That might be more cost-effective than individually buying any specific commentary set.
While commentary sales happen more often, you may want to wait until L8 introductory pricing to get the best discount on a library. (For L7, the introductory combo discount amounted to 34% off for LN members.)
Thanks to FL for including Carta and a Hebrew audio bible in Logos 9!
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The volumes I own are excellent. I just wish updates were more forthcoming.
I agree with this! [Y]
eChristianResources.com - Connecting Christians With Quality Evangelical Resources Available For FREE On The Internet (including links to free Logos/Vyrso resources!)
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What troubles me most about this project in this late into the project there are still a great many volumes that appear not to be being worked on, the number of TBA on the page makes me feel that this set will be well over a decade before it nears completion if not much longer. If we look at WBC ACTS has been worked on for over two decades and is not yet done (unless it is now in editing). Volumes of a high quality take numerous years to write. It is very disheartening to see scholars not even chosen yet for all the future volumes.
-dan
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Does anyone have "1&2 Samuel" or "Philippians" in their libraries from the EEC... it shows both are available. I purchased this whole set in 2015... I cannot get a straight answer from the customer service folks (they are overseas currently... apparently)
And the James commentary (which is in my library) shows to be TBA on the website... but remembering now that it was released and then "withdrawn" for plagiarism.
So... anyone have the Samuel set or Philippians? Or is it just me that has the issue?
https://www.logos.com/product/7565/evangelical-exegetical-commentary#008
MacBook Pro 15' Retina • 2.7 GHz Intel Core i7 • 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3 • Version 10.10
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I have both Samuel and Philippians. You are correct that James was pulled, but is going to be rewritten in the future.
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If you purchased the whole set, you should have Samuel and Philippians. You would only have James if you purchased the set prior to its being withdrawn.
Users had the option to "return" their volume of James and would receive some type of compensation. I'm sure what that was because I chose to keep mine. It's my understanding when the new James is released that I will receive that volume and still keep the original one.
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Varner's commentary on James got very good reviews when it came out, I think it's one of the best out there from a conservative viewpoint. It's unfortunate he didn't properly cite some of his sources. But if your not citing from it for academic work, its a great commentary.
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I agree. Varner did an excellent job. I don't know why they couldn't just pull the text and update it instead of canning it. He made the corrections and released it under a different publisher. Whoever logos picks to redo it won't be able to match it in my opinion.
Here is the new book if you want it: https://smile.amazon.com/James-Commentary-Greek-William-Varner/dp/1948048019/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1520709144&sr=8-1&keywords=Varner+James
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On a side note... It would be great if logos could bring that book into their ecosystem so others could enjoy it digitally
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On a side note... It would be great if logos could bring that book into their ecosystem so others could enjoy it digitally
Mattillo,
Thanks for mentioning Varner’s commentary. I am the co-founder of Fontes Press, the publisher that brought this back into print, with all the necessary changes that needed to happen. I am also very close with Varner, and I will tell him of your appreciation for his excellent commentary.
I would love to get this back into Logos. Perhaps I should contact them and start a conversation.
Again, thanks for the suggestion.
Cliff
My Blog: Theological Musings
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On a side note... It would be great if logos could bring that book into their ecosystem so others could enjoy it digitally
Mattillo,
Thanks for mentioning Varner’s commentary. I am the co-founder of Fontes Press, the publisher that brought this back into print, with all the necessary changes that needed to happen. I am also very close with Varner, and I will tell him of your appreciation for his excellent commentary.
I would love to get this back into Logos. Perhaps I should contact them and start a conversation.
Again, thanks for the suggestion.
Cliff
Awesome! I'd be the first to buy it or as close to first as possible
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As for a comprehensive update, I'm working on collecting those details--many of them have been difficult to track down. I should have more to share later this week or early next week. Thanks.
Any updates yet Mr Jake?
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From Brannon Ellis, Publisher of Lexham Press:
Friends of the EEC,
On behalf of Lexham Press and Faithlife, I’d like to thank all of you for your continued patronage of the Evangelical Exegetical Commentary series. When we set out to publish the EEC, as some of you will remember, Lexham didn’t yet exist as a publishing house, and our company was still named Logos Research Systems. Acquiring rights to the EEC was one of the earliest projects we took on, and has continued to be one of the biggest. Several years into this undertaking, I know a number of you are unsatisfied with what feels like the very slow pace of progress. I’ll be the first to say that none of us realized at the time just how aspirational it was for us to commit to a comprehensive technical commentary series covering the entire canon!
Nevertheless, we remain just as enthusiastic about and committed to the EEC. In fact, as we’ve matured into the Lexham Press we are today, I believe we’re in a better position than we’ve ever been to pursue the vision of the EEC with excellence. Our published volumes, and the praise they’ve received from academics and pastors alike, speak for themselves. That doesn’t mean we won’t continue to have inevitable hiccups and unforeseen snags along the way; every major commentary series covering all of Scripture has had a similarly winding journey. But it does mean that we’ll continue to do our best to keep the fundamental promises we’ve made to you as EEC readers: to deliver thoroughly scholarly commentaries that don’t compromise on evangelical convictions, so that you can confidently use these volumes week in and week out in your sermon and teaching preparation and personal research and writing.
As part of that commitment, we’re going to make a couple key changes to the way we communicate with you about developments with the series such as newly signed authors and upcoming publication news. First, we’re going to communicate with you more fully and more often. Otherwise, it can start to feel like nothing’s happening with the EEC when quite a lot is going on behind the scenes. Second, we’re going to stop providing tentative publication dates for upcoming volumes. There are simply too many variables beyond our control that can cause delays before a full draft manuscript comes in the door. For example, authors often experience writing delays and ask for submission extensions; since we’ve carefully chosen our authors (and commissioning a new volume would take even longer), we often have no choice but to grant the delay, offer all the editorial support we can, and trust that the author needing the extension is invested in delivering high-quality work. Instead, we’ll provide you with details on exactly where a particular volume is in the publishing process—whether the author is currently writing the manuscript, whether we’re currently editing it, and so on. That’ll be much more accurate and informative than merely estimating possible ship dates. Rest assured, we’ll continue to work as quickly as possible to release new volumes as we receive them from authors.
Blessings,
Brannon Ellis, PhD
Publisher, Lexham Press----------------------------
From Derek Brown, in-house Academic Editor over EEC:
Dear EEC Friends,
Many thanks for your readership and enthusiasm for the EEC series over the years. The editorial team at Lexham Press and the authors of the EEC series greatly appreciate you.
As part of our desire to share more about the progress of forthcoming EEC volumes, I want to give you a behind the scenes update for a few volumes. But first it may be helpful to give you a brief overview of the major stages of production that each of the EEC volumes goes through before it is shipped off to you. The four major stages of production:
1. In Writing: the author is researching and writing the commentary.
2. General Editing: an initial draft of the manuscript has been completed and sent to the general editors of the EEC. During this stage the general editors work closely with the authors to provide substantive feedback to help improve the commentary.
3. Manuscript Editing: after the general editors are satisfied with revisions from the author, the manuscript is handed off to the Lexham Press editorial team. They will clean up the manuscript and prepare it for publication.
4. Printing: once editorial for a manuscript is complete, we send it off to be built as a Logos edition and/or to the printer for print publication.With this broad overview of our production workflow in mind, I’d like to tell you about a few volumes that we are very excited about. Right now our general editors are working hard on two Old Testament manuscripts: Joshua by Ralph Hawkins and Daniel by Paul Tanner. Both of these authors have labored diligently to complete their commentaries and our the EEC editorial team is excited for their work to be in your hands soon! A little closer to publication, JoAnna Hoyt’s commentary on Amos, Jonah, and Micah is just about to be sent off to the technological wizards who will turn the manuscript into a digitally-rich Logos resource for you all. JoAnna’s commentary is full of top-notch scholarship as well as rich theological insight, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy reading it as much as I have.
I hope this update gives you greater insight and enthusiasm for the forthcoming EEC volumes. I look forward to providing another update soon.
Blessings,
Derek Brown, PhD
Academic Editor, Lexham Press----------------------------
I will be updating the EEC product page with the new status updates shortly. Derek is also working on a more detailed update that includes update on new authors for a few volumes.
Please let me know if there are any other questions.
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Thank you for the updates Jake! Will the Logos EEC page be the place to go for updates or is it better to go to the Lexham Press EEC page?
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Unfortunately, EEC Jeremiah will not be released this year like we hoped. Walt Kaiser has written a fantastic commentary—very approachable and pastoral—but during our academic review we have determined that the manuscript needed further technical discussion and text-critical engagement than was ready in time for the deadline. We believe this delay, while not ideal, will ultimately serve EEC readers better, as it will further strengthen Kaiser’s excellent contribution.
On another note... any updates on the Jeremiah volume? It wasn't listed in the update provided by the EEC staff so I'm curious if it was close where it might be now.
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Will the Logos EEC page be the place to go for updates or is it better to go to the Lexham Press EEC page?
Both pages will be updated.
any updates on the Jeremiah volume?
No updates as far as I know. Derek may have more in his more detailed update he's working on.
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First, we’re going to communicate with you more fully and more often. Otherwise, it can start to feel like nothing’s happening with the EEC when quite a lot is going on behind the scenes.
- Where are you going to do this? Will it continue to be simply here in the forums when complaints are aired?
- I recognize the need for you to stop projecting dates that are off by several years, but that just adds to the feeling that there is no real plan to bring this to completion.
- There are a number of volumes who do not yet have an author identified. After this many years are you still unable to locate an evangelical scholar who would be able write those volumes, and is that an active search?
Thank you
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Thank you Jake. Will all updates be posted here or on the logos product page?
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- Where are you going to do this? Will it continue to be simply here in the forums when complaints are aired?
We'll use a combination of these forums, the Lexham or Logos blog, and email to communicate these updates. We want to be more proactive in our communication about the EEC. Our current plan is to provide a regular quarterly update about the series, even if its a small update without any major news.
- I recognize the need for you to stop projecting dates that are off by several years, but that just adds to the feeling that there is no real plan to bring this to completion.
As both Brannon and Derek laid out, its so hard for us to project release dates for a project of this scale. We'll hold off on assigning a release date to any volume until we receive it from the author and General Editors. At that point it's placed on our production schedule and treated like any other Lexham Press book project, usually with a six-to-nine month lead time.
- There are a number of volumes who do not yet have an author identified. After this many years are you still unable to locate an evangelical scholar who would be able write those volumes, and is that an active search?
We are definitely active in our search for authors; and not just any authors, but committed evangelicals who are also well respected scholars in their respective fields. It is hard work to find the right author, but in the end we are confident that finding the right author will yield the best volume for the EEC.
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Please let me know if there are any other questions.
Have you ever considered an EEC volume or two on the Apocrypha/Deuterocanon? That would certainly make it stand out among Evangelical Bible commentaries.
“The trouble is that everyone talks about reforming others and no one thinks about reforming himself.” St. Peter of Alcántara
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I would definitely get it!
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