Assessment of Classic Commentaries

I'm interested in hearing about how others are finding the Classic Commentaries series on Community Pricing. I've purchased seven of them so far, but I've found that I haven't been using them so far. I'm finding that I don't have enough time to read them after consulting modern commentaries.

With 10 more coming out in the next 4 weeks (a total of $225), I was wondering whether it's worthwhile to continue to invest them. It's a difficult call because as with all Community Pricing offerings it really is a question of now or never.

Have you been finding Classic Commentaries useful? If so, how do you use them? Have you found any gems in them?

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Comments

Ronald Quick

I haven't used them much...yet, but I hope to. My current studies have not been in the commentaries already released.

To make sure I do use them I have created a separate commentary collection of just the Classic Commentaries that is in my Passage Guide.

William Gabriel

I'm in the exact same position as you wrt using them. I'd like to, but I find that everything I already have in Logos has been more than consuming of my time. My hope is that I'll get to them some day before the benediction comes.

I like Ronald's idea about creating a commentary collection for the Passage Guide. That will keep them on my radar. I also like that idea for my top commentaries. I think that would be more useful than the standard prioritizing within all the commentaries.

Bill

NB.Mick

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/395424#Comment_395424

FWIW: Paul Newman has started a Faithlife group for discussing these: https://faithlife.com/classic-commentaries-and-studies/activity

Everett Headley

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/395446#Comment_395446

I have begun reading through Matthew's. What I have found different is that they are not how we view commentaries today, as in looking for a verse by verse. For instance one I am reading is on the nativity and has had very informative insights. Any thechnical information I still refer to my modern commentaries. ARe they worth it? For those books that I don't have much on, mostly OT, I think so. For those books that I really want to dig deeper, Psalms, Gospels, I got them for personal reading rather than sermon prep.

Perhaps the largest motivating factor is the price. Matthew at $40 CP price is a bargain at the current $200 current price. If there is every a chance you might want to read them, it might be prudent to get them. Still only you can way personal value and pricing.

Donovan R. Palmer

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/395491#Comment_395491

I bought a couple of collections in the early days, but quickly decided that I was just never going to use them unless I specialised studies on a particular author or book of the Bible. Without that, I already have enough up to date resources to shift through as it is. Maybe if I had limitless bags of money, but there are too many other things I would put ahead of them in my book budget.

A question that does beg an answer though, is whether they are worth it at $200 a pop? I guess value is always in the eyes of the beholder, but it will be interesting to see how many of these sets that Logos sells at full price. You have to want them pretty bad or be pretty specialized if you missed it at CP.

BillS

Have you been finding Classic Commentaries useful?

The nuggets are there... I preach 45+ Sundays/year, usually from the lectionary. And without new material, fresh (at least to me) perspectives on the same Scriptures, it can be harder to bring fresh bread...

Blessings!

Paul N

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/395446#Comment_395446

FWIW: Paul Newman has started a Faithlife group for discussing these: https://faithlife.com/classic-commentaries-and-studies/activity

While I don't make salad dressing ([;)]) Thank You NB for plugging the Faithlife Classic Commentaries Group! My goal for it is to brainstorm various ways we might milk every ounce of wisdom out of the Classic Commentary series as well as works in general from that era. Maybe if we produce a really good idea or two Logos might catch wind and implement it (just a wish! no guarantees).

The first step, however, is to join up and start talking either here, the Faithlife group, or ideally both!

William Gabriel

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/395491#Comment_395491

I'm listening to D.A. Carson talk about Hebrews 1 and its use of Psalm 2. Near the beginning he talks about the NT use of the OT and his experience while writing his commentary on Matthew (Logos sells that commentary as part of this bundle: http://www.logos.com/product/5457/the-expositors-bible-commentary).

Back to his talk: when Carson ruminated on his experience studying old commentaries to prepare for writing his own, he had pretty high regard for John Broadus' "Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew." I was excited to see that it's part of the Classic Commentary Set.

Ronald Quick

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/395833#Comment_395833

I imagine that a lot of the Classic Commentaries are very good - there are just so many of them that have been released in such a short of time that it may take some time to really get into them.

Simon Pleasants

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/395922#Comment_395922

Thanks for all your thoughts. I think I'll persist with the Classic Commentaries, but will be selective about which ones I buy. I think the main benefit of old commentaries is that they give a perspective from another era. We're often blind to how our own culture affects the way we read a text. Reading a commentary from another period can help by giving a different perspective.

I agree that there won't be many buyers after they come off Community Pricing. I've learned that I can hold off on PrePubs and still pick them up cheaply when they are on sale later. Community Pricing is harder to make decisions about since it's a now or never thing.

I started off by tagging the Classic Commentaries individually, but found a quicker way by using a rule along the lines of "pubdate:<1920 AND type:"Bible Commentary"".

NB.Mick

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/396027#Comment_396027

I started off by tagging the Classic Commentaries individually, but found a quicker way by using a rule along the lines of "pubdate:<1920 AND type:"Bible Commentary"".

I'd advise to use caution with such rules:

The pubdate is very unreliable, since we usually don't get the original publication dates, but those of the works that were migrated to Logos.
There are probably hundreds of bible commentaries in Logos which were published before 1920 and are not part of the Classic Commentaries collections (from Early Church Fathers via Aquinas, Luther, Calvin and Bengel to the many Puritan preachers)
On the other hand, some of the Classic Commentaries are not type:"Bible Commentary", but go e.g. as type:Bible - I'd assume some Monographs as well.

It may help to start a collection of older commentaries to use a rule like this and add other books by author etc., but to have it reflect the Classic Commentaries collections this is probably more manual work than sorting the library by date and then multi-selecting and tagging all those that came in one go with the same picture.

NB.Mick

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/395582#Comment_395582

While I don't make salad dressing ()

[:$] My apologies for misspelling your name (I had 'to wikipedia' the salad thing, never heard of it here on the fringe side of the Great Pond AND the Channel)

Thank You NB for plugging the Faithlife Classic Commentaries Group! My goal for it is to brainstorm various ways we might milk every ounce of wisdom out of the Classic Commentary series as well as works in general from that era

I'm looking forward to it. I found that I couldn't resist getting so much proven wisdom at CP prices, but to really use it... the idea with a CCAS collection in a separate guide section is very helpful, I think.

DMB

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/396027#Comment_396027

"Perspective from another era."

I think that's interesting. I wonder why we collectively feel that way.

I'd like to think all those nifty papyri have really demonstrated how those older writers missed the boat. Archaeological digs around Nazareth and Chorizon correcting a lot of conclusions about Jesus' ministry. (Well you DO have to admit no 1st century synogogues is curious.)

I didn't sign onto the CPs for two reasons: they're only in Logos4. And I like specific late-1800s and early-1900s writers. So I'm willing to pay through the nose and wait for those. But I am getting a little tired of the group-think in Hermeneia, WBC and AYB.

tom

I'm interested in hearing about how others are finding the Classic Commentaries series on Community Pricing. I've purchased seven of them so far, but I've found that I haven't been using them so far. I'm finding that I don't have enough time to read them after consulting modern commentaries.

With 10 more coming out in the next 4 weeks (a total of $225), I was wondering whether it's worthwhile to continue to invest them. It's a difficult call because as with all Community Pricing offerings it really is a question of now or never.

Have you been finding Classic Commentaries useful? If so, how do you use them? Have you found any gems in them?

I too have not used them, and I have cancelled almost all of them. I only have a couple left on my orders page, and it is very likely that I will also cancel them too.

Ronald Quick

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/396062#Comment_396062

When I am creating a collection for the Classic Commentaries I quit trying to create a rule that will find them all because that would take me longer then just opening up my library, sorting by "last updated" (then they are all together) and manually dragging them into the "add this resource" box.

After I have an individual Classic Commentary collection I drag that into my collection that includes all the Classic Commentaries.

Evan Boardman

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/396057#Comment_396057

While I don't make salad dressing ()

My apologies for misspelling your name (I had 'to wikipedia' the salad thing, never heard of it here on the fringe side of the Great Pond AND the Channel)

Hahah I get it now![:P]

fgh

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/396062#Comment_396062

If you have any interest in Jewish commentaries, make sure not to cancel Isaiah.

Wilson Hines

Maybe this cost analysis and the use of collections will help you. I've found the ones I already have every helpful.

Product	Volumes	Page Count	Price	Cost per page
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Genesis	22	8,464	$40	0.00473
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Ruth	12	2,088	$10	0.00479
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Job	18	6,388	$25	0.00391
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Corinthians	29	7,722	$40	0.00518
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Leviticus	21	4,889	$30	0.00614
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Ephesians	23	8,210	$40	0.00487
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Chronicles	7	1,370	$60	0.04376
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Jeremiah and Lamentations	22	5,858	$30	0.00512
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Matthew	25	9,277	$40	0.00431

April through August Totals:	179	54,266	$315	0.00580

Classic Commentaries and Studies on Thessalonians	11	2,438	$20.00	0.00820
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Colossians and Philemon	14	4,663	$20.00	0.00429
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Ezekiel	15	4,740	$20.00	0.00422
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Numbers and Deuteronomy	20	4,340	$15.00	0.00346
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Mark	24	5,895	$20.00	0.00339
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Isaiah	22	6,732	$30.00	0.00446
Classic Commentaries and Studies on Exodus	21	6,309	$40.00	0.00634
Classic Commentaries and Studies on the Books of Samuel	11	2,662	$20.00	0.00751
Classic Commentaries and Studies on the Gospel according to John	25	8,911	$30.00	0.00337
Classic Commentaries and Studies on the Epistles of John	25	8,941	$30.00	0.00336

September Totals:	188	55,631	$245.00	0.00440
Totals:	367	109,897	559.95	0.00510