Leviticus (New American Commentary, Vol 3a)

Rating:
Summary: Good readable pastor-friendly commentary
Review: Rooker does a good job of treating the book of Leviticus on a level designed for a pastor. By many accounts the best evangelical commentary on Leviticus in existence is Gordon Wenham's in the NICOT series, but that is getting more out-of-date. John Hartley's more recent one (Word Biblical Commentary) updates it well but is much harder to use if you don't have a strong Hebrew background, so there's need for a good, readable, recent commentary on this book. Rooker's is probably the best to fill this need.

It's not over-scholarly to the point of making it hard for non-academic use. At the same time it's clear that Rooker has been informed by much serious scholarship, which is especially useful in updating Wenham's excellent work. Rooker knows the literature and uses it, sometimes giving arguments and sometimes just citing other places to look for more detailed discussion.

What's most refreshing about this book is that, unlike many books on Leviticus intended for non-scholars, this treatment offers a reasonable, balanced understanding of Leviticus for the church. It's not mere law for law's sake, and it certainly was intended only for the physical Israel, contrary to reconstructionists, yet it's not as if God has removed it, as dispensationalists argue. It reveals God's character and his dealings with his people in a particular time in salvation-history. The most significant application we can take it what it teaches us about God and the general kinds of human action and interaction are pleasing to him. Rooker is good at seeing the original purpose of these ancient laws but also excellent at tying them to the New Testament.