Deuteronomy - Concordia Commentary

In This Volume

Recorded in Deuteronomy, the final three sermons of the patriarch Moses reaffirm the pillars of the faith established earlier in the Pentateuch. Dr. Harstad sets out to prove that the book of Deuteronomy is a quintessential text, both for understanding the Old Testament and the New. With an original translation, he identifies key themes of law, gospel, justice, and love in Moses’ address to the Israelites in the plains of Moab. Harstad finds unique importance in the motivational tone Moses uses during his final exhortations of his people, interpreting its masterful rhetoric as exemplary of God’s unending grace and stalwart love for wayward Israel.

Features

• The Unique Character of Deuteronomy
• The Author and Authority of the Book of Deuteronomy
• Preaching and Teaching in Deuteronomy

Additional Essays

• Love is at the Heart of Deuteronomy
• Interpreting Moses
• Bride-Wealth: An Anthropoligical Perspective

About the Author

Adolph L. Harstad is Professor of Exegetical Theology, Bethany Lutheran Theological Seminary, Mankato, Minnesota. He studied at Northwestern College, Watertown, Wisconsin (B.A.), Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary (M.Div.), and the University of Wisconsin—Madison (M.A., Hebrew and Semitic Studies). He has also served as a parish pastor and missionary in Zambia, Africa.

Endorsments

“Deuteronomy holds essential themes of the entire Bible” (p. 3). Prof. Adolph Harstad expertly demonstrates the truth of this fundamental premise in this latest volume in the distinguished Concordia Commentary series. There are many other reasons for pastors, professors, and students of the Scriptures to consult this impressive, in-depth study of the fifth book of Moses. In addition to its rigorous, multifaceted exegetical value, I found the author’s compositional style to be eminently readable—a quality not often found in scholarly commentaries, past or present!
—Prof. Ernst R. Wendland, Stellenbosch University—Ancient Studies, Stellenbosch, South Africa; Lusaka Lutheran Seminary, Lusaka, Zambia; South African Theological Seminary, Sandton, South Africa

Drawing upon years of seminary teaching and African missionary experience, Prof. Harstad delivers in-depth analysis and superb commentary on Deuteronomy. His exegesis and commentary on the Decalogue provide a valuable resource for every teacher of Luther’s catechism. Shining throughout the book is the message of God’s glorious love in saving us by grace alone through Jesus Christ, the Seed of Eve, Abraham, and David. Harstad’s lively commentary is a strong encouragement for readers to serve the Lord God with all their heart and soul!
—Dr. Terry Louis Schultz, Artistic Development Missionary, WELS World Missions, Chicago, Illinois; former missionary to the Peruvian Amazon and Haiti

As readers have come to expect of the Concordia Commentary series, this commentary is both scholarly and pastoral, with the latter quality perhaps the most important for busy pastors. It provides abundant help with the Hebrew text and highlights the nature of Deuteronomy as a book that provides motivation for a thankful life of obedience and love. Moses’ farewell sermons still speak to us today.
—Dr. John Brug, Professor Emeritus, Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary, Mequon, Wisconsin

About the series

The Concordia Commentary Series: A Theological Exposition of Sacred Scripture is written to enable pastors and teachers of the Word to proclaim the Gospel with greater insight, clarity, and faithfulness to the divine intent of the Biblical text.

The series will cover all the canonical books of the Old and New Testament, with an original translation and meticulous grammatical analysis of the Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek of each text. The foremost interpretive lens centers on the unified proclamation of the person and work of Christ across every Scriptural book.

The Commentary fully affirms the divine inspiration, inerrancy, and authority of Scripture; Each passage bears witness to the confession that God has reconciled the world to Himself through the incarnation, ministry, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ His Son.

Authors expose the rich treasury of language, imagery, and thematic content of the Scripture, while supplementing their work with additional research in archaeology, history, and extrabiblical literature. Throughout, God’s Word emanates from authors careful attention and inculcates the ongoing life of the Church in Word, Sacrament, and daily confession.

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