Over ten years ago, when I was working at Lexham Press, I had an idea. The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive had just come out, and I wondered: Why not edit Keller’s sermons into a commentary format? I drew up a proposal and sample and we sent it to Keller’s people, and they said no (they already had plans for what to do with his sermons; fair enough).
Then I had another idea: Why not do this with another famous preacher who is still popular but whose sermons are in the public domain? Thus was born the Spurgeon Commentary Series. I came up with a list of books that Spurgeon had preached on enough that his sermons could feasibly be adapted to a commentary format, and then started working through the list. I started with Galatians, then moved on to Philippians, 2 Thessalonians, 2 Timothy, Titus, Hebrews, 1 John, 1–2 Peter, and Jude. Four volumes were put into print, and we put a volume on Song of Solomon and Jonah up on preorder, but then I was put on other projects and the Spurgeon Commentary languished.
Now, the initial volumes have gotten a redesign from the incomparable Joshua Hunt, there is a new foreword from Geoffrey Chang (curator of the Spurgeon Library at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary), the volumes on 1 John and 1–2 Peter and Jude are in print for the first time, and the long-awaited (by at least a few people, probably) volume on Song of Solomon and Jonah will finally be out on February 4. I’m observing all of this from the outside, as it were; Baker Publishing Group acquired Lexham Press last year and is the publisher for these books, so I haven’t had a hand in bringing them across the finish line. All the same, it feels good to have this project realized after it was lying dormant for so long.
These books are great devotional commentaries to accompany your regular Bible reading. If you enjoyed the earlier volumes, or if you’re just looking for a solid devotional commentary, be sure to pick one up February 4!
Elliot Ritzema 