Pastoral Epistles

The Pastoral Epistles are the three letters that Paul wrote to Timothy, who had pastoral oversight of the church at Ephesus, and Titus, who had pastoral oversight of a new church on the island of Crete. In these letters, Paul discusses issues church overseers should know - matters of Christian living, doctrine, and church leadership. Paul shows how various members of the Church - bishops, deacons, men, and women - should behave. W.E. Vine's commentary on these letters is particularly rich. First is because of his own warm pastoral heart. Writing of another of Paul's letters, Vine says, &quote;Here is the truth of God working itself out through love. Truth that saves is truth warm from the heart of God, glowing with the love that proved itself at the Cross, the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.&quote; Second is because of Vine's concern for missionaries. He says, &quote;these letters are the oldest missionary correspondence of the Christian era. They were written by one of the earliest missionaries. . . . It was, moreover, in the propagation of Christianity that its doctrines were formulated. The Faith was beaten out on the anvil of paganism by the missionaries of the cross.&quote; W.E. Vine's commentaries excel in the rich tradition of careful, exegetical word studies and expository insight. These two commentaries use a word study approach that takes into consideration every reference to a particular word in the Bible as well as its use in contemporary and classic Greek. Pastors, scholars, or serious students of the Word will enjoy these in-depth commentaries.