Victor P. HamiltonThe Book of Genesis (New International Commentary on the Old Testament Series) 1-17 (New International Commentary on the Old Testament (NICOT))

This is the finest commentary on Genesis in my library. It is a 2 volume set.Hamilton deals with a wide array of issues. His work reflects later scholarship than Wenham's Word Biblical Commentary, and his conclusions are more convincing than Wenham's when they differ (in my opinion). For example, Genesis contains the Hebrew 'TOLeDOT' in 10 locations. Hamilton reviews Wenham's (and others) idea that 'TOLeDOT' in Genesis 2 is a conclusion for the first chapter. He then goes on to reject that idea because the 9 others are clearly introductions to the following material. He then goes on to explain how it should be seen as the introduction to Genesis 2:4 ff. He goes further than commentators like Waltke on this, by offering a significant grammatical point on this as well. Wenham does not talk about it at all. Wenham bases his argument on context only with a leaning towards the meaning of the words themselves. This affects how one sees the entire book of Genesis. Wenham does not see the ten divisions of Genesis. Hamilton includes the ten divisions as part but not all of his reasoning. Waltke concurs with Hamilton, and I have to say that Hamilton's argument is far superior in my view.It's not just another point in the exegesis of the book. This particular point is crucial to how you see Genesis as a whole, and its parts. It even can affect how you view the authorship of Genesis (hodgepodge or a whole composition).Unfortunately, Hamilton does not contain information that deals with chiastic and alternating structures. He should.I've found his commentary is usually full and helpful as well as readable. Every part of every verse provides reflection on the hard issues and the easy ones.I have had the feeling that I am not just reading about the bible, but am feeding on the spiritual treasures of Genesis presented by someone who loves the Word. I really appreciate the tone of this commentary.Often Hamilton gives a section called New Testament Appropriation where he cites a passage in Genesis and related passages in the NT. These are packed with comments on each relevant passage and loaded with footnotes for further study. This is extremely convenient for the preacher or Bible teacher who is dealing with these issues in the text.He does not give what is now expected in the finer full commentaries...one excursus after another. This is a disappointment. He also does not give the wealth of Chiastic and Alternating structures that Waltke gives. He does not provide any special systematic treatment of Christological passages, even though more than one book has been written on preaching about Christ from Genesis.He does give a lot of integrated and expertly cited information from Jewish literature and Ancient Near Eastern Studies. These citations seem to flow from the pen of someone who is very familiar with Ancient Near Eastern cultures and religions. I love the way he ties this research in, and even though I have personally read some of the very things he cites, I still didn't see the link the way he brings it in until I read his perspective on it and went back to review. He's very good for this sort of thing.

Very balanced and thorough. I didn't feel like the author filled too many lines as we often see with intellectual review of Biblical materials. I felt they stayed the course properly helping we pastors in fully understanding the text. I find his lengthy inclusion of text criticism to be helpful rather than confusing. I'm also glad that he sticks with the intend and value of the order in which it is written in.

Here's two things I love: Books by Victor Hamilton, and the Bible book of Genesis. The fact that these two come together in this two-volume set is a miracle--or at least a fine coincidence.Hamilton is a favorite of mine because he is both scholarly and easy to read, both even-handed in handling controversial subjects and conservative.Genesis is jammed tight with strange stories, miraculous events, and astounding people. Hamilton is a wonderful guide through this wonderland.

* Many authors suppose to write for scholars, pastors and laymen, yet few accomplish their goal. Hamilton succeeds. This commentary is of sufficient depth and technicality for scholars and students. The introduction in particular does a wonderful job of addressing theological themes within the book. One very useful feature, not usually found in scholarly OT commentaries, is a section on 'New Testament Appropriation" at the conclusion of every few chapters. Hamilton also includes useful applicatory points and easy-to-read and understand chapter and section summaries. IMHO this is the best commentary on Genesis.

Call it 3.5 stars really. I hate that modern commentators who should know better still give so much credence to the Documentary Hypothesis. Come on, it ain't 1916, it's 2016!

Excellent commentary, but very disappointed in the inadiquate contents section of the kindle version. The entire commentary is divided into only two sections which leaves the reader endlessly paging to find a specific passage. At this high price I really expected better.

A very well-researched commentary I have quoted on a number of occasions. It would get 5 stars but there are a few places where he seems ambivalent about his conclusions

This is a great commentary on Genesis . I like the hardcover book .

Terrible scholarship.Bought NICOT and WBC based on Amazon reviews and really regret getting NICOT.Where Hamilton is particularly poor is how he attempts to read Genesis in light of Pauline letters and I felt he cowered to modern feminism to twist the interpretation to suit.Wenham exegetes no matter where it leads him (whether a conservative or liberal outcome).

Einer der schönen Kommentare der NICOT-Serie, die schon durch ihre äußereGestaltung den Buchliebhaber einnehmen. Victor Hamilton hat eine gute Arbeit geleistet, die wirklich lesenswert ist. 1200 Seiten auf zwei Bändeverteilt aus evangelikaler Sicht, mal ohne die leidige Quellenscheidung,die ja manche bis zum Überdruß satt haben - das ist richtig erfrischend!Ich bin mit 5 Sterne-Verteilung sehr zurückhaltend, es ist bei einem sogewaltigen Buch wie Genesis einfach nicht möglich, daß ein Kommentator alles bieten kann. Bei Hamilton kommen die hebräischen Erklärungen zu kurz, andere bieten innerhalb der NICOT-Serie mehr (z.B. Jesaja & Sprüche). Da bietet z.B. der Konkurrenzkommentar von Gordon Wenham (WBC),der fast zur gleichen Zeit erschienen ist, bedeutend mehr, obwohl er leider mit einem Auge gewaltig zur Quellenscheidung schielt. Sprachlich ist Wenham vorzuziehen, theologisch ist Hamilton der bessere, allein schonin Hinsicht auf seine neutestamentlichen Bezüge. Am besten ist es, wenn man beide parallel liest, dann ist man mit Genesis gut versorgt und kannauf anderes verzichten.