# Correct evaluation of Anchor Yale Bible (83 Vols.)?



## Kenneth_Murphy (Aug 18, 2008)

I'm looking at the Anchor Yale Bible commentary series just announced on Logos Prepub for $1,500 verse a price of $3,000 later. So it would be well worth it to get it on sale than to pay the full price later. Though in trying to understand the value of these commentaries I'm getting the sense that there are only a "few" good authors in there and the rest is not something I would be interested in having. It would be a better use of my money to buy individual volumes for full price if less than 25% of this series is worth having. So my question is, based on your experience with this series is there even 25% of the volumes that you would classify as well worth getting. Based on what I've been able to dig up so far, I am leaning towards "no" and just picking up individual volumes down the road. But I would hate to find out I was wrong and wish I had gotten the full set. 

Any thoughts?


----------



## Backwoods Presbyterian (Aug 18, 2008)

I would wait and get them individually.


----------



## greenbaggins (Aug 18, 2008)

I would buy the individual volumes used. Here are the ones worth having, in my opinion (although all of them must be used with discretion, as most of them come from a liberal perspective): Propp on Exodus, Milgrom on Leviticus, Weinfeld on Deuteronomy, Boling on Joshua and Judges, Campbell on Ruth, McCarter on Samuel, Tadmor/Cogan on Kings, Knoppers on Chronicles, Fox on Proverbs, Seow on Ecclesiastes, Pope on Song of Songs, Blenkinsopp on Isaiah, both Bright and Lundbom on Jeremiah, Greenberg on Ezekiel, all the Minor Prophets, Fitzmyer on Luke, Brown on John, Fitzmyer on Acts, Romans, and 1 Corinthians (the last one is not published yet), Furnish on 2 Corinthians, Barth on Ephesians, Barth/Blanke on Colossians, Malherbe on Thessalonians, Johnson on the Pastorals, Koester on Hebrews, Johnson on James, Elliott on 1 Peter and Brown on 1-3 John.


----------



## DMcFadden (Aug 18, 2008)

I echo Lane. Buy them as you need them/use them. Unless your goal is to have the most extensive library of commentaries around, the Anchor would seldom be my choice on any particular book. In fact, with the plethora of solid technical commentaries from a conservative point of view, I cannot imagine why you would waste scarce resources on the Anchor set. The WBC is much cheaper (on CDROM), generally more up to date, and typically more conservative. I once owned most of the Anchor volumes and most of the Hermeneia commentaries and got rid of almost all of them in my move from the pastorate. Some of them are just plain weird (e.g., John the Baptist was the author of Revelation!?!).

[BTW, the Anchor ones I kept were Luke, John, Ephesians, Johannine Epistles]


----------



## Broadus (Aug 19, 2008)

I agree. There are quite a few additions to Logos that are much more pressing to me.

Bill


----------



## JohnGill (Aug 19, 2008)

Kenneth_Murphy said:


> I'm looking at the Anchor Yale Bible commentary series just announced on Logos Prepub for $1,500 verse a price of $3,000 later. So it would be well worth it to get it on sale than to pay the full price later. Though in trying to understand the value of these commentaries I'm getting the sense that there are only a "few" good authors in there and the rest is not something I would be interested in having. It would be a better use of my money to buy individual volumes for full price if less than 25% of this series is worth having. So my question is, based on your experience with this series is there even 25% of the volumes that you would classify as well worth getting. Based on what I've been able to dig up so far, I am leaning towards "no" and just picking up individual volumes down the road. But I would hate to find out I was wrong and wish I had gotten the full set.
> 
> Any thoughts?



Buy this commentary set instead: $300 commentary set.

Which is available online for free here. 

Available in MP3 format here and here.

Reformed and Calvinistic.


----------

