Phil D.
ὁ βαπτιστὴς
While I had a somewhat passing familiarity with Meyer as a New Testament commentator for some time, I initially had no reason to really pay much attention to him. But then about fifteen years ago I encountered this attention-getting remark by the eminent Presbyterian theologian Dr. B. B. Warfield (1851–1921):
This certainly piqued my interest, so I looked into him a bit further and found out these basic facts:
Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer (1800–73) was an evangelical German Lutheran who earned a Th.D. from the University of Jena, and served in several Lutheran pastorates. He later taught New Testament at the University of Giessen, and received an honorary Ph.D. from the University of Göttingen. He never seems to have sought, and in fact appears to have rather shied away from the limelight. Nevertheless, once his exegetical endeavors became known they were soon published and translated into several languages, including two English editions (one Scottish the other American, which do slightly vary).
Nor was Warfield alone in his praise of Meyer’s exegetical abilities, as over the convening years I’ve come across quite a few other high compliments from among his 19th century peers, and from across the denominational spectrum:
Of course none of this is to suggest Meyer was infallible, or should be considered as a standalone… But I always find him useful and more often than not quite compelling. Overall, I think Meyer’s greatest strength is his remarkable blend of knowledge (inclusive of comparing many other commentators), candor, and objectivity.
Meyer’s work is incorporated in BibleHub’s online commentaries, as well as being available on Google Books.
Anyway, I just thought it was worth sharing a valuable, free resource.
(It should be noted that some of the later volumes in the overall series that came to bear Meyer's name were written by other scholars, namely, Thessalonians through Revelation.)
For ourselves, we should be willing to hang the credit of this century's work in exegesis on the single commentary of Meyer on the New Testament. (The Homiletic Review, [New York: 1900], 39:201)
This certainly piqued my interest, so I looked into him a bit further and found out these basic facts:
Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer (1800–73) was an evangelical German Lutheran who earned a Th.D. from the University of Jena, and served in several Lutheran pastorates. He later taught New Testament at the University of Giessen, and received an honorary Ph.D. from the University of Göttingen. He never seems to have sought, and in fact appears to have rather shied away from the limelight. Nevertheless, once his exegetical endeavors became known they were soon published and translated into several languages, including two English editions (one Scottish the other American, which do slightly vary).
Nor was Warfield alone in his praise of Meyer’s exegetical abilities, as over the convening years I’ve come across quite a few other high compliments from among his 19th century peers, and from across the denominational spectrum:
Dr. William L. Kingsley; 1796–1882; Congregationalist; Yale Divinity School
Meyer is to be regarded as the leading commentator of the world. ...[He possessed] a knowledge of the Greek language unsurpassed by any of his contemporaries. (The New Englander and Yale Review, [1873], 32:738)
Dr. Talbot W. Chambers;1819–96; American Dutch-Reformed; editor-in-chief of The Presbyterian and Reformed Review
Meyer is the prince of exegetes. (Meditations on the Bible Heaven; [New York: 1886], 408.)
Dr. Charles Hodge; 1797–1878; Presbyterian; Principle of the Dept. of New Testament Studies at Princeton Seminary
Meyer is perhaps the ablest commentator on the New Testament of modern times. (A Commentary on the Epistle to the Ephesians, [New York: 1860], 20.)
Charles Spurgeon; 1834–92; English Baptist
A very learned Commentary...Meyer must be placed in the first class of scholars... (Commenting and Commentaries, [New York: 1876], 207.)
Dr. Charles Ellicott; 1819–1905; evangelical Anglican Archbishop
Meyer’s work is highly accurate, perspicuous, and learned. (A Critical and Grammatical Commentary on Ephesians, [Boston: 1867], vi.)
Dr. Philip Schaff (1819–93; Presbyterian scholar and church historian
Meyer is the ablest grammatical exegete of the age. (History of the Christian Church, [Edinburgh: 1888], 1:332.)
Editorial board of The Presbyterian Quarterly and Princeton Review
No exegetical work is on the whole more valuable or stands in higher public esteem. As a critic Meyer is candid and cautious; exact to minuteness in philology; a master of the grammatical and historical method of interpretation. (Lyman Atwater, Henry Smith, eds., [New York: 1874], 3:185.)
Of course none of this is to suggest Meyer was infallible, or should be considered as a standalone… But I always find him useful and more often than not quite compelling. Overall, I think Meyer’s greatest strength is his remarkable blend of knowledge (inclusive of comparing many other commentators), candor, and objectivity.
Meyer’s work is incorporated in BibleHub’s online commentaries, as well as being available on Google Books.
Anyway, I just thought it was worth sharing a valuable, free resource.
(It should be noted that some of the later volumes in the overall series that came to bear Meyer's name were written by other scholars, namely, Thessalonians through Revelation.)