by Michael Card
InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Ill.
217 pages
Michael Card is creative and prolific. This commentary completes the Biblical Imagination Series that the author inaugurated to cover the four gospels. A musical CD, an online interactive site and a teaching video compliment each volume. There is also a Facebook page for conversa- tion. The intent of all these resources is clearly designed to help readers enter into a deeper, more imaginative understanding of the gospel that sustains faithful practice. Given that Card is more widely known as a gifted musician, one might be surprised that he is also a biblical scholar whose exegetical skills are at the service of the church. He writes for a non- scholarly audience in clear language that makes plain sense of the deep symbolism of John’s language. One glance at the endnotes will reveal the range and depth of Card’s research as well as his acknowledgment of the ecumenical community of Johannine scholarship. He insists that John’s gospel is dependent upon the Wisdom writings of the Jewish canon established in 90 AD, precisely the time John was writing his gospel. It’s this conversation with the wisdom literature that distinguishes this one from the synoptic gospels. Card then proceeds with a commentary that elucidates this wisdom theme in each of the gospel sections. It’s a brief commentary for a popular audience that will greatly benefit from a close reading.
