New Testament Commentaries Written by Women

There’s no shortage of good commentaries written by men (and also, tbh, some really bad ones). However, we miss out on something vital when we ignore the voice of women as they read and interpret the Scriptures for us. Because we’re left impoverished if we don’t hear women’s voices when studying the Bible for our club talks I offer to you a list of my favorite commentaries and New Testament resources written by women.

Commentaries on The Gospels

In Young Life we are in the gospels on a weekly basis. Because of that I recommend having some commentaries on the Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The NIV Application commentary series is my favorite for YL. There is also one called the Tyndale New Testament Commentary series which is really affordable. A one volume set you could invest in is the Expositor’s Commentary – Abridged New Testament. Besides these general commentaries I’d recommend the following ones written by women on the gospels. The ones marked by “***” are the ones I would ESPECIALLY recommend.

Matthew

1. Matthew: Two Horizons – Jeannine Brown and Kyle Roberts
2. The Sermon on the Mount – Jen Wilkin

Mark

1. Gospel of Mark: Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture – Mary Healey

Luke

1. Luke: New Covenant Commentary Series – Diane Chen***
2. Spiritual Practices of Jesus: Learning Simplicity, Humility, and Prayer with Luke’s Earliest Readers – Catherine Wright

John

1. John: New Testament Library – Marianne Meye Thompson***
2. Reading John and 1, 2, 3 John: A Literary and Theological Commentary – Alicia Myers
3. Discovering John: Content, Interpretation, Reception – Ruth Edwards

Other New Testament Resources

These books are either written by women or have useful chapter written by women:

1. Africa Bible Commentary – Tokunboh Adeyemo
2. When in Romans: An Invitation to Linger with the Gospel according to Paul – Beverly Gaventa***
3. Not Ashamed of the Gospel: Sermons from Paul’s Letter to the Romans – Fleming Rutledge
4. 2 Corinthians: Story of God Bible Commentary – Judith Diehl
5. Galatians: Understanding the Bible – L. Ann Jervis
6. Ephesians: New Covenant Commentary – Lynn Cohick***
7. Philippians: New Covenant Commentary – Linda Belleville
8. Philippians: Story of God Bible Commentary – Lynn Cohick***
9. Colossians: Two Horizons – Marianne Meye Thompson
10.  Colossians Remixed: Subverting the Empire – Sylvia Keesmaat and Brian Walsh
11. Letters to the Church: A Survey of Hebrews and the General Epistles – Karen Jobes

If you have any other suggestions I’d love to hear them below!