“Archaeology and the Old Testament.” The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century. Donald Senior, John J. Collins, Barbara Reid, and Gina Hens-Piazza, Editors. London: T&T Clark, 2021.

The Jerome Biblical Commentary has, since 1968, been essential reading for all Catholics who wish to deepen their knowledge and understanding of the Bible. It is a landmark of Catholic biblical scholarship, the first port of call for priests, preachers, students and scholars, and all those lay people who like to keep a one-volume Biblical commentary in their home to enlighten their reading of the scriptures.

In this new fully revised edition, the publication of which has been welcomed by Pope Francis (who has also written the foreword), the entire content of the commentary has been revised to bring it up-to-date with the very latest scholarship, featuring the leading international Catholic scholars of our day. Whilst based on the historical critical method of Biblical study, the contributors draw in a range of more contemporary approaches to the biblical texts. The pool of contributors has also been broadened outside north America and Western Europe to include a more diverse range of perspectives, ensuring that the Jerome speaks more comprehensively to a global Church. The ‘General Articles’ section has been revised to include articles on new approaches to the study of the bible and on the interpretation of the bible in diverse pastoral contexts.

This magnificent third edition will be essential reading for all those who possess existing editions of The Jerome; but it will also find a new generation of readers, eager to engage the scriptures within the tradition and teaching of the Church.