Good background information on the Jewishness of the first-century church. Commentary is not as in-depth as some others, but it does help us read the text through Jewish eyes.

'Complete Jewish Bible' goes with
'Jewish New Testament Commentary'.
After I found the commentary on
(Luke 17:20-21) 'The Kingdom of God'
between 'among you' and 'within you',
as is (Mattew 27:25) 'His Blood Be On Us...'
note is a beaut.
Round here it seems like during
lynching of Jesus Christ
when i start talkin 'Jesus'
I am not welcome...younger
neighbours are 'not interested'
...
Commentary made five stars.

'Complete Jewish Bible' goes with
'Jewish New Testament Commentary'.
After I found the commentary on
(Luke 17:20-21) 'The Kingdom of God'
between 'among you' and 'within you',
as is (Mattew 27:25) 'His Blood Be On Us...'
note is a beaut.
Round here it seems like during
lynching of Jesus Christ
when i start talkin 'Jesus'
I am not welcome...younger
neighbours are 'not interested'
...
Commentary made five stars.

After 'Complete Jewish Bible'
The only way to go is
'Jewish New Testament Commentary'.
After I found the commentary on
(Luke 17:20-21) 'The Kingdom of God'
between 'among you' and 'within you',
as is (Mattew 27:25) 'His Blood Be On Us...'
note is a beaut.
Round here it seems like during
lynching of Jesus Christ
when i start talkin 'Jesus'
I am not welcome...younger
neighbours are 'not interested'
...
Commentary made five stars.

After 'Complete Jewish Bible'
The only way to go is
'Jewish New Testament Commentary'.
After I found the commentary on
(Luke 17:20-21)'The Kingdom of God'
between 'among you' and 'within you',
as is (Mattew 27:25) 'His Blood Be On Us...'
note is a beaut.
Round here i am not getting busted
but when i start talkin 'Jesus'
I am not welcome...'not interested'
Commentary made five stars.

Book arrived promptly and in great condition. The Jewish perspective and background on the Bible has become for me absolutely indispensible to my study of the Word. Much of the understanding of the Bible has been lost to us because our lack of understanding of this perspective.

I bought the New Testament Commentary at the same time as the Complete Jewish Bible, both works by Dr. Stern. The Commentary is a good reference and I look forward to using it. But I found a few things that disappointed me.

The author, Dr. Stern, is a Messianic Jew. In that light, I was hoping for some real insight into the Jewish Messianic thought. To the contrary, Dr. Stern mocks the distinction between Messiah ben Joseph and Messiah ben David, even though the former strengthens his position. And he never connects the Book of Daniel's Son of Man idea with Messianic thought, even though Jesus repeatedly mentioned it.

From a historical perspective, Jesus did not meet the job description of Messiah. This is one of the reasons Jewish people have little interest in Christianity.

The Messiah was to be a human descendant of King David. We have genealogies in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke that show this lineage, although they conflict with each other. Some say one is Mary's, but her name is not mentioned. The Gospels also say that Jesus was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit falling upon the Virgin Mary. OK, so which is it? Joseph or Holy Spirit? No Jewish person I know would leave that issue unchallenged.

The Messiah was to lead the armies of Israel to victory and to restore the kingdom of Israel and put David's descendant to the throne. Jesus preached about God's Kingdom, not a human one. Jesus never raised an army or confronted even one Roman soldier. Forty years after his death, Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed. One hundred years after his death, Israel was wiped off the map, not to reappear until 1948.

Prior to Israel's reappearance in 1948, the British, who held Palestine after the fall of the Ottoman empire following World War I, arranged with the neighboring Arabs to open the territory as a Jewish homeland. The Americans and other nations helped, too. The Jewish people who immigrated put in the work and sacrifice to make the desert blossom as a rose. But Jesus never showed up. So how can Jesus be Israel's Messiah? If anybody, the people of Israel are Israel's Messiah. Dr. Stern does not even mention it.

One comment Dr. Stern made that really infuriated me is found in a list of complaints he made about Christians who do not live up to the ideals of their faith. His list was mostly valid, until it comes to the Holocaust. The Holocaust is a hot-button issue for all Jewish folks, their feelings are intense, though the points of view vary considerably. Dr. Stern says that the Christians did nothing even when they knew the Jews were being burned alive. In reality, the Christians, with Jews right beside them, were fighting a World War against the perpetrators of the genocide. None of the Allies, the Americans, British, or Russians, really understood what was happening in the death camps until their armies reached them. Then they were appalled beyond belief. If Dr. Stern were an aging camp survivor with a failing memory, I would have let his comment go. But Dr. Stern is an intelligent man who knows truth from exaggeration. He discredited himself and his otherwise valuable work.

The book is worth reading. The hyperbole and diatribe are not.

This is one of the most carefully researched commentaries that I have ever used. More importantly, it reveals the actual source of the Bible unlike most other commentaries that ignorantly assume a Greek mindset. I am able to understand concepts so clearly that I had trouble understanding. Misconceptions have also been cleared away.

I don't know how anyone can study the Bible w/out this reference. I also recommend the Jewis New Testment and the Complete Jewish Bible. They are clearly the best exegetical tools.

Have a great read...

Reverend Doctor Toni Jackson

As christianity has largely become westernised in the modern world (even including the names of Jewish people) it has become difficult to undertstand many of the events and stories in their correct first century Jewish context. This book provides an excellent resource for better understanding of what is being said and how it relates to the history of the Jewish people and the Old Testament characters and writings. Often the insight will help to provide knowledge to dismiss incorrect atheistic arguments such as the assertions that Matthew and others misquoted or misused Old Testament scriptural references. I should recommend it to all those who wish to study the New Testament seriously.

An excellent supplement to my Complete Jewish Bible. I recommend this to anyone who desires to learn the Word of God from a Jewish perspective. Learning the Torah is like being born-again all over again!

This commentary on the new testament is so helpful for the Jewish/Messianic/or Christian Believer. It provides a glimpse to the authentic culture of the 1st Century, which really makes the gospels and the rest of the books seems like reading them for the 1st time.

It's too bad there's not one volume with both the New Testament text and the Commentary, but I understand that would be a huge book.

For those of you that really want to get in depth. i think it is a great commentary.

I've been a Christ-follower for the majority of my life. Stein brought a fresh perspective to my daily study of the New Testament. He adds a richness to the text that is typically absent from our Westernized, academic settings and interpretations of Eastern, abstract Biblical writings. Learning the original contexts of Jesus' time have proven effective in not only my personal study, but in communicating the timeless message of God's grace on a weekly basis. This commentary is a must for students, learners, teachers, and pastors.

I found the commentary very helpful in understanding what the new testament REALLY SAYS! and being a student of the Tanach and new Testament was very happy with this book

I bought this book cos I thot it would give some detailed background to Jewish practices. It only does this in some instances. The focus seems to be on Messianic Jews mostly. There is some useful information in terms of history etc, but not what I expected.

need more from your walk with God than you are finding in a church. You need to get back to the faith of the Apostles and Jesus, no, it wasn't Christianity...

This, along with the CJB (Complete Jewish Bible) is a start.

To truly understand the Hebraic mindset of today's Jewish believer's and the Jews of the first century Body of Messiah this commentary is more than a commentary. Rather, it is a must-have companion to the Jewish New Testament, and Complete Jewish Bible. Buy it; use it; cherish it! Shalom

The intro alone is worth the price of this book! This is a great commentary that reminds us that the New Testament is a book comprised of Jewish documents. The authors were Jewish; they were not Greek, not Roman, not English, not Chinese, not Latin, but they were Jewish (some would argue about Luke, but he teaches the same Jewish traditions as the rest of the Scriptures, which would make him part of the commonwealth of Israel). And the audience-- Jews and Gentiles-- together worshiped the God of Israel. This great commentary explains many concepts prevalent in traditional Judaism and how they are applied and properly interpreted in the New Testament. This book is a great tool to have when reading the New Testament, which we must read in context. A must have!

The difference between cant and deceit is that the peddler of cant believes his own nonsense.

In this case, the cant begins with the very title "the Jewish New Testament". Jews have one ONE (1) Testament: it's called the Tanakh by Jews and the "Old Testament" by Christians. If you accept the "New Testament" as sacred scripture, you are (intellectually) not a Jew anymore but something else.

I would use the same argument if the roles were reversed --- if this were, say, an ex-Catholic convert to Judaism arguing that one can reject half the Nicean creed, downgrade the "New Testament" to literature-plus, and still be an evangelical Christian. One cannot.

Let Jews be Jews (although some might wish to learn a bit more about what makes believing Christians tick), and let Christians be Christians (although they may wish to learn more about the Jewish roots of their own faith --- commendably, an increasing number are). Each serving G-d in their own way.

To use a Jewish metaphor: Judaism is like meat and Christianity like dairy. Each, prepared according to the relevant rules, is kosher in itself, but mixtures of meat and dairy are always TREIF (nonkosher).

See my review of Stern's "Complete 'Jewish' Bible". This one is also utter nonsense. The man needs psychiatric help.

I write this review for two reasons: (1) to attempt to be helpful to those interested in buying the book, and (2) in an unashamed attempt to persuade those interested in buying the book that they should buy it.

The absolute worst thing about this commentary is that it is not enough. It is ample as far as most commentaries are concerned, boasting almost a thousand pages of commentary on the New Testament. But the commentary is so good that it invariably leaves the reader wanting even more.

First, while this commentary would be a great commentary on its own, and would still elicit five stars from me (more if I could), this commentary is by far best experienced in tandem with Stern's Jewish New Testament or the Complete Jewish Bible (My advice--purchase the Complete Jewish Bible--see my review there). In this commentary, one of the things Stern does is explain in detail why he has chosen to render certain passages in the way he has chosen. The purchase of one of those books is highly--I repeat: HIGHLY--recommended.

But wait...there's more! Obviously, this commentary is more than a apologetic work by Stern to defend his Jewish New Testament. While the above paragraph is true, the commentary is primarily a fully competent, well researched, well supported, well written commentary on the New Testament (or B'rit Hadashah). Stern's goal (my words, not his) in writing this commentary is to show the inherent Jewish backdrop to the New Testament, and how that backdrop forms the stage for all of the things we read on those pages. His premise is that to understand the New Testament, you must understand the context within which it was written. Stern does a masterful job of accomplishing his goal.

The commentary itself is easily manageable, well written, and very easy to understand--and mildly informal at times. Since this commentary is the work of one man, it has some drawbacks and benefits. For one, the author is able to insert the informal element which makes the work so appealing. Of course the obvious drawback is that it is only one man's work--one man is only able to perform one man's research.

That said, I feel confident in saying that you'll hardly notice the drawback just mentioned. Stern's scholarship in this piece is truly great. Furthermore, many of you will appreciate (as I do) that Stern is willing to admit his ignorance where appropriate.

The commentary is, in short, fantastic. After reading this commentary in your study of the New Testament you will understand passages which you never understood before--even passages from the Old Testament where those themes cross over to the New (which is frequent).

This commentary will paint a picture of the New Testament to which many of us have never been exposed. My hope is that this review has been helpful--my greater hope is that I have persuaded you to buy this book--I am unable to laud it enough! You will do yourself a great disservice if you pass this one up!

The reviews of this Commentary that criticize it for being a deceptive conversion tool are surprising to me. A careful but brief review of the back cover and the summary write-up on this page should make it clear what this is: first, one man's version of a New Testament commentary, nothing more or less; and, second, a commentary written with an explicit Jewish perspective on the New Testament, intended to highlight for any reader (but probably more intended for Western Gentiles) the "Jewishness" of Christ and the First Century setting of the New Testament. Ironically, while some have critized this work for being a deceptive piece intended to convert Jews, I think that the author's desire is to "convert" Christians to a more Jewish perspective. Stern clearly and persuasively (and repeatedly) condemns historical Christian persecution of Jews, and makes great efforts to remind readers of the "connection" between Christians and their undeniable Jewish roots. Anyway, the bottom line for me is that this is another useful tool for anyone's library if you desire a unique and helpful perspective for New Testament studies. If that's what you want, then this should be on your shelf. If you are expecting an indictment of the New Testament, this isn't one and you'll be surprised by this book as others have been.

First, ths trash is a total sham !! It is NOT WRITTEN BY OR JEW OR GIVES ANY PERSPECTIVE THAN ANY OTHER GARBAGE MADE BY THOSE "ANTI-CHRSITIAN VALUES", CHRISTIAN who will lie, cheat, kidnap, or do anything to fool people into converting.

It only took a few pages to know that the perspective was of a marketering, non-informed, Christian.

Truth is, the New Testement was written over three hundreed years after the "death of Jesus", in meetings with the head of the Roman Empire.. A shame that the establish version is nothing like Jesus words and actions.

No one should read this and all should understand that this is just pure misleading Christian material meant to convert those who are not very educated about Judaism or Christianity.

The title of this work is misleading. This is the work of someone formerly Jewish who has converted to Christianity. This form of deceit is practiced also by the entire group who call themselves ' Messianic Jews'. They are in fact converts to Christianity who have left the Jewish religion.
One Christian reviewer of this work on Amazon understood how for Jews who have struggled to stay alive through centuries of persecution such deceit and hypocrisy can be objectionable. One can study the Jewish roots of Christianity or the Jewish relationship to the New Testament and that is a legitimate task. But it is unethical to misrepresent oneself and what one is aiming to do ( Induce Jews to convert to Christianity) in presenting the research.

To all ... who are Jewish, or interested in Judaism. This book of commentary is not a Jewish commentary, in fact it is just a thinly veiled attempt to bring unaffiliated/uneducated Jewish people into the folds of Christianity. For those looking for books on Jewish responses to Christianity, you will do yourself no justice in purchasing this book.