Pulpit Commentary

The Pulpit Commentary is a comprehensive Protestant Bible commentary originally published between 1880 and 1897 under the joint editorship of the Reverend H. D. M. Spence and the Reverend Joseph S. Exell. It is a collaborative work involving numerous biblical scholars, theologians, and clergymen. Covering the entire Bible, it combines detailed verse-by-verse exposition with homiletical outlines and practical sermon material.

The work became an important reference for Protestant ministers, Bible teachers, and students of Scripture. Unlike commentaries written by a single theologian, it draws upon the expertise of different contributors for individual books of the Bible.

Publication and editors

The Pulpit Commentary was published in London by Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co., with American editions appearing through publishers including Anson D. F. Randolph and Funk & Wagnalls.

The principal editors were:

• Henry Donald Maurice Spence (1836–1917), an Anglican clergyman, biblical scholar, and later Dean of Gloucester. He contributed the exposition of the Gospel of Luke and supervised the wider undertaking.
• Joseph Samuel Exell (1849–1909), an Anglican editor and compiler who was also associated with Clerical World, The Homiletical Quarterly, and The Monthly Interpreter. He subsequently edited other major religious reference works, including The Biblical Illustrator.

Publication commenced in 1880 and continued through the 1890s. Bibliographical descriptions differ slightly, with the original series recorded as either 48 or 49 volumes. A substantial American reissue was subsequently published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company in 1950, arranged in 23 volumes, including a general index.

Structure and contents

The Pulpit Commentary was designed primarily to assist ministers and teachers in understanding Scripture and preparing sermons. It uses the King James Version as its principal biblical text and provides material covering every book of the Protestant biblical canon.

Its contents are organised around three principal elements:

Exposition

The exposition provides detailed explanations of the biblical text, generally proceeding verse by verse and examining significant words, phrases, and passages. It includes cross-references to other portions of Scripture, explanations of historical and geographical matters, and discussions of theological questions.

The exposition was generally supplied by scholars with particular knowledge of the biblical book concerned. This enabled the editors to draw upon specialists rather than rely upon a single commentator for the entire Bible.

Homiletics

The homiletical section provides outlines and thematic arrangements intended to assist the preparation of sermons and Bible lessons. It identifies the principal subjects and teachings within a chapter and suggests ways of organising them into a coherent exposition.

Homilies

The homilies provide additional sermon material and practical applications of the biblical passages. These contributions were supplied by various ministers and religious writers, offering different approaches to the interpretation and practical application of Scripture.

The combination of exposition, homiletics, and homilies distinguishes the work from commentaries intended primarily for academic or critical study.

Contributors

The commentary drew upon a wide range of nineteenth-century British and other Protestant scholars. Contributors included:

• Thomas Whitelaw — Genesis.
• George Rawlinson — Exodus, Job, Psalms, Isaiah, and other Old Testament books.
• Frederick Meyrick — Leviticus.
• William Lindsay Alexander — Deuteronomy.
• Arthur Charles Hervey — Judges and Acts.
• Robert Payne Smith — First and Second Samuel.
• Joseph Hammond — First Kings.
• Alfred Plummer — Joshua, the Johannine Epistles, and other New Testament material.
• Henry Donald Maurice Spence-Jones — Luke.
• James Barmby — Romans and Hebrews.
• Frederic William Farrar — First and Second Corinthians.
• William Garden Blaikie — Ephesians.
• B. C. Caffin — Philippians and the Epistles of Peter.

The division of work varied between books. Some contributors supplied the exposition, others the homiletics, and others the additional homilies. A contemporary review in The Spectator on July 6, 1889, identified several of the contributors to a newly published volume covering the Epistles of Peter, John, and Jude, illustrating the collaborative nature of the undertaking.

Historical significance

The Pulpit Commentary emerged during a period of considerable expansion in Protestant biblical scholarship during the nineteenth century. It provided ministers with a substantial collection of biblical exposition and sermon material at a time when printed commentaries were becoming increasingly important resources for theological education and congregational teaching.

Its principal strength was the breadth of its coverage. Rather than restricting its contents to textual criticism or academic theology, it brought together historical explanation, linguistic observations, doctrinal discussion, and practical application.

The series also preserves the work of numerous nineteenth-century clergymen and biblical scholars whose individual contributions might otherwise be less widely encountered. Its expositions are particularly useful for examining the biblical scholarship and homiletical methods of the period.

The original work is now in the public domain and has been digitised in its entirety. It remains available through historical theological collections and modern Bible reference platforms.