Review: I Wish Someone Would Explain Hebrews to Me!
The appearance of a new book by Stuart Olyott is always a welcome event and his latest offering is no exception. He is a master of good communication and clear Christ-centred teaching.
The letter to the Hebrews is one of the hardest books of the New Testament to understand, yet as the author says in his introduction, if we do not understand Hebrews we will misunderstand the Old Testament. In fact, he says, “Hebrews is the best commentary on the Old Testament ever written”. In 23 chapters he carefully states, illustrates and applies teaching of this letter. In every chapter he paraphrases each verse to bring home, in today’s English, the train of thought and argument. This is a most helpful feature as it enables the reader to grasp the big picture.
The author always remains faithful to the text, allowing the Bible to speak to us. He does not avoid difficult passages – in fact he spends more time explaining them. For instance, he sets aside a whole chapter to explain the difficult verses in Hebrews 6: 4 – 6 that speak to those who have fallen away.
This book is primarily for those who wish to fully grasp the teaching of the letter to the Hebrews. However the book will also be more than useful to any teacher about to embark on a series of Bible studies or sermons on this vital letter. Read it — you will not be disappointed. This book does explain Hebrews!
This review was first posted on GoodBookReviews.org. The site has been closed as of March 2019
Latest Articles
Developing the Hide of a Rhinoceros 21 January 2026
This article first appeared at The Australian Presbyterian and is featured in Issue 749 of the Banner of Truth Magazine (February 2026). Somewhere, Stuart Briscoe has commented that three attributes of a pastor are needed: ‘The mind of a scholar, the heart of a child, and the hide of a rhinoceros.’ The last attribute seems […]
Commentaries and the ‘Unction Test’
— Iain H. Murray
13 January 2026
In January 1996, Iain H. Murray gave an address at The Bethlehem Conference for Pastors (Minneappolis, U. S. A.) entitled ‘The Preacher and Books.’ The excerpt below is from a section in which Rev. Murray asks how a preacher is to determine which books (and particularly commentaries in this case) he should devote time to […]