The introduction is most comprehensive.
Prayer is most natural activity. There is a technique for it.
First observation is that God is more eager to listen to our prayers than we are eager to pray.
There are laws of effective prayer:
First law is: One should be honest with GOD.
Second law is: One should be definite in prayer.
Third law is : Remeber that GOD knows the best for us>
Fourth law is: God will not do for us that which we can do for ourseleves. Prayer is not a escape; One must act to make the prayer true.
Fifth law is : Prayer moves within the natural laws which govern life.
Prayer is not a means of escape; but a means of conquest.

Stages in prayer technique:
1. Invocation
2. Confession
3. Thanksgiving
4. Petition
5. Intercession

Prayer should be done as talking to a close friend;
Prayer should be a constant thing;

Important :
Prayer is not a monologue;
It is a dialogue;
Listen to God.

Finally, he ends the introduction :
It is my own prayer that those who use it finally come not to need its help any more.

He has given prayers & bible readings for sundays, festival days and special occasions.
He gives daywise simple prayers and bible reading suggestion for a month.
The book end with list of index of bible readings for the year.

Good book as a gift.

Barclay does a complete and through review of each line of the creed. Beginning with "I believe", the writer explores the development of each phrase of the creed in simple language for the beginner as well as the student of theology. He explains the meaning of each phrase, why it is included, and the culture in which the phrase developed. The different interpretations of the individual phrases are fully explored along with the defense of each. This is a great book for those preparing for baptism or confirmation as well as a good book for a Christian Formation Class. I used this as a theology resource in preparation for the Diaconate in the Episcopal Church. The only shortcoming is the lack of inclusive language; otherwise, I would rate it five star.

This book provides a helpful historical study of the ancient Apostles' Creed. More importantly, it provides expert and loving pastoral guidance on the meaning of each passage in this important summary of the Christian faith.

Dr. Barclay views God primarily in terms of a loving and forgiving father--in sharp contrast with those who see God more in terms of a triumphant king bent on destroying his enemies. Dr. Barclay's view gave him a wonderful perspective on profound issues such as the foregiveness of sin and the meaning of Jesus' death on the cross. Dr. Barclay dares to hope that God will ultimately restore all of humankind to Himself. And rather than dying instead of us on the cross (because an offended and vengeful God demands that somebody die as a punishment for sin), Dr. Barclay believes the cross was instead necessary to show humanity that there is no point beyond which the love of our foregiving God will not go.

The book provides an articulate, beautiful, and believable summary of Dr. Barclay's view of the Christain faith based on a God who "is love." I highly recommend it.

Finding scholarly Bible books among a sea of evangelistic books can be frustrating. If you are more of a Bible scholar than a Bible thumper, then this set of paperbacks may be just the thing. I tend to agree with Barclay's opinions and viewpoint, so reading these is very comfortable. Buy one [don't write your name in it], see if you like it, and then buy the set (you will like it). Give the one book you bought to a friend who is interested in learning about the New Testament from a scholar's perspective, or simply a desire to know what is in the NT in plain language.

This series of books is one of the best I've seen. I've always loved William Barclay's writings, though sometimes his scholarly writing is a little tough.

For many tough to understand scriptures, this series provides thorough and accurate answers to the real meaning of what the scriptures mean. This is not easy reading, it takes time to get through the materials. Theologically, these books could be much stronger. Historically, they are really top notch and can really give insight to those studying the scriptures.

These books, or something like them, should be on the shelves of all Christian pastors and leaders because they contain so much in depth knowledge that need to be near those that minister to others. When I was in bible school these books were not required but I got my hands on them anyway. All Christians will benefit from reading Barclay's well written and well researched words. Non Christians can learn much from Barclay too. They will help answer many of the tough questions that most of us have

At times the theology is a little questionable, since this book has been written from an extremely conservative viewpoint where it seems like the author is afraid to say certain things. The hisorical benefits of this book are fantastic. I love reading about what life was like when the books of the New Testament were written.

William Barclay, a Scottish theologian, has written an outstanding 17 volume commentary on the New Testament. (It can be bought as a set or by separate volumes.) He gives a passage, then proceeds with an explanation. Often, he gives four or five interpretations, sometimes following with a statement something like, "The first interpretation probably is not what Paul meant because..., the second is certainly a possibility because...; however, I tend to favor the third explanation because..." Essentially, I respect his work because of the depth of his scholarship, learning, and faith, but almost more because of his honesty. If there are major conflicting views from other scholars on a passage, he gives their reasoning. He gives support (such as translations from the Greek or facts of church history) for his stances and if it is flatly an opinion, he states that it is so. In fact, he is sometimes so fair, that he spends almost too long giving all the possible interpretations of a passage. Our study class has appreciated a source which gives readable scholarly background and presents dissenting views fairly. His work sparks some of the best discussion we've had. It isn't "a hundred pages a sitting" reading, but it is fascinating to read a chapter then discuss and reflect on the ideas he raises. For me, this is the best Bible reference book I have ever used.

The revised edition of Barclay's commentaries was issued in 1975 and was prepared not by William Barclay, but by the Rev. James Martin. According to the introduction, the revised edition renews the printer's type, restyles the books, corrects some errors in the text and removes some references which have become outdated. In addition, Biblical quotations in the commentaries use the Revised Standard Version instead of the King James Version (however Barclay's own translation is retained at the beginning of each daily section).

The reality of the revised edition is quite different. What the introduction fails to mention is that the 17 volumes of the revised edition of the New Testament have 12.6% fewer pages than the now out-of-print 2nd edition. Only the 2nd edition contains all of Barclay's commentary on the New Testament. For example, in the 2 volumes on the Gospel of John, the revised edition contains 547 pages; however the 2nd edition contained 634 pages. Thus, the revised edition has 13.7% fewer pages than the 2nd edition. In the 2 volumes on Revelation, the reduction is over 20%.

I first noticed the selective deletion of portions of Barclay's original commentary in the commentary for John 13:33-35, in which Jesus speaks of loving one another as he loved us. In the 2nd edition, Barclay so beautifully states the following: "He [Jesus] knew all their [his disciples] weaknesses and yet He still loved them. Those who really love us are the people who know us at our worst and who still love us." However, these two sentences do not appear in Martin's revised edition. Repeatedly, key sentences and phrases are deleted from the revised edition. The revised edition is in fact a condensed and inferior version of the commentaries actually written by William Barclay. I do believe that William Barclay's commentaries are the most insightful and meaningful commentaries that I have ever read on the New Testament, and I cannot recommend them highly enough. They have truly changed my life. However, if you want to read all of what Barclay actually said instead of what Martin thought was important enough to leave in, then check with a used book store or do a used book search on the internet to get the 2nd editions of the Gospel of John or other volumes in the Daily Study Bible.

Lke Caruso or Babe Ruth, Barclay is in a class by himself.As a commentator he had a combination of skills I have not found equalled by anyone else He was and remains the best in thefield. His writing style is accessible but eloquent Anglo-English (he was Scotch). His erudition peerless,(he knew more about Judiasm as a religion than almost all specialists I have read in that field) His intellectual intergrity is breathtaking. He will acknowledge and discuss that the original Mark did not make a strongarguement for the Resurrection, that John was brillant but probably wrong about the actual day of the crucifixtion etc etc etc. His analysis of many issues (like the authorship of John's Gospel)while easy to understand, is far more sophisticated than what you will find in the Expositer's.

Barclay will educate you, strengthen your faith, and leave you shaking your head in regret that "they dont make them like him anymore. I have read a bunch of these guys. Barclay is the geniune article, in a class by himself, the standard by which I and I think you too will judge everyone else.

Barclay's writings speak to me like none other. William Barclay passed on in the early 1980's, but thankfully, he left behind so much of his useful and practical knowledge.

Of these DSB series, John is my favorite.

Barclay's book on John says that this disciple was portrayed as "The Eagle" because he saw things from a higher, more spiritual view and his writings had more metaphysical meat to them.

Barclay's exegesis on John really brings that out.

And the thing I love most about this book is the practicality of his teachings. It's not a dry or dusty interpretation, but a here and now explanation. He makes the writings of these men come alive and then shows how the teachings of Jesus are practical and applicable to all the needs of mankind - for now and forever.

As someone else once said of this remarkable man, William Barclay, "he saved the Bible from the experts."

John was the first of this series that I read. And then I went out and bought Matthew. And then Luke. And then Mark and before I was done - I'd purchased and read them all.

The revised edition of Barclay's commentaries on the New Testament was published in the 1970's, replacing the 2nd edition. It was prepared not by William Barclay, but by the Rev. James Martin. According to the introduction, the revised edition renews the printer's type, restyles the books, corrects some errors in the text and removes some references which have become outdated. In addition, Biblical quotations in the revised edition use the Revised Standard Version instead of the King James Version (however Barclay's own translation is retained at the beginning of each daily section).

What the introduction of the revised edition fails to mention is that while the 17 volumes of the previous 2nd edition contains a total of 5,195 pages, the revised edition prepared by Martin has only 4,541 pages, or a reduction of 12.6%. The removal of portions of Barclay's text in the revised edition varies among the 17 volumes, but nowhere is it more pronounced than in the 2 volumes on Revelation. In the 2nd edition, the 2 volumes contain 528 pages, but in the revised edition the 2 volumes only contain 415 pages, a reduction of 113 pages, or 21.4%. One of the worst cases of the removal of portions of Barclay's commentary occurs in the commentary for Revelation 3:1-6 (Sardis: A Lifeless Church). In that particular commentary, well over 50% of the text from the 2nd edition is removed in the revised edition. Repeatedly, key sentences and phrases are deleted from the revised edition. The revised edition is in fact a condensed and inferior version of the commentaries actually written by William Barclay.

However, I do want to make it clear that I found that the 2nd edition of the Daily Study Bible, including the 2 volumes on Revelation, are by far the most insightful and meaningful commentaries that I have ever read on the New Testament, and I cannot recommend them highly enough. Barclay's 2nd edition commentary on Revelation did an outstanding job of explaining the historical background and the meaning of this difficult text. Any serious study of Revelation would benefit tremendously by the use of Barclay's commentary. However, if you want to read all of what Barclay actually said instead of what Martin thought was important enough to leave in, then check with a used book store or do a used book search on the internet to get the 2nd editions of the 2 volumes on Revelation or other volumes in the Daily Study Bible series.

I was looking for Volume II and am using this "review" as a means to inquire. Volume I covers chapters 1-5. I assume Vol. II would cover chapters 6-18? I would like to purchase Vol. II.(As a small review: Mr. Barclay has taken on the most difficult book and made it much easier to understand.)

The breakdown of the written text was very informative for me an arm chair catholic bible reader. The recommended interpretations are all viable and the "more likely meanings" of the text seemed well founded. However, a volume 2 would be a great finish to the reading.

Barclay explains away the miracles and healings of Jesus so that they are just common-place occurrences. His explanation of the raising of Lazarus is absolutely absurd. It's the most ridiculous thing I've every read!

Barclay does not believe in the virgin birth, and the reasons he gives contradict Scripture, itself.

This is not a book that any serious Bible student would want to read - unless the purpose is wanting to know what is being taught by some people and how to combat the heresies.

Dr. Barclay's Mind of Jesus is fantastic! Dr. Barclay explains complex and difficult teachings and themes in the Bible where anyone can understand them. Dr. Barclay can be trusted. His Daily Study Bible series is used the world over as a commentary. And to the "reader" from Albertville, AL: Dr. Barclay was not an Anglican/Episcopalian. He was an ordained minister in the Church of Scotland which is a Presbyterian body.

Barclay has a problem with the virgin birth, and he seems to have explanations for some miracles. He is one of the best on understanding Jesus. His respect for Christ comes through in every page, as do his love and admiration for Jesus. I recommend this book, together with Richard Burridge's Four Gospels, One Jesus? to anyone who wants a basic study of these. My students agree.

William Barclay (true with all his books) is a good academic, but he tries to spiritualize and explain away parts of the Bible that he finds hard to literally believe. This has the ramification of preventing the non-academic reader (who is less likely to challenge his opinion) from believing these passages to be literally true, who without Barclay's interference, may have dared to believe them. So, read if you must, but with much caution.

This little book is mandatory reading because Barclay is widely cited and hailed as "one of the world's great biblical scholars". His book concisely reflects the sad shape of Christianity and its scholarship today. Barclay states that "For a variety of reasons, it is not possible to hold... that the Bible is literally and, as it were physically, the word of God". He neatly skewers the majority of Christians who hold to weak notions of the inspiration of the Bible. No mid-Acts dispensationalist is surprised that "early sermons do not connect the death of Jesus with the forgiveness of sins", but Barclay obtusely notes his own surprise and marches onward. Barclay's little book is easy-to-read, clearly states his philosophy, and spares the reader his more ponderous other books.

THis book is very good at poiting out the most important parts of being a christian that are in the bible. I like this book, even though I am reading it for my bible class here at college. Great book!

This installment of The Daily Study Bible Series covers the Pastoral Epistles and the letter to Philemon. William Barclay has given us a good devotional study firmly rooted in biblical scholarship.

Scholars have disputed Pauline authorship of the Pastoral Epistles (I and II Timothy, Titus). Barclay's introduction covers the issues involved well. He takes a middle position where a later teacher expanded genuine Pauline fragments. Unfortunately, he does not expound this view in the commentary itself; he is silent about which sections are genuine and which are later. Since "we are still hearing the voice of Paul" (13), it probably did not occur to him to make the distinctions. Barclay's introduction to Philemon includes an interesting if speculative account of how this short letter became included in the New Testament.

The commentary itself is best described as expository. Barclay does not only analyze the Greek text. Using exhortation, anecdotal stories, and other sources, he also suggests what these texts might mean today. From a strictly academic viewpoint, this commentary will seem superficial. For the popular audience for whom Barclay has intended this work, it should serve as a springboard for further study. Barclay provides a list for further reading for this purpose.

Though this book is a good introductory work overall, the reader should be aware of a couple points. The first relates to these epistles' stances on women and slavery. Any casual reading of the letters will strike the reader as bordering on misogyny and condoning slavery. Barclay places these tests in the situation of the Roman/Greek world in which Paul wrote them. He makes a valid point that doing almost anything else would be scandalous (with women) or even dangerous (with slaves). To his credit, he says those circumstances no longer apply. However,considering the history in which these texts were and are used, I have to think he soft-pedaled these issues. After all Christianity is supposed to be "light for the world" (Matt. 5:14, NJB).

The other issue concerns Barclay's treatment of other religions. When Barclay mentions them, he almost invariably creates straw men of them. He makes at least one anti-Semitic accusation without evidence. Against these straw men, Barclay over idealizes Christianity. Even granting this work is now more than twenty-five years old, Barclay should have been above that.

In his series of New Testament Commentaries, William Barclay gives us a commentary on the "Pastoral Epistles" and Philemon. 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus are called the Pastoral Epistles because Paul had written them to encourage and advise two pastors in Early Christianity. They give advice concerning the character and conduct that Christians should have, specifically the character and conduct of a church's pastor.

Where Barclay's strength lies is in the meticulous analysis of the text. Paul tends to pack a lot in his sentences; Barclay picks the sentence apart and brings things into clearer view. While he does an admirable job discussing Paul's world in the light of the times (when slaves outnumbered free men, when women were neither to be seen nor heard, etc.); how Paul's words can be applied to a modern, slave-free, woman-respecting society; and spends a great deal of time analyzing Christian conduct.

While the commentary is generally good, it wasn't much that I hadn't heard or read before. It can be argued that this was Barclay's intention. Since he translated the entire text from the original Greek, quoted many other Bible verses and Paul's pagan contemporaries (to illustrate the thinking of the day), etc., he could have written a pretty good commentary series intended for Biblical scholars. Instead, he wrote one for the regular chruch-goers.

I do have to throw in one comment concerning the inerrancy of the Bible. Barclay speculates that Paul may not have written the entire epistle, but rather that someone found one of Paul's old letters and re-wrote it to address the Gnostic heresy in the Church. This speculation is dangerous as it encourages one to pick apart the Bible and throw away the parts that he/she doens't like. It makes the Bible subjective ("I don't like that part about no murder. I don't believe the Holy Spirit wrote that, so I'll ignore it."). The Holy Spirit doesn't need an editor; It will have what it wants in the Bible and make sure that any "false teachings" are not included.

In all, this is a pretty good commentary. It gives a thorough, Biblical analysis of the conduct of Christian pastors and lay-people. It also gives a healthy view of the historical period in which these letters were written.

I have found Barclay's Daily Bible Study Guides of the New Testament the best in-depth commentary of the bible books. He presents scholarly analysis in very easy to read passages. Reading this book in particular greatly increased my understanding of Paul's extraordinary letters to Timothy and Titus on Christian leadership principles.

This edition, with minor changes and corrections, is essentially the same as the revised edition issued in 1975. What this and the previous revised edition fail to inform the reader of is that it does not contain all of the commentary text written by William Barclay. The two volumes of the revised edition of the Gospel of John contain 547 pages. However, the 2nd edition of the two volumes of the Gospel of John (published in 1956) contains 634 pages. Thus, the revised edition has 13.7% fewer pages than the 2nd edition.

This reduction in pages is not solely due to differences in formatting. It is largely due to the deletion of many portions of Barclay's commentary contained in the 2nd edition. I first noticed the selective deletion of portions of Barclay's original commentary in the commentary for John 13:33-35, in which Jesus speaks of loving one another as he loved us. In the 2nd edition, Barclay so beautifully states the following: "He [Jesus] knew all their [his disciples] weaknesses and yet He still loved them. Those who really love us are the people who know us at our worst and who still love us." However, these two sentences, along with four other sentences, do not appear in the revised edition, and they do not appear in this edition. Repeatedly, key sentences and phrases are deleted from this edition. At another point in this commentary, Barclay states that: "It is when we live with people that we find out their moods and their irritabilities and their weaknesses." Although this sentence is contained in this edition, the sentence that immediately follows it in the 2nd edition will not be found in this edition. That sentence is: "And others have the same experience with us."

Furthermore, the changes in the revised edition are not the work of William Barclay, but as William Barclay states in the introduction to the revised edition, "the work of revision and correction has been done entirely by the Rev. James Martin." Clive Rawlins, who wrote an authorized biography of William Barclay, stated in the biography that it was especially questionable for Barclay to allow republication without his own personal revision (due to Barclay's physical decline, Rawlins indicates that Barclay was unable to make the revisions himself). Rawlins was very critical of the revisions by Martin, stating that the nature of the original work was not always respected. At one point, Rawlins stated that Martin's elimination of two key phrases was a great pity and lessened the force of Barclay's statement. In the introduction to the book of Romans, Rawlins stated that it was strange that Martin should have so completely missed Barclay's emphasis in the revised edition prepared by Martin. Rawlins stated in the biography that the reduction of approximately 600 pages in the 17 volume set was because of "vigorous pruning" of Barclay's writing. In conclusion, Rawlins found that the revisions made by Martin in the revised edition "are not of the highest order."

On the other hand, I cannot emphasize enough the value of Barclay's commentaries. His knowledge of the Greek language, the Jewish culture and religion, and the Roman occupation during the New Testament era is phenomenal. Furthermore, he has a unique ability to convey this immense knowledge in a manner which is very easy for any reader to understand. William Barclay has the ability to convey to the reader not only what that passage meant to the people to whom Jesus spoke to 2,000 years ago, but what those passages say to us today. On countless occasions, I have felt that Barclay was speaking to me personally as he discussed the relevance of the passage in his commentary.

William Barclay's New Testament commentaries are the most insightful and meaningful commentaries that I have ever read, and I cannot recommend them highly enough. He has both challenged and inspired me; William Barclay's writings have truly changed my life. However, if you want to read all of what Barclay actually said instead of what some editor thought was important enough to leave in, then check with a used book store or do a used book search on the internet to get the 2nd editions of the Gospel of John or other volumes in Barclay's Daily Study Bible.

I have "seen" the Gospel of John over a dozen of times, but never really read it, in terms of deep understanding, until Barclay helped to reveal it to me in his commentary. Barclay's explanation of the Greek in the original text, and the historical background he provides, has been very significant to my study of Jesus Christ. An example is Barclay's extensive analysis of Jesus as the "logos" that commences his commentary on the Gospel of John. Barclay's discussion of the story of the woman caught in adultery is one of the most beautiful interpretations of an aspect of Jesus's ministry I have ever heard or read. I strongly recommend the Revised Edition to anyone in search of greater understanding of Jesus Christ.

One unfortunate criticism of the Revised Edition of Barclay's Commentaries on the New Testament is that it is somewhat inferior to the 2nd Edition. It is true that the Revised Edition has fewer pages, but this criticism does not take into account the fact that the size of the pages in the Revised Edition is larger than that of the 2nd Edition. Also, Barclay removed a number of redundancies of writing in preparing the Revised Edition. Barclay was a prolific writer, and I suspect that he improved his writing talent considerably in the 19 years between when the two editions were published. I am also hard-pressed to believe that Barclay would have compromised the message of these commentaries in any way in later editions. Further, printing technology improved considerably in that period, such that the Revised Edition is much easier on the eyes. And I would note that it is quite difficult to locate the 2nd Edition of these commentaries. I believe that the Revised Edition is a perfectly viable if not preferable substitute for the 2nd Edition.

Mr Barclay does an incredible job explaining past and present issues related to Jesus's parables.

The best is the long interpertation of the Parable of The Seeds.

Read this books.