TGC Releases ‘The Gospel Coalition Bible Commentary’ and We Cannot Recommend It
Source: TGC header
It is beyond dispute that The Gospel Coalition is a disreputable organization that cannot be trusted. We’ve documented much of this at the end of this post. From TGC Senior Editor’s Favorite TV Show Contains Graphic Homosexual Sex Scenes to TGC Writer Says The World Should Have Let Hitler and Nazis Conquer Unopposed, their track record is abysmal and the majority of their contributors are deeply theologically compromised.
Now, they’ve announced the release of a Gospel Coalition Bible Commentary. Set to be completed in the first half of 2023, TGC Digital Strategist Phil Thompson shares that this is a labor of love designed to benefit millions of believers by “serving the global church with high-value staple content for Christian leaders.”
I encounter leaders whose appetite for biblical study often exceeds what I see in the U.S. but whose resources pale in comparison.
And this is all the more true when it comes to the staple biblical study resource for pastors and teachers—the commentary. I’ve wished for a commentary that’s modern, understandable, legally available, trustworthy, polished, and useful to the global church.
TGC says that the project has cost them an estimated $500K, and they are looking for donors to partner with them to finish it and see it translated into different languages.
Regarding the list of authors and contributors, we don’t recognize nearly any of the names of the people who wrote the commentaries, and a brief perusal of a few books seem legitimate and helpful. Upon further investigation, almost none of them are TGC article contributors, which explains why the substance appears fine.
But in the same way that Jesus Culture music is a gateway to the wacky teachings of Bethel Church, Elevation Worship to the shallow, self-help narcegesis of Steven Furtick, this commentary is a direct pipeline to other resources offered by The Gospel Coalition, most of them which are unworthy to use as toilet paper. Therefore it’s not something that we’d ever point anyone to.
When bad trees yield good fruit, it’s always for bad purposes.
For more swill from TGC, see here:
TGC Author: Christians Have Endured No ‘Hostility’ or ‘Ill-treatment’ From Govt During Pandemic
TGC Contributor Argues Pro-LGBTQ Xtians and Universalists Are Still In the Faith
TGC’s Thabiti Anyabwile: Resisting Reparations is ‘The Echo of Cain’s Voice’
TGC Author: Believing in ‘Big-Government Overreach’ Is a Denial of ‘Objective Reality’
TGC Author: Straight Men Should Consider Singleness Out of Solidarity for Celibate Homosexuals
TGC Canada Again Argues that Their Churches Aren’t Being Persecuted
TGC Author Advocates for Using Trans Personal Pronouns, Suggests Not Using them Makes one a ‘Weaker Brother’
TGC’s Senior Editor Watches Sex Scenes on TV to be Better at Evangelizing
Woke TGC Contributor Suggests Mary Taught Jesus The Sermon On The Mount
TGC Author Suggests Campaigning for the Democrats is A-OK
TGC Contributor Ironically Praises Enneagram On Podcast about ‘False Teaching’
TGC Author Says that the USA is too ‘Exhausted’ to Handle Overturning Roe v. Wade + Deletes Tweet
TGC Author Rebecca McLaughlin Says We MUST Repent of our Parent’s and Grandparent’s Racism
TGC Senior Editor Criticizes ‘What Is A Woman’ Doc for Not Being ‘Empathetic’ Enough
TGC Author Suggests ‘Deadnaming’ Transexuals is ‘Disrespectful’
TGC Author: Stopping Active Shooter in Church Is Just Like Peter Cutting Of Servant’s Ear: Jesus Says Not To
TGC Author Claims That Deconstruction May Just Be Smashing Cultural Idols
TGC Finally Edits Article Describing Rittenhouse as ‘Mass Shooter’+ Still Compares him to Mass Murderer
And many, many more
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Expecting they would twist the scripture in conformance to the world, considering the current state of the world, and skimming through the commentary on a couple of books with that in mind, it doesn’t seem to be entirely terrible, but there are some problems. One comment on 2 Peter 2:2, which “sensuality” is defined as “a term that refers to a ‘lack of self-constraint which involves one in conduct that violates all bounds of what is socially acceptable.’” I don’t know where they got that definition. The Greek word is aselgeia (Strongs 766), and is the same word used by Jesus in Mark 7:22, where He condemns sexual immorality. But the society of the day was rampant with all manner of immorality, particular sexual immorality, that was considered “socially acceptable” in ancient Rome. Our standards are not determined by what is “socially acceptable,” and that is clearly not the intended meaning of the verse. That which is socially acceptable could be an additional limit on our behavior, on top of limits set by God’s Word, but not the other way around. If society were to decide, for example, that wearing t-shirts is too immodest, then we shouldn’t wear t-shirts, even though wearing t-shirts is not forbidden in scripture.
If you click on their footnote, it says “The context suggests a sexual connotation to this term.” And they go on to cover sexual sin in other parts of the chapter, but their definition of the word “sensuality” is concerning.
In fact, everywhere the word aselgeia is used in scripture, it is in context with sexual immorality. By Jesus in Mark 7:22. By Paul in Rom. 13:3, 2 Cor. 12:21, Gal. 5:19, and Eph. 4:19 (every kind of impurity). By Peter in 1 Pet. 4:3, 2 Pet. 2:2 (chapter context). And by Jude in Jude 1:4.
While what little of the commentary I read may not be exactly terrible, I agree with Protestia on this. TGC has proven that it cannot be trusted. You could give the commentary a stamp of approval today, and tomorrow it could’ve been edited to say something entirely different. Next thing you know, your words are retroactively twisted to mean something you never said.
The word porneia (Strongs 4202), where Jesus condemned sexual immorality, in Mark 7:21, is also used elsewhere in scripture, at times in context with more detailed listing of what constitutes sexual immorality, including that endorsed by the alphabet crowd.
For any who still miss the forest for the trees, which is that the scriptural definition of sexual immorality is anything and everything sexual that exists outside the bounds of marriage between one male husband and one female wife, according to God’s design, scriptures where the word is used, where that direct contrast is made, include Matt 19:9 (Jesus), Matt. 15:19 (Jesus), Matt 5:32 (Jesus), John 8:41 (Certain Jews accusing Jesus of being born out of wedlock), Cor. 7:1-2 (Paul), and several others.
And those who wrongly believe discrediting Paul will accomplish their goal of affirming immorality should read 2 Peter 3:15-16.
Others who try to claim that sodom and gomorrah were not destroyed because of sexual immorality should read the epistles. Paul, Peter, Jude, John of Patmos, several affirmed the fact outright, that the cities were destroyed because of sexual immorality, and others, such as James, alluded to it – in large part, it seems to me, depending on the audience. I.e., letters to the Jews did not go into as much detail to explain because Jews already understood the sins to which the Apostles were referring. In speaking to the Jews, just the word “sexual immorality” was enough.
And of course, that would go for Jesus’ teachings also. His immediate audience was the Jews, who already knew full well what was meant by words such as porneia. When He contrasted sexual immorality to God’s definition of marriage, as the only valid reason for divorce, they understood.
I’ve gotten off on a bit of a tangent here, and have barely touched the surface, but it is arguably the most significant threat we face at this time, to the point of being forced by the government to accept, affirm, and respect sin or else, which amounts to nothing less than being forced to deny the Gospel. And where TGC is concerned, such issues are where I would expect them to compromise and conform to the world, and to spin their commentary accordingly. Last night I was reading through some of the responses to Franklin Graham’s tweets, and it was sad to see how ignorant of scripture some people are, how much they will try to twist scripture, perverting God’s grace and perverting God’s love, in an effort to defend abominable sexual perversion. I believe, as the scripture says, their pastors, and whoever else has led them astray, will be harshly judged.
Since already off on the tangent, and some may read who may need to hear, it should be added that the foremost problem with wrongly saying “Jesus never mentioned it” is that such is to deny that Jesus is God.
Jesus said, in Matt. 7:21, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” In Matt. 12:50, He says, “For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” In John 10:30, He says, “I and the Father are one”
In Mark 7 and Matt 15, when He speaks of that which comes out of the mouth defiling a man, when He challenges the ceremonial tradition of the elders (Mark 7:3), He immediately reiterates the fact that we are under God’s moral law, directly condemning wickedness that comes out of the heart, including aselgeia and porneia, which His audience well understood.
So He did directly condemn it. He directly condemned any and all sexual immorality which is anything and everything outside of God’s design for marriage between one male and one female.
Tekton, You made many good points. I got a chuckle out of it because I can become just as wordy in my replies, but the content was worth reading through.
And that was the short version. I get started, and by the time I’ve tried to cover most of the bases, it’s a wall of text. But hopefully the Lord can use our words despite our shortcomings. Who knows, somebody may come along and read it ten years from now, and it may make a difference. At least we’re speaking up, which is better than not speaking at all.