Wisdom Commentary Wisdom Commentary: Luke 10-24

An incredible accomplishment! Informed by a diverse array of methodologies as well as by contexts ancient and present, this volume covering Luke 10–24 is in tune with both literary sensibilities and ideological sensitivities from beginning to end. The fact that it is done in not only the spirit but also the reality of feminist collaboration makes this volume truly unique. With this second volume, we now have in our hands a treasure trove of wisdom to guide our reading of Luke’s Gospel of women.

In this volume, Barbara Reid and Shelly Matthews set their sharp feminist-critical eyes on Luke’s text, not to rip it to shreds, but to shed laser light on the social, historical, and ideological contours shaping the narrative. Where Luke offers a large cast of female characters but mostly relegates them to bit parts with few lines, Reid and Matthews give them vital voices that speak across the ages. This commentary, like all the volumes in this marvelous series that Reid edits, beautifully transposes the ancient wisdom of Scripture into a liberating feminist key for all people and, indeed, all creation.

The advent of this splendid second volume marks an unprecedented moment in the long history of Lukan commentary: a multi-voiced, multi-ethnic, gender-centered commentary on the entire gospel. Even apart from its significance as the first full-length feminist commentary on Luke, this work is a model for future multi-authored projects in biblical scholarship.

Because there are more women in the Gospel of Luke than in any other gospel, feminists have given it much attention. In this commentary, Shelly Matthews and Barbara Reid show that feminist analysis demands much more than counting the number of female characters. Feminist biblical interpretation examines how the female characters function in the narrative and also scrutinizes the workings of power with respect to empire, to anti-Judaism, and to other forms of othering. Matthews and Reid draw attention to the ambiguities of the text—both the liberative possibilities and the ways that Luke upholds the patriarchal status quo—and guide readers to empowering reading strategies.

Barbara Reid, OP, and Shelly Matthews together probe the message of Luke's narrative and the contours of that message when viewed from the experience of women, including issues of inclusion and use of power. Readers will find here thoughtful and challenging perspectives.

Reid and Matthew's commentary is an excellent contribution to interpretive dialogue on Luke's Gospel. It critically examines short-sighted, androcentric readings, brings feminist voices and concerns to the fore, and evaluates texts with interpretive nuance, making it especially helpful to scholars, as well as to teachers and preachers. The two volumes represent the best of both the authors' interpretive work as well as the Wisdom Commentary series as a whole, yielding a commentary on Luke's Gospel that will be consulted for decades to come.