Colossians, 1-2 Thessalonians, 1-2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon

For the early church fathers, certain passages in the shorter
letters of St. Paul proved particularly important in doctrinal disputes
and practical church matters. Pivotal in controversies with
the Arians and the Gnostics, the most commented-on christological text
in these letters was Colossians 1:15-20, where Jesus is declared "the
image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation."

The
fathers found ample support scattered throughout the Pastorals for the
divinity of the Son and the Spirit and for the full union of humanity
and divinity in the "one mediator between God and men, the man Christ
Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5). These commentators also looked to the Pastorals
for important teaching on ethics and church life.

Chief among the
Eastern commentators and widely excerpted throughout this volume is John
Chrysostom, praised for his pastoral insight. Other Greek commentators
cited include Theodoret of Cyr, Theodore of Mopsuestia, Severian of
Gabala, Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Clement of
Alexandria, Athanasius, Basil the Great, Gregory of Nazianzus, and
Gregory of Nyssa. Western commentators include Augustine, Ambrosiaster,
Pelagius, Jerome, Hippolytus, Tertullian, Novatian, Cyprian of Carthage,
Hilary of Poitiers, and Ambrose. Of particular interest for their
ascetical and devotional insight are works from Syrian and Egyptian
churches, including Aphrahat, Ephrem the Syrian, Isaac of Nineveh, and
Philoxenus of Mabbug.

This Ancient Christian Commentary on
Scripture volume opens up a treasure house of ancient wisdom that allows
these faithful witnesses, some appearing here in English translation
for the first time, to speak with eloquence and intellectual acumen to
the church today.