Christian Focus

1 Kings

The Wisdom And the Folly

Dale Ralph Davis

Davis’ pastoral application, laced with his own humor and illustrations ensure you remember the point he tackled head on as a scholar.

1 Samuel

Looking on the Heart

Dale Ralph Davis

Davis brings cultural and historical colour to the task of interpretation and adds a pastor’s heart for personal application. A great feast of biblical truth made so digestible, garnished with so many apt illustrations.?</i> <b>Alec Motyer</b>

2 Kings

The Power and the Fury

Dale Ralph Davis

2 Kings provides a fast–paced narrative of insight into the history of Israel under its monarchy. A warning about the consequences of sin, but through prophets such as Elisha and Elijah we see God’s compassion for his people and the opportunity for repentance.

2 Samuel

Out of Every Adversity

Dale Ralph Davis

Lessons from Israel and David have obvious modern parallels. Davis writes with a pastor’s heart AND the incisive brain of a respected theologian.

Ezra & Nehemiah

The Quest for Restoration

Dale Ralph Davis

Faith of Our Father

Expositions of Genesis 12-25

Dale Ralph Davis

With typical wit and wisdom, Dale Ralph Davis opens up chapters 12-25 of Genesis. These beautiful and insightful expositions guide you through some of the early chapters of the Bible and will deepen your understanding of this important area of Scripture.

God’s Rascal

The Jacob Narrative in Genesis 25–35

Dale Ralph Davis

God’s Rascal is an expose into a man’s struggle as he grew from the boy, Jacob, to the man. Israel. From folly and vengeance to humbled and blessed, Davis takes the reader through the ups and downs of this patriarch as he matured in body, mind and faith.

Grace Be With You

Benedictions from Dale Ralph Davis

Dale Ralph Davis

Benedictions – spoken blessings at the end of church services and gatherings – can be nuggets of gospel gold to cherish to as we part from each other for another week. Here is a selection of benedictions from Dale Ralph Davis, to encourage and inspire the reader.

In the Presence of My Enemies

Psalms 25–37

Dale Ralph Davis

The Psalms can be very helpful, but they can also be hard. Following on from his two previous books on the Psalms, Dale Ralph Davis delves into Psalms 25 to 37. Using his own recognisable humour and razor–sharp observations these expositions help us to engage with the conflict in these twelve psalms.

Joshua

No Falling Words

Dale Ralph Davis

…Ideas pop out everywhere, even in the most unlikely places. New insights abound. No one who reads this book will ever find Joshua dull and tedious again.”

Richard A. Bodey, Professor of Homiletics, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

Judges

Such a Great Salvation

Dale Ralph Davis

<p>Judges is a book full of characters such as Samson, Gideon and Deborah, but the key person in this book is the Yahweh who offers great salvation to the Israelite people and shows grace even when they choose to turn away from him. Dale Ralph Davis shows the clear, Messiah–centered story line of Judges through this ?theocentric? exposition.</p>

Luke 1–13

The Year of the Lord’s Favour

Dale Ralph Davis

Esteemed biblical scholar Dale Ralph Davis examines the treasure to be found in Luke’s gospel. His humor and love for his Saviour shine through in this addition to the Focus on the Bible series.

Luke 14–24

On the Road to Jerusalem

Dale Ralph Davis

This layman’s commentary on the gospel of Luke will encourage you to take a fresh look at what can feel like a very familiar book. Let Dale Ralph Davis to guide you through Luke’s investigation into the man Jesus, who has come to seek and to save the lost.

My Exceeding Joy

Psalms 38–51

Dale Ralph Davis

Filled with the characteristic warm humour and biblical clarity that readers have come to expect, Dale Ralph Davis’ exposition of Psalms 38–51 will help readers to get to know God’s Word better. Allow this book to direct your eyes to the God of the psalmist and find your exceeding joy in him.

Slogging Along in the Paths of Righteousness

Psalms 13–24

Dale Ralph Davis

Dale Ralph Davis plunges right into the middle of King David’s hard times with a study that is resonant for our lives today.

Stump Kingdom

Isaiah 6-12

Dale Ralph Davis

Isaiah chapters 6-12 are overflowing with prediction, containing some of the most famous references in the Old Testament to the coming Messiah. Each chapter is full of rich biblical truths, revealing the character of Yahweh and His plan for His children. Although the remnant of His people would be reduced to a stump, a shoot would come forth ? Immanuel, God with us.

The House that Jesus Built

A Welcome to the Church

Dale Ralph Davis

This book introduces people to church as they are often curious and occasionally apprehensive about what church is like. This prepares people for what they will encounter.

The Way of the Righteous in the Muck of Life

Psalms 1–12

Dale Ralph Davis

In the opening pages of the Psalms, believers discover foundational truth for right living–and great delight–as children of God. Trusted theologian Dale Ralph Davis leads readers through a careful study of Psalms 1–12 with clear application for daily life.

The Word Became Fresh

How to Preach from Old Testament Narrative Texts

Dale Ralph Davis

“There is no more gifted expositor of the Old Testament in our day than Ralph Davis. His book not only brings scholarly research to bear on the subject, but also reflects his many years of preaching week after week through the OT. What a gift to the church to have such a fine book.” Richard Pratt

Bible Overview

Steve Levy and Paul Blackham

"Steve has a fever for the Bible and is desperate to infect you! Let him."

Deuteronomy

Commands of a Covenant God

Allan Harman

"He keeps the connectedness of the text before us and yet can dash off to capture a Hebrew participle or suffix, pilfer a bit of Near Eastern background, or serve up the succinct result of a word study - all to light up a passage."

Teaching 1 Kings

From Text to Message

Bob Fyall

Reading Bob Fyall's Teaching 1 Kings is like walking into a hermeneutical candy store! He is a master at condensing the flow of a narrative, all the while keeping his finger on the jugular vein of the text. He is guilty of biblical over-stimulation. If you're planning on preaching First Kings (or preaching in it), get this book; if you're not planning to preach First Kings, get this book and you'll want to preach First Kings.

Roots

Let the Old Testament Speak

Alec Motyer

"This is vintage Motyer; it is affectionate--the writer's sheer delight in 'the law of the Lord' tends to ooze out from behind the print; it is fresh--he's familiar with the scholarly waterfront but Jacob-like has wrestled and stewed over these texts himself (and his struggle is our gain); it is devious, for Alec clearly wants to hook you on the Old Testament! Huge kudos to 'Focus' for this format."

Matthew Volume 1 (Chapters 1-13)

A Mentor Commentary

Knox Chamblin

"My head hurts when I think of how Knox Chamblin weighed and worried over every Greek word or phrase in every sentence of Matthew's Gospel and then has pulled it all together into a lucid and connected whole. And my heart is grateful for a commentary like this--that is thorough (he simply 'milks' the text), clear (both in its organization and in his positions), and 'pushy' (in driving us to worship). Chamblin clearly wants me to understand Matthew and to stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene. Knox Chamblin is in vintage form here: relentlessly nailing us to the text and always wobbling on the edge of doxology."

Matthew Volume 2 (Chapters 14–28)

A Mentor Commentary

Knox Chamblin

"What, you might say, am I to do with 2 volumes and 1,400 pages on Matthew? Well, what should you do if given two million pounds? Spend it, of course--but not all at once. So with Chamblin's Matthew. Preach an Advent series--and use Chamblin on chapters 1-2; then preach from the Old Testament and come back to the Sermon on the Mount--and use Chamblin on chapters 5-7; then map out a series on Matthew's passion narrative--and use Chamblin on chapters 26-28. I'm not a hypocrite--I'm using him on Matthew 13 even as I write this!"

Rich

The Reality of Encountering Jesus

Peter Dickson and David Gibson

"Not a safe book. Peter Dickson is a bit sneaky (the book is so engagingly written) and yet terribly stubborn (he refuses to offer you a bland, smooth, mass-market, shrink-wrapped Jesus). So reading it may make you savingly angry or fearfully grateful-either of which will be okay. I find so refreshing this combination of contemporary clarity and old, rugged gospel."

Finding God in the Darkness

Twelve accounts of God's care through difficult times

Irene Howat

I think there is a kind of 'undertow' one feels when reading through this book; one feels caught by a quiet assurance that all we've heard about God's strong grace is true.

Coping With Change - Ecclesiastes

Walter C. Kaiser Jr.

Perhaps the most helpful feature of Kaiser's treatment is that he believes the book has a discernible plan and a traceable argument and that Qoheleth was not a cynical old goat who drank Drano or vinegar for breakfast. That makes a difference in the way you understand Ecclesiastes. Buy your own copy and find out how.

Preaching?

Simple Teaching on Simply Preaching

Alec Motyer

Alec's succinct and stirring treatise on preaching makes me wish wholeheartedly that I could start all over again-in that blessed privilege of preaching, praying and pastoring.

The First Chapters of Everything

How Genesis Chapters 1 to 4 Explains Our World

Alasdair Paine

Deceptively clear and digestible style... He is preoccupied with 'What is God saying to us here?' and refuses to allow the elephant of secondary issues to stand between us and the Genesis text (though he provides additional notes for the curious). Here is a book I found refreshing my spirit, stimulating my mind, and nourishing my soul.

Prayer, Praise & Prophecy

A Theology of the Psalms

Geoffrey Grogan

...a marvellous handbook to the Psalms. If I were teaching a course on the Psalms, this would be my textbook.

Jeremiah Volume 1 (Chapters 1–20)

A Mentor Commentary

John L. Mackay

This commentary is refreshing-it actually explains the text of Jeremiah. John L. Mackay knows the critical speculations about the text but doesn't bore us with them. He avoids nothing; he ploughs through every bit of the text and gives a lucid explanation of it. Mackay will not write your sermon for you but gives you what you need to write your sermon - a clear understanding of what the text says.

Jeremiah Volume 2 (Chapters 21–52)

A Mentor Commentary

John L. Mackay

This commentary is refreshing-it actually explains the text of Jeremiah. John L. Mackay knows the critical speculations about the text but doesn't bore us with them. He avoids nothing; he ploughs through every bit of the text and gives a lucid explanation of it. Mackay will not write your sermon for you but gives you what you need to write your sermon - a clear understanding of what the text says.

Anthems for a Dying Lamb

How Six Psalms (113-118) Became a Songbook for the Last Supper and the Age to Come

Philip S. Ross

Don't rush through this book; it should be savored bit by bit. You can bask in its fresh insights, squirm under its searching exposure - and all the while Dr Ross keeps you firmly tethered to Jesus. Here is a mind-filling, soul-nourishing, Christ-focused feast!

Teaching 2 Kings

From Text to Message

Bob Fyall

Here Bob Fyall takes you into his workshop, or better, clinic, and teaches you to feel the pulse (or is it electric current?) of the narratives in
2 Kings. Telling applications often jump out from his observations, and, even if you miss those, the leading questions are lasered in on all the essential matters that will open up the text. 
Timid souls who, either from fear or lethargy have avoided preaching from 2 Kings, are now ‘without excuse.’ 

Under the Thorn Tree

When Revival Comes

Richard Bewes

Richard is both fervently pro–revival and utterly sane. Best of all, it’s a book on revival with the gospel at the heart of it.

Psalms for My Day

A Child’s Praise Devotional

Carine MacKenzie and Alec Motyer

Where was Carine MacKenzie when I was growing up? (Answer: she was growing up also). But as I child I would have reveled in such a beautifully–produced, worshipfully–written book. We have many books on Bible stories but here is one that will lead your child into the playground of the Psalms. If you spend one–on–one time with your child/children, here is a superb worship manual to read together.

God’s Bible Timeline

The Big Book of Biblical History

Linda Finlayson

Here is a ‘Big Book’ on big stuff. Paul says that God’s ways are
‘untrackable’—and they are, but he has left some of his ‘tracks’ in redemptive
history and Linda Finlayson has pursued them in this attractive, colourful,
vibrant tome, in which she has pulled together the strings of biblical history
and in such concise form has placed them in your lap.

Rich Grace in Poor Soil

Growing in the Master’s Grip

Kenneth B. Wingate

Ken Wingate wants you to wallow in grace. In this manual for the Christian life he writes of deep grace with such a light touch—and good sense. Insights abound; the book is simply fun to read.

Faith Undaunted

Embracing Faith and Knowledge in a Post–Truth Era

Donald Macleod

After reading Faith Undaunted,
I can’t help thinking of the elderly lady’s reaction when she heard J. C. Ryle preach:  ‘He’s no Bishop.  I could understand every word!’  And so…Donald Macleod blesses us with his vintage clarity in this stirring,
searching, sustaining apology for ‘Apostles’ Creed’ faith.

Covenant Foundations

Understanding the Promise–Keeping God of the Bible

Alec Motyer

This is all vintage Alec—clear, warm, stimulating, whimsical, God–exposing. If you want to understand and enjoy the Bible, read this book.

1 & 2 Chronicles Vol 1

Adam to David

Philip H. Eveson

One’s head hurts to think of all the labour Philip Eveson poured into this study of Chronicles … all along his applications keep the kingship of Jesus in clear view. Makes me want to go back and study through 1–2 Chronicles all over again.

1 & 2 Chronicles Vol 2

Solomon to Cyrus

Philip H. Eveson

One’s head hurts to think of all the labour Philip Eveson poured into this study of Chronicles … all along his applications keep the kingship of Jesus in clear view. Makes me want to go back and study through 1–2 Chronicles all over again. 

Heart Songs for Every Saint

Engaging with God Through Times of Darkness & Light

William J. U. Philip

I think that is Willie Philips’s design with these Psalms: to give us a taste and hook us on the Psalms. No dodging nasty questions,
nothing superficial here; just solid, ‘thought–full,’ nourishing exposition in perfectly lucid prose. (And don’t you dare pass up his treatment of Psalm 88).