000.3. Foreword
Foreword
WHILE it is a difficult task to comment on my pastor and father, and those books of his being recorded in this volume, I do consider it a high honor and a privilege. Although this foreword will most certainly be perceived by some as merely from a personal (familial) standpoint, yet, I can truly say, I consider this man my pastor first. Scripture tells us ‘render honor to whom honor is due’, and to ‘Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the Word of God: whose faith follow . . .’ Therefore, I consider it a privilege and a duty to honor and remember him in this way. As my faithful pastor and teacher for over 50 years, it was that faithfulness that most stands out to me in the ministry of Henry Mahan. He was (and still is) faithful in the clear and consistent exposition of God’s Word, which alone ‘is able to make thee wise unto salvation.’ It was this ‘preaching of the Word, in season and out of season’ that the Lord used to bless so many over the years and me in particular. The commentaries are the compilation of years of Bible studies in the local church of which brother Mahan was pastor, and of which I was a member and eventually an elder. It was these studies from God’s Word that can be looked back upon as the means which God used to build that church and produce several preachers and teachers as well. In the early 1980’s, a ‘Preacher’s School’ was established by brother Mahan, with a dozen or so young men in attendance. In that school the thing most impressed upon us was the plain, consistent, and faithful exposition of Scripture. Most of those men learned that lesson well. I hope I have.
These short Bible commentaries are the result of brother Mahan gleaning several more lengthy commentaries of John Gill, Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, John Calvin and others, as well as from personal experience in the word. He has done the hard work for us of bringing out the best and shortest explanation of a passage. They are the first to which I turn when in need of the clearest, most concise meaning. When first printed, a self-proclaimed scholar, in an attempt to criticize them, actually complimented them when he said, ‘They are too simple, and only say what the scripture says.’
After the New Testament commentaries, several studies of the Old Testament pictures and types of Christ followed. As with the commentaries, these are especially useful for the same purpose. These pictures of Christ bring the reader straight to the point of seeing Christ in scripture. Someone who has never seen these beautiful and amazing types of Christ will be greatly blessed, as well as those who study them over again. My pastor use to say, ‘No type can stand on four legs.’ By that he meant, no one type or picture can perfectly represent the Lord Jesus Christ and his great work of salvation. That is why there are so many. However, the ones included in this volume are some of the standards and the most fundamental to the faith. From the ‘woman’s seed’ in Genesis to the ‘Messenger of the covenant’ in Malachi, Christ is clearly set forth in these commentaries.
It is with great enthusiasm that I recommend these works to the preacher, teacher or anyone looking for a true, clear, and easy to read help in their study of God’s Word. May the Lord continue to bless this effort until he comes.
—Paul Mahan, Pastor, Central Baptist Church, Rocky Mount, Virginia