References
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Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary 4 Volume Set
This is a great set of books. If you have longed to know the cultural, historical, archeological, etc. background of the New Testament, this is the set to buy. Let’s say you are studying Ephesians 1. You go to that part of the book, and there you will find background information that will help the passage come alive. Without this resource, you would have to spend hours paging through commentaries and other books to find the same information, if you could.
Zondervan has just released the four volume set in a series of smaller books, so you could purchase just the discussion of Ephesians.
The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament
This one volume is much shorter, and hence cheaper, than Arnold's four volume set; and it is all text, no pictures. That having been said, it performs the same function -- that of giving you the cultural background to any passage in the New Testament, and it does it very well.
The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament
This is the Old Testament counterpart to Keener's volume.