I like Donald Sunukjian's suggestion, that the preacher starts with the expositional or synthesis commentary which "will quickly give you the large units of thought and the lines of argument of the text" (Invitation to Biblical Preaching, page 25). I use The Bible Knowledge Commentary (click to view) for this purpose. These commentaries give you the big picture of the text before you dive into the exegesis of each verse.
After I get the big picture from BCK, then for the explanation of the text I reach for the exegetical or critical commentary (See Commentary & Reference Survey by John Glynn.
There is a third kind of commentary that the preacher needs. In addition to the expositional or synthesis commentary and exegetical commentaries, the preacher needs the sermonic commentary. Whereas the expositional and exegetical commentaries will help you with the explanation of the text, the sermonic commentary will aid you in the application and illustration of the passage.
Andrew David Naselli gives an excellent review of the top three sets of (exegetical or critical) commentaries for serious students. This review is in the Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal 12 (2007): 81-99 entitled A REVIEW ARTICLE PNTC, BECNT, and NIGTC: Three New Testament Commentary Series Available Electronically in Libronix.
The three sets are Pillar New Testament Commentary (PNTC), Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (BECNT), and New International Greek Testament Commentary (NIGTC).
Here are some excerpts that give a general summary of the three sets just to whet your appetite to read the entire article:
1. PNTC (Pillar New Testament Commentary) is the best pastoral series for sermon preparation. It shrewdly and economically works through the text within a big-picture framework, and it is preoccupied not with critical studies but with interpreting the books as they stand. Carson explains in the series preface for each PNTC volume that the commentaries seek above all to make clear the text of Scripture as we have it. The scholars writing these volumes interact with the most important, informed contemporary debate, but avoid getting mired in undue technical detail. Their ideal is a blend of rigorous exegesis and exposition, with an eye alert both to biblical theology and the contemporary relevance of the Bible, without confusing the commentary and the sermon.
2. BECNT (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament) is more technical than PNTC and slightly less technical than NIGTC (New International Greek Testament Commentary). Yarbrough and Stein explain in the series preface that BECNT’s goal is to “blend scholarly depth with readability, exegetical detail with sensitivity to the whole, attention to critical problems with theological awareness.” It interacts thoroughly with secondary literature, and its outstanding feature is a shaded box that begins each section and traces the argument of the text in that section. In addition to explaining word meanings, grammar, and historical events and customs, BECNT robustly demonstrates the logical inter-connectedness of the book as well as its connection to the canon, and it integrates broader theological considerations. Its format is the most user-friendly of the three series.
3. Although the series foreword describes NIGTC (New International Greek Testament Commentary) as “less technical than a full-scale critical commentary,” NIGTC is the most technical of the three series and likely the most technical commentary series produced by evangelicals. It is a superb resource for scholars and those trained in NT Greek, but unlike the other two series, it is often excessively technical for pastors. 1
Marshall and Hagner explain in the series preface that NIGTC volumes “are intended to interact with modern scholarship” and “attempt to treat all important problems of history, exegesis, and interpretation that arise from the New Testament text .... It is not their primary aim to apply and expound the text for modern readers.” The methodical verse-by-verse (and often word-by-word) exegetical plowing in the NIGTC is rich and invaluable, but it is nearly always in need of supplementation from other commentaries that interact more with biblical theological themes and connect passages within Scripture’s salvation-historical storyline.
Here are some sources and prices provided by Andy Naselli:
Pillar New Testament Commentary (PNTC). 8 vols. Edited by D. A. Carson. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1988–. 4,254 pp. 1 CD-ROM. $311.00. http://www.logos.com/products/details/2118.
Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (BECNT). 8 vols. Edited by Moisés Silva (1992–2002), Robert W. Yarbrough, and Robert H. Stein (2002–). Grand Rapids: Baker, 1992–. 6,274 pp. 1 CD-ROM. $374.92. http://www.logos.com/products/details/2603.
New International Greek Testament Commentary (NIGTC). 12 vols. Edited by I. Howard Marshall, W. Ward Gasque (1978–1992), Donald A. Hagner, and I. Howard Marshall (1992–). Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1978–. 8,975 pp. 1 CD-ROM. $660.00. http://www. logos.com/products/details/2109.
PNTC, BECNT, and NIGTC are three outstanding evangelical NT commentary series, and each is available electronically in the Libronix Digital Library System by Logos Bible Software. This brief review builds on last year’s review, which makes a case for using Libronix’s theological digital library.
Stewart Custer’s conclusion to his review of Anthony C. Thiselton’s NIGTC volume on 1 Corinthians is typical of how many view the NIGTC as a whole: “Although this commentary may delight the Ph.D. candidate who is writing a dissertation, the pastor who uses it in preparation for a sermon will probably bore his congregation to tears. It reminds one of the rifleman who asked for ammunition, and the quartermaster sent him a crate of 155mm shells. The shells certainly fit the definition of ammunition, but they were useless, for the rifleman was thinking of the next foxhole, not the next country” (Biblical Viewpoint 37 [April 2003]: 113).