Fitzmyer published three commentaries on Romans: "The Jerome Biblical Commentary" (1968), "The New Jerome Biblical Commentary" (1989), and the "Anchor Bible Commentary" (1993). The last work runs over 800 pages, and from it came a very practical and spiritually accessible work, "Spiritual Exercises Based on Paul's Epistle to the Romans". The creative endeavor links biblical commentary and exegeses with modern spirituality. In it, Fitzmyer lays out his interpretation of Romans in a more condensed form. Using historical and rhetorical criticism, Paul's Jewish background and Graeco-Roman setting fail to prevent Fitzmyer from seeing coherency in Paul's message.