Andy Naselli

Thoughts on Theology

Biblical Theology

12 Primary Ways the New Testament Uses the Old Testament

by

bealeThe below list comes from an excellent new handbook:

G. K. Beale. Handbook on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament: Exegesis and Interpretation. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2012. xviii + 173 pp.

A 39-page PDF that includes the table of contents is available here.

I was pleasantly surprised how easy this book is to read. I’ve read a lot of Greg Beale’s work (books, articles, reviews), and this book is by far his most readable work I’ve read. His other works tend not to follow the maxim, “Omit needless words,” and his syntax and word choices often seem like they’ve been translated from German into English by a Frenchman (hyperbole alert).

(I just lost my credibility with my fully Reformed friends because they regularly plow through the writings of Puritans and old Presbyterians and don’t understand how I could possibly find Beale difficult to read.)

Chapter 4 lists 12 primary ways the NT uses the OT (pp. 55–93): [Read more…] about 12 Primary Ways the New Testament Uses the Old Testament

Progressive Covenantalism: A Via Media between Covenant Theology and Dispensationalism

by

gentry-wellumLast week I finished plowing through this ambitious 848-page book:

Peter J. Gentry and Stephen J. Wellum. Kingdom through Covenant: A Biblical-Theological Understanding of the Covenants. Wheaton: Crossway, 2012.

The book argues for a via media between covenant theology and dispensationalism that the authors call progressive covenantalism (similar to new covenant theology).

Wellum and Gentry routinely distinguish their view from each of the two major systems in a distinctive way: [Read more…] about Progressive Covenantalism: A Via Media between Covenant Theology and Dispensationalism

From Typology to Doxology: Paul’s Use of Isaiah and Job in Romans 11:34–35

by

typologyThis book just came out:

Andrew David Naselli. From Typology to Doxology: Paul’s Use of Isaiah and Job in Romans 11:34–35. Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2012. 201 pp.

It’s available in print (unlike the last one) and will soon be for Kindle.

From the Back Cover

At the end of Romans 11, Paul quotes both Isaiah and Job. As with other New Testament uses of Old Testament texts, this raises several questions. What is the context of these Old Testament passages? How are they used in other Jewish literature? What is Paul’s hermeneutical warrant for using them in Romans 11? What theological use does Paul make of them? How, if at all, does their use in Romans 11 contribute to the broader discussion on the use of the Old Testament in the New? In addressing these questions, this book reveals a remarkable typological connection that climaxes in the doxology of Romans 11:33–36, exalting God’s incomprehensibility, wisdom, mercy, grace, patience, independence, and sovereignty.

(Endorsements from Don Carson, Tom Schreiner, and Bob Yarbrough are listed here.) [Read more…] about From Typology to Doxology: Paul’s Use of Isaiah and Job in Romans 11:34–35

God’s Promises

by

Colin S. Smith, The Plan (The Gospel Coalition Booklets; Wheaton: Crossway, 2011), pp. 15, 21–22, 29:

The Old Testament is the story of God’s amazing promises. Step back and try to take it in:

  1. God promises to give life to people who will reflect his glory.
  2. God promises to destroy evil and rid the world of its curse.
  3. God promises to bless people from all nations.
  4. God promises to reconcile sinners to himself through a sacrifice for sins.
  5. God promises that his people will live under the blessing of his rule forever.
  6. God promises that all his people will walk in all his ways.
  7. God promises to bring new life from the grave. . . .

Here is the breathtaking sweep of what God promises us in Jesus Christ. Jesus came and lived and died and rose again so that: [Read more…] about God’s Promises

Six Reasons to Preach from the OT

by

Sidney Greidanus lists six “reasons for preaching from the Old Testament as well as the New” (Preaching Christ from the Old Testament: A Contemporary Hermeneutical Method [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999], 25–32):

  1. The Old Testament is part of the Christian canon.
  2. The Old Testament discloses the history of redemption leading to Christ.
  3. The Old Testament proclaims truths not found in the New Testament.
  4. The Old Testament helps us to understand the New Testament. [Understatement!]
  5. The Old Testament prevents misunderstanding the New Testament.
  6. The Old Testament provides a fuller understanding of Christ.

Jim Hamilton’s Whole-Bible Biblical Theology

by

“We live in an age of increasing specialization (owing in part to the rapid expansion of knowledge), and disciplines that a priori ought to work hand in glove are being driven apart.”

Don Carson wrote that in 1983. The fragmentation in theological disciplines almost two decades later is palpably worse.

So it’s not surprising that few people are writing whole-Bible biblical theologies these days. And it’s refreshing to see the recent release of this one:

James M. Hamilton Jr. [SBTS bio] God’s Glory in Salvation through Judgment: A Biblical Theology. Wheaton: Crossway, 2010.  640 pp.

  • Sample 36-page PDF and 1:45-minute video
  • Endorsements by Tom Schreiner, Kevin Vanhoozer, Desi Alexander, and Steve Dempster
  • Time-line of this book’s history
  • Audio of Jim Hamilton presenting the book’s argument (along with the book’s TOC)
  • Guest-posts on the Crossway blog: Part 1 | Part 2
  • Guest-post for the ShareFaith blog
  • Interview with Matthew Miller: Part 1 | Part 2
  • Interview for 9Marks Blog
  • Steve Dempster’s review for the 9Marks eJournal

Jim gave me the honor of reading through his manuscript last Christmas break, and I profited immensely from both his big-picture connections and his more detailed exegetical observations. He impressively demonstrates how the whole Bible coheres.

If a big book like this seems too daunting for you to read, soberly consider what the Internet (and TV, movies, video games, etc.) might be doing to your brain. (I just read Nicholas Carr’s The Shallows, and I’m convicted about how frequently I check email and Google Reader.)

Video for Don Carson’s The God Who Is There

by

“Free audio and HD video downloads are now available for Don Carson’s 14-part overview of the Bible titled, ‘The God Who is There: Finding Your Place in God’s Story'” (TGC announcement). Previously, only 10-minute video previews were available.

D. A. Carson. The God Who Is There: Finding Your Place in God’s Story. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2010.

Leader’s Guide:

Related:

  1. “The God Who Is There“
  2. Recommended Resources in Carson’s Leader’s Guide: Introduction | Chapters 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10–14