Central Themes in Biblical Theology: Mapping Unity in Diversity

by Paul R. House; Scott J. Hafemann

Publisher:

Baker Academic

, 2007

Overview

Building on the gains of the historical-critical project and sensitized by its post-modern critique, scholars are now more willing to talk about the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, as a book from and for communities of believers.

Against this backdrop, editors Scott Hafemann and Paul House bring together a team of scholars willing to work together on “whole Bible biblical theology.” Fully aware of historical-critical matters of diversity, they nonetheless trace the Bible’s unified teaching on key themes across the biblical canon. They define biblical theology as “that approach to Scripture which attempts to see biblical material holistically and to describe this wholeness or synthesis in biblical categories.” Biblical theology investigates the themes presented in Scripture, seeking to demonstrate the essential unity and coherence of the Old and New Testaments across the great diversity of their contents.

Fully committed to such an understanding of biblical theology, this volumes contributors focus on selected central themes: their use and reuse by the biblical writers, their integration into the whole fabric of the Bible, and their development across the canon. These stimulating essays map significant aspects of God’s self-revelation to human beings through the literary record in its historical context.

Key Features

• Explores and explains the Bible's unified teaching on key themes found throughout the Scriptures
• Captures the essence of Biblical theology, striving to demonstrate the essential unity and coherence of the Scriptures
• Completely interactive with your Logos library
• All Scripture references appear on mouse-over

Contents

Top Highlights

“Although all the promises of God are conditional, the provisions of God that make inheriting those promises possible are given unconditionally.” (Page 39)

“First, we must distinguish between covenant terminology and covenant reality.” (Page 24)

“This obedience, therefore, is not something added to faith; it is the organic expression of faith itself. In other words, the commands of God simply make it clear what trusting God looks like in concrete circumstances. Hence, every command is an implicit call to trust God’s provisions and promises.” (Page 39)

“More appropriately, the concept of the covenant relationship provides the structure that serves to integrate the interrelated themes developed throughout the history of redemption delineated in the Scriptures.¹⁰ Like the hub and rim of a wheel respectively, the old (establishment) and new (restoration and consummation) covenants define and hold together the different ‘spokes’ of divine revelation manifested in the words and deeds of redemptive history. In so doing, the covenant becomes the interpretive lens for seeing clearly the conceptual and historical unity of the Bible in the midst of its diversity.” (Page 23)

“Instead, biblical theology seeks its content and coherence in the final propositions and basic ordering of the Old and New Testaments read in their entirety, in their final form, and in concert with one another. As attempted in this volume, biblical theology is the study of God’s self-revelation to human beings for the purposes of redemption through the interpretation of the events and experiences written down in the Scriptures.” (Page 17)

Contributors

• Scott J. Hafemann on the covenant relationship
• Thomas R. Schreiner on the commands of God
• Frank S. Thielman on the atonement
• Stephen G. Dempster on the servant of the Lord
• Paul R. House on the day of the Lord
• Elmer A. Martens on the people of God
• Roy E. Ciampa on the history of redemption

Praise for the Print Edition

. . . I had the opportunity to read an early draft of Schreiner’s chapter [on The Commandments of God]. I remember it as being one of the finest treatments of the issue I had ever read.

—Justin Taylor, The Gospel Coalition

These essays are fine examples of biblical theology. They are up to date, strong articulations of seasoned scholars, and at the same time this volume serves as an excellent starting point for anyone engaging these issues for the first time. It is exciting to read these essays, as they helpfully establish a wide angle view of the whole canon that is focused through careful interpretation of texts in context.

—James M. Hamilton Jr., PhD, ThM, Associate Professor of Biblical Theology at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

Product Details

• Title: Central Themes in Biblical Theology: Mapping Unity in Diversity
• Editors: Paul R. House and Scott J. Hafemann
• Publisher: Baker
• Publication Date: 2007
• Pages: 336

About the Editors

Paul R. House (Ph.D., Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is associate dean and professor of divinity at Beeson Divinity School. He is author of Old Testament Theology, Old Testament Survey, The Unity of the Twelve, and the commentary on Lamentations in the Word Biblical Commentary.

Scott J. Hafemann (Dr. Theol, Eberhard-Karls-Universitat Tubingen) is Mary French Rockefeller Distinguished Professor of New Testament at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He is the author of numerous articles and of Paul, Moses, and the History of Israel; The God of Promise and the Life of Faith; Understanding the Heart of the Bible; and a commentary on 2 Corinthians. He is also the editor of Biblical Theology: Retrospect and Prospect.