Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
In
Old Testament Theology for Christians, John Walton invites us to leave our modern (and even many of our Christian) preconceptions at the threshold as we enter the world of the Old Testament. He challenges us to see it anew as if for the first time as guests in a strange and foreign land. Walton offers a theology of the Old Testament that is consistently guided by what the ancient authors intended as they wrote within their cognitive environment. As we engage with their world, questions arise:
- Why was the law given to Israel and how should we view it today?
- How does the Old Testament understand sin and salvation?
- Did God command Israel to commit genocide?
- What was the role of the temple and its sacrifices in God s covenant with Israel?
- Is there an integrating and central theme of Old Testament theology?
- What did God require of Israel and how does that apply to Christians today?
- Should we look to the Old Testament for solutions to twenty-first century issues?
- How should we read the Old Testament in light of Christ?
In this capstone to a career of studying and teaching the Old Testament, Walton s answers take unexpected turns. Viewed within its ancient Near Eastern cognitive environment, the text blossoms into fresh and challenging insights. No matter how you are accustomed to approaching the Old Testament,
Old Testament Theology for Christians will challenge and sharpen your perceptions.
Synopsis
Modern readers of the Bible often find the Old Testament difficult and even disturbing. What are we to do with obscure prophecies of long expired nations? Why should we read and study ancient laws that even the New Testament says are eclipsed by Christ? How can we reconcile Jesus' Sermon on the Mount with the Old Testament's graphic narratives of sex and violence? What does the Old Testament offer that is not surpassed and even made irrelevant by the New Testament? John Walton has spent a career engaging deeply with the Old Testament's text and ancient context. He has studied, taught, and written about the issues. His signature approach can be introduced in one sentence: The Old Testament was written for us but not to us. We must not conform it to our own understanding. We will fully grasp the Old Testament and its theology only when we are immersed in the ancient cultural current of Israel within its broader cultural river of the ancient Near East. In Old Testament Theology for Christians, John Walton invites us to leave our modern--and even inherited Christian--preconceptions at the threshold as we enter the world of the Old Testament. He challenges us to see it anew--as if for the first time--as guests in a strange and fascinating foreign land. Then we will rediscover its testimony to God's great enterprise. In this capstone to a career of studying and teaching the Old Testament, Walton unfolds a grand panorama of Yahweh and the gods, of cosmos and humanity, of covenant and kingdom, of temple and torah, of sin and evil, and of salvation and afterlife. Viewed within its ancient Near Eastern cognitive environment, the text takes unexpected turns and blossoms into fresh and challenging insights. No matter how you are accustomed to viewing the first testament of the Bible, Old Testament Theology for Christians will challenge and sharpen your perceptions.