InterVarsity Press Research Articles

Talking Doctrine: Mormons and Evangelicals in Conversation. Edited by Richard J. Mouw and Robert L. Millet. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2015. Pp. 256. $20.00.

Religious Studies ReviewVolume 45, Issue 1 p. 50-50 Short Reviews of Recent Publications: Theology Talking Doctrine: Mormons and Evangelicals in Conversation. Edited by Richard J. Mouw and Robert L. Millet. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2015. Pp. 256. $20.00. Christopher A. Stephenson, Christopher A. Stephenson Lee UniversitySearch for more papers by this author Christopher A. Stephenson, Christopher A. Stephenson Lee UniversitySearch for more papers by this author First published: 28 March 2019 https://doi.org/10.1111/rsr.13794Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume45, Issue1March 2019Pages 50-50 RelatedInformation

Rediscovering Paul: An Introduction to His World, Letters, and Theology. By David B. Capes, Rodney Reeves, and E. Randolph Richards. Second Edition. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2017. Pp. 462. $38.00.

Rediscovering Paul: An Introduction to His World, Letters, and Theology. By David B. Capes, Rodney Reeves, and E. Randolph Richards. Second Edition. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2017. Pp. 462. $38.00.

The Disruption of Evangelicalism: The Age of Torrey, Mott, McPherson and Hammond. By Geoffrey R. Treloar. A History of Evangelicalism: People, Movements, and Ideas in the English-Speaking World, Volume 4. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2017. xiii + 334 pp. $35 hardcover.

The Disruption of Evangelicalism: The Age of Torrey, Mott, McPherson and Hammond. By Geoffrey R. Treloar. A History of Evangelicalism: People, Movements, and Ideas in the English-Speaking World, Volume 4. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2017. xiii + 334 pp. $35 hardcover. - Volume 87 Issue 4

The Faithful Artist: A Vision for Evangelicalism and the Arts. By Cameron J.Anderson. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2016. Pp. xi + 280; illustrations. Paper, $26.00.

The Faithful Artist: A Vision for Evangelicalism and the Arts. By Cameron J.Anderson. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2016. Pp. xi + 280; illustrations. Paper, $26.00.

An Invitation to Analytic Christian Theology. By Thomas H.McCall. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015. Pp. 182. $22.00.

Religious Studies ReviewVolume 44, Issue 4 p. 455-455 Short Reviews of Recent Publications: Theology An Invitation to Analytic Christian Theology. By Thomas H. McCall. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015. Pp. 182. $22.00. Christopher A. Stephenson, Christopher A. Stephenson Lee UniversitySearch for more papers by this author Christopher A. Stephenson, Christopher A. Stephenson Lee UniversitySearch for more papers by this author First published: 18 December 2018 https://doi.org/10.1111/rsr.13663Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume44, Issue4Special Issue: Religion and ScienceDecember 2018Pages 455-455 RelatedInformation

Fatal Embrace? A Critical Reflection on Carl Raschke’s Proposal, Why Conservative Evangelicals Must Embrace Postmodernity?

At the turn of the millennium, recent debates within evangelical Christian circles on ‘appropriating’ postmodern thinking into evangelical Christian theology raised a number of issues on whether postmodern thinking can provide a suitable standpoint that offers a philosophical critique on modern dualistic thinking, for some, that is imbedded in modern evangelical Christian theology. Carl Raschke, an evangelical scholar, critically contends that evangelical Christian scholars must embrace postmodernity (postmodernism) as a new form of Reformation. At first glance, Raschke ask whether evangelical Christians have such reason to embrace postmodern thinking, eventually, he critically presented why evangelical Christians do have good a reason for ‘appropriating’ postmodern thinking. In this paper, firstly, I will introduce Carl Raschke as a Christian Evangelical postmodern thinker. Secondly, I will provide an exposition of Raschke’s main argument and criticism on evangelical Christian theology from his popular book, The Next Reformation: Why Evangelicals Must Embrace Postmodernity (2004). Lastly, I will provide concluding comments.
 References
 “American’s Definition: What is Evangelical Christian?” http://greymatterresearch.com/index_files/Grey_Matter_Report_Americans_Define_Evangelical.pdf.
 Barthes, Ronald. “The Death of the Author” trans. Richard Howard. Aspen 5/6. Online Edition. Fall/Winter, 1967.
 Bassara, Czeslaw. Postmodern Hermeneutics and the Evangelical Response, A Dissertation Submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Theology, From the Evangelical Theological Faculty-Leuven, Belgium. September,1967.
 Cook, Deborah. “Symbolic Exchange in Hyperreality.” In D. Kellner (ed.), Baudrillard: A Critical Reader. Oxford: Blackwell, 1994:150–167, 1994.
 Groothuis, Douglas. Truth Decay: Defending Christianity against the Challenges of Postmodernism. USA: InterVarsity Press, 2000. 
 Habermas, Jürgen. “Modernity versus Postmodernity,” translated by Seyla Ben-Habib, New German Critique, No. 22, Special Issue on Modernism.Winter, 1981: 3-14, 1981.
 Lyotard, Jean-Francois. The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge. Tanslation from the French by Geoff Bennington and Brian Massumi Foreword by Fredric Jameson, Theory and History of Literature, Volume 10, USA: Manchester University Press: 71-84, 1984.
 Michener, Ronald T. Postliberal Theology: A Guide for the Perplexed. (UK: Bloomsbury Publication, 2013.
 Lee, Hock Siew. “Christianity and the Postmodern Turn: A Critique of Postmodern Epistemology,” A Thesis Submitted for the Degree of Master of Theology at the South African Theological Seminary, May 2009.
 Raschke, Carl. Faculty & Staff, University of Denver, http://www.du.edu/ahss/religiousstudies/facultystaff/raschke.html.
 __________. "The New Age: The Movement toward Self-Discovery". In Ferguson, Duncan. New Age Spirituality: An Assessment. Louisville, KY: Westminster/ John Knox Press, 1993.
 Taylor, Victor. “From Alchemy to Revolution: A Conversation with Carl Raschke,” in Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory. vol. 12 no. 3: 149-160, 2013.
 von Zon, Hans. “The Unholy Alliance of Neoliberalism and Postmodernism,” Poltieke Filosofie. Jaargang 47 Nummer 2 I:110-114, 2013.
 Žižek, Slavoj. The Plague of Fantasises. New York: Verso Publications, 1997.

The Pentateuch

The Pentateuch Christopher T. Begg and Tremper J. Longman III 2059. [Genesis 1–3, etc.] Peter B. Ely, Adam and Eve in Scripture, Theology and Literature: Sin, Compassion, and Forgiveness (Lanham/Boulder/New York/London: Lexington Books, 2018). Pp. xiii + 335. $110. ISBN 978-1-4985-7389-4. E.’s work is an extended consideration of the narrative of Adam and Eve, first found in the Hebrew Bible, but given new life in Paul in the NT. Paul’s treatment of Adam and Eve, especially his designation of Christ as the second Adam, has had an enormous influence on Christianity. E. follows this rich narrative as it develops through history, providing the basis for the doctrine of original sin in Christianity, giving rise in modern times to theological speculation, and entering thematically into mysticism and literature. The power of the Adamic narrative can only be realized if, E. argues, one treats it as a true, but non-historical myth. The “truth” of the myth lies in its ability to stimulate thinking and to reveal the depths of human experience. Augustine understood this, as did Julian of Norwich, and even the Belgian author of mystery stories, Georges Simenon, who had a deep sense of the universality of human weakness and the possibilities of redeeming what was lost. Simenon’s detective Maigret sees himself as a “mender of destinies.” The doctrine of original sin, the notion that human beings have a common vulnerability, can open the way to compassion and forgiveness. As Shakespeare illustrates in Measure for Measure, the awareness of weakness in ourselves should move us to compassion for others. The recognition of a kind of “democracy of sin” can keep us from considering ourselves better than others, unlike them in their weakness, and entitled to stand in judgment of them. Thus, compassion opens the door to forgiveness. The progress from sin to compassion to forgiveness forms the heart of E.’s book [adapted from published abstract]. After an introduction (“Adam and Eve, Original Sin, Compassion, and Forgiveness”), E.’s work continues with three main parts, each comprising three or more chapters. Part I (Symbol, Myth, and Biblical Narrative) contains three chapters designated, respectively, Paul Ricoeur: A Wider Context for the Adamic Myth; The Adamic Myth in the Hebrew Testament; and The Adamic Myth in the New Testament. Part II (The Symbol Gives Rise to Thought: From Biblical Narrative to Autobiography, Theory, and Doctrine) features: Augustine: Original Sin and Compassion; Adam and Eve and Original Sin: Classical Formulations and Modern Developments; Compassion as Prelude to Forgiveness; and René Girard: Original Sin as Covetousness. Finally, Part III (The Word Becomes Flesh: From Theory and Doctrine to Literature) comprises: Perceval: Compassion Awakened through Conversion; Julian of Norwich: From Blindness to the Vision of Love; Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure: Compassion in the State; and Detective and Priest: Georges Simenon’s Compassionate Commissioner Maigret. Rounding off the volume are a conclusion, bibliography, index, and information about the author.—C.T.B. 2060. [Genesis 6–9] Tremper Longman Iii and John H. Walton, The Lost World of the Flood: Mythology, Theology, and the Deluge Debate (Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 2018). Pp. 189. $18. ISBN 978-0-8308-5200-0. While Genesis 6–9 describes a worldwide flood, contemporary science indicates that such a flood never occurred. L. argues that the whole of Genesis 1–11 is theological history that describes events through the use of figurative language for theological purposes. L. and W. suggest that the flood story is based on an ancient, devastating regional flood, which, through the use of hyperbole, becomes a theological reflection on sin, divine judgment, and grace as well as order, disorder, and re-order.—T.L. [End Page 720] 2061. [Numbers 25] Brandon R. Grafius, Reading Phinehas, Watching Slashers: Horror Theory and Numbers 25 (Lanham/Boulder/New York/London: Lexington Books/Fortress Academic, 2018). Pp. xvii + 209. $100. ISBN 978-1-978701-20-5. This monograph will explore the intersection of a range of themes (e.g., rhetorical and historical violence) through a variety of critical methodologies. Beginning with a traditional historical-critical study and moving into more...

The Disruption of Evangelicalism: The Age of Torrey, Mott, McPherson and Hammond

This volume is the fourth chronologically, but the last to be published, in a five-volume ‘A History of Evangelicalism: People, Movements and Ideas in the English-Speaking World’, produced by Inter-Varsity Press. The project was launched with the first volume, The Rise of Evangelicalism: The Age of Edwards, Whitefield, and the Wesleys, by Mark Noll, in 2003. Geoffrey Treloar, the author of this volume, is Director of Learning and Teaching at the Australian College of Theology and Visiting Fellow in History in the School of Humanities and Languages at the University of New South Wales. As with the other authors in the series—following Noll these have been John Wolffe, David Bebbington, and Brian Stanley—and in line with the intention of the editors, Treloar is a scholar and an evangelical.The period covered in this volume is 1900 to c.1940. It is an era that has been seen as one in which evangelicalism was in a weak and divided state, compared to the growth and then dominance of the movement in the nineteenth century and the renewal that took place after the Second World War. While Treloar does not underestimate the struggles of these decades, and indeed his title names ‘disruption’, he shows that within the evangelical experience as a whole there were features marked by spiritual energy and advance. In particular he challenges the common interpretation that has as its focus the notorious Fundamentalist-Modernist debates. In place of this rather superficial view, he offers the idea of a spectrum of opinion within global evangelicalism. Within this he includes, for example, the liberal evangelical Methodist Fellowship of the Kingdom. However, those looking for Wesleyan/Methodist developments might wonder if they could have been given more attention.Each of the three main parts of the book has chapters that take up important themes. The first part (c.1900–14) contributes to an understanding of the multifaceted nature of evangelicalism, with its treatment of revival, revivalism, and missions, the life of faith and the question of a social gospel, as well as the major theological issues. In the second part there are three chapters on the First World War. Here, Treloar is seeking to make up for what has been a tendency to pay too little attention to the war, although one hundred years after the war, its religious dimensions have actually been receiving considerable attention. Treloar offers many important insights, but refers only very briefly to conscientious objection to war, which was significant among some evangelicals. Given that the third part of the book, examining almost twenty years, is covered in four chapters, questions could be raised about the overall balance of the three parts.One of the great merits of this book, as with all the volumes in the series, is the global reach. Evangelical figures from across the English-speaking world are introduced to the reader. Treloar has been committed to drawing from an impressive range of sources. These four decades produced few leaders who were as widely influential in evangelicalism as was the case at other times in the history of the movement. Bebbington was able to call the later nineteenth century ‘The Age of Spurgeon and Moody’, and Brian Stanley was similarly justified in denoting the later twentieth century ‘The Age of Billy Graham and John Stott’. The designation ‘The Age of Torrey, Mott, McPherson and Hammond’ is less convincing. Certainly Torrey, and perhaps especially Mott, can be seen as powerful shapers of evangelical thinking and action, one more conservative and one more progressive. However, the Irish-Australian Anglican, T. C. Hammond, and the American Pentecostal, Aimee Semple McPherson, while important, did not operate at a comparable level. A case might equally have been made for the significance of Frank Buchman, whose Oxford Group movement Treloar describes as ‘the most successful conversionist force in interwar evangelicalism’, with Buchman ‘the outstanding international evangelist’.The way in which Buchman is presented is in fact an indication of the strength of this book. It clearly shows the ability of the evangelical spirit to be creative, which at times has meant creating a degree of chaos. The picture is not a tidy one. At a time when there is a trend both from within and outside of evangelicalism to make absolutist statements—for example, that only those who are doctrinally pure are ‘true evangelicals’, or that all evangelicals are politically ‘right wing’—this splendidly rich volume renders portrayals of the movement as monochrome untenable. All those who wish to be informed about a period in evangelical history that has not been studied as fully as it deserves will find Treloar's work invaluable.

Theology and the Mirror of Scripture: A Mere Evangelical Account by Kevin J.Vanhoozer and Daniel J.Treier (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015), 298 pp.

Theology and the Mirror of Scripture: A Mere Evangelical Account by Kevin J.Vanhoozer and Daniel J.Treier (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015), 298 pp.

Justification: God’s Plan and Paul’s Vision by N. T. Wright

Reviewed by: Justification: God’s Plan and Paul’s Vision by N. T. Wright Mark Schuler Justification: God’s Plan and Paul’s Vision. By N. T. Wright. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2009, with new Introduction 2016. 279 pp. “Tom” Wright wrote Justification in 2009 as a quick response to John Piper’s book The Future of Justification: A Response to N. T. Wright. Wright is part of the so-called New Perspective on Paul examined by Erik Heen in this journal in 2010 (24: 263–91). After [End Page 107] his short treatment in Justification, the prolific Wright published Paul and the Faithfulness of God (2013), Pauline Perspectives (2013), and Paul and His Recent Interpreters (2015). The reissuance of Justification with a new introduction provides a “short and sharp statement of some vital elements” (2) of the larger contemporary debate about Paul. Although the reader steps into the middle of the discussion in Justification, the summary of the issues and the exegetical work on Galatians and Romans are more accessible than the other works (above) targeting academics. Wright’s new perspective criticizes Protestant and especially Lutheran interpretations of Paul on justification. He argues rather that all along God has been seeking to bring about a new creation “through Abraham/Israel and, as the fulfillment of the Abraham/Israel-shaped plan through the Messiah, Jesus” (99). In this plan, dealing with sin and rescuing people from it are part of what God is about, but it is not the whole matter. Quoting from his discussion of Galatians 3, “salvation from sin on the one hand [and] a united people of God on the other … [are] part and parcel of the same thing” (127). Wright definitely has a bias toward Calvin (73) and Heen, as the focus of his essay, has addressed shortcomings in the characterization of the Lutheran use of Paul by those of the new perspective. However, Wright takes a hermeneutical turn in the book that is more important than his particular new perspective or his less-than-fair analysis of Lutherans on Paul. It is the same move made by E. P. Sanders and James Dunn among others: they seek to understand Paul in view of late second-temple Judaism. For Wright, this move began when, in the reading of Josephus, he realized that “most Jews of the time were not sitting around discussing how to go to heaven … [but] were hoping and longing for Israel’s God to act, to do what he had promised, to turn history the right way up once again as he had done in the days of David and Solomon” (55–56). Their first question was not about “my relationship with God” but “When is God going to do what he promised?” (61). From this insight, Wright has developed what he believes is central to Paul, that “God had a single plan all along through which he intended to rescue the world and the human race, and that single plan was [End Page 108] centered upon the call of Israel, a call which Paul saw coming to fruition in Israel’s representative, the Messiah” (35). Wright’s critique of Protestants on Paul and his offer of a new perspective raise awareness of the influential role of context in the interpretive task. When one reads Paul with the help of Luther and the reformers, one must attend to the role of sixteenth-century issues in that interpretation and be cautious not to project that context back on the first century and the writings of Paul. Likewise, when reading Paul, one must be more attentive to his context and to the longer biblical tradition behind him. Such awareness enables one to embrace “the truths the Reformers were eager to set forth” (252) and at the same time to “stop thinking in terms of ‘perspectives’ and start thinking in terms of Paul” (140). Mark Schuler Concordia University Saint Paul, Minnesota Copyright © 2017 Johns Hopkins University Press and Lutheran Quarterly, Inc.

Wesley and the Anglicans: Political Division in Early Evangelicalism by Ryan Nicholas Danker

Reviewed by: Wesley and the Anglicans: Political Division in Early Evangelicalism by Ryan Nicholas Danker Kenneth M. Loyer Wesley and the Anglicans: Political Division in Early Evangelicalism. By Ryan Nicholas Danker. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press Academic. 2016. Pp. 304. $26.00 paperback. ISBN 978-0-8308-5122-5.) In this work, Ryan Danker explores the significant but often contentious relationships between John Wesley and other Anglican clergy involved in the eighteenth-century Evangelical Revival. Danker challenges the standard explanation that the separation of Wesley and Evangelicals within the Church of England toward the end of the 1760s was simply the outcome of theological debate, primarily about predestination and Christian perfection—the Arminianism of the Wesleyan Methodists versus the Calvinism of Anglican Evangelicals. He argues instead that while theology certainly played a role in the Evangelical Revival and in the ultimate separation of these two groups, important social and political pressures also need to be considered. Chapter One describes the Evangelical clergy within the Church of England in order to begin to delineate their relationship to Wesley. In Chapter Two Danker shows how Wesley fit within the larger picture of English Evangelicalism. He situates Wesley and his evangelical conversion at Aldersgate, where his heart was "strangely warmed," in the overarching context of the trans-Atlantic revival. Use of public tracts by Wesley and his opponents alike is the subject of Chapter Three, which provides a fascinating glimpse into the power of print materials in shaping public perceptions of the broader evangelical movement. That section is followed by a contextual examination of Methodist structure and its implications for the eventual separation between Wesleyan Methodists and Anglican Evangelicals, an endeavor that spans the next three chapters and covers a range of topics including Methodist society, class, and band meetings; Wesley's use of lay preachers; and eucharistic administration by lay preachers. These distinctive practices espoused by Wesleyan Methodists strained their relationships, and particularly Wesley's relationships, with Evangelical Anglicans, to the point of sometimes arousing suspicion of Methodist rebellion against the Church of England. For example, the work of Methodist lay preachers within parishes with an already established Evangelical Anglican presence raised concerns about Methodist incursions into [End Page 595] Anglican Evangelical enclaves and contributed to growing divisions between these two groups. Taken together, these practices critical to the formation of Methodist identity reflected an increasingly distinct ethos and polity for Wesleyan Methodists over against Anglicans, and those social and structural differences contributed in their own right to the later split between Methodists and Anglican Evangelicals. Chapter Seven highlights political dynamics that further divided these groups. A changing political environment under George III led to a certain imperialistic hegemony and tainted public impressions of evangelicalism. Danker describes the expulsions of six Oxford students in 1768 for "methodistical behaviour" and the ensuing political and ecclesiastical fallout, which exemplified a larger political and cultural trend toward marginalizing Evangelicals and squashing dissent, perceived or actual. These emerging political realities added to the forces pushing Wesley and the Methodist movement to the periphery of Anglican life. In chapter Eight, Danker proposes a new Anglican historiography, one that views Wesley as a high churchman influenced by traditional elements common to Anglican, Roman Catholic, and Orthodox Christianity (such as an emphasis on the centrality of the Eucharist and ancient forms of liturgy) and focused on patristic writings. By contrast, the Evangelical Anglicans of Wesley's day were primarily influenced by renewed interest in the theology of the English Reformers and the Puritans. This paradigm sheds light on the theological controversies that erupted between these groups throughout the eighteenth century. The conclusion brings together salient themes and analyzes Wesley's failed attempts in the 1760s to form an Evangelical union based on shared theological commitments. As Danker concludes, such efforts had little or no chance of effectiveness, given the convergence of various factors—including social, political, and ecclesiastical dynamics, and not simply theological concerns—that together account for the deterioration of Evangelical/Methodist relations. From beginning to end, Danker effectively locates ecclesiastical and theological differences within their broader context in eighteenth-century England. The result is an engaging and richly detailed account of the development of evangelicalism and early...

Reformation Commentary on Scripture: Old Testament V. 1–2 Samuel, 1–2 Kings, 1–2 Chronicles ed. by Derek Cooper and Martin J. Lohrmann

Reviewed by: Reformation Commentary on Scripture: Old Testament V. 1–2 Samuel, 1–2 Kings, 1–2 Chronicles ed. by Derek Cooper and Martin J. Lohrmann Mark A. Throntveit Reformation Commentary on Scripture: Old Testament V. 1–2 Samuel, 1–2 Kings, 1–2 Chronicles. Edited by Derek Cooper and Martin J. Lohrmann. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press Academic, 2016. 799 pp. Readers of Lutheran Quarterly will be familiar with the tedious process of retrieving commentary on Bible passages by that intrepid band of reformers in the sixteenth century. Even more irksome is the tracking down of the context in which the passage appeared. Nevertheless, what the various reformers thought about the Bible is extremely important for a proper evaluation of their contribution and impact. But how is this achieved? According to the publishers, these Reformation Commentaries on Scripture were produced with four goals in mind: (1) to renew contemporary biblical interpretation through exposure to Reformation-era biblical interpretation; (2) to renew contemporary preaching through exposure to the biblical insights of the Reformation writers; (3) to contribute to a deeper understanding of the Reformation and the breadth of perspectives represented within it; and (4) to advance Christian scholarship in the fields of historical, biblical, theological, and pastoral studies. Ambitious as these goals might seem, this volume succeeds admirably on all four fronts. In a day when reader response trumps the history of interpretation in biblical studies, the present volume provides a fascinating take on these historical books of the Old Testament. Unsullied by the frequent excesses of the post-Enlightenment hermeneutics, Reformation exegetes frequently interpret the histories as harbingers of subsequent New Testament passages. As for proclamation, the reformers tend to see models and negative examples for contemporary Christian behavior in the wide-ranging cast of characters that we encounter in these pages. The breadth of Reformation perspectives is amply attested as well. We do hear from Luther, Melanchthon, and Calvin, but the bulk of citations hark back to Luther’s pastor, Bugenhagen, Lucas Osiander and Viktorin Strigel. Reformed representatives include Konrad Pellikan and Johannes Piscator. The English reformation is well represented by Andrew Willet and John Mayer. Although the Radicals and [End Page 100] Anabaptists eschewed publishing commentaries on these particular books, we are treated to an occasional remark from Menno Simons, Hans Denck, Balthasar Hubmaier, and Dirk Philips with regard to God’s promise to David of an eternal dynasty. One might expect only Protestants to appear yet commentary from Catholic scholars Alonso Tostado and Cardinal Cajetan pepper the presentation with their rather different point of view. All of this serves to advance scholarship in the fields of history, Bible, theology, and pastoral care, not least by the unearthing and translation of little-known works. When these goals are coupled with an absolutely first-rate introduction to the historical context of the Protestant Reformation, the Reformers and how they read Scripture, and the books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles, the result is a delightful view of these books through the eyes of the reformers. The explicit format is a welcome guide on our journey: Following Reformation-era practice, the text is divided into pericopes or passages drawn from the English Standard Version of the Bible. These passages are then followed by very useful overviews of the subsequent comments pointing out exegetical, theological, or pastoral concerns by the editors. Finally, headings identify the nature of the comments gathered together under each pericope. The reviewer’s copy was curiously flawed in that pages 475–522 were inserted upside down and backwards right after 2 Kings 17, the description of the destruction of the Northern Kingdom by Assyria, rendering the so-called “ten lost tribes of Israel” a textual as well as a historical occurrence! Mark A. Throntveit Luther Seminary Saint Paul, Minnesota Copyright © 2017 Johns Hopkins University Press and Lutheran Quarterly, Inc.

Renewing Moral Theology: Christian Ethics as Action, Character and Grace by Daniel A.Westberg (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015), vii + 278 pp.

Renewing Moral Theology: Christian Ethics as Action, Character and Grace by Daniel A.Westberg (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015), vii + 278 pp.

Law and the Bible: Justice, Mercy and Legal Institutions. Edited by Robert F.Cochran, Jr., and DavidVanDrunen. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2013. Pp. 269. Paperback. $24.00.

Law and the Bible: Justice, Mercy and Legal Institutions. Edited by Robert F.Cochran, Jr., and DavidVanDrunen. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2013. Pp. 269. Paperback. $24.00.

The Acts of the Apostles: A Newly Discovered Commentary. Edited by BenWitheringtonIII and Todd D.Still. The Lightfoot Legacy Set, 1. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2014. Pp. viii + 397 + plates. Cloth, $32.00.

The Acts of the Apostles: A Newly Discovered Commentary. Edited by BenWitheringtonIII and Todd D.Still. The Lightfoot Legacy Set, 1. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2014. Pp. viii + 397 + plates. Cloth, $32.00.

A Sweet and Bitter Providence: Sex, Race and Sovereignty in the Book of Ruth. By John Piper. Pp. 160, Nottingham, Inter-Varsity Press, 2010, £7.99 Sexuality in the New Testament: Understanding the Key Texts. By William Loader. Pp. viii, 168, London, SPCK,

A Sweet and Bitter Providence: Sex, Race and Sovereignty in the Book of Ruth. By John Piper. Pp. 160, Nottingham, Inter-Varsity Press, 2010, £7.99 Sexuality in the New Testament: Understanding the Key Texts. By William Loader. Pp. viii, 168, London, SPCK,

PRESTON M. SPRINKLE (foreword by Stephen Westerholm), Paul & Judaism Revisited: A Study of Divine and Human Agency in Salvation

Journal Article P reston M. S prinkle (foreword by Stephen Westerholm), Paul & Judaism Revisited: A Study of Divine and Human Agency in Salvation Get access Preston M. Sprinkle (foreword by Stephen Westerholm), Paul & Judaism Revisited: A Study of Divine and Human Agency in Salvation . InterVarsity Press , Downers Grove , IL2013. Pp. 256 . Price: $24.00 paperback. ISBN: 978-0-8308-2709-1 . James Prothro James Prothro University of Cambridge Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of Semitic Studies, Volume 60, Issue 1, Spring 2015, Page 280, https://doi.org/10.1093/jss/fgu058 Published: 14 March 2015

Theology of Mission: A Believer's Church Perspective. Edited by Gayle GerberKoontz and Andy AlexisBaker. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2014. Pp. 432. $40.00.

Theology of Mission: A Believer's Church Perspective. Edited by Gayle GerberKoontz and Andy AlexisBaker. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2014. Pp. 432. $40.00.

A Missional Orthodoxy: Theology and Ministry in a Post‐Christian Context. By GaryTyra. Downers Grave, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2013. Pp. 393. $30.00.

Religious Studies ReviewVolume 41, Issue 1 p. 15-16 Theology A Missional Orthodoxy: Theology and Ministry in a Post-Christian Context. By Gary Tyra. Downers Grave, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2013. Pp. 393. $30.00. Clifton Clarke, Clifton Clarke Regent University School of DivinitySearch for more papers by this author Clifton Clarke, Clifton Clarke Regent University School of DivinitySearch for more papers by this author First published: 06 March 2015 https://doi.org/10.1111/rsr.12193_20Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume41, Issue1March 2015Pages 15-16 RelatedInformation

Paul and the Law: Keeping the Commandments of God by Brian S. Rosner

Reviewed by: Paul and the Law: Keeping the Commandments of God by Brian S. Rosner A. Chadwick Thornhill Rosner, Brian S. 2013. Paul and the Law: Keeping the Commandments of God. Downers Grove: Intervarsity Press. ISBN 978-0830826322. Pp. 249. $20.34. Any attempt to decipher the complicated web of relationship between Paul’s theology and the place of the law requires care, attention to details, and awareness of large swaths of biblical materials and themes. Rosner’s Paul and the Law integrates these important elements as Rosner defends his thesis by examining the way in which the law functions rather than to what extent the law, or various pieces of it, remain valid for Christians. In doing so, Rosner recognises the tension between Paul’s affirmation and (apparent) disparagement of the law throughout his letters. This tension may be resolved, he suggests, by examining the way in which the law is functioning. Rosner’s study is organised around this notion, with chapters examining the law as “law-covenant,” prophecy and wisdom. Rosner summarises these three functions with associated verbs: the law as law-covenant is repudiated, the law as prophecy and wisdom is replaced and reappropriated. In chapter one, Rosner summarises the difficulties involved with examining this contentious area of NT studies and lays out three of the major approaches to Paul and the law: the Lutheran, the Reformed, and the New Perspective. As he summarises, the Lutheran view emphasises the law as leading to despair in order to provoke repentance, the Reformed position stresses the importance of obedience to the moral law (postconversion), and the New Perspective sees Jewish ethnocentrism as the impetus for Paul’s negative law speak. Rosner also clarifies three terms in the opening chapter. In examining “Paul,” Rosner suggests that the entire Pauline corpus (including those texts questioned as authentic), should come into the discussion. Concerning “the law,” Rosner recognises that the term does not always exclusively mean “legal material in the Pentateuch” (27), but references the five books of Moses as a whole, with varying degrees of attention on specific parts of that collection in specific [End Page 208] passages. Rosner also sets out to define “believers” as Jews and Gentiles in general, although he recognises that there is “a more limited sense in which Jewish believers may choose to live under the law” (31), suggesting Rom 14:1–15:6 is a passage that illustrates such a distinction. Rosner concludes the chapter with a brief analysis of 1 Cor 7:19 and a summary of his approach. He suggests we should recognise that Paul repudiates the law, radically replaces it, and whole-heartedly reappropriates it (39). Here the question is not “which bits of the law are still useful, but in what sense is the law valuable for Christians.” The evidence which Rosner intends to examine are summarised as follows: “(1) what Paul says about the law; (2) what he does with the law; (3) what he does not say about the law (that one might have expected him to say); and (4) what he says about other things (that one might have expected him to say about the law)” (41). The rest of the text is organised around Rosner’s categories of “repudiation” (chs. 2 and 3), “replacement” (ch. 4), and “reappropriation” (chs. 5 and 6). Chapter two offers what Rosner sees as “explicit repudiations” of the law-covenant and chapter three gives the implicit repudiations. Central to Rosner’s thesis is that believers are not “under the law” and that the law is a “failed path to life.” In examining Paul’s “under the law” phrases, primarily from Romans and Galatians, Rosner suggests that Paul depicts the law as an enslaving power, and thus those under it (i.e., the Jews) need rescuing from it. Rosner concludes that the law failed its purpose to bring life because it could not be kept perfectly (66–67). So, Paul’s explicit repudiation of the law as a law-covenant is due to its failure to be perfectly obeyed and thus its inability to give life. The law is thus “for the lawless” and, for Rosner, is abolished by Christ (81). In chapter...