Jesus the Messiah: Tracing the Promises, Expectations, and Coming of
Israel’s King by Herbert W. Bateman IV, Darrell L. Bock, and Gordon
H. Johnston
This new book by three capable scholars in the fields of Old
Testament and New Testament is a welcome addition to the growing number of
books on issues regarding Messiah, prophecy and fulfillment. What is different from the start in this book
is the authors’ insistence that “not all
prophecy is exclusively pointing to Jesus, just ultimately” (26).
They see the First Testament’s prophecies as providing information
regarding ‘prefiguring portraits.’ Their
commitment to a contextual-canonical reading allows for a reading that is
faithful to the Old Testament context and its historical fulfillment while also
maintaining the view that progressive fulfillment concern the whole scope of
redemptive history.
Why buy this book?
For one, this book provides a mountain of evidence in favor
of understanding messianic trajectories in the Old Testament through a healthy
contextual lens. In other words, the
authors do not quickly point out one aspect of God’s covenantal dealings
without dealing with a holistic understanding.
For instance, when talking about God’s covenant promise to David in 2 Samuel
7 and 1 Kings and Chronicles, the writers point out that, “Although Nathan’s
oracle did not contain any explicit moral obligations, subsequent passage made
clear that God required David’s sons to be faithful to him for the initial
historical fulfillment of these promises:…Solomon’s faithfulness in building
the temple, obedience of each generation of royal descendants” (69). Covenantal obedience took a two prong
approach; the heir of the promise individually was called to be faithful and
the royal dynasty as a whole was to lead in obedience. What is important here is the collective and
individual call for obedience. The
authors are careful to point out that even where explicit moral obligations are
not pronounced, a fuller reading of the context opens up the necessity of
obedience for nation and heir.
Secondly, the illustrations, graphs, and diagrams in the book
really put the storyline of the bible, both historically and chronologically
into a coherent picture. In the chapter
on the Pauline Epistles, there is a very helpful outline of transition in Paul’s
life (358). The chart indicates both key
markers in Paul’s life; his conversion, commissioning at Antioch and
confinement at Rome with the dating of each event. Furthermore, there is a helpful window chart
that brings out his missionary journey and the epistles associated with the
travels. This is immensely helpful
because it helps the reader imagine what Paul was facing as he was addressing
key issues with the growing church. And,
the chart also reveals the amazing missionary spirit within the heart and mind
of Paul. Often, in reading the Pauline
texts we forget the zeal and physical dedication Paul had to his readers and
the gospel.
The chapter on Anticipations on the One Called Son is worth
the whole price of the book. Herbert
Bateman traces key texts from the First Testament, the Dead Sea Scrolls and
Pseudipigrapha literature that look forward to the coming Messiah and how his
office would be executed. This chapter
is beneficial in providing another
indicator of how Jewish thinkers envisioned the coming Messiah. Detailing individual messianic texts and
their exact place in connection to the Old Testament is a great resource for
scholars and those who can draw on this literature for teaching and
writing.
This book is a first rate work by some top-notch scholar
working with an eye towards the messianic portraits in the Bible. What you find is a whole Bible look at how
messianic words, ideas, and story capture the essence of the coming King. What I found most appealing in the book is
the interpretive approach of looking at the context, the canonical trajectory,
and finally the future aspect of the text.
This kind of approach yields a faithful but careful reading of the
myriad types of literature that speak of the Messiah. I hope this book will find its way into the
hands of scholars, teachers, and believers who rejoice in their risen Savior.
Thanks to Kregel Academic for the review copy of this book
in exchange for review.
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