Tag Archives: NT use of OT

Book Reviews, Old Facebook Posts

Handbook on the NT Use of the OT – G.K. Beale

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(Old Facebook Post)

A lot of rather careless biblical interpretation is happening today. (By God’s grace, thankfully much of the time the truth is still being taught, even if by using questionable or haphazard exegetical methods.) On the other hand, there are a lot of really helpful books out there on how to interpret the Bible–books like [amazon text=Grasping God’s Word&asin=0310492572] that I do highly recommended.

[amazon template=thumbnail11&asin=0801038960]What I’ve rarely seen, however, are books and interpreters that consciously try to determine from the Bible itself how the Bible should be interpreted. Usually lots of helpful methods are imported from the disciplines of literature and history into the practice of biblical interpretation. All truth is God’s truth, so these importations can be very useful. But rarely do we ask: How did the Bible authors interpret the parts of the Bible that already existed in their day?

For the student who wants to seriously investigate that question and then apply the results to shape their own interpretive methods, I know of know better place to begin than this brief, information-packed book by G. K. Beale: [amazon text=Handbook on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament&asin=0801038960]. It’s only 173 pages, but it distills the very best on this topic that has been written in over 100 years.

Beale quotes Moises Silva:

“If we refuse to pattern our exegesis after that of the apostles, we are in practice denying the authoritative character of their scriptural interpretation–and to do so is to strike at the very heart of the Christian faith.”

And Beale states his goal for his own book:

“The goal is to better grasp the way the two Testaments are related at the particular points where OT references are found. Our ultimate aim is to hear and understand more clearly the voice of the living God as he has spoken and continues to speak in his ‘living words’ (Acts 7:38 NIV) and accordingly to know and encounter God increasingly, to know his will, and so to honor him.”

Highly recommended.

Book Reviews, Old Facebook Posts

According to the Scriptures – C.H. Dodd

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(Old Facebook Post)

Have you ever wondered which are the most important Old Testament passages? Or at least which ones tell us the most about Christ?

There’s a fascinating old book I recently read, [amazon text=According to the Scriptures: The Substructure of New Testament Theology&asin=B000QXTH1Y], by C. H. Dodd. It analyses the New Testament’s use of the Old Testament to try to determine which OT passages were most central in shaping the apostles’ understanding of the significance of Christ’s death and resurrection. Which passages did they quote most often when explaining the gospel message? Which most powerfully explain the significance of Christ’s coming?

Dodd’s list could be refined a little, but it’s a great start. Here are some of the most important OT passages you will ever read!

Genesis 12:3; 22:18
Deuteronomy 18:15, 19
2 Samuel 7:13-14
Psalms 2; 8; 16; 22; 31; 34; 38; 41; 42; 43; 69; 80; 88; 110; 118; 132
Isaiah 6:1–9:7; 11:1-10; 28:16; 29:9-14; 40:1-11; 42:1–46:5; 49:1-13; 50:4-11; 52:13–53:12; 55:3; 58:6-10; 61
Jeremiah 7:1-15; 31:10-34
Hosea (especially Hosea 2-3; 5:8–6:3; 13)
Joel 2-3
Amos 9:11-12
Habakkuk 1-2
Zechariah 9-14
Daniel 7; 12
Malachi 3:1-6

Each of these passages were referenced by multiple NT authors, often in ways that show they assumed their readers were already familiar with them. Learn them well, and watch for how the NT quotes and alludes to them. Find a good cross-reference Bible to see where these verses are used in the NT, and ponder how the apostles understood them. Then see the gospel with new eyes, and read the OT with new eyes.

I think one of the most exciting ways this list could be used would be as a guide for selecting OT memory passages! It would also serve as a good guide for public Scripture readings in church services.

Dodd groups these passages according to key themes of the gospel message: 1) apocalyptic-eschatological–prophesies about the Day of the Lord, with judgement and redemption; 2) scriptures of the new Israel–judgement upon rebellious national Israel, the calling of the remnant, the inauguration of the New Covenant and the emergence of the Church; 3) scriptures of the Servant of the Lord and the Righteous Sufferer; and 4) unclassified–which interestingly includes a few explicitly messianic passages–very few of the others on the list actually speak of a coming “anointed” one!

Bible Bites [Exegesis], Old Facebook Posts

“Getting Excited About Melchizedek”

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If you want to finally understand that bit about Melchizedek, or what to know the real reason why we today talk about Jesus being our high priest, or just want to watch a veteran Bible student demonstrate how to read the whole Bible, paying close attention to the tiniest meaningful details and tracing how the Bible writers read their own Bibles… then watch this talk by D. A. Carson. (An audio file should also be available.) Zonya and I watched it together tonight and were blessed!