God Is Enough: A Theology of the Book of Job
The book of Job has rightly earned a place among the great works of classical literature. For over two millennia its dramatic language, powerful metaphors, elegant poetry, lofty ethics, and profound ideas have intrigued philosophers, theologians, and laymen alike. Yet the Book of Job is more than a great piece of human literature. As part of the canon of Scripture, the book constitutes divine revelation. Read more
Good But Not (Yet) Tame: A Theodicy for Animal Death Before the Fall
All Bible scholars agree that plant life was subject to “death” before the Fall since it was to serve as food for man and beast (Gen 1:29-30). Moreover, most conservative scholars trace the origin of human death to God’s judicial curse upon the human race as a result of the Fall (Gen 3:17-19). However, the Bible nowhere explicitly links the origin of all animal death to Adam’s sin. This leaves open the possibility that some of the creatures alluded to in Genesis 1 were carnivorous. If so, we should view the phenomenon of animal predation as creational rather than as curse. Yet, a challenge remains. How can we reconcile a world “red in tooth and claw” with a created world that God assessed as “very good” (Gen 1:31)? Read more 
A Brief Theology of Human Death
The Bible portrays death as the consequence of human sin. Death was the sanction that God tied to the Garden of Eden stipulation: “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Gen. 2:16-17). And God’s expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden on account of their covenant breach and treason demonstrated that His threats were not empty. Death became the lot of Adam and his posterity. To borrow the apostle Paul’s language in Romans 6:23: “The wages of sin [became] death.” Read more
Judgment Begins at the House of God: A Theology of Malachi
Several decades have passed since the temple was rebuilt and the worship of Yahweh restored under the preaching of Haggai and Zechariah. The promised King, however, had not yet come (Zech. 9:9), nor had God’s promised glory filled the temple (Hag. 2:6-9). As a result, true worship devolved into dead religion. From Israel’s perspective, God existed solely to grant his people health and material prosperity as a merited blessing. Read more
The God-Centeredness of Christ’s Birth: A Christmas Sermon
Many people view Christmas as a time for joy and celebration. Some are aware that it has some religious significance. But few in our day really appreciate the true significance of Christ’s birth. Even Christians can lose sight of the real significance of the Christmas event. In light of the confusion and distraction of this season, I’d like to reorient our minds to the great meaning of Christ’s birth. Read more
The Covenant Context of the Fall, Part 6: Its Practical Ramifications
An appreciation of the covenantal context of the fall not only has important ramifications for our covenant theology; it also helps to preserve a biblical theology of sin and God’s redemptive work through Christ. Below are three practical implications from our study.
The Covenant Context of the Fall, Part 5: Extra Evidence for a Creation Covenant
In our previous studies1 we’ve tried to make the case that God’s relationship with Adam was from the beginning covenantal in nature. Despite the fact that the early chapters of Genesis nowhere explicitly employ the Hebrew terms for “covenant” or “kingdom,” these ideas are implicit throughout the primeval narratives. In this study we’ll marshal some additional evidence from other parts of Scripture to support the notion of an Adamic or Primordial Covenant. Read more
The Covenant Context of the Fall, Part 4: Elements of a Creation Covenant
Critical scholars posit at least two distinct sources behind the creation narratives of Genesis 1 and 2 because certain events are repeated and the two accounts employ a variation of the divine name. However, ancient Hebrew literature frequently employs repetition in which the second narrative further elaborates upon a theme(s) or event(s) revealed in the first narrative. The “two accounts,” therefore, are complementary. The first narrative (1:1-2:3) describes God’s creation with panoramic sweep; the second (2:4-25) with a selective focus upon man and woman in the Garden of Eden. The question is whether these accounts contain elements of a “covenant.” Read more
The Covenant Context of the Fall, Part 2: The Essence of a “Covenant”
The standard Hebrew term for “covenant” is בְּרִית (ḇᵉrît). Its semantic range is multifaceted and somewhat flexible. Not surprisingly, it is challenging to find one definition that suits every context in which the term is found. Delbert Hillers alludes to the challenge of defining the term and the difference of opinion when he observes, “It is not the case of six blind men and the elephant, but of a group of learned paleontologists creating different monsters from the fossils of six separate species.”1 Read more
- Covenant: The History of a Biblical Idea (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1969), 7. [↩]
The Covenant Context of the Fall, Part 1: Did God Make a Covenant with Adam?
Before Adam and Eve’s fall into sin, the world was unmarred by evil and was “very good” (Gen. 1:31; 2:25). In this important respect, the present world differs radically from the original state of affairs. In other ways, however, the pre- and post-fall worlds share much in common. One point of alleged continuity is the idea that God always interacts with humanity in terms of covenant. Read more
