Tag: endorsement

Book Endorsement: “The Doctrine of Scripture” by Jason Harris

~ Bob Hayton

The Doctrine of Scripture by Jason HarrisToday’s book review post is special for two reasons. First, this marks the 150th book review I’ve posted here at Fundamentally Reformed. Second, this review includes the foreword I was privileged to write for this book.

The Doctrine of Scripture: As It Relates to the Transmission and Preservation of the Text by Jason Harris is published by InFocus Ministries in Australia. I’m excited to recommend this new book to my readers here in the United States as I believe this book can go a long way toward helping those confused or entangled by King James Onlyism.

My Foreword

Another book on the King James Only debate? Much ink has been spilled and many passions expended in what may be the ugliest intramural debate plaguing conservative, Bible-believing churches today. Fundamentalists and Evangelicals, Baptists and Presbyterians, Reformed and charismatic — all have been affected to a greater or lesser extent by those arguing for or against the King James or New King James Versions of the Bible. With each new book it seems the debate becomes more and more caustic, each group castigating the other in ever more forceful terminology.

Jason Harris enters the fray with the right blend of humility and tenacity, and turns the attention of all to the true center of the debate: the doctrine of Scripture. What makes this debate so passionate is that it centers on the very nature of Scripture. Rather than focus on technical facts and ancient manuscript copying practices, Harris takes us back to what Scripture says about itself: its inspiration, preservation and accessibility. In doing so, he demonstrates how those upholding the King James Bible and the Textus Receptus behind it, base their position not on sound exegesis of the Scripture, but on tenuous assumptions read into the text.

Harris’s pen is lucid and his grasp of the King James Only debate as a whole is masterful. He focuses his work on TR-only position which represents the very best of King James Only reasoning. He interacts with the exegesis of key TR-only proponents and marshals compelling evidence demonstrating their failure to measure up to Scripture’s own teaching about itself. And after explicating the doctrine of Scripture, Harris draws important conclusions which should protect the reader from making simplistic assumptions in a quest for textual certainty that goes beyond what Scripture teaches we should expect.

Harris wants us to be confident that we do have the inspired Scripture translated accurately in our English Bibles. He wants such confidence to be rooted to a Scriptural understanding of the Doctrine of Scripture rather than in the “supernatural-guidance” of a group of sixteenth-Century translators. Assuming that such a group of men made no mistakes is to expect something Scripture doesn’t teach, and ignore what it does. Harris is to be commended for such a clear, lucid defense of the historic doctrine of Scripture. I hope his book is received well and helps laymen and pastors everywhere to begin to rethink the basis for why they think as they do when it comes to the King James Only debate.

Bob Hayton
FundamentallyReformed.com
KJVODebate.Wordpress.com

[pp. 9-10]

Additional Thoughts

After re-reading this book and seeing the published version, I am more optimistic than ever about its promise to provide clarity to the King James Only debate. Jason Harris’s book has a few characteristics which together make it a unique contribution to this debate.

First, his book focuses on the alleged doctrine of the verbal, plenary accessibility of Scripture. This is where the root of the KJV and TR preference lies for many people. The argument is not so much based on texts and manuscripts as it is on what allegedly the Bible teaches – that the very words of Scripture (all of them down to the letters) would be generally accessible to believers down through the ages. Harris spends most of his time marshaling a Scriptural rebuttal to these claims and also demonstrates the difficulties such a position has when it comes to the history of the text as we know it.

Second, this volume carefully builds a theology of the transmission and preservation of Scripture. Such a careful, exegetically-based explication of the doctrine of Scripture has been lacking in this debate. And such a gap has often been used by KJV-only proponents to their advantage. It is KJV-only books which start with a Scriptural position and then look at the evidence, with the “anti-KJV” books starting with history and evidence and then moving to the Scriptural arguments. This book is different and starts where the debate starts for most of the sincere believers who get swept up into it — it starts on Scripture’s teaching about the very nature and preservation of Scripture.

Finally, Harris keeps a very irenic tone throughout. He is careful not to overstate his case and exaggerate the claims of his opponents. This is especially difficult to do when it comes to this heated debate, but Jason pulls this off well. Additionally, he backs up his book with the inclusion of a vast array of footnotes documenting the claims he is arguing against. I appreciate how he does not direct his argument toward the Riplingers and Ruckmans of this debate. He focuses on the TR-only position and the more careful wing of KJV-onlyism, men like David Cloud, D.A. Waite, Charles Surret, and the like. Harris has read widely in the KJV only literature, and his treatment avoids broadbrushing and generalizations that tend to give KJV-only proponents an easy out. It’s easy to dismiss a book as not being directed to their particular position, or to claim the author makes egregious errors and lumps their position in with that of heretical views. Harris’s book is not open to such charges. He directs his case against the very best arguments of KJV-onlyism.

Had I been exposed to such a book I would have been inoculated to the pull of the KJV-only persuasion. As it happened, I was swept up in a TR-only view that made it seem like we had the corner on truth and everyone else was compromising. By God’s grace I came to understand that Scripture does not support such a view of the transmission of the text.

Jason Harris is to be thanked for giving us a tool to recommend to those thinking through this issue from within, and to help the ones who are being pressured to join the KJV-only position. I highly recommend The Doctrine of Scripture and hope it makes its way into the hands of anyone struggling with this issue who will yet be open-minded enough to study out the issue from both sides.

You can pick up a copy of The Doctrine of Scripture at Amazon.com.

Disclaimer: This book was provided by the author. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

“Christ-Centered Biblical Theology: Hermeneutical Foundations and Principles” by Graeme Goldsworthy

~ Bob Hayton ~ 2 Comments

Book Details:
  • Author: Graeme Goldsworthy
  • Category: Biblical Theology
  • Publisher: IVP (2012)
  • Format: softcover
  • Page Count: 240
  • ISBN#: 0830839690
  • List Price: $20.00
  • Rating: Must Read

Review:
In recent years biblical theology has enjoyed something of a comeback. A robust, Christ-centered, confessional variety of biblical theology is becoming more and more widespread and influential. And if we wanted to find someone to thank for this development, Graeme Goldsworthy’s name would come up on anyone’s short-list. His books Gospel and Kingdom, The Gospel in Revelation, and Gospel and Wisdom touched a nerve in the 1980s [get all three in one volume from Amazon]. And his later book Preaching the Whole Bible as Christian Scripture was picked up by many a Gospel preacher. Some have bristled at what they think is his wild approach to typology. And indeed, for many who pay attention to this theologian from down under, his approach to the Bible is nothing short of revolutionary. His redemptive-historical approach to the Bible has made the Old Testament come alive to thousands of rank-and-file Christians the world over.

Christ-Centered Biblical Theology: Hermeneutical Foundations and Principles is Goldsworthy’s latest book, and in it he traces some of the influences to his thought. Along the way he gives a history of evangelical biblical theology and weighs the relative merits of competing approaches. He details the tripartite division of redemptive history that he inherited from his mentor, Donald Robinson. And by the end of this book, he has demonstrated just how careful and faithful his approach to Scripture really is.

Goldsworthy begins by explaining the problem. Biblical theology opens the way to a “big picture,” grand view of all of Scripture. Yet too many view it as a “lame duck” and a distraction. Goldsworthy’s faith in the potential of biblical theology stems from his simple faith in the entire Bible being “the one word of the one God about the one way of salvation through the one savior, Jesus Christ” (pg. 19). Drawing from his mentor, Donald Robinson (also a professor at Moore Theological College in Sydney) Goldsworthy sees a threefold structure to Scripture:

  1. Creation to Solomon’s Temple (The Kingdom of God revealed in OT history)
  2. Solomon’s Decline to the end of the OT era (The Kingdom revealed by the prophets in a future, glorified, Israelite form)
  3. The New Testament inauguration of the Kingdom (The Kingdom revealed in Christ)

He develops this further:

The Old Testament… can be represented as a manifestation of promise and blessing reaching a high point in David’s Jerusalem as the focal point of the land of inheritance, in Solomon as David’s heir, and in the temple representing the presence of God to dwell among and bless his people. After Solomon’s apostasy it is history primarily as a manifestation of judgment… overlaid with the prophetic promises that the Day of the Lord will come and bring ultimate blessing and judgment… It takes the person of Jesus, his teaching and the proclamation of his apostles to restore hope in the original promise of God. (pg. 25)

Goldsworthy addresses some of the objections to his approach as he traces out its foundation throughout the book. But at the onset he points out his pastoral concern in this whole debate. He is concerned with the simplistic way that so many Christians handle the Bible.

Many have learned one particular way of dealing with the Bible and have not been exposed to a comprehensive biblical theology as an alternative. Some acknowledge that the Bible is a unity and that the heart of it is the gospel of Christ. But they have never been shown, or have tried to work out for themselves, the way the various parts of the Bible fit together. Reading the Bible then easily becomes the search for today’s personal word from God, which is often far from what the text, within its context, is really saying…. Too many Christians go through life with a theoretically unified canon of Scripture and a practical canon consisting of favourite and familiar snippets and extracts removed from their real canonical context. (pg. 29, 37)

The heart of the book is Goldsworthy’s romp through Scripture looking at its structure and storyline. He is convinced that the New Testament provides a model for how to interpret the Old Testament faithfully, but he focuses on the Old Testament’s own use of earlier Old Testament themes and writings. The Old Testament creates the typological categories that the NT authors pick up. I found this point most intriguing, and cannot help but reproduce Goldsworthy’s quotation from Donald Robinson to this regard.

The blessings of God’s End-time are described in the Old Testament for the most part in terms drawn from Israel’s past history. The day of the Lord would be Israel’s history all over again, but new with the newness of God. There would be a new Exodus, a new redemption from slavery and a new entry into the land of promise (Jer. 16:14, 15); a new covenant and a new law (Jer. 31:31-34). No foe would invade the promised inheritance, “but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid” (Micah 4:4). There would be a new Jerusalem (Isa. 26:1, Ez. 40) and a new David to be God’s shepherd over Israel (Jer. 23:5, Ez. 34:23,24) and a new Temple where perfect worship would be offered and from which a perfect law would go forth (Isa. 2:2-4, Ez. 40-46). It would not be too much to say that Israel’s history, imperfectly experienced in the past, would find its perfect fulfilment “in that day.” Indeed, nothing less than a new creation, a new heaven and a new earth, could contain all that God has in store for the End (Isa. 65:17) (pg. 173 -174 [quote is from Donald W. B. Robinson, The Hope of Christ’s Coming (Beecroft, New South Wales: Evangelical Tracts and Publications, 1958), pg. 13]).

When Goldsworthy looks at typology, he takes great care not to endorse a “no-holds barred” approach. While he advocates a macro-typology recognizing that “there is no aspect of reality that is not involved in the person and work of Christ.” On the same hand, he argues that seeing “the pomegranates on the robes of the Israelite priest” as “types of the fruits of the Spirit;” or even “the redness of Rahab’s cord” as a “type of Jesus’ blood,” is to pursue “fanciful, non-contextual associations that avoid the real theology behind these things” (pg. 186-187).

Throughout his book, Goldsworthy compares and contrasts his approach to biblical theology with several other evangelicals of note: Geerhardus Vos, Edmund Clowney and Dennis Johnson, Willem VanGemeren, William Dumbrell, Sidney Greidanus and others. He also details Donald Robinson’s approach and legacy. In his assessment of differing approaches, he doesn’t portray his view as the only faithful one, but as one faithful approach among many.

He doesn’t provide a biblical theology in this book, but sketches the background for how to pursue a biblical theology. He does address a few issues more directly, since they focus on Robinson’s legacy. One of these is an interesting discussion of the continuing distinction between Israel and the Church in the New Testament. He explores Robinson’s contention that there remains a distinction between new Israel and the Church. The Gentiles get the blessings promised to Gentiles in the OT, while the blessings promised to Israel are experienced by the believing Jews in the NT era. Both groups of people are then subsumed in the new revelation of God’s intent to make a new man, a new people for himself (cf. Eph. 2).

Christ-Centered Biblical Theology manages to keep from being merely a last word from an old theologian. There are memoirs and reflections, to be sure. But the over-all thrust of the book is to equip the reader to pick up the torch and take biblical theology into the new millennium. Numerous charts and diagrams help communicate the concepts of the book, and Goldsworthy ends with a litany of possibilities for furthering the discipline of biblical theology.

This book will kindle a fire in many hearts for biblical theology. And for those who are familiar already with this important discipline, it will stimulate further reflection on the structure of Scripture and the centrality of the Gospel. I hope it will find a broad audience, and that a new generation will carry on Goldsworthy’s work.

Author Info:
Graeme Goldsworthy was formerly lecturer in Old Testament, biblical theology and hermeneutics at Moore Theological College, Sydney, where he still teaches part time. His other books include Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics, According to Plan, Preaching the Whole Bible as Christian Scripture, Prayer and the Knowledge of God, and three books on biblical studies collected as The Goldsworthy Trilogy.

Where to Buy:
  • Westminster Bookstore
  • Christianbook.com
  • Amazon
  • direct from IVP

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by Inter-Varsity Press for review. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

New Release: “Christ-Centered Biblical Theology” by Graeme Goldsworthy

~ Bob Hayton ~ 1 Comment

I am really excited about this new book from Graeme Goldsworthy: Christ-Centered Biblical Theology: Hermeneutical Foundations and Principles (IVP, March 2012). Goldsworthy is known for trumpeting a redemptive-historical approach to hermeneutics and that approach has had a big impact in how I understand Scripture.

This book traces the development of Goldsworthy’s hermeneutical approach and in that sense is somewhat autobiographical. He also comments on the state of biblical theology today. This promises to be an excellent follow up to his earlier works, most notably Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics: Foundations and Principles of Evangelical Biblical Interpretation (IVP, 2010). I’m looking forward to reading this one!

Here’s the publisher’s description and some glowing endorsements for this latest work by Graeme Goldsworthy:

The appeal of biblical theology is that it provides a “big picture” that makes sense of the diversity of biblical literature. Through the lens of biblical theology the Bible ceases to be a mass of unconnected texts, but takes shape as a unified metanarrative connecting the story of Israel with that of Jesus. It presents the whole scene of God’s revelation as one mighty plan of salvation.

For fifty years Graeme Goldsworthy has been refining his understanding of biblical theology through his experiences as a student, pastor and teacher. In this valuable complement to his Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics, Goldsworthy defends and refines the rationale for his approach, drawing especially on the work of Australian biblical scholar Donald Robinson.

“Over the years readers have benefited from Goldsworthy’s work in biblical theology. Now we have the mature and wise reflections of a veteran scholar on how to do biblical theology. I found this book to be edifying and stimulating. Even those who disagree with some dimensions of Goldsworthy’s approach will find him to be a challenging conversation partner.” ~ Thomas R. Schreiner (James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary)

“Graeme Goldsworthy’s contribution to the study of biblical theology has been enormous. In this informative study, he helpfully compares different evangelical approaches, explaining his own preference for the method advocated by Donald Robinson. Supporting a ‘three-stage structure of revelation’ (biblical history from creation to Solomon, prophetic eschatology, fulfillment in Christ), Goldsworthy gives an interesting insight into those influences which have inspired and shaped his passion for defending and expounding the theological unity of the Bible. For anyone fascinated by biblical theology, and especially Goldsworthy’s contribution to this field of study, the present volume is essential reading.” ~ T. Desmond Alexander (Union Theological College, Belfast)

“For many years I have admired the good things coming out of Moore Theological College. It’s high time that the biblical theology being done down under be put front and center in North America. In an age of increasing specialization and fragmentation where even biblical things come apart, Goldsworthy’s approach to the unity of Scripture is an important countercultural blast.” ~ Kevin J. Vanhoozer (Wheaton College Graduate School)

The table of contents provided below gives a sneak peek at what biblical theological gems this new book will cover.

1. Biblical theology: lame duck or eagles’ wings?
    Confessions of a biblical theology addict
    The big questions about the big picture
    The Robinson-Hebert schema
    The role of Genesis 1–11
    The question of reductionism
    Why is biblical theology so neglected?

2. Evangelical definitions and presuppositions
    Tentative steps towards a definition of biblical theology
    Evangelical theological presuppositions in biblical theology
    Evangelical hermeneutical presuppositions in biblical theology

3. Salvation and history
    The idea of salvation history
    The biblical history as salvation history
    Salvation history within Scripture: Old Testament
    Salvation history within Scripture: New Testament
    Conclusions

4. Evangelical practice
    The lack of consensus among evangelicals
    The shaping of a biblical theologian: my debt to Donald Robinson
    Some leading evangelical biblical theologians
    Conclusions

5. Multiplex biblical theology
    The problem of unity and diversity in method
    Proponents of the multiplex approach
    Conclusions

6. Letting the Old Testament speak I: biblical history
    What kind of epoch?
    The main foci in Old Testament history
    Conclusions

7. Letting the Old Testament speak II: prophetic eschatology
    The pattern of prophetic eschatology
    The canonical shape
    The main foci in prophetic eschatology
    Conclusions

8. Letting the New Testament speak
    Is the New Testament normative in the interpretation of the Old Testament?
    Does the New Testament exhibit a structure of revelation?
    The Abraham-David/Solomon axis and the fulfilment of prophecy
    A comparison of approaches

9. Typology
    Robinson’s typology
    Approaches to typology
    Some issues in the debate
    Macro-typology

10. The Robinson legacy
    Robinson’s typology and method in biblical theology
    Israel and the church
    Eschatology
    Baptism
    Assessment

11. How to do biblical theology
    Is there a future for biblical theology?
    Possibilities for biblical theology
    Epilogue

Book Details:
  • ISBN: 9780830839698
  • List Price: $20.00
  • Book Detail Page: Here

Book Details:
  • Christianbook.com
  • Amazon
  • Barnes&Noble
  • IVP

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by InterVarsity Press for review. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.