Goldingay OT Theology Day – 3 of 5

The first of the two volumes, Old Testament Theology. Volume 1: Israel's Gospel, is a narrative theology of what Goldingay calls the 'First Testament'. In a nutshell, he examines the biblical narrative of 'Israel's gospel', of God's creation of and interactions with the world and Israel. The work is divides thusly: God Began, God Started Over, God Promised, God Delivered, God Sealed, God Gave, God Accommodated, God Wrestled, God Preserved, God Sent and God Exalted. While the vast majority of the book focuses upon the 'First Testament', he ends his book by tracing the story into the New Testament story. Click here for the table of contents, here for the preface, and here for chapter 1, the introduction: 'Old Testament Theology as Narrative'. I would comment that I found the first chapter to be not half as interesting as the second, so bear that in mind if you read this sample chapter. The chapter on creation is simply stunning – all manner of fresh insights about God's sovereignty, the problem of evil etc., though some of his more subtle exegesis comes later.

The second volume, Old Testament Theology. Volume 2: Israel's Faith, is more traditional in its structure, sticking more closely to usual theological themes, namely God, Israel, The Nightmare, The Vision, Humanity, The World, and lastly, The Nations. Click here to read the introduction.

In the next two posts I will present a couple of more controversial points for discussion.