G.K. Beale New Testament Use of the Old Testament Set

“Beale and Carson have amassed a unique reference resource, focused on an area of perpetual importance to both biblical scholars and preachers: how did the writers of the New Testament 'read' their Bibles. The many contributions are held together by a commitment to explore the New Testament context of the quotation, the meaning of the excerpt in its original Old Testament context, the interpretation of this same passage in Second Temple Judaism, the textual tradition (Hebrew text, Septuagint, or mixed type) of the passage, and, finally, the New Testament writer's interpretation and application of the excerpt. As such, this volume will be of constant help as a starting point for a very specific, and very critical, facet of the exegetical task.”

“Beale and Carson have given us a volume that will certainly become a standard for all serious Bible readers, ministers, and scholars. We are in their debt. As a preacher, I would especially encourage other preachers to use this volume in honing their understanding of God's Word and in leading their congregations to better understand the Old Testament, the same Scriptures that Jesus taught his disciples. I'm even planning on using this to help select appropriate Scripture readings for public services.”

“Given the infinite riches of God's truth, no single commentary can do it all. Some commentaries choose to stress the theological themes of a text, while others focus on a text's literary features or significant archaeological background or the wider cultural context of first-century Judaism and Hellenism. While all this is valuable, no background information has proved to be more illuminating than the New Testament's own profound use of the Old Testament. This crucial background, however, is often tragically missed, misconstrued, or minimized in other commentaries. To address this need, the present volume provides a fresh, insightful, and judicious exposition of the most significant instances of the New Testament's use of the Old Testament. Under the expert editorial guidance of G. K. Beale and D. A. Carson, who are among the most respected authorities in the field, the contributors to this commentary have done scholars, pastors, and ordinary believers an enormous favor by sharing with them in a concise and accessible format some of the most useful and exciting discoveries that come from this approach.”

“There has been a great need for a comprehensive study of the New Testament's use of the Old Testament. This arduous task has now been accomplished by very competent New Testament scholars, resulting in an excellent reference work. It is well thought out and the style makes it easy to use; a must for every serious student of the Bible.”

A New Testament Biblical Theology takes Beale’s years of study, teaching, and research and presents his readers with the most thorough and mature work of New Testament biblical theology yet seen in the English language. He has structured the massive volume in a beautiful fashion, focusing nearly half of the work on the eschatological storyline of the Old Testament, then moving to the story of the already and not yet’ latter-day resurrection and new-creational kingdom of the New. His other major themes are sin and restoration, salvation as new creation, the work of the Spirit, and the church and Christian living. The thorough and readable volume demonstrates the contours of the grand sweep of God’s great revelation to sinful men and women through the exalted Lord Jesus Christ.

G. K. Beale has been harvesting the fields of biblical theology in major biblical commentaries and exegetical/theological studies for many years. Here now is his biblical theology magnum opus. A New Testament Biblical Theology draws together and generously supplements many strands of Beale’s earlier work into a comprehensive and mature expression of the whole. Beale locates the organic progress of supernatural revelation’ not in a particular central doctrine or idea, but in the Bible’s grand storyline, the story of God establishing his new-creational kingdom through Christ and the Spirit. As with all of Beale’s works, this volume is brimming with rich and deeply satisfying redemptive-historical exegesis. This provides an enormous feast for anyone wishing to understand in greater detail the thrust of the Bible’s saving story, but it also results in a great contribution to scholarshipa broad, well-researched, and well-constructed foundation for future scholarly endeavors in biblical theology.

Some New Testament theologies emphasize the distinctiveness of each author or book; others seek a center or unifying theme. Beale’s work is decidedly in the second category as he demonstrates new creation’ as an umbrella category covering all of the other major motifs not only in the New Testament but also in the relevant Old Testament and Second Temple Jewish background material. Along the way, readers are treated to outstanding, up-to-date discussions of most of the main topics they have come to expect and some new ones, especially in light of intracanonical connections. Throughout, Beale is thoroughly evangelical and thoroughly scholarly. This work is a true tour de force.

The canonical scope and focus on the biblical story line give Beale’s New Testament Biblical Theology a unique place among the many New Testament theologies now available. The book is vintage Beale, creatively making connections between Old Testament and New Testament and pursuing a definite vision of how the Bible hangs together.

A magnificent achievement! Rarely does a volume in biblical studies come along with such breadth, depth, insight, and specificity. It is a brilliant reconstruction of themes that are central to Christian faith. This is a landmark accomplishment.

This New Testament biblical theology makes the Old Testament storyline the point of departure for exploring the New Testament message. Beale’s volume is far reaching, written at a high scholarly level, and conversant with a wide range of scholarship. Even where one may disagree, Beale’s treatment is always informative and at times even provocative. A very important contribution to biblical theology that deserves to be widely read.

This is like a New Testament theology but goes far beyond. It does not merely describe a part of Scripture from the outside; the view is rather interior, developing themes and movements from within the whole Bible’s own storyline. Beale does full justice to motifs often neglected. Like no other work I know, A New Testament Biblical Theology gives eschatology (and not just futurology) full due. He writes understandably and frequently engages in exegesis, which reduces generalizations and unsupported assertions. The treatment is theocentric, missional, and doxological. Reflecting thirty years of research and with some six hundred books in its bibliography, this volume is unique in our time and in fact without close parallel in a discipline (biblical theology) that split the Old Testament off from the New over two hundred years ago. Beale has brought them back together in a creative and methodical way. The results will provoke a deeper grasp of God’s redemptive aims and further research. For some readers, like this one, a major result will be not only appreciation but also awe at such a masterful treatment of so much of Scripture’s wealth.

It is tempting to confess that dogmaticians merely rummage around in the mines of biblical theologians. With this volume, the quarry has been enlarged and deepened, exposing the richest veins. I found it to be not exactly a page-turner, but rather on almost every page I discovered another spot at which to linger before moving on. Drawing on decades of exegetical research and teaching, A New Testament Biblical Theology exists at the intersection of biblical studies and theology. Carrying on the tradition of Geerhardus Vos, Professor Beale has raised the bar for biblical theology in our day. We will be digesting this volume for many years to come.

Certainly Beale has written his magnum opus, in which he deftly integrates the Scriptures via the new creation theme. The use of the Old Testament in the New Testament forms the backbone of this work so that readers grasp how the storyline of Scripture coheres. We stand in debt to the author for his detailed and profound unfolding of New Testament theology.

“Written and edited by leading scholars in this subject, the Dictionary of the New Testament Use of the Old Testament will prove an invaluable reference tool that focuses on one of the most important topics in biblical interpretation. While many areas of background shed needed light on the New Testament, few if any are as critical as the Scriptures that informed the thinking and theology of the New Testament writers and their audiences. With essays addressing essential topics, this work complements the valuable Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament.”

“The Old Testament provides the theological foundation and context in the light of which Jesus and his achievement must be understood. The Dictionary of the New Testament Use of the Old Testament treats readers to all of the essential elements that come into play in this vital dimension of exegesis. Highly recommended.”

“The editors are to be congratulated for assembling a stellar team of contributors, who present us with the results of decades of communal scholarly reflection on how the New Testament uses the Old. Far from merely summarizing existing knowledge, these articles advance our understanding of this subject, which is central for understanding Christian Scripture.”

“The Dictionary of the New Testament Use of the Old Testament can best be described as a companion volume to the immensely successful Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament, riding the big wave of studies on the use of the Old Testament in the New Testament. The articles of the dictionary, which move from Abraham to Zephaniah and condense relevant English-language scholarship, survey all the biblical books and discuss biblical-theological topics (e.g., church, covenant, creation, ethics, gospel, Holy Spirit, justification, promise, shame, sin, wrath), Jewish exegetical traditions (e.g., Apocrypha, Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint), and inner-biblical exegesis (e.g., allegory, method, orality, rhetoric, typology, systematic theology, biblical theology). The dictionary is an indispensable resource for all who interpret, teach, and preach both Old Testament and New Testament texts. The editors and Baker Academic are to be congratulated on producing this magnificent volume.”

“The matter of the use of the Old Testament in the New Testament is complex, exciting, and of great significance. This remarkable work examines the use of the Old Testament in the New at a number of levels, including textual issues, exegesis, biblical theology, and systematic theology. The essays are marked by both clarity and insight, and the result is a work that students, pastors, and scholars will want to consult regularly. This dictionary will be an important resource for years to come.”

“This impressive collection of articles represents years of research, writing, organizing, and editing. Pastors, professors, and careful students of the Bible will benefit from this outstanding reference work. A remarkable achievement.”

“A concise, comprehensive, well-produced, and user-friendly guide to the way the New Testament uses the Old is exactly what pastors and scholars need—and here it is. The scholarship is up-to-date, the presentation is comprehensible to nonspecialists, and the overall structure makes it easy to trace particular themes and apply them in a variety of church and seminary contexts. An essential resource and an ideal gift to any student of the Bible.”

“This is it! After a long parade of hermeneutical views, complicated how-tos, and scholarly interpretations, readers still do not have what they actually need. The Dictionary of the New Testament Use of the Old Testament fills the void by speaking to an array of interpretive problems, theological themes, and biblical writings—even the much-neglected Old Testament. This dictionary puts resources into the hands of students and ministers of the Word so they can study the New Testament use of Scripture for themselves. It is easy to be effusive about this outstanding book.”

“This volume represents the matured culmination of much of Beale’s decades-long biblical-theological work. Impressive for its comprehensive scope and penetrating insights, it focuses on the climactic centrality of the resurrection and ascension of Christ in the history of redemption and the inseparable and multifaceted saving benefits flowing from union with Christ specifically as resurrected. It is fairly read as providing, as he says, a virtual ‘encyclopedia’ of that union. A valuable feature is the frequent ‘application’ sections throughout. Truly a magnum opus, I commend its careful reading and study.”

“Beale contributes yet another study that would constitute a magnum opus for most authors—but which for him just adds to a substantial list of groundbreaking publications. Beale approaches union with Christ from fresh angles and with comprehensive breadth, exegetical rigor, and dozens of practical applications. I am not aware of another book that demonstrates so sweepingly the relevance of Christ’s resurrection and ascension to believers’ union with him in its rich benefits and inexhaustible glories.”

“For years now, biblical scholars have stressed the participatory features in the New Testament authors’ understanding of salvation and the Christian life. Building on his biblical theology tome, Beale pulls together the rich diversity of the New Testament to identify the central theme: believers become united with, participate in, identify with, and are incorporated into Christ in his resurrection even as they strive to live consistently with that reality. We fully share in what is his. Ultimately, coursing through the pages of Beale’s study is a sense of the victory that Christ’s own share in the new creation and the Spirit—a timely and powerful message.”

“In his Handbook on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament Professor Beale has provided readers with a guide that complements his magisterial New Testament Biblical Theology: The Unfolding of the Old Testament in the New (2011) as well as the Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (2007), which he and several colleagues produced. What we now have is a complete package: commentary, theology, and a very concise handbook that shows us step by step how this important work is to be done. Beginning students and veteran scholars alike will benefit from this useful book.”

“No subject is more important to the interpretation of the New Testament and biblical theology than the study of the Old Testament in the New Testament. It is also one of the most technical and difficult subjects. Written by a veteran and pioneer in the field, Handbook on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament is a reliable guide through challenging terrain. Highly recommended to anyone who wants to work hard at appreciating the profound connections between the testaments.”

“During the last four decades not a little serious work has been undertaken to understand better how the New Testament cites the Old. Quite a lot of it was written by Greg Beale. Here, however, he keeps the student in mind and provides an introduction to the subject, complete with helpful bibliographies, useful illustrations, and step-by-step demonstrations of how to think through these issues. Not only seminary students but also pastors committed to expository preaching will be hugely thankful for this important handbook.”

“Greg Beale has distinguished himself throughout an illustrious teaching and writing career with his work on the relationships between the testaments. Fresh from producing his magnum opus, a New Testament biblical theology that was thoroughly informed by such uses, Beale here provides a much more manageably sized distillation of the main issues involved in understanding the New Testament's use of the Old Testament. Strangely, it is the first such volume by an evangelical in some time. Fortunately, it is superbly done.”

“Greg Beale is well known for his contributions to the New Testament use of the Old Testament and the development of biblical theology. In this extremely useful handbook, we see how Beale goes about his task in terms of presuppositions, method, and the necessary reference tools for the task. The result is essential reading for anyone contemplating research in this area.”

“We have long needed a good book on the Use of the Old Testament in the New. This is it. One might not agree with everything said here, but all readers will be challenged to think carefully about the issues raised. A solid work.”

“This volume fills a gap by providing serious students of Scripture with a helpful tool for interpreting Old Testament citations and allusions in the New Testament. Beale's magisterial grasp of the subject enables him to present a complex and technical yet intriguing subject in such a way that mere mortals are equipped to engage in the study of the New Testament use of the Old Testament on their own.”

“In this book Greg Beale combines a beginner's guide to the study of the use of the Old Testament in the New Testament with a detailed catalog of resource material, an illustrated exposition of the methods to be applied, and some discussion of the hermeneutical issues that arise. He himself has made notable forays into this field of study and draws on these to enrich the content of the book, making it not simply a survey of contemporary approaches but also a real personal contribution to the further development of our understanding of this crucial area of biblical studies. The volume thus compensates generously for the lack of a detailed introduction to the massive Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament edited by Beale and Don Carson.”

“This handbook provides readers with a wonderful overview of key issues in and tools for the study of the use of the Old Testament in the New. It is written at an accessible level without sacrificing depth. I expect it to become a standard textbook for courses on the subject (as it will be for mine) and the first book to which newcomers will be directed to help them navigate through these sometimes complex waters.”

“[Beale] has deliberately chosen articles from a variety of viewpoints, so that articles by authors as diverse as Roger Nicole, Barnabas Lindars, C. H. Dodd, Howard Marshall, and Albert Sundberg are found in the same collection. . . . The collection is well-chosen, and all interested in this area of biblical study will be grateful to have such a useful tool.”