Old Testament Theology in a Canonical Context

by Childs, Brevard S.

• ISBN13: 9780800627720
• ISBN10: 0800627725
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1989-06-01
• Publisher: Fortress Pr

Summary

In this important work, Child's thesis is that a canonical approach to the scriptures of the Old Testament opens up new possibilities for exploring the theological dimensions of the biblical text.

Table of Contents

Preface	xiii
Abbreviations	xv
Introduction to Old Testament Theology	1	(19)
The present task	1	(1)
A survey of the history of the discipline	2	(2)
Continuing problems	4	(2)
A canonical approach to Old Testament theology	6	(9)
Canonical approach and the modern debate	15	(2)
The importance of Old Testament theology	17	(3)
The Old Testament as Revelation	20	(8)
The criticism of analytical philosophy	20	(4)
The criticism of sociological analysis	24	(4)
How God is Known	28	(15)
Introduction	28	(2)
God is known through creation	30	(4)
Revelation through wisdom	34	(2)
Revelation through history	36	(2)
Revelation through the name	38	(1)
Is the God of the Old Testament a male deity?	39	(2)
Characteristic features of God's self-disclosure	41	(2)
God's Purpose in Revelation	43	(8)
The goal of self-disclosure	43	(3)
The obscuring of God's will	46	(2)
The eschatological restoration of his purpose	48	(3)
The Law of God	51	(7)
The knowledge and will of God	51	(1)
The divine imperative	51	(1)
God's will and its realization	52	(1)
The canonical shape of the Sinai witness	53	(3)
Theological implications of the Law	56	(2)
Knowing and Doing the Will of God	58	(5)
The dialectical poles	58	(2)
Contextual illustrations	60	(3)
The Theological Significance of the Decalogue	63	(21)
The prologue	64	(1)
`You shall have no other gods before me'	65	(1)
`You shall not make yourself an image'	66	(2)
`You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain'	68	(2)
`Remember the sabbath to keep it holy'	70	(2)
`Honour your father and mother that your days may be long in the land'	72	(2)
`You shall not kill'	74	(5)
`You shall not commit adultery'	79	(2)
`You shall not steal'/(x) `You shall not covet...'	81	(1)
`You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour'	82	(2)
The Role of the Ritual and Purity Laws	84	(8)
The scope of the subject	84	(1)
Problems of method	85	(1)
Towards a canonical interpretation	86	(6)
The Recipients of God's Revelation	92	(16)
Israel as God's chosen people	93	(4)
The individual as recipient	97	(6)
The individual as representative of humanity	97	(2)
The individual as representative of Israel	99	(4)
The nations as recipients of God's revelation	103	(5)
Agents of God's Rule: Moses, Judges, Kings	108	(14)
The role of Moses	108	(4)
Judges	112	(3)
Kings	115	(7)
The rise of the kingdom	115	(2)
Saul	117	(1)
David	117	(2)
The messianic hope	119	(3)
The Office and Function of the Prophet	122	(11)
Methodological issues	122	(1)
The theological role of the prophets	123	(5)
The prophetic promise	128	(5)
True and False Prophets	133	(12)
The search for biblical criteria	133	(2)
The case of Jeremiah and Hananiah	135	(5)
The effect of the canonical shaping	140	(2)
I Kings 13	142	(3)
The Theological Role of Priesthood	145	(10)
The nature of the critical problem	145	(4)
Towards a canonical construal of the priesthood	149	(3)
Summary of the theology of priesthood	152	(3)
Benefits of the Covenant: The Cultus	155	(20)
Methodological issues	155	(1)
The canonical shape of Leviticus	156	(5)
The sacred dimension of reality	161	(6)
Sacred times: the festivals	162	(1)
Sacred space: tabernacle and temple	163	(2)
Sacred objects	165	(1)
Sacred personnel	166	(1)
The cult as blessing	167	(1)
Sacrifice and atonement	168	(3)
The psalms and the cult	171	(1)
The prophets and the cult	172	(3)
Structures of the Common Life	175	(13)
The modern debate	175	(2)
A theological interpretation of Israel's institutions	177	(11)
Civil institutions	178	(3)
Class structure	181	(1)
Legal institutions	182	(2)
Military institutions	184	(1)
Family Institutions	185	(3)
Male and Female as a Theological Problem	188	(8)
Male and female in Genesis 1-3	189	(3)
Male and female in the Song of Songs	192	(4)
The Theological Dimension of Being Human	196	(8)
Introduction	196	(1)
Canonical indices within the tradition	197	(2)
Theological reflections on Old Testament anthropology	199	(5)
The Shape of the Obedient Life	204	(18)
A review of some theological approaches	204	(3)
Canonical guidelines to Israel's response	207	(7)
The Psalter	207	(3)
Wisdom	210	(2)
The Pentateuch	212	(2)
Theological reflections in a canonical context	214	(6)
The Psalter	214	(3)
The prophets	217	(1)
The histories and the writings	217	(1)
The patriarchal narratives	218	(2)
Summary	220	(2)
Life Under Threat	222	(14)
The primaeval threat, Genesis 1-11	222	(4)
Covenant and curse	226	(2)
Prophets	228	(2)
Daniel and apocalyptic	230	(1)
The Psalms, de profundis	231	(1)
Wisdom	232	(1)
The limits of the threat	232	(2)
Summary	234	(2)
Life Under Promise	236	(12)
The scope of the material	236	(1)
Methodological issues	237	(1)
Patterns of canonical shaping	238	(2)
Forms of the promise	240	(8)
Judgment and salvation	240	(1)
The messianic kingdom and its messiah	241	(1)
The land	242	(3)
Eternal life	245	(3)
Index of Authors	248	(6)
Index of Biblical References	254