Book Review: The Case For Jesus: The Biblical and Historical Evidence for Christ, by Brant Pitre, New York: Image, 2016, 242 pages, hdbk. I suppose that the first thing I ought to say is that this is not The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel, nor is it related to the set of books spawned by it. This is a new work by a Professor at Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans. Coming from the desk of a Roman Catholic …
Category: Book Reviews
Review: Eschatology: Biblical, Historical and Practical Approaches by D. Jeffrey Bingham and Glenn R. Kreider, editors. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2016, 501 pages. This book is a celebration of the work of Craig A. Blaising. Though I am not a Progressive Dispensationalist, I do like Blaising’s writing. He always approaches a subject from interesting angles, and usually makes important points. The book is divided into the three sections of the subtitle, plus a beginning section on foundational matters. The list …
A Review of Allen P. Ross, A Commentary on the Psalms, Volume 3 (90 – 150), Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1042 pages, hardback Finally we have the third and final volume of the Kregel Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Psalms by Allen P. Ross, Professor of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School. This one covers Psalms 90 through 150 and brings the complete set to three thousand pages. The first two volumes were outstanding. I have found that I turn to …
A review of Eugene H. Merrill, A Commentary on 1 & 2 Chronicles, Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2015, 637 pages, hdbk Among readers of the Old Testament (you know, those creatures of legend that used to inhabit churches), the Books of 1 and 2 Chronicles would not rank too high on their list of favorites. Even zealous preachers would, given the choice, prefer to go through 1 & 2 Kings rather than Chronicles. But these neglected books (one book in the …
The Territories of Science and Religion by Peter Harrison, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2015, 320 pages. The battle between Science and Religion has been presented to the wider public as a struggle between reason and superstition. In the present intellectual climate, where the ghosts of logical positivism have been far from exorcised from the corridors of scientific thinking, any countering of the reigning attitude is most welcome. The volume under review is an absorbing historical account of the way …
Tough Questions about God and His Actions in the Old Testament by Walter C. Kaiser, Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2015, 176 pages, pbk God Almighty will always have to suffer the inquisitions of his rebellious creatures, at least until He sorts out the waywardness epidemic of creaturely independence which is the bequest of the presence of sin. It won’t do to answer these jibes with “God can do anything He likes”, we must be prepared to educate unbelievers about the justice …
Review of, A Commentary on the Manuscripts and Text of the New Testament, by Philip Wesley Comfort, Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2015, 443 pages, hardback, $29.99 Philip Wesley Comfort is well known to students of the text of the New Testament. He has produced some informative works on the subject such as Early Manuscripts and Modern Translations of the New Testament, and Encountering the Manuscripts. Both productions, as well as the one under review, are marked with a clarity of …
Review of Understanding Prophecy: A Biblical-Theological Approach, by Alan S. Bandy and Benjamin L. Merkle, Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2015, 264 pages, paperback N.B. This review is from the perspective of someone who is less than an enthusiastic supporter of symbolical cum typological interpretations of the Bible, so it will be mainly critical. However, for those in-tune with the approach of the writers, the book can be recommended as a good explication of the redemptive-historical method. This new book on prophecy …
Review of James S. Spiegel, The Making of an Atheist: How Immorality Leads to Unbelief, Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2010, 141 pages James Spiegel’s books are usually worth a gander because he writes about important but often neglected subjects. Witness his books on Hypocrisy and Providence. This book makes a helpful contribution to the usual run of apologetics resources by looking at some intriguing facts surrounding how atheists are made. Some atheists, of course, make the claim that atheism is the …
Gary V. Smith, Interpreting the Prophetic Books: An Exegetical Handbook, Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Academic, 2014, pbk, 214 pages. This book by a recognized expert on the Prophetic literature serves as a competent introduction to the topic. It is well arranged and readable. The beginning grad student is always kept in mind. Smith includes useful information even for those familiar with the field. The first chapter covers style, genre and parallelism, etc. The author’s illustrations of parallelism in the Prophets is well …
