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Kingdom Prologue: Genesis Foundations for a Covenantal Worldview

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As a (starting out) seminary student, I find that there are many books out there on the subject of Genesis...from all kinds of points of views, from the strong 24-hour to theistic evolution. I myself am a literalist, in that I feel the Bible is a literal message of God to us written throughout Genesis through Revelation. But I am humble enough to admit that even I get lost in the shuffle of books that surround me, especially those dealing with the Old Testament. That is why I wish to tell anyone and everyone that if you need one book on Genesis, this book by Kline is the best one out there IMO (I would also suggest How to Read Genesis, which is also an A+ book, but should be read after Kline's). Kline goes into detail not in terms of whether or not it was 24 hours, or whatnot, but instead explores the meaning and the theology and (redemptive) history behind Genesis. You could say that Kline helps one to look at it through the eyes of the entire Bible, along with the culture at the time of Moses' writings of Genesis and the other books that make up the Torah. We must realize that the Bible was not written to battle Evolution, which I believe is false but that is beside the point, nor was it written in the eyes of how we today in the 21st century view historical writing. Instead, you might say, Kline helps you study and understand Genesis in such a way that you are given the understanding (and much much more) of Genesis through the eyes of those that Moses would have read it to, along with later generations of those Jews who would hold faith in God, leading up to Jesus Christ, the very image of God. If you want a better understanding of Genesis, if you want something that will help you through seminary studies and in the long run, you must find this book and keep it and treasure it.

Although this book is available for free online in .pdf format, books are forever. Meredith Kline's understanding of the Bible includes his Fiat/fulfillment theory, which has greatly increased my understanding of many aspects of theology, and not just creation. Buy this book if you want to learn.

How grateful I am to see that Dr. Kline finally got his works published. I had him as a hermeneutics professor 20 years ago in Seminary, and am extremely gratified to find the manuscript texts I lost some years back (during a move between cities), here.

Kline's best work came with the first 6 chapters of Genesis. Even in 1988, he had spent some 30 years of his life studying the first chapters of Genesis in great detail--in the original ancient Hebrew (etc).

Though his wording can be thick and "theologically stilted" (ie. tough to wade through and brainy), it also provides an illuminating view of the foundational truths of the one, living, Creator-God, and His dealings with His Creation--especially man.

While some have posted negative reviews, it is unlikely that they have spent 30-50 years of their lives studying such texts in their original languages, and teaching in so much depth--as Kline did. Nor have they known his instruction first-hand, as I have.

Kline is a true conservative, and strictly orthodox in his approach to Scripture. Some here, have accused him of fitting his interpretation of Scripture to his own mental framework (eisegesis), rather than building a framework from his deep knowledge of the original texts (exegesis). They'd be wrong.
[Geerhardus Vos, himself, called Kline: "The Prince of Exegetes" (and that's no small thing), but Kline played such things down, pouring himself, instead, into God's Word.]

I can't say that I agree(d) with Dr. Kline in all respects, but I did always respect him. He made me think, and question what I believe in relation to the text--God's words. So, I am glad to purchase this this text, and wade through it again.

When I knew him, his best & favorite work (by his own admission) had been through Genesis chapter 6, though his treatment through Abram/Abraham is also thought-provoking.

So, if you're up to wading through some thick, but thought-provoking material, have a go at this. Your time won't be wasted.

[Oh, and the thought that Kline was not reformed or a Calvinist (or even a heretic, as proposed by some leaving reviews) is laughable. Kline was so reformed/such a Calvinist, he squeeked.]

This book by Kline is a wonderful commentary on the first chanpters of Genesis. Kline's background in Ancient Near Eastern Studies gives him special insight into the meaning of many of the peculiar phrasings in Genesis. Read this book if you want to be edified in your faith, or just want to learn more about the God of the Bible.

Kline's understanding of biblical theology is top. Get ready for a volume that is packed with helpful insight into the covenantal structure of Genesis - and beyond. Be warned, however, if you are expecting a simple introduction to covenant theology, Kline's vocabulary and grasp are very extensive and specialized. For a wonderful introduction, check out Chris Caughey's "A Tale of Two Adams", which is a great distillation of much of Kline's work.

While the subtitle of Kingdom Prologue - "Genesis foundations for a covenantal worldview" - suggests a limited scope of Genesis, the reader will find out that Kline explores the whole canon, from Genesis to Revelation, to help paint the picture of the unity of history and Scripture by God's divinely administered covenants.

Both as a book on biblical theology and covenant theology this is indispensable. It is one of the best exegetical treatments of covenant around and also demonstrates lucidly that Genesis 1-12 provides a real seed bed for the rest of the Bible's story line.

a bit of a difficult book to plow through, but absolutely worth every effort. Simply a mind-blowing tour of redemptive history. If you are serious about grasping the "deeper" things of biblical truth, this is a heavy weight book that must be reckoned with.

Without a doubt, this book is one of the best (if not the best) books I have read on Genesis. If you're planning on preaching or teaching through Genesis, you cannot afford to be ignorant of Kline's work. You'll find vast amounts of material here not even touched in other commentaries of equal or larger size. Kline doesn't waste your time with giving you information that is accessible elsewhere. Instead, he blazes trails that others don't even think of going down. His conclusions are creative (but orthodox!), to say the least.

If you're planning on preaching through Genesis and looking for suggestions for other commentaries, the following should be helpful:

1. Preaching Christ from Genesis by Sydney Greidanus (my personal favorite)
2. Unlocking Genesis 1-3 with the Christ of Eschatology by J.V. Fesko (Only covers the first 3 chapters, but is immensely helpful)
3. Creation and Blessing by Allen Ross (Good, solid commentary that gets straight to the point)
4. Genesis 1-17 in the NICNT by Victor Hamilton (painfully dry but good information)
5. Kingdom Prologue by Meredith Kline
6. Images of the Spirit by Meredith Kline (this book is frequently referred to in Kingdom Prologue, and often goes into more detail)

If you're on a tight budget, this book is actually available as a pdf file on Monergism's website (just google "monergism classic resources" and search there). If you don't have a lot of time, then Hamilton, Fesko, and Greidanus should get the job done pretty easily.

As a person who is fond of Calvin, Turretin, Bavinck, Murray, Lloyd-Jones, C.S. Lewis, Schaeffer, Poythress, et. al, I found Kline is only one step to heresy.

For example,

"Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness..." (Gen. 1:26)

Who are "us" here? Kline says "angels" (see also p.242 in The Genesis Debate, ISBN-13: 978-0970224507)

This is directly against the next verse, Gen. 1:27, "So God created man in his own image, in the image of GOD he created him, male and female he created them."

There are numerous other instances that Kline shows his tendency to New Age instead of Biblical, Christian, and Reformed Thoughts. Kline is wordy and equivocating. His arguments are circular, tricky, and frequently self-contradictory. Although this book is filled with "orthodox" terminologies, its incoherence reduces his arguments to worthless words.

If you want to empty your church, read Kline!

Waste of money if you buy it;

Waste of time if you read it;

A perfect example of "eisgesis": Kline read-in his theological presupposition into biblical texts, instead of read-out (exegesis) what the Bible teaches.

Preposterous: Kline is full of inconsistencies in his writing and argument. He writes something first, and then nullifies what he just said in the next paragraph or page.

Very bad arguments: Kline does not know how to argue consistently; he frequently changes subject during argument. (Fallacy pointed out by Aristotle)

Confusing: Kline uses many Christian and theological terminologies, but he add his own definitions/interpretations to them. For example, he says that it is God's "judgments" when God 'saw' it was very good (Genesis 1). The book is full of this kind of confusion. Should we confuse 'see' with 'judge'? Should we say God is 'judging' Jesus Christ when he "says" 'this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased'? Should we say Jesus Christ is 'judging' God when he "says" 'God alone is good'?

Overloads biblical texts: This is a typical book of the "Emperor's New Cloth." While some celebrate Kline's "creative" thinking, the fact is that he overloads the biblical texts without warrant.

A responsible reader should say, "STOP! This is NOT biblical exegesis! This is personal eisgesis. The emperor has no cloth on!"