Messiah in the Old Testament, The [Paperback]

Walter C. Kaiser Jr. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 21, 1995 | Series: Studies in Old Testament Biblical Theology

Old Testament texts that point to the coming of the Messiah are traditionally interpreted either from the viewpoint of their New Testament fulfillment (evangelicalism) or their linguistic and grammatical distinctiveness within the Hebrew Bible (non-conservative). The Messiah in the Old Testament considers another important line of interpretation that has been neglected in building an Old Testament theology. It approaches Israel's concept of the Messiah as a developing theme and shows how a proper grasp of the textual meaning at each stage of Old Testament revelation is necessary for understanding messianic prophecy. Beginning in the Pentateuch and working through the Old Testament to the Minor Prophets, the author delineates texts that are direct messianic prophecies and examines their meaning and development within the flow of God's plan. The reader will gain an understanding of God's process for bringing the Messiah to earth through the nation of Israel, and of his intent to bring the saving knowledge of Christ to the World through them.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

This is an unapologetically apologetic book, part of a series, Studies in Old Testament Biblical Theology, explicitly identified by the editors as evangelical and implicitly identified as conservative. There is some virtue to that clear identification, in that it minimizes the likelihood that readers will be misled; there is an ax to grind here, and both editors and author are honest about grinding it. There is also some danger, in that "apologetic" writing can leave the author merely preaching to the choir. To some extent, that is what happens in Kaiser's book. It is a thorough review and synthesis of an evangelical tradition that reads Hebrew Scripture as Old Testament and finds the Messiah there incontrovertibly identified with Jesus. Though Kaiser is not likely to convince anyone who does not begin with him by appropriating Hebrew Scripture into a Christian context in the act of labeling it "old," he does help make explicit a clash of interpretations inextricably bound with interpretive communities; it's a war of words, a useful (though hardly surprising) insight where the combatants are collectively known as people of the book. Steve Schroeder

From the Back Cover

Old Testament texts that point to the coming of the Messiah are traditionally interpreted either from the viewpoint of their New Testament fulfillment (evangelicalism) or their linguistic and grammatical distinctiveness within the Hebrew Bible (non-conservative). The Messiah in the Old Testament considers another important line of interpretation that has been neglected in building an Old Testament theology. It approaches Israel's concept of the Messiah as a developing theme and shows how a proper grasp of the textual meaning at each stage of Old Testament revelation is necessary for understanding messianic prophecy. Beginning in the Pentateuch and working through the Old Testament to the Minor Prophets, the author delineates texts that are direct messianic prophecies and examines their meaning and development within the flow of God's plan. The reader will gain an understanding of God's process for bringing the Messiah to earth through the nation of Israel, and of his intent to bring the saving knowledge of Christ to the World through them.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan (August 21, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031020030X
• ISBN-13: 978-0310200307
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #131,783 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Walter C. Kaiser Jr. (PhD, Brandeis University) is distinguished professor emeritus of Old Testament and president emeritus of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Massachusetts. Dr. Kaiser has written over 40 books, including Toward an Exegetical Theology: Biblical Exegesis for Preaching and Teaching; The Messiah in the Old Testament; and The Promise-Plan of God; and coauthored An Introduction to Biblical Hermeneutics: The Search for Meaning. Dr. Kaiser and his wife, Marge, currently reside at Kerith Farm in Cedar Grove, Wisconsin. Dr. Kaiser's website is www.walterckaiserjr.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating study of the Messiah in the Old Testament!, November 22, 2002

By 

Donald S. Meador "imthman" (Novo Hamburgo, Brazil) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Messiah in the Old Testament, The (Paperback)

Walter Kaiser, Jr. has given us a very rich study regarding the Messiah. His study is very specific and unique. He focuses only on passages that deal with direct prophecies/predictions of the coming Messiah. He steers clear of typology, which can sometimes be too subjective. His approach is chronological. He begins with the Pentateuch and shows us the foundation of predictions of the Messiah that God revealed in the earliest of His revelations. He proceeds to show the reader how subsequent writers of Holy Scripture built upon this foundation and developed themes of the Messiah (e.g. Prophet, Priest, King, Servant, etc.). He follows prophecies of the Messiah through different eras of Israel's history. When he gets to the prophets themselves, he groups them by the century in which they prophesied. So, the earliest parts of this book give us prophesies of the Messiah in the order that they come in our English translations of the Old Testament. The prophets, however, are not necessarily addressed in our biblical order, as their works do not appear in chronological order in our English transations.

I wish I could say this study was for everyone - I do believe it would be beneficial reading for everyone. Kaiser's study is deep, and sometimes technical. It helps to have a basic understanding of hermeneutics (biblical interpretation) before beginning this book. There are a couple of places where he discusses aspects of Hebrew grammar - the gist is attainable if the reader will press on through these brief sections. So, it is readable, but some things will be outside the grasp of the average reader. Kaiser does not overwhelm one with the technical aspects of his research, but it is sometimes present.

There is another aspect of this book that may trouble some readers. Kaiser deals with the Hebrew text. In some places his conclusions are based on personal translations that imply that the English translations are actually mistranslations. Certain groups of Christians, especially the "King James" only crowd, will have problems with this approach. Kaiser seems to tackle the subject with a belief in the inspiration of Scripture, but not with the belief in the inspiration of the translators of Scripture. I agree with him at this point, but am concerned that it may cause difficulties for young believers.

From the other reviews of this book, it is evident that some Jewish people will have problems with this study. It is unfortunate. Kaiser makes little attempt to convert anyone - it is not an overt aspect of his work. He simply examines the evidence and writes about his findings. Some of the passages he examines are obscure, some are more commonly understood as referring to the Messiah. Kaiser is not shy about quoting from the Jewish Targums, those that predate the life of Jesus, and showing where pre-Christian Jewish understandings of the Messiah were.

All in all, this is an excellent study. I came away from this book with a deeper knowledge of how thoroughly God predicted the coming Messiah to the Jewish people. I appreciate more deeply the atoning sacrifice of the Messiah - His death in my place. Kaiser does not connect all the prophecies to their corresponding fulfillments in the New Testament. When I taught a series based on Kaiser's work I traced every New Testament connection that I could find. It is almost overwhelming to see how the New Testament shows Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies about the coming Messiah. Such a study will enrich one's faith!

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good survey of the OT messianic prophecies, December 15, 2003

By 

Marc Axelrod (Potter, Wi USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Messiah in the Old Testament, The (Paperback)

This book is a quick survey of the major messianic prophecies of the Old Testament. Actually, I found the first chapter on how to interpret messianic prophecy the most helpful chapter in the book. Kaiser rejects the double fulfillment approach that many have taken with the prophecies of Christ's first coming. He makes a case for the Christocentric interpretation being the the primary interpretation in each case study. I do not always agree with this approach, as his interpretation of Isaiah 7:14 is less than satisfying.

But in most instances, his interpretations are very good, and you can perceive Kaiser's strong evangelical faith in the volume. Recommended.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Practical application of Kaiser's promise mega-motif, May 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Messiah in the Old Testament, The (Paperback)

Useful exegesis of Old Testament passages which have a Messianic hermeneutic. Tends to find Messiah in some passages which I would overlook (eg Job's 4 Messianic predictions). But on the whole, a useful and scholarly appraisal of a curly topic.