Customer Reviews

Theology of the New Testament: A Canonical and Synthetic Approach

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Thielman's theology treats the New Testament texts sympathetically, "as they were intended to be read," and through careful analysis, he thoroughly and convincingly engages less sympathetic scholarship. Using clear prose and thoughtful organization, both the theological diversity of the 27 books of the New Testament and their inter-relatedness are described. The introduction calls the reader to embrace the insight of faith while carefully examining the New Testament documents in their historical context. In subsequent sections, each book of the New Testament is discussed separately but within groupings based on similar historical and literary characteristics: The Gospels and Acts; the Pauline Letters; and the Non-Pauline Letters and the Revelation of John. In his final chapter, Thielman highlights five central theological unities of the New Testament: the centrality of Jesus, the importance of faith, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the Church as God's people, and the final eschatological restoration. In short, this book offers meticulous scholarship and reasoning that is readable, engaging and informative; it celebrates the diversity of the New Testament texts while highlighting key points of theological harmony. This is a welcome addition to any theological library.

Frank Thielman has produced a true gem of scholarship and exegetical work in exploring the theology of the New Testament. While not exhaustive, it goes into enough depth to provide the reader with a more than average understanding of the texts in both the original languages, writing style of the author(s), and the cultural context in which the books and letters were written. He is very careful to give detailed outlines and even pick out minutae among the different Gospels to highlight their different specific themes and then at the end unifies all the unique threads to give an overall perspective. The Epistles are also carefully analyzed to provide the reader with the details surrounding the circumstances and purposes for which each letter was written, in order to help the reader understand the reasons and methods which the author used in the presentation of their material. Establishing the proper context the way he does helps explain things such as what may seem like different (contradictory) emphases amongst Paul's letters (for example), while showing in fact that they are not contradictory but make sense in the context of each circumstance the letter was addressing. He also takes a conservative approach, which I approve of, in consulting the accounts in Acts to provide a sufficient historical background in which to view the various Epistles. In his treatment of 1 Thessalonians he does this to explain several elements of why the people in Thessalonica might have been persecuted and why Paul had been "torn away" from them. He weaves the various themes masterfully throughout his treatment of each book, emphasizing their differences to reveal the initial purposes and meaning of the texts in each book while also unifying the various topics in the NT under a coherent view of Systematic Theology. And the compliment of the arsenal of footnotes is more than adequate.

As for the person (reviewer) who noted an exception to Thielman's treatment of justification, by "muddying the difference between justification and sanctification", I do acknowledge that Thielman's approach to some issues are not perfect and I have my occasional disagreements, but even in that case, though somewhat misleading, he does -in a way- show the close relationship between justification and sanctification. Though sanctification is a life long process and doesn't inevitably assume the Christian will be perfect, it starts at our justification from Christ in which he gives us righteousness which then needs to be worked out. Thus we should "work out our salvation with fear and trembling" (Phil. 2:12). Though the reviewer who pointed that out is correct that there is a difference, though interconnected. The only other exception that I would note would be his treatment on Romans chapter 7 (which is a controversial chapter among all Christian circles) by seemingly interpreting it as Paul not talking of himself but rather him personifying historical Israel. Though previous chapters had mentioned the experiences of historical Israel there is no reason to read that into Paul's (admittedly difficult) admission of his struggle with sin. So I found that a strange and rather misleading interpretation.

Overall the book is wonderful and in-depth, but as with any Christian book I would always council caution to examine carefully what is being presented. The truth will always stand under intensive scrutiny. We should "test everything, and hold on to the good" (1 Thessalonians 5:21). I myself am writing a book, and while I strive to be thorough with my assumptions and views concerning the Bible I certainly don't expect to have everything 100% right. For that reason I give 5 stars to this book for it has made up in vitality, content, research, and intelligence for any blunders it may have and is largely a true prize of scholarship and theology, reviving the Bible of the day of Jesus and the Apostles and awaking the reader to the power and life that the Christians of the first century had and grew in despite their struggles.

Frank Thielman is Professor of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School. His other works include Paul and the Law: A Contextual Approach, Philippians NIVAC, and the Ephesians chapter in Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament. In recent years the Evangelical world has had a number of new New Testament theologies, including Thielman's, Thomas Schreiner's and I. Howard Marshall's. Schreiner's as well as Ladd's classic work treat the theology of the New Testament topically, while Thielman and Marshall's treat each book individually. In addition to his book by book approach, Thielman is clear that he is writing to present a theology of the New Testament itself, and not early Christianity. This does not preclude his use of historical and cultural exegesis, but does plant him in, as Waltke's OT volume did, in the Evangelical and broadly reformed tradition.

In the Introduction, Thielman provides an less than adequate history of the discipline from its development through modern interpreters such as Gabler, Wrede and Raisanen. In addition, two smaller sections on the role of theological unity and another on history's role in the theology of the New Testament complete the first section.

The following sections are divided into the standard corpra of the New Testament: "Gospels and Acts", "The Pauline Letters" and "The Non-Pauline Letters and the Revelation to John." Before the individual Gospels, there is a good chapter on the problem and importance of four different witnesses and a concluding chapter discussing their combined witness. I am glad to see Thielman work through Luke and Acts together. I have said many times before, that in my understanding one is not finished reading Luke until they have also read Acts and to read Acts without Luke is to read the conclusion of a mystery novel without knowing the characters or plot. Thielman seems to agree and offers a good treatment of Luke and Acts together. In each book a standard treatment of the Gospel's main theme and devices are explained with relative clarity.

As with the Gospels, the section concerned with the Pauline corpus begins and ends with a summary chapter with each book receiving not only a topical theological discussion, but a well crafted explanation of the each letter's argument. In the opening chapter "The Coherence and Center of Paul's Theology", Thielman falls victim to the trap of looking for a "center" of Paul's theology. Many have pointed out before that such a task will either be reductionistic or so abstract that it does little to distinguish itself much from the center of the NT or the Bible as a whole. With his "God's graciousness towards his weak and sinful creatures" (232), Thielman is firmly in the later.

The final section on Catholic or General letters, again follows suit with opening and closing summary chapters and a good discussion of theology and argument throughout each book. I found the two summarizing chapters here to be the most helpful and informative with the first searching for a theological unity between nine different letters authored by five very different men.

In criticism, I would have liked to have seen a fuller discussion of the history of interpretation in regards to developing a New Testament theology. The magisterial work of Ladd that has and still does effect many interpreters understand NT theology was not given a mention. While I am happy to see Thielman write in the book by book format (as the topical style is well covered by Ladd and Schriener), I would have like to have seen more of a discussion on the continuity and or diversity of the theological themes. Other than the final concluding chapter, which seems to act a summary of all NT theological themes, the reader may be left wondering: How do Paul and John's Christologies complement or contrast each? How does the eschatology of Matthew differ or agree with Paul's description of the ages? Without such a discussion the reader is left to try to piece most these together on their own. Nevertheless, this volume does give a good discussion of theological themes and agendas of each NT author. Used alongside a more synchronic approach (and here I still prefer Ladd over Schriener), this book would be useful in most evangelical college classrooms and church study groups. Once I finish Marshall's volume, I can make a more specific recommendation.

This volume helpfully interacts with the scholarship on the New Testament, yet keeps the discussion focussed on the biblical text. Arranged canonically as opposed to any order dictated by systematic theology, this provides a refreshingly different approach. A useful summary for any serious student of the New Testament.

Thielman's theology is an extremely helpful resource for pastors & thoughtful students of the Bible. You can read the product description and other reviewer's comments for the specifics on content, doctrinal issues, and such - I will offer my input on how this book is helpful for me. This is one of my favorite sources of background contextual information about and theological insight into the books of the New Testament. Thielman's solid scholarship and firmly evangelical approach are welcome and his book-by-book approach makes this a very usable reference guide. As a pastor myself, I frequently use this book to gain insight on the background context for a particular book of the NT and to get a big picture idea of the theological themes underlying particular books and sections of scripture. There are times when wading through a single volume commentary just isn't efficient and a more concise summary of a book's themes & background is helpful - on those occasions this book fits the bill. There is certainly much to be gained by reading this work as an in-depth look at the theology of the NT as a whole and readers are encouraged to enjoy it as such. But after serving as a primer on NT theology this volume now sits alongside my collection of NT commentaries and supplements them nicely - a really valuable reference source for study and preaching.

I don't agree with every little thing about Thileman's theology, however, I would not study a NT passage without consorting it. This is one of my favorite works.

Having read Thielman's previous work "Paul and the Law" (InterVarsity Press, 1994) I was really looking forward to this (now his magnum opus) work. Overall, I was pretty satisfied after browsing through the pages. However, it is more of a theological introduction of the New Testament (i.e., R. Brown, P. Achtemeier/J. Green/M. Thompson, etc.) than an actual theology of the New Testament (i.e., G. Ladd, L. Goppelt, A. Schlatter, etc.). He goes over every book and letter of the New Testament and neatly exposits what each of the books and letters say. Thus, it will be a useful text for a New Testament introductory course at a graduate level seminary.

Having said all that, however, there is one glaring error that Thielman espouses that forces me to dock off two stars. In his section on Paul's view of justification, he writes: "It is not merely the verdict of innocence that God pronounces over the one who has faith in Christ, but it is also a saving power by which God rescues those who have faith in Christ" (p. 462). For Thielman, justification/righteousness is not merely a forensic declaration that a believing sinner is righteous before God due to Christ's perfect obedience, but also a "power that radically changes believers--it both saves them and demands their obedience" (Ibid). Thielman muddies the difference between justification and sanctification. He follows the same view of justification/righteousness as Ernst Kasemann, Gottlob Schrenk, and Karl Kartelge (a Roman Catholic). For those who think that Thielman has not abandoned the Reformation understanding of justification really need to study Reformation history, the Westminster Confession of Faith (Chapter XI.1), and systematic theology texts written by contemporary orthodox evangelical scholars (i.e., M. Erickson, W. Grudem, R. Reymond, etc). Those who still stubbornly believe that Thielman's understanding of justification is still in line with the Reformation and its creeds after further study are those merely trying to avoid censure from their own denomination (like some pastors in the various Reformed and Presbyterian denominations). I would recommend this book as a good resource for those interested in New Testament studies. Unfortunately, Thielman really missed the target when discussing Paul's doctrine of justification.