Review: Messiah in the Old and New Testaments

Here is the introduction and conclusion of a forthcoming book review I wrote:

Stanley E. Porter (ed.), The Messiah in the Old and New Testaments. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007. Pp. 268, softcover. $29.00.

Although the title – The Messiah in the Old and New Testaments – suggests that the book deals only with messianism in the biblical books, chapters devoted to the Qumran documents and related literature of second temple Judaism demonstrate the breadth of treatment and the significant impact these have on understanding messianism approaching the New Testament. A product of ten capable scholars, the book divides into two sections: (1) the Old Testament and related perspective; and (2) New Testament perspective….

…Although it is quite clear that messianic expectation was not monolithic, it is interesting that the book is divided into two sections: Old Testament and related literature perspective (singular) and New Testament perspective (singular). These essays have sufficiently demonstrated that there are actually perspectives (plural!) even within these broader canonical frameworks. Additionally, the editor’s introduction calls attention to at least one significant passage that is never given any treatment in the book (i.e., Gen 3:15) (5). The reader is left wanting with regard to this often (ab)used passage. These qualms aside, the present volume keenly shows the diversity of messianic thought that pervades the biblical and related literature. To the extent that this diversity is understood and appreciated, modern readers can better come to terms with how Jesus could be understood as messiah within the biblical milieu.

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