{Book Review} Biblical Theology: A Canonical, Thematic, & Ethical Approach

Biblical Theology: A Canonical, Thematic, & Ethical Approach is written by Andreas Kostenberger and Gregory Goswell. It is published by Crossway (2023). 

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Biblical Theology: A Canonical, Thematic, & Ethical Approach

This is a massive work! That is, of course, to be expected given the aim of this project. The authors journey through the entire canon and address that particular book’s place in the canon, its themes, and the ethics that emerge from it. All of that material leads to a nearly 1,000-page book of excellent scholarship! 

The first chapter of the book (64 pages long) is fantastic! There is much misunderstanding of biblical theology in our day. What is biblical theology? How is the term often used today, and how has it been used historically? What is its relationship to other types of theology, especially that of systematic theology? What are the methods used in producing a biblical theology? What is the relationship between biblical theology and hermeneutics? There are all the types of questions that this book seeks to address in the first chapter. It is very well written and provides a great introduction to the topic. In addition to that, it provides the reader with a good understanding of how/why the authors approach the subsequent chapters in the manner that they do. 

Here is an example of how the authors address one of those issues, namely the relationship between biblical and systematic theology:

“The relationship between biblical and systematic theology is best conceived as a collaborative enterprise between two related and adjacent disciples. The image of a relay race comes to mind, where one runner–biblical theology–hands off the baton to the next–systematic theology. The two disciplines run–and win or lose–the race together, but biblical theology runs first and systematic theology second.”

This is a fantastic illustration of the relationship between the two disciplines. The point that the authors are trying to make is that biblical theology is seeking to correctly understand introductory matters such as authorship, date, provenance, occasion, purpose for the writing, and then the exegesis of the text itself. When those matters are rightly dealt with, then the baton is handed off to systematic theology so that the entire Bible’s teaching on particular topics can be organized in a coherent manner. 

I also greatly appreciated the author’s discussion on theological interpretation and its relationship to biblical theology. 

Layout

The book is laid out as such: Part One focuses on the Old Testament, and Part Two focuses on the New Testament. The book uses the same order that is found in the Hebrew Bible. In other words, you won’t see the usual order that’s in your English Bible (Genesis-Malachi). Instead, the Hebrew Bible goes in this order: Torah, Prophets, Writings. This will not be a big deal to most readers, but for some it will require a lot more referencing of the Table of Contents. For instance, would the average reader think to find the book of Joshua under the category of “the Former prophets”? Probably not! But again, that’s what the detailed outline is for in the beginning of the book. 

The book then walks through the Hebrew canon, book by book, and addresses the themes that are found in that book and the ethics that are derived from that book. It then, thirdly, addresses the relationship of that book to the storyline of Scripture (i.e. the canonical approach). This is a very simple format that remains consistent throughout the entirety of the work.  

Τhis book has thousands of footnotes! In other words, the authors have not only relied on their own work in these areas, but they’ve also interacted with the work of other experts as well. This book, then, has been researched extremely well! 

Conclusion

This book is a monumental achievement, to be sure. There is so much material in just one place. The book is a tremendous resource to have and to consult time and time again. I didn’t find the material to be ground-breaking or significantly better than some other works that deal with these topics. However, there is no other book that I’m aware of that brings all of these topics together into one book. That is what makes this such an excellent resource that is going to serve its readers very well! The ethical component of this book is such a great addition to the canonical and thematic aspects. Again, that is certainly what makes this a unique resource unlike anything else that’s been published thus far. 

I highly recommend this book! Kostenberger and Goswell have served the church well with this resource. Tolle lege, take up and read.  

Disclaimer: My thanks to Crossway for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. The opinions expressed are my own.