{Book Review} Discontinuity to Continuity: A Survey of Dispensational & Covenantal Theologies

Benjamin Merkle, professor of New Testament and Greek at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, is the author of Discontinuity to Continuity: A Survey of Dispensational & Covenantal Theologies. This book is published by Lexham Press. 

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Discontinuity to Continuity: A Survey of Dispensational & Covenantal Theologies

Let me just say from the start: I couldn’t recommend this book highly enough! I am not only a huge fan of the topic due to its incredible importance in rightly understanding how the Bible fits together, but the approach that Merkle takes is wonderfully helpful for the reader! I’ll explain why. 

In this book, Merkle is providing a survey of different theological frameworks that are attempting to rightly interpret how the entire Bible fits together. If the Bible were a puzzle, these different frameworks are attempting to properly put the puzzle together so that all of the pieces are fitting together and in their right places.

The Bible is a repository of 66 individual books written by many different human authors (with God Himself inspiring those authors to write exactly what He has ordained to be written), and yet this book of books is given to us as one coherent story that never contradicts itself. These different positions are therefore attempting to make sense of the whole as they study and interpret the many different parts.

Six Theological Systems

Though there are many different ways that individuals seek to do this, there are six main theological systems, and it is these that Merkle investigates.

Those six systems are:

1. Classic Dispensationalism
2. Revised Dispensationalism
3. Progressive Dispensationalism
4. Progressive Covenantalism
5. Covenant Theology
6. Christian Reconstructionism

So what is Merkle’s approach, and why do I find it to be so helpful? His approach is a survey of these different theologies, but specifically it is one which seeks to be descriptive in nature.

As Merkle says in his acknowledgments, his goal “is to mainly inform rather than persuade. It is often when we are adequately informed that the viability of our own position is challenged. The reality is that no one has a perfect system, and so we need to humbly learn from others.”

I couldn’t be happier that he chose this method. As one who has studied these different perspectives over the past ten years quite in depth, I found that seeking to adequately understand those whom I disagreed with was incredibly beneficial and informative to my own understanding of how the Bible fits together. It’s much more difficult than simply googling what our favorite theological heroes and pastors believe about a topic and then adopting that as our own, but the more difficult way is also much more faithful and rewarding. 

I found Merkle’s humility and honesty to be very refreshing. He is not attempting to persuade the reader in this book of his own position. He is truly attempting to rightly inform the reader of the different positions and their teachings. He has consulted with scholars who hold to each position in order to make sure he was accurately presenting their views. This, again, is a great strength of the book! 

Questions to Answer

Here are the major questions that Merkle is seeking to answer in each chapter:

• What is the basic hermeneutic (literal or symbolic; the proper role of typology; Old Testament restoration prophecies to Israel)?
• What is the relationship between the covenants (conditional or unconditional; salvation for Old Testament saints; applying the law today)?
• What is the relationship between Israel and the Church (does the church replace or fulfil Israel, or are the two distinct)?
• What is the kingdom of God? 

Following the main section of each chapter in which the answers to the above questions are given for each respective position is an assessment section. Merkle provides strengths and weaknesses for each of these views. He is very charitable in this section, providing strengths for all six chapters even though he obviously doesn’t hold to all six positions. The weaknesses are offered as those which the opposing views typically mention. 

In the beginning of each chapter, Merkle mentions specific individuals who were/are instrumental in developing and presenting that specific theology. This is very helpful for the reader. I really appreciate Merkle’s candidness in this book, as he was quick to show the reader that a position may possibly be articulated differently by different people. For this reason, Merkle doesn’t focus on one representative per position, but he looks at multiple people.

I noticed a few times that Merkle pointed out that not everybody within a specific theological view understands a specific point the same way. For instance, in Covenant Theology, Merkle uses three key proponents to represent this view: Kline, Robertson, and Horton. Though there is much more similarity than dissimilarity between these men, there is a pretty significant difference between Robertson and the other two men when it comes to understanding the Mosaic covenant and its relationship to the covenant of works.

Though I am using this example as a strength, I will also mention that I wish Merkle would have been more clear that the Republication view that Horton and Kline hold is not the majority view of those who hold to Covenant Theology. 

Conclusion

This book is a truly wonderful blessing to the church! I wish every Christian would read this book since I am certain that it will assist them in better understanding the Bible and how it all fits together. There is no room in this book for adopting a position simply because the author told you to do so. Merkle gives you the information, but he wants you to form your own conclusions. The format and content of this book, as well as the humble tone, will be a great benefit to all of its readers. Again, I highly recommend this book!

Tolle lege, take up and read! 

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

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Other Book Reviews by Lexham Press:

• The Care of Souls: Cultivating a Pastor’s Heart
• In Season and Out: Sermons for the Christian Year
• Piercing Heaven: Prayers of the Puritans
• Ever in Thy Sight: 31 Devotions on the Psalms
• Journeys of the Apostle Paul
• Introduction to the New Testament
• Who God Is: Meditations on the Character of Our God
• The Lexham English Septuagint

Reviews of Commentaries by Lexham Press:

• Walking the Ancient Paths: A Commentary on Jeremiah
• Ephesians: Evangelical Exegetical Commentary