I am a preaching pastor at a reformed church who has used these books (volumes 1 and 2 -Volume 3 has not yet been published) as a resource for a preaching series on the covenants. To my delight, this book has turned out to be much more than just a resource.
Before discussing the content of these volumes, it is worth noting how easy and enjoyable they are to read. Niehaus has a natural flowing writing voice and presents his work in a clear and organized manner. As other reviewers have mentioned, there is valuable material contained in excursuses. I found this structure helpful (especially when searching for specific material), as it makes it obvious where to find the specific material on covenant if you are not reading the texts cover to cover. That said, some of the best insights are in these excursuses, which provide significant practical reflections, as well as engage with contemporary theological thought. Two examples of many are The Holy Spirit’s work in OT Believers and Wright’s View of Righteousness. The excursuses allow Niehaus to deal with some of the practical and scholarly implications of the covenant material he covers without getting in the way of his primary trajectory.
I have read a lot of books on the covenants since I read Kline's Kingdom Prologue in Seminary about 10 years ago. To my mind, until now, Kline’s Kingdom Prologue was the definitive work on covenants, and most other books served as primers that engaged with the ideas Kline presented. While Niehaus does engage with Kline, his Biblical Theology series is much more than a survey of historical or current thinking on Covenant Theology. Niehaus primarily engages with the biblical text to present a new and comprehensive theology of the covenants that is argued from the text. Don’t be fooled by how easy and accessible this book is for readers of almost any theological level of training. Engaging with the ideas presented in this work requires engaging with clear biblical exposition, presented with rigorous insight from one of the world’s top biblical and Ancient Near East scholars.
Some of the ideas he presents will be confronting to those who hold strongly to Kline’s view of the Adamic Covenant. In Volume 1, Niehaus presents a view of Genesis 3, not as a continuation of covenant treaty language, but as God coming to prosecute his already established covenant. Niehaus works through the now accepted storm theophany interpretation of Genesis 3:9, the identification of “temple” language in Genesis and the unpacking of the purposes and commands in the Adamic Covenant to show this. The clear connections he makes between the creation Covenant with Adam and the recreation Covenant with Noah further clarifies and validates this new understanding of the place of Genesis 3 as covenant prosecutor rather than covenant treaty language.
Some of the ideas he presents will be also be confronting to those who hold to a traditional Reformed systematic theology. Niehaus challenges the view that the Adamic Covenant is one of works without grace, and that all the other covenants addressed (Noahic, Abrahamic, Mosaic, Davidic and new) are one covenant of grace. By bring an understanding of Ancient Near East treaty language to the text, he demonstrates that all the covenants entail both works and grace. Niehaus’s work on the Abrahamic Covenant (in Volume 2) is particularly helpful. It is often suggested that God made two or three covenants with Abraham, one without stipulations (Genesis 15), and one or two others (Genesis 17 and/or Genesis 22) with stipulations. Niehaus slowly and effectively walks us through the relevant biblical texts to show God made a single covenant with Abraham and that there were stipulations associated with it. While the word “works” can cause the hair to stand up on the back of a good Calvinist’s neck, Niehaus makes a compelling case that ultimately affirms rather than contradicts the Reformed view of God and his work with his people. Working through the material presented in these volumes was like having filter after filter of systematic and academic supposition removed from my eyes to reveal a clear and beautiful picture of God and his work in his creation. It was good for my heart as well as my mind!
I would encourage readers not to be afraid of these books because they challenge and confront historical or traditional understandings. This is the true value of these volumes. Some books on covenant omit biblical evidence that is present because the data doesn’t fit the author’s paradigm. Other books on covenant go way beyond the biblical evidence to argue for paradigms that exist more in the mind of the writer than in the recorded words and actions of God. Niehaus has committed himself to producing a true biblical theology of the covenants that neither denies nor adds to what is available to us in Scripture. Do not read this book if you are looking for a rehash of Kline or a tweaking of existing systematic theology. This is a new work of scholarship that demands to be engaged with on its own terms as a biblical theology. And don’t let the ease of reading fool you, the theology presented here is fresh, insightful, and biblical. It will be a blessing to lay readers and will need to be reckoned with by the next generation of covenant scholars.
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- The Words of the Covenant - A Biblical Theology: Volume 1 - Old Testament ExpectationPaul Martin HeneburyPaperback
- A Biblical-Theological Introduction to the Old Testament: The Gospel PromisedMiles V. Van PeltHardcover
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- Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2017
