Book Note: Trevor Burke on the Message of Sonship

The following title is now available for pre-order on Amazon:

Trevor Burke, The Message of Sonship: At Home in God's Household (Bible Speaks Today). Leicester: IVP, 2011. Pbk. 978-1844745388. pp.248.



Here is the publisher's description:

'Sonship' is an important, yet often overlooked, theme throughout the Bible. Adam, the first human being, is identified as a 'son of God'; Israel is God's 'first-born son'; the covenant with king David is cast in father-son terms; Christians are children of God, 'adopted as sons'; and the same designation brings Scripture to a triumphant conclusion: 'He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son' (Revelation 21:7). The storyline of the Bible is clear, that God is making for himself a family of sons and daughters who will serve him and reign with him in his kingdom for ever - and this purpose is achieved through Jesus Christ, the incarnate Son of God.

In his warm-hearted, edifying exposition of this theme, Trevor Burke shows how 'sonship' is the focus of creation, is a metaphor for salvation, carries moral obligation, and is the goal of restoration of broken, suffering humanity. For those whom God the Father adopts into his household as sons and daughters, the family bonds that begin in this life will last for all eternity.

David F.Payne's book "Kingdoms of the Lord" now available

The following book is now available on-line in PDF:

David F. Payne, Kingdoms of the Lord. A History of the Hebrew Kingdoms. Exeter: The Paternoster Press, 1981. Hbk. ISBN: 0853642842. pp.310. Click here to view.

My thanks to Paternoster Publishing for their kind permission and to Dr David Payne for his encouragement.

Jenny Smith on the Discourse Structure of the Rape of Tamar (2 Samuel 13:1-22)

The following article is now available in PDF:

Jenny Smith, "The Discourse Structure of the Rape of Tamar (2 Samuel 13:1-22)," Vox Evangelica 20 (1990): 21-42.

This is an interesting study of a difficult and often overlooked passage.

F.F. Bruce on the Sure Mercies of David

The following lecture is now online in PDF:

F.F. Bruce, The Sure Mercies of David. The Annual Lecture of the Evangelical Library, 1954. London: The Evangelical Library, 1954. pp.23.

This lecture examines how the prophecies given about King David and his posterity were fulfilled in the Person of Jesus Christ. My thanks to the Trustees of London's Evangelical Library for their kind permission to republish this material on-line.

F.F. Bruce on Biblical Jerusalem

The following article is now available in PDF:

F.F. Bruce, "Biblical Jerusalem," University of Leeds Review 5 (1957): 290-99.

A brief but insightful overview of the history of Jerusalem from the time of the patriarchs until the reign of Constantine.

Vox Evangelica Volume 8 (1973) now on-line

The following articles are now available in PDF:

Donald J. Wiseman, "Law and Order in Old Testament Times," Vox Evangelica 8 (1973): 5-21.

Leslie C. Allen, "Micah's Social Concern," Vox Evangelica 8 (1973): 22-32.

Arthur E. Cundall, "The United Monarchy: Fact or Fiction?" Vox Evangelica 8 (1973): 33-39.

Arthur Cundall, who wrote the Tyndale OT Commentary on Judges, always has something insightful to say about the period of the Judges and the Monarchy and this article is no exception. He concludes:

We conclude our study with a few brief observations concerning the differences in organisation between Judah and Israel at this point. The accession of Rehoboam in Judah appears to have been automatic, with the principle of dynastic rule through the Davidic covenant being firmly accepted. This did not obtain in the north, however. Rehoboam presented himself at Shechem, subsequently the first capital of Jeroboam’s kingdom and already a vitally important covenantal centre (cf. Deut. 27; Josh. 24; Judg. 9:6), for the acceptance of the northern tribes, possibly by acclamation (cf. 1 Sam. 10:24; 2 Kgs. 11:12). That he regarded it, mistakenly, as a mere formality, is incidental; what is important is that his accession involved a negotiated convenantal agreement with ‘the assembly of Israel’, a constituted body which still functioned in spite of almost eighty years of ‘united monarchy’ under David and Solomon (cf. the negotiations of 2 Sam. 3:17-21; 5:3 which reveal a similar pattern). Constitutionally, there were still two kingdoms, not one, and the renewed cry of 1 Kgs. 12:16 (cf. 2 Sam. 20:1) shows how deep­-seated was the hostility and desire for independence of the northern tribes. There was a ‘united monarchy’ in the sense that one king ruled over Israel as well as Judah, but any essential unity was conspicuously lacking.

Donald Guthrie, "The New Testament Approach to Social Responsibility," Vox Evangelica 8 (1973): 40-59.

Derek J. Tidball, "Some Contemporary Evangelicals and Social Thinking," Vox Evangelica 8 (1973): 60-79.

The final two articles are particularly relevant today with the recent release of the film Amazing Grace about the campaign of William Wilberforce to abolish slavery.

Volume 9 is scheduled to appear about mid April. For the next few weeks I will be republishing (among others) a series of articles from Evangelical Quarterly by F.F. Bruce, Richard Bauckham and John Oswalt.

Vox Evangelica Volume 6 (1969) now on-line

The following articles are now on-line in PDF:

David R. Jackson, "Education and Entertainment: Some Aspects of Life in New Testament Times," Vox Evangelica 6 (1969): 4-31.

I found this the most interesting of the articles in this issue. Based, as it is, on a careful study of classical sources it seems likley to have enduring value.

Arthur C. Cundall, "Sacral Kingship--The Old Testament Background," Vox Evangelica 6 (1969): 31-41.

Leslie C. Allen, "Amos, Prophet of Solidarity," Vox Evangelica 6 (1969): 42-53.

Geoffrey W. Grogan, "Christ and His People: An Exegetical and Theological Study of Henbrews 2: 5-18," Vox Evangelica 6 (1969): 54-71.

J. Clements Connell, "A review article on Jurgen Moltmann's Theology of Hope (S.C.M.)," Vox Evangelica 6 (1969): 72-77.