Deuteronomy for the Church
Who We Are, What God Requires
- Biblical Studies & Commentaries
- Publisher: Fortress Press (Augsburg Fortress)
- Published: 2022
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Publisher's Description
"Justice, only justice" is Deuteronomy's terse summary of what Yahweh requires of the people of God. What Deuteronomy reveals is that the competence to be God's people, to know God, and to do God's will comes only through hearing the transforming Word of God in Scripture. Deuteronomy sets the scene for hearing God's Word in the wilderness as Moses addresses a new, in-between generation of "all Israel." The people of God are no longer in Egypt, nor yet in Canaan. Moses warns them against allowing the past to control them and attempts to equip them to live faithfully in the new situation in which they find themselves. Deuteronomy's core theology, expressed in the Shema ("Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone"), forms the structure of the book: What does it mean to "hear"? Who is "all Israel"? And how does the identity of the one Lord shape ethics? To hear the biblical text does not mean passive listening. Hearing means engaging the story of God's Word with our own story. The book explores the three levels of hearing in Deuteronomy: hearing the story in the text--its narrative world; hearing the story behind the text--what really happened; and hearing the story of the text--how the original preaching and teaching became a canonical book that comes to us already translated with a rich history of interpretation in which contemporary readers stand. Deuteronomy for the Church reminds us that Christian believers are included in "all Israel," that in reading Deuteronomy we are not merely spectators overhearing what was once said to other people, but that we are addressed as on-stage participants in the story, with the responsibility to discern and improvise what God requires of us in our time and place. Discerning the will of God means deepening our understanding of God's own revelation of the divine character and purpose in history. This responsibility is illuminated by New Testament examples that interpret Deuteronomyin light of God's definitive self-revelation in Christ.
Endorsements (3)
“The book of Deuteronomy, set in the liminal space between desert and promised land, between the leadership of Moses and that of Joshua, offers many of Scripture’s foundational passages. Intriguing in its origins and complex in its genre, Deuteronomy is part sermon addressed to a generation that had never known home, part ‘message in a bottle’ for generations centuries hence, part updated law, part primordial poetry. In this new book, Eugene Boring plumbs Deuteronomy’s—and the theological tradition’s—depths, using the Shema (‘Hear, O Israel’) as a starting point, but traveling beyond the threshold of Canaan to early Judaism and early Christianity—and beyond them to those who hear Moses speaking today. Boring engagingly interweaves understanding of Deuteronomy itself, its New Testament echoes, and contemporary theology and cultural experience, offering a full tour for people who have no idea how all-encompassing such a journey could be.”
“Veteran interpreter that he is, Eugene Boring has been prepping his entire life for the writing of this remarkable book. He begins with Israel’s most important Scripture, the book of Deuteronomy. And then he writes an expansive, breathtaking, mind-bending, life-redefining exposition. His own wheelhouse in New Testament studies leads to important extensive linkages to the books of Romans and 1 Corinthians. The book teems with contemporaneity through an appeal to Ricoeur and Gadamer. In the end this is a winsome, accessible biblical theology that soars well beyond critical issues to what matters for lives lived faithfully. We have nothing else like this book; it merits close and sustained engagement.”
“Inviting. Informed. Provocative. Eugene Boring’s new book, Deuteronomy for the Church, helps theologically curious readers hear again the most influential book of the Old Testament, not as a dry collection of obscure rules, but as a vibrant quest for a people’s robust identity. He captures the oral nature of the book as it retells Israel’s story of redemption for new generations and explores the contours of faithful life together as a people repeatedly liberated from the forces of evil. In doing so, he helps the modern church as it also reclaims its heritage as a community of grace. By leading us through Deuteronomy as it narrates stories, gives laws, and calls for decision, Boring helps his readers understand that the ancient text can be totally contemporary.”
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