The Life of the World to Come
- Theology
- Biblical Studies & Commentaries
- Publisher: Baker Academic (Baker Publishing Group)
- Published: 2026
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Publisher's Description
What do Christians hope for? The historic creeds, rooted in Scripture, emphasize the resurrection of the body. Alongside the creeds, the Western Christian tradition holds out hope that one day we will see God face-to-face--the beatific vision. Yet recent studies on eschatology tend to focus on one or the other of these aspects, rarely explaining how the two might be brought together. The Life of the World to Come offers an integrated approach to this question. Beginning with Genesis, Isaac Morales argues that human beings are made for dominion over creation, participation in God's rest, and worship. The Christian hope, Morales contends, must incorporate all three of these ends. Drawing on Scripture and the insights of Irenaeus, Augustine, and Aquinas, he explores both the vision of God and the resurrection hope, demonstrating how they are united, above all, in the church's worship. Mining the riches of Scripture and tradition, this book presents a compelling interpretation of Christian hope that integrates bodily resurrection with humanity's deep desire for knowledge of, and love fulfilled in, God. Written for scholars, students, and clergy interested in eschatology, this work will appeal to Catholic and Protestant readers alike.
Endorsements (6)
“This book is characterized by remarkable intellectual breadth. Isaac Morales writes, naturally, as a Dominican, thinking his own Roman Catholic theology in dialogue with Irenaeus, Thomas, and especially Augustine. But above all, Morales is an interpreter of Scripture; hence these pages are full of masterful philology, historical criticism, and biblical theology. Whether you are Catholic like Morales, Protestant like me, or otherwise, you will find here one of the very best discussions of eschatology from any living scholar.”
“What are we hoping for? What does it mean to say that we will see God? How should we understand the resurrection of the dead? These are the questions Isaac Augustine Morales addresses in this successful synthesis of biblical, patristic, and medieval theology, in which he shows how Irenaeus, Augustine, and Aquinas integrated the hope for resurrection with the beatific vision. Engaging and clearly written, Morales's study is a model of biblical theology that enriches both biblical and theological studies of the resurrection.”
“It is a rare scholar who can combine a responsible reading of Scripture's literal sense with careful attention to how those same Scriptures have been received and molded in the Church's theological tradition. In this exemplary book, Morales avails himself of both Scripture and tradition to unpack the way in which the beatific vision will be realized through the resurrected bodies of the redeemed. Though the former has been thought by some to be limited to the realm of the spirit or intellect alone, Morales shows us the crucial role that the resurrection of Christ and the redeemed will play.”
“Isaac Morales has given us a wonderful model of a close reading of the Bible that uses both the tools of modern critical scholarship and the riches of the Christian tradition. What is more, this book is not a mere intellectual exercise but is written to bring into clearer focus the Christian hope for life everlasting. Morales demonstrates the harmony between eschatological themes of reign, rest, worship, vision, and resurrection, which will no doubt prompt further consideration by scholars and believers alike.”
“An intellectually stimulating and edifying account of the coherence of humanity's supreme good consisting in both the bodily resurrection and the vision of God. Wide-ranging in canonical scope, careful in exegetical argument, and illuminating in its drawing upon church tradition, this is theological exegesis at its finest!”
“Isaac Morales's The Life of the World to Come is a lucid and compelling presentation of the case, biblical and traditional, for holding the promise of bodily resurrection together with that of beatific vision. Only when these are kept together, and neither one is permitted to absorb or dilute the other, is the fullness of the Christian promise preserved. An especially compelling aspect of Morales's work is his treatment of worship as a category that permits us to see why and how resurrection and vision require one another.”
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