Publishers have been active during 1959 and have provided an interesting and varied assortment of works dealing with the Old Testament and related subjects. We cannot mention all these works, nor would it particularly be profitable to do so. But we shall confine our attention to what appears to be most significant. Of course the new works are most appealing, but some valuable reprints have been made available. One that will cause Hebrew teachers to rejoice is the reprint of the Davies-Mitchell Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon (Zondervan). It should take its place among standard helps for students of the Old Testament.
The controversy over evolution seems always to be with us, and we may welcome a paper-back reprint of Gillispie’s Genesis and Geology (Harper) which surveys the conflict between “science” and “religion” in the decades before Darwin. Of a different nature is the reprint of Andrew Bonar’s Commentary on Leviticus (Zondervan), a devotional work that will prove to be a study help. Of similar nature are Joseph Caryl’s Exposition of Job, Charles Bridges’ Exposition of Proverbs, and John Brown’s The Sufferings and Glories of the Messiah (Sovereign Grace Publishers). These works are all devotional and from voices of former years expounding the Old Testament to us.
NEW APPROACHES
A somewhat novel approach to the study of the Exodus comes from Theodor Reik, a colleague of Sigmund Freud, who presents a startling interpretation of the events connected with the revelation at Mt. Sinai. In Mystery on the Mountain (Harper) he attempts to show that the events of the Exodus and of Sinai can be understood only as acts in a central drama of revelation which were similar to initiation and rebirth rituals in the cultures of the ancient Near-Eastern world. In studying the puberty rites of the Australian aborigines, Reik thought that he detected a concealed similarity with the events at Sinai. What we have in the present volume is an interestingly presented thesis, one which requires examination. We do not believe that the thesis can stand, but it should not be ignored.
In this connection we must also note the English translation of Sigmund Mowinckel’s lectures The Old Testament as Word of God (Abingdon). These lectures were delivered in Norwegian in 1938, but they present a picture of the Old Testament that must more and more be reckoned with. This book, however, is disappointing, and does not measure up to the author’s He That Cometh (Abingdon). There is exegetical carelessness in the book as seen for example in the rendering of 2 Timothy 3:16: “Every scripture inspired by God is useful for doctrine,” or in the statement: “Luke says that he will write his Gospel because none of the previous ones was satisfactory” (p. 24). Luke, of course, actually said no such thing. This book will have to be taken into account because Dr. Mowinckel is its author, but in many respects it is unsatisfactory, and its basic position is one which, we believe, does not do justice to genuine Christian theism.
DEAD SEA SCROLLS
Books on the Dead Sea Scrolls are not coming forth as frequently as they were in the past few years. What is appearing, however, is of high quality. In Ten Years of Discovery in the Wilderness of Judaea (Alienson Inc.), a translation from the French by J. Strugnell, we have a useful and compact survey of the discovery and study of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The work is provided with helpful chronological tables and bibliographies and may be recommended as a satisfactory introduction to the study of the Scrolls. C. Roth, in The Historical Background of the Dead Sea Scrolls (Philosophical Library), has written quite a thought-provoking book. He presents a radical thesis, one that we believe to be incorrect, but one that nevertheless is challenging. The sectaries of Qumran, he maintains, were not the Essenes but the Zealots, and the Teacher of Righteousness was Menahem ben Judah who was killed in Jerusalem by the priestly faction in 66 A.D. or, if not Menaham, at least his nephew Eleazar ben Jair. The Wicked Priest was the one responsible for the death of Menahem, namely, Eleazar ben Hananiah, Captain of the Temple. We confess to a certain fascination with this theory, but the arguments against it are too strong for it to be acceptable.
A third work dealing with the Dead Sea Scrolls is F. F. Bruce’s Biblical Exegesis in the Qumran Texts (Eerdmans). Here we leave the realm of fancy and come down to the solid business of studying the contents of the texts as they should be studied. Bruce has given us a careful piece of writing which will serve as a useful work of reference for all who are engaged in studying the Scrolls. We need more work of this kind. The time for fancy and sensationalism over these Scrolls has passed. Bruce’s book may well set a truly profitable pattern for study in this field.
BIOGRAPHY
Of the great Old Testament prophets Jeremiah is certainly one of the most intriguing. In Fire in My Bones (Broadman Press) Fred M. Wood has given us a popular exposition of the teaching and ministry of this prophet. Dr. Wood is a pastor who did his doctoral work on the subject of Jeremiah. His attempt has been to relate the teachings of the book to present day problems, and this is helpful. There is a fair discussion of the problems of interpretation, and, although we are unable to agree with some of the emphases, we think that this little work should prove a helpful introduction to its subject.
Those who find the Old Testament difficult to read will discover a splendid introduction in William S. La Sor’s Great Personalities of the Old Testament (Revell). The author makes simple yet penetrating studies of several Old Testament personalities. Somewhat similar is the study of C. E. Autrey’s Revivals of the Old Testament (Zondervan). As its name indicates these are studies of periods in Old Testament history when God acted mightily among his people. The book is of a popular nature, and should prove helpful to those readers for whom it is designed.
JUDAISM
One of the most useful and needed works published during 1959 is that of an evangelical scholar, Charles F. Pfeiffer, titled Between the Testaments (Baker Book House). In simple, readable style, the author carries us through the difficult intertestamental period. His devotion to the authority of the Bible characterizes the book, and the result is that we now have a popular history of this period which all should find to be of great help.
Nor has post-biblical Judaism been neglected. Selections from the writings of Abraham Heschel have been edited by Fritz Rothschild. In Between God and Man (Harper) we have an interpretation of Judaism by one who is himself a Jew. Old Testament students can be grateful that this work is available, even though the Christian will find himself unable to agree with many of Heschel’s observations and comments.
BIBLE TRANSLATION
That a translation of the Old Testament should appear during the course of the past year is an event of no mean significance. And evangelicals may rejoice that a translation of such high quality has been produced. We refer to the Berkeley Version in Modern English (Zondervan). We congratulate the translators upon their work and rejoice in the generally high standard that appears in the volume. We are happy, too, for example, that Isaiah 7:14 is correctly translated with the English word “virgin” and not the incorrect “young woman.” We are happy too that Psalm 2:12 is accurately rendered and is not garbled as is the case in the Revised Standard Version. And it is cause for rejoicing that Isaiah 52:15 is translated with the Word “sprinkle” as it should be. The work throughout manifests a devotion to the true meaning of Scripture. In a revised edition we hope that some corrections will be made. The principal suggestion which we would offer is that the quality of the English be improved, as for example in Genesis 3:17. A number of the footnotes, some of which, despite the disclaimer, are doctrinal in character, could just as well be omitted.
INTRODUCTIONS
To the best of our knowledge no evangelical scholar has produced an Introduction to the Old Testament during 1959. Two works that fall into this category have made their appearance. G. W. Anderson of the University of Durham has written A Critical Introduction to the Old Testament (Duckworth) in which he gives us the latest views in brief compass. A far more pretentious work is the Introduction by Norman K. Gottwald, titled A Light to the Nations (Harper). This work is an Introduction but it is more than that; it comes close to being an interpretative history of the people of Israel. It is written from a modern point of view and the doctrine of “inerrant” Scripture is rejected. It is not at all clear, however, that the author really understands what the doctrine of “inerrant” Scripture is. One who wishes an up-to-date picture of Old Testament criticism will find it in this work. The book itself is most attractive and we congratulate the publishers upon having produced such a pleasing volume. Here are beautiful illustrations and useful tables and even translations of extra-biblical material. All in all, it is a useful compendium. We could only wish that its position were much more definitely biblical.
An evangelical scholar, Donald J. Wiseman, has produced a handbook of archaeology which should find wide acceptance. Illustrations from Biblical Archaeology (Eerdmans) contains more than a hundred photographs, charts, and drawings. Accompanied by an interpretative and explanatory text, they give to the reader a clear picture of the discoveries which illumine the background of the Holy Scriptures. The author is a master in his field.
ARCHAEOLOGICAL STUDIES
Ira Maurice Price’s The Monuments and the Old Testament has been revised and brought up to date by Ovid R. Sellers and E. Leslie Carlson (Judson Press), and the result is a remarkably attractive handbook of archaeology. The publishers have given us a lavishly illustrated book and one which should hold the field for many days to come. The volume makes an excellent companion for students of Old Testament history. We could wish that the treatment were more conservative in matters such as the authorship of Daniel, or at least that more care were devoted to a consideration of arguments for the traditional orthodox position respecting the authorship of the Old Testament books.
Robert F. Heizer, Professor of Anthropology at the University of California, has prepared a handbook of archaeological method and interpretation in The Archaeologist at Work (Harper). The volume consists of essays by different archaeologists and archaeological authorities and discusses practically everything that one needs to know concerning archaeology, Biblical and otherwise. For the scholar who does not have much opportunity to engage in actual excavation, this book is truly a boon, and is to be heartily recommended.
Illustrative of the interest being displayed in the prophets today is the work of S. Paul Schilling, titled Isaiah Speaks (Crowell). The author is concerned to bring out the message of the prophet and to demonstrate its relevance for the present day. He says many good and helpful things, and he has read widely in a certain type of literature on Isaiah. But the work is based upon the untenable “three-Isaiah” theory and, although we did not see the name of Bernhard Duhm in the book, we cannot escape the impression that much of what is said really betrays Duhm’s influence. The exegesis represents the dominant “critical” emphases of our day. For example, the Child in Isaiah 9:6 is not “… a king who is himself divine,” but simply one who is “… divine in might, gifted with extraordinary power and insight because the Spirit of God dwells within him” (p. 55). But this we believe is an improper interpretation of the Hebrew. And it is not encouraging to read “Had Isaiah wanted to specify unmistakably a miraculous birth from a virgin, he would have had to use the Hebrew bethulāh …” (p. 35). It is time that writers cease making such statements. In fact, to specify a miraculous birth as bethulāh would have been the worst possible word.
I close this brief survey with the consideration of a work of an entirely different type, a book that in some respects may be the most significant thing produced in the field of Old Testament study during 1959. We refer to John C. Whitcomb’s Darius the Mede (Eerdmans). One of the fundamental dogmas of those who deny the trustworthiness of the book of Daniel is that the character of Darius the Mede mentioned in the book is not an historical personage. With whom therefore is he to be identified? Attempts to answer this question have been made, but many of them are unsatisfactory. It is to the answering of this question that Professor Whitcomb has devoted his studies. His answer is as follows: Ugbaru, the governor of Gutium entered Babylon on the sixteenth day of Tishri, and on the eleventh of Arahshamnu (November 6) Ugbaru died. Gobryas, the governor of Cyrus, installed (sub-) governors in Babylon. Gobryas and Ugbaru were two different persons, and it is Gobryas whom we are to identify as Darius the Mede. This thesis is developed with skill and ability, and it removes at one stroke one of the principal objections that has been raised against the trustworthiness of the book of Daniel. Evangelicals should be grateful to Dr. Whitcomb for his research.
CONCLUSIONS
What does this brief survey of Old Testament literature have to teach us who claim to be evangelical? One thing is apparent. There is need for the production of more specialized monographs such as that of Whitcomb on Darius the Mede. Unless we are prepared to engage in the sacrificial and painstaking labor necessary to produce works of this kind, we shall be betraying our cause. And there is need also for the production of scholarly commentaries. These commentaries must reveal an adequate knowledge of the Hebrew and cognate languages on our part. They must also, if they are truly to serve the Church of God, reveal an attitude toward the Scriptures such as that expressed toward the close of Professor Whitcomb’s work. We cannot do better than to close with his words: “It is in this light (i.e., the view of Christ that the Scriptures cannot be broken) that the Christian scholar must approach the Scriptures and investigate such problems as the historicity of Darius the Mede. His conviction that Darius the Mede actually lived in the sixth century B.C. and did the things ascribed to him in the Book of Daniel does not depend upon the confirmation of cuneiform documents, but he is confident that the discovery of new documents can only serve to confirm the statements of God’s Word” (p. 67).
Jacob J. Vellenga served on the National Board of Administration of the United Presbyterian Church from 1948–54. Since 1958 he has served the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. as Associate Executive. He holds the A.B. degree from Monmouth College, the B.D. from Pittsburgh-Xenia Seminary, Th.D. from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and D.D. from Monmouth College, Illinois.
