Sunday School Reading - April 26, 2009

Here are the recommended readings from this week's Sunday School discussion on some topics in eschatology. This week we covered the intermediate state, the resurrection body, the second coming, the final judgment, and introduced the signs of the times. I'm going to skip the catechism questions this week since we cited a number of them Sunday. The Shorter Catechism does not deal very explicitly with these topics though they do come up often in both the Larger Catechism and the Heidelberg Catechism.

Here are the book recommendations:

• Christ and the Future: The Bible's Teaching about the Last Things by Cornelis Venema - This is the first book that I recommend on these topics. Venema has written a great deal on eschatology and approaches these topics from an "optimistic amillennial" perspective. I think that you'll find this book very satisfying. I'm seeing if the church can get several copies to put on the church booktable to make it easier for people to get.
• The Promise of the Future by Cornelis Venema - This is the earlier and larger work that Venema did on the last things. The topics covered are very similar to what he covers in the above book. The difference is that this is a longer (just under 500 pages) and more scholarly treatment of the subjects. This is a fantastic book and my personal favorite on eschatology but I think that most people (and their wallets) will be satisfied by the shorter book above.
• The Bible and the Future by Anthony Hoekema - This is an older but still very good work on eschatology from an amillennial perspective that Venema borrows heavily from. Hoekema is especially helpful in his critique of dispensationalism. I do want to note that I disagree with Hoekema on his interpretation of "all Israel will be saved" in Romans 11:25-26 (though if you take his side you are certainly in good company with Bavinck, Ridderbos, and others).
• The Returning King: A Guide to the Book of Revelation by Vern Poythress - Though we did not take the time to discuss Revelation in detail since Pastor Baile is preaching through the book I did want to highlight a few books/commentaries that would be helpful in studying this book in your devotions. This book by Vern Poythress is a fantastic short commentary on Revelation that deals with many of the themes, key issues, and structures of the book. I would highly recommend beginning here.
• Triumph of the Lamb: A Commentary on Revelation by Dennis Johnson - This commentary, while remaining friendly to non-scholarly or pastoral use, is longer and more comprehensive than Poythress'. I personally prefer Poythress' work as I think that it is more consistent with the book. That said, this is still a very helpful book and aid for studying what God says to his people at the end of the canon.

Second, here is a list of where eschatology is addressed in several Reformed and Presbyterian systematic theologies:

• Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin - Eschatology underlies much of Calvin's work but isn't usually explicitly discussed as a separate topic. The final resurrection is dealt with in Book 3, Chapter 25.
• Reformed Dogmatics by Herman Bavinck - Bavinck deals more explicitly with the traditional topics under the heading of eschatology. While like Calvin and the Westminster Standards eschatological assumptions underlie much of his work; the topic is directly addressed in Volume 4: Holy Spirit and New Creation, Part III, Chapters 12-18.
• Systematic Theology by Charles Hodge - Hodge deals with eschatology in Book 3, Part IV, Chapters 1-4. The link provided is to a .pdf file of Hodge's work.
• Outlines of Theology by A.A. Hodge - Eschatology is discussed in Chapters 34-37. The link provided is to a copy of this book on Google Books where you can view and download it for free.
• Systematic Theology by Robert L. Dabney - Dabney discusses eschatology in Chapters 43-46. Dabney's work is also available online and you can scroll through the table of contents in the link provided.

Finally, here are some papers and articles that you can read for free online with regard to these topics:

• "Annihilationism" by B.B. Warfield - This article refutes the suggestion that human beings cease to exist entirely after death.
• "Individual Eschatology: Death, the Intermediate State, Resurrection, and Judgment" by Sam Stoms
• "Death, Immortality, and the Intermediate State" by Lorraine Boettner
• "Of the Resurrection of the Body" by John Gill
• Luther's Small Catechism on the Resurrection of the Body
• "Will the Resurrection of the Body be a Physical Resurrection from the Dead?" from Desiring God Ministries
• "Why do you believe that the main Christian hope is the resurrection of the body rather than simply the immortality of the soul?" from Desiring God Ministries
• "The Glory of the Redeemer in his Second Coming" by Octavius Winslow
• "The Second Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ"
• "Of the Second Coming of Christ and His Glorious Appearing" by John Gill
• "The World Judged Righteously by Jesus Christ" by Jonathan Edwards
• "The Resurrection, the Last Judgment and the Final State" by Louis Berkhof

Sunday School Reading - April 19, 2009

Here is some recommended additional reading based on our Sunday School discussion this week. This week we covered the general pattern of eschatology in the Pauline and General epistles. I've included books and articles that help to get at that understanding of the eschatological teaching of the New Testament. As I mentioned this week, we are not going to cover in depth the section in our books on Revelation as Pastor Baile is presently preaching through the book. Instead we will use this coming week to focus on some of the traditional topics under eschatology before moving on to the doctrine of the church.

Last week I pointed to several questions in the Westminster Shorter Catechism that help to illustrate the tension in the New Testament between aspects of salvation that point to realized and present eschatological blessings and those eschatological blessings which still remain in the future. One of the places where the Larger Catechism also notes this is in Question and Response 82:

Q. What is the communion in glory which the members of the invisible church have with Christ?
A. The communion in glory which the members of the invisible church have with Christ, is in this life, immediately after death, and at last perfected at the resurrection and day of judgment.

We'll talk about this question and response more next week with the intermediate state but we should appreciate the way that believers live in the tension between the ages. On one hand we already enjoy communion with Christ in his glory in this present life as we are raised in Spirit-wrought union with Christ. On the other hand, the perfection and consummation of that communion with Christ in glory remains in the future; both in a greater communion with him after death and in its perfection in the resurrection body.

Here are some book recommendations related to the teaching on eschatology in Paul's letters. There are not really any books that I'm aware of that do the same with the whole of the general epistles as we ought to be sensitive to the different writers. D.A. Carson and Douglass Moo's Introduction to the New Testament is probably the best one volume reference you could find that would deal with these topics.

• The Pauline Eschatology by Geerhardus Vos - This is the best study of Paul's teaching of the last things. The reason is because Vos really grasps and illustrates that what Paul has to say about the last things is not solely about the return of Christ but deals with the overlap and tension of the age to come being inaugurated but not yet consummated. Vos is not easy to read as he was born in a Dutch-speaking home and writes in a very formal and academic late 19th and early 20th century style. This book is worth it if you can make it through. This edition includes an article by Vos on the eschatology of the Psalter as an appendix. The diagrams that we looked at came from this book though I modified them slightly.
• Paul: An Outline of His Theology by Herman Ridderbos - This book covers far more than just Paul's eschatology as it looks at the whole of his teaching on virtually every subject in his epistles. That said, this is probably the best single book available on Paul's theology and the sections on his eschatology are very good. I do want to note that I disagree with Ridderbos on some of his articulations of election and on the interpretation of "all Israel" in Romans 11:25-26.
• Paul: Apostle of the Heart Set Free by F.F. Bruce - Like the above book, the focus of this work is not solely on Paul's eschatology. Instead Bruce is largely focused on the life of the Apostle and then explores the primary themes in his thought in historical context of his life and travels. There are, I think, two chapters dealing with Paul's eschatology. This book is available in the church library.

Here are some paper recommendations on these topics. Again, since this week was more of an exercise in biblical theology than in systematic we cannot point to sections from Reformed systematic theologies on these topics but we will do so next week on topics in eschatology.

• "Eschaton or Escape: Paul's Two Ages vs. Plato's Two Worlds" by Michael Horton
• "The Two Ages and Redemptive History" by Eric Pyle
• "Two Age Eschatology" by Eric Pyle - These two articles are a helpful summary of Vos' work and of what we talked about.
• "Last Time, Times" by Geerhardus Vos - This is a one page section from the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. It's helpful in seeing how the New Testament writers could speak of the end as present and as still to come.
• "The Last Days: A Sermon on 2 Tim. 3:1-9" by Ligon Duncan
• "Theonomy and Eschatology: Some Reflections on Postmillennialism" by Richard Gaffin - I mentioned this article last week and I wanted to link to it again. The reason is because, as we said, the focus in the New Testament is that believers live in the tension between the ages. I think that Gaffin really gets at that in this article in showing that the church is an eschatological people who receive the blessings of God but that it is also a pilgrim people who will not arrive until the last day.
• "Resurrection and Redemption: How Eschatology and the Gospel Relate" by Richard Gaffin

Sunday School Reading - April 12, 2009

Sorry that this post is a day late but I wasn't able to get to it yesterday. Here is some recommended reading regarding our discussion in Sunday School this past week. This week we looked at both millennial views and eschatology taught in the Gospels particularly related to Jesus' teaching about the Kingdom of God. We'll have some book and paper recommendations regarding both of those topics.

First, again, eschatology as a separate topic is not really addressed in the Westminster Shorter Catechism. Instead, the Westminster Assembly shows a senstivity to the general New Testament understanding that Scripture teaches that the end times are already present in the first advent of the Lord Jesus Christ though that they will not be consumated until his second advent and in the Shorter Catechism this is related exclusively to the benefits of salvation in Christ. So look at Questions and Responses 32-36 as dealing with the benefits of redemption that believers receive from Christ in this life. Question and Response 37 deals with the benefits of redemption that believers receive from Christ at their deaths. Question and Response 38 deals with the benefits of redemption that believers receive from Christ at the resurrection.

Second, here are some books reviews. I mentioned Sunday that I would recommend what I've found to be the best books arguing for historic Premillennialism, Postmillennialism, and Amillennialism. Again, while I believe that the Amillennial view best represents the Biblical teaching on eschatology, I think that a case can be made for the other two and if you'd like to investigate then please check the books recommended. I do think that the dispensational premillennial position is clearly unbiblical in both its original and progressive articulations.

• A Case for Historic Premillennialism: An Alternative to "Left Behind" Eschatology edited by Craig Blomberg and Sung Wook Chung - This is probably the best comprehensive presentation of historic or classic premillennialism. While I do not agree with their conclusions I do want to note that this is a good articulation of the argument.
• Postmillennialism: An Eschatology of Hope by Keith Mathison - While there are better scholarly articulations of the Postmillennial viewpoint, I think that Mathison in a simple and readable manner best presents the key to many Postmillennialists' complaint about Amillennialists; that they end up taking a pessimistic view in regard to the end times. For that reason I'll recommend his presentation of this view. I also want to mention that a more scholarly and older presentation of postmillennialism, The Millennium by Lorraine Boettner, is available in the church library. I do want to mention that Boettner claims, incorrectly in my opinion, that B.B. Warfield supports the Postmillennial view. I would argue that Warfield predates this specific debate and that Boettner misappropriates some of Warfield's statements about Christ's kingship that all three of these positions would agree with (Richard Gaffin also makes this case in an article linked to below).
• Christ and the Future by Cornelius Venema - This is a shorter and more lay-friendly version of Venema's longer The Promise of the Future. I think this is probably the best book arguing for the Amillennial viewpoint and highly recommend it (you can find it online for just $10-11). If you have time to read then you could go for the longer book though it's about twice the cost. Venema's work on eschatology is probably the best that you'll find. He does argue for what is called "optimistic amillennialism" in that he wants to emphasize the Lordship of Christ in all Spheres rather than take a pessimistic view of the future until Christ's return. You also may want to look at Anthony Hoekema's The Bible and the Future though I think that Venema's work is more consistent and thorough. Hoekema's book is available in the church library.

The next thing that we discussed was the Kingdom of God as presenting Jesus' teaching of eschatology in the four Gospels, though particularly evident in the Synoptic Gospels. Here are two books that deal with that subject.

• The Coming of the Kingdom by Herman Ridderbos - This is a fantastic book where Ridderbos thoroughly studies everything that the four Gospels as well as Acts and the epistles teach about the Kingdom of God. Ridderbos spends a lot of time trying to examine what the Kingdom is according to Jesus' teaching, when the Kingdom comes, and what the coming of the Kingdom means for God's people. This book is available in the church library.
• The Teaching of Jesus Concerning the Kingdom of God and the Church by Geerhardus Vos - Sadly this book is in a rare print and so it's hard to find and not cheap for its length but it is a great treatment of Jesus' teaching about the nature and coming of the Kingdom of God and also how this relates to the Church as the people of God who experience the blessings of the Kingdom. Ridderbos was very familiar with this book when he wrote his longer treatment above.

Finally, though we will not examine Old Testament eschatology leading into the New Testament in our study because of time limitations, I do want to mention a few books in case you want to examine this.

• The Eschatology of the Old Testament by Geerhardus Vos - In this book Vos looks at the hopes and expectations of the Old Testament prophets and saints in regard to the future. He shows that these hopes and expectations were entirely tied up in the person of the Messiah and his coming. This is a pretty short book that you ought to be able to find for about $10 and it's much more than worth that.
• From Age to Age: The Unfolding of Biblical Eschatology by Keith Mathison - This is a brand new book that traces the Biblical teaching on eschatology using biblical theology rather than systematic theology. While Mathison is a Postmillennialist and so I do not agree with some of his conclusions in his other works this is still a great service to the church. I have not had a chance to pick up and read this book yet but it is highly recommended by Derek Thomas and Michael Horton (both Amillennialists).

Third, here is where the topic of eschatology is addressed in a number of Presbyterian and Reformed systematic theologies. Please keep in mind that these works predate the American and British debate over millennial views and so these authors will not explicitly take a side in that discussion:

• Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin - Eschatology underlies much of Calvin's work but isn't usually explicitly discussed as a separate topic. The final resurrection is dealt with in Book 3, Chapter 25.
• Reformed Dogmatics by Herman Bavinck - Bavinck deals more explicitly with the traditional topics under the heading of eschatology. While like Calvin and the Westminster Standards eschatological assumptions underlie much of his work; the topic is directly addressed in Volume 4: Holy Spirit and New Creation, Part III, Chapters 12-18.
• Systematic Theology by Charles Hodge - Hodge deals with eschatology in Book 3, Part IV, Chapters 1-4. The link provided is to a .pdf file of Hodge's work.
• Outlines of Theology by A.A. Hodge - Eschatology is discussed in Chapters 34-37. The link provided is to a copy of this book on Google Books where you can view and download it for free.
• Systematic Theology by Robert L. Dabney - Dabney discusses eschatology in Chapters 43-46. Dabney's work is also available online and you can scroll through the table of contents in the link provided.

Finally, here are some articles that you can read online for free dealing with millennial views and the Kingdom of God:

• "Amillennialism" by Anthony Hoeksema
• "Jesus' Mission, According to His Own Testimony" by B.B. Warfield - While this article is not dealing with eschatology per se, Warfield does address the purpose of Christ's coming. Part of this coming is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy and the establishment of God's eschatological Kingdom.
• "The Millennium and the Apocalypse" by B.B. Warfield - Keep in mind that Warfield is not presenting Amillennialism or Premillennialism as he predates this argument but he is articulating what he thinks Scripture teaches about the millennium. This article is helpful to move away from some of our biases and see what theologians have thought in the past before getting tied up exclusively in this debate.
• "Ethics and the Millennium" by John Frame - Frame is sympathetic to both the Amil and Postmil arguments (though he does take the Amil position in other papers). Here he argues that those who support both views need to guard from pessimism and triumphalism.
• "Theonomy and Eschatology: Some Reflections on Postmillennialism" by Richard B. Gaffin Jr. - It should be noted that while Postmillennialism does not require a theonomic view of the law the two are often closely related. Gaffin addresses that in this article. This article is the one that has me convinced that Postmillennialism requires too much of a stretch of the Biblical teaching on the last things.
• "A Study of American Postmillennialism" by Kim Riddlebarger
• "The Prima Facie Acceptability of Postmillennialism" by Greg Bahnsen - I think that Bahnsen and Gentry present the best academic arguments for Postmillennialism. Here are two articles by him in support of that position.
• "Objections to Postmillennialism" by Greg Bahnsen
• "Genre and Hermeneutics in Revelation 20:1-6" by Vern Poythress
• "Currents within Amillennialism" by Vern Poythress - This is a great article to find more recommended reading from a first class New Testament scholar.
• "2 Thessalonians 1 Supports Amillennialism" by Vern Poythress - Here Poythress gives us an example of how Revelation 20:1-11 needs to be interpreted in light of everything else that Scripture says about the last times rather than the other way around. This is a great example of allowing the clear parts of Scripture to interpret the unclear (a basic hermeneutic principle).

Sunday School Reading - April 5, 2009

Here is some recommended additional reading from Sunday School yesterday. This week we began to discuss matters of eschatology by examining the importance of the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost as a once-for-all work of the ascended Lord Jesus and discussed how the presence of the Spirit frames the already but not yet of Christian life.

Last quarter we tried to show how our discussion tied in with the Westminster Shorter Catechism. While the Shorter Catechism does not deal very much with eschatology we can see in the Larger Catechism how the Assembly did understand that the coming of the Holy Spirit introduced a new era in redemptive history:

Q32. How is the grace of God manifested in the second covenant?
A32. The grace of God is manifested in the second covenant, in that he freely provides and offers to sinners a Mediator, and life and salvation by him; and requiring faith as the condition to interest them in him, promises and gives his Holy Spirit to all his elect, to work in them that faith, with all other saving graces; and to enable them unto all holy obedience, as the evidence of the truth of their faith and thankfulness to God, and as the way which he has appointed them to salvation.

Q38. Why was it requisite that the Mediator should be God?
A38. It was requisite that the Mediator should be God, that he might sustain and keep the human nature from sinking under the infinite wrath of God, and the power of death; give worth and efficacy to his sufferings, obedience, and intercession; and to satisfy God's justice, procure his favor, purchase a peculiar people, give his Spirit to them, conquer all their enemies, and bring them to everlasting salvation.

Next week we'll mention where the topics that we discussed are examined in Reformed systematic theologies but since our study was more biblical theological in nature this week here are some book recommendations on the person and work of the Holy Spirit:

The Holy Spirit by Sinclair Ferguson - I recommended this book a few times in the last quarter and it is still probably the best book out there on the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. There are a few chapters in here that deal with both the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament and the redemptive historical and eschatological aspects of his coming at Pentecost. Dr. Ferguson's discussion is very helpful and if you want to have a book on the doctrine of the Spirit on your shelf then this is the one you want.

Knowing the Holy Spirit through the Old Testament by Christopher J.H. Wright - Dr. Wright has written a number of books on biblical theology. In this book, he surveys the Old Testament to show how the Third Person of the Trinity is revealed there pointing to his full revelation and coming in the New Testament.

The Work of the Holy Spirit by Abraham Kuyper - This book divides into three sections. The first section surveys the work of the Third Person of the Trinity in the Old Testament and his activities therein and then leads up to the importance of his coming at Pentecost in the New Testament. The book is available for free through Google Books with the link provided above. I will mention that in the second section of the book Kuyper advocates eternal justification, which is the idea that God never looks at the elect as condemned but always views them as just. We reject this view of justification so take what Kuyper says there with a grain of salt. Feel free to e-mail me if you're curious about why we do not hold to eternal justification.

Finally, here are some articles and essays that you can read online for free on these topics:

"The Spirit of God in the Old Testament" by Benjamin B. Warfield
"Luke's Presentation of the Spirit in Acts" by F.F. Bruce
"Pentecost: Before and After" by Richard B. Gaffin Jr.
"The Holy Spirit and Eschatology" by Richard B. Gaffin Jr. - If you only read one of these articles make sure that it is this one. It is not the easiest read but it is well worth the effort put in.
"The Eschatological Aspect of the Pauline Conception of the Spirit" by Geerhardus Vos - Much of what Dr. Gaffin has to say in the above article is related to this earlier article by Vos. That said, while Gaffin's work is not a simple read Vos' is even denser and will be slower going through. If you can take the time to read this one twice and try to absorb it but I would recommend starting with the Ferguson book and the Gaffin article before tackling this.

As a footnote, the question did come up yesterday on how the Holy Spirit was present in the lives of the Old Testament saints. If you want to think and read more about this then I would recommend Richard Gaffin's book, Perspectives on Pentecost.

Matthew's Use of Zechariah's Prophecy - Part 1

The book of Zechariah divides into the two major sections of chapters 1-8 and 9-14. Matthew quotes the book of Zechariah three times in his gospel and all three come from the later section. Interestingly, all three quotations are also found in Matthew’s Passion narrative. So Matthew sees the fulfillment of Zechariah 9-14 in Jesus’ death and resurrection. We will look at these quotations over the next week as we celebrate Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter.

Our focus this Palm Sunday is going to be on Matthew’s use of Zechariah 9:9 in the context of Jesus’ triumphal entry. Matthew explicitly links what Jesus does in this passage to the prophet:

This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying,
“Say to the daughter of Zion,‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey,and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’” (Mat. 21:4-5)

Now in Zechariah this verse begins by telling the daughter of Jerusalem to “rejoice.” Matthew changes this to “say” and combines this quotation with Isaiah 61:11. The effect of this is to make the quotation an evangelistic appeal to unbelieving Israel. Remember that the purpose of Matthew’s gospel was an apologetic for the message of Jesus Christ to the Jewish people and so he wanted to both show them that Jesus was the fulfillment of the Old Testament Scriptures and also to call them to faith in Jesus Christ and repentance of sins. So his use of the Old Testament often mixes these two goals.

First we should look at Zechariah 9:9 in its original context. This passage is the announcement of the coming of the Messiah, who is prefigured earlier in Zechariah by the High Priest Joshua and Zerubabbel the Governor, but has now arrived. In Zechariah the king enters Jerusalem as one who is already vindicated and comes to a city that celebrates a victory that is already won. By riding into the city on a donkey, on the foal of a donkey, the king also shows that his entrance is peaceful. If he were coming to war then he would ride in on a war horse (Zech. 10:3). Further, the king will from Jerusalem speak peace to all the nations and establish a universal reign (Zech. 9:10).

As we turn to Matthew’s use of this verse we notice something very interesting. Here is Zechariah 9:9:

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. (Zech. 9:9)

Notice that one line in omitted in Matthew’s citation. Matthew deliberately chooses not to include, “righteous and having salvation is he.” The reason for this is that as we saw, Zechariah 9:9 in its original context discusses a victory that has already been accomplished. In the context of the triumphal entry in Matthew’s Gospel this victory has not yet taken place. Jesus has performed great miracles but his greatest victory, his resurrection, is still in the future in the gospel. So “righteous and having salvation is he” does not fit in Matthew 21 but belongs to Matthew 28. So the effect of the omission is to stress the lowliness of the King as he enters the city and also to build the reader’s anticipation to see how he will be victorious and then to hear him speak peace to the nations in establishing his universal reign.

So along with the lowliness of the King we see the royalty of Jesus emphasized. Garments are placed on the animal and Jesus rides. In contrast to all the pilgrims who walk into the city the King sits. The people take palm branches and their garments and lay them before him on the road. Again this emphasizes the royal character of his entrance. Finally we see that they call him “the Son of David,” as he is by birth; and also “the one who comes in the name of the Lord.” This serves the Christology in the book of Matthew. He is the conquering King who comes into the city and his arrival is what Matthew sees as a gospel call to all people. And he does come to conquer but not in the war the people expect him to wage. Instead he comes in the name of the Lord to conquer sin and death in his crucifixion and resurrection. In the next post we’ll look at the next use that Matthew makes of Zechariah in his passion narrative.