When I received this book from the publisher, I was slightly
daunted—over 900 pages of careful, scholarly investigation into the New
Testament. But the daunting turns to satisfaction page after page. Each
segment, each NT book, each subsection (History, Literature, Theology), treats
our New Covenant document with humbled admiration and diligence. Indeed, at the
start of the book they remind readers:
“’All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work,’ and the student of Scripture must…’be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth.’”
They recognize their intended audience to be ‘the teacher
and the student’—so they write in a manner ‘scholarly yet accessible,’ and hope
to aid the teacher in showing the student that “The NT, with its 27 books, presents both a wonderful, God-given
treasure trove of spiritual insights and a formidable challenge for faithful,
accurate interpretation.”
The book is broken into five sections: Introduction,
Gospels, Early Church & Paul, General Epistles & Revelation, Conclusion.
Which is, of course, pretty standard. The conclusion, unlike some others deals
with ‘diversity in unity’ in the New Testament—an helpful discussion for any
student of Scripture. Each book-focused chapter is subdivided into an
Introduction; History, Literature, and Theology sections; a Conclusion, Study
Questions, and Further Resources. The History section deals with the necessary
presumed issues of authorship, etc. The Literature section offers a
unit-by-unit discussion, tracing the flow of the book. And the Theology section
offers a brief discussion on various theological themes. Throughout the chapter
also offer numerous sidebar articles throughout which highlight interesting
details, dichotomies, and spiritual meditations. They include a section on the
book’s contribution to the canon.. At the beginning of each chapter they offer at-a-glance
key facts as well as an objectives list—preparing readers to look for and
understand certain elements. Notably they offer three different levels for
these objectives lists: Basic/Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced.
Oddly enough, this feature was one of the most helpful and
encouraging. Grading knowledge levels is an apt reminder that the New Testament
is a “treasure trove…and a formidable challenge.” It reminded me that I don’t
know all the answers, and that even if I learned them briefly through my
reading, I would likely forget them when I had finished. It offers milestones
for the reader—perhaps they plan to go through the New Testament once per year.
In year 1, they focus on the Beginner objectives. In year 2, they take a look
at the study questions in the back and answer them. If they discover their ‘Basic
Knowledge’ is adequate they focus on an Intermediate grasp, etc. Similarly, for
teachers in university/seminary courses, it becomes easy to encourage students
and explain expectations while giving the extra-motivated student a goal to
achieve.
When the authors prepared this book (2009), they explained
what they thought made The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown distinctive from
other NT Introductions (which they appropriately praised. And so it is by their
own scale which I grade their book now.
- User-friendly. 100% (In accessibility, not simplicity.)
- Comprehensive. 100% (In scope, not depth.)
- Conservative. 100% (In scholarship, not in politics, and not fundamentalist.)
- Balanced. 90%
- Up-do-date. 95%
- Spiritually nurturing and application oriented. 100%
I say that they are not quite perfect in balance (by which
they describe as pertaining to more than date, provenance, authorship,
destination but theological themes as well), because while they are certainly
better than some other Introductions, I found myself wanting a bit more literature
and a bit more theology—whether through intertextuality themes & biblical
theology. Of course, I have to temper my desires with the books purpose as an introduction. And so I recognize that
they do balance incredibly well… I guess I just want to be unbalanced—on the
other side.
I listed up-to-date at 95% due to no fault of the others; it’s
simply the reality of contributing to humanity’s understanding in time. Time
moves past us, and there are new works out. I do not believe that there are any
problems with the body of text, arguments, conclusions, etc. Instead, the recommended
resources are now 6 years lacking.
I want to offer one more area for improvement, again
understanding limitations of adding to a 900+ page book. I would like to see
more room for creative presentation. The authors certainly present countless
charts and tables, and a few maps here and there, but I would like to see the
biblical data represented in new ways that reveal things about the text or
assist the learning process. Perhaps even Flowcharts of Pauline arguments and
rhetoric. “If yes, then…., If no, then…”
I want to end this review by widening the intended audience.
Most who buy this book will be teachers and students. I think that is too
limited. I encourage new members in my church that they should include in their
monthly budget an amount for knowing God better. For some it might be as little
as five or ten dollars per month. But if we as Christians truly believe the
grandeur and grace of God, we ought to be willing to set aside money to know
him better. This book’s listing is $59.99, but of course cheaper at certain
locations. I can’t tell you how to use your money, but what I can say is
If you don’t have a good, foundational resource to help you
understand the New Testament, this one can fill that void.
I don’t imagine you’ll read it start to finish. But if you
keep it close to your Bible, you can take a few minutes each time you read from
the New Testament to better grasp the whole.
I recommend this book to any Christians who want to
understand the New Testament better. Pastors, small group leaders, the retired,
the lay Christian, college students.
10/10 stars, 5/5 with no caveats.
I received this book from the publisher in exchange for my
honest review.
This review is crosslisted on Amazon and Goodreads.
