Redemptive Reversals and the Ironic Overturning of Human Wisdom (Short Studies in Biblical Theology)
Overview
The Bible is full of ironic situations in which God overturns the world’s wisdom by doing the opposite of what is expected. In this new volume from respected New Testament scholar G. K. Beale, readers will see how God’s pattern of divine irony is exhibited in both judgment and salvation, finding its greatest expression in Jesus’s triumph over death through death on a cross. God has designed redemptive history to unfold in a way that challenges human wisdom in order to put his own wisdom and glory on display, using what is seemingly weak and foolish to show his power in the lives of his people today.
- Examines God’s pattern of divine irony in both judgment and salvation
- Focuses on the greatest expression in Jesus’s triumph over death through death on a cross
- Explores the Biblical themes of weakness and power
- God Judges People by Their Own Sin
- People Resemble the Idols That They Worship
- The Irony of Salvation
- The Christian Life: Power Is Perfected in the Powerless
- Faith in Unseen Realities Contradicts Trust in Superficial Appearances
- The Irony of Eschatology
- Conclusion
Top Highlights
“In Luke, the rejection of Jesus by the Jews is the catalyst for his redeeming death, whereas in Acts the persecution of the church becomes the catalyst for saving evangelism.” (Page 23)
“Hence Adam was a priestly guardian not only of the garden sanctuary of God but also of the earth and of his family.4” (Page 84)
“Not only was Adam’s delinquent judgment of Satan ironically turned into his own judgment, but now he who had been commissioned by God to ‘subdue and rule over everything that moves on the earth’ was subdued and ruled over by the creeping serpent, to whom Adam had delivered his crown.” (Page 85)
“The principle is this: if you worship idols, you will become like the idols, and that likeness will ruin you.” (Page 61)
“Part of the irony is that even though he does not appear to be ruling over evil world tyrants, he actually is at every moment.” (Pages 165–166)
Greg Beale is one of the most perceptive and fascinating New Testament scholars of our day. He reads texts in their historical context, but he also illustrates how particular verses and passages fit into the larger storyline of the Scriptures. In this wonderfully accessible volume, Beale helps us to see that God often works in ways that we would not expect and uses unlikely and ironic means to accomplish his purposes. We see from Beale’s work that God is sovereignly working out his purposes and his will and that we can trust him with our lives.
—Thomas R. Schreiner, James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
An extraordinary book. It lays out a deeply biblical understanding of how God has reversed sin in Christ and how he judges sin in the world, sometimes in surprising ways. With its acute insights and unique perspective, it is a very helpful study.
—David F. Wells, Senior Distinguished Research Professor of Theology, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
This book opened my eyes to look for the consistent way that God works ironically throughout the Bible—the way he punishes sinners by means of their own sin, makes life possible through his own death, shows his strength through our weakness, and exalts those who are humbled.
—Nancy Guthrie, author, Even Better than Eden: Nine Ways the Bible’s Story Changes Everything about Your Story
- Title: Redemptive Reversals and the Ironic Overturning of Human Wisdom
- Author: G. K. Beale
- Series: Short Studies in Biblical Theology
- Publisher: Crossway
- Publication Date: 2019
- Pages: 208
- Resource Type: Biblical Theology
- Topic: Theology
G. K. Beale (Ph.D., University of Cambridge) is Kenneth T. Wessner Professor of New Testament at Wheaton College Graduate School, Wheaton, Illinois, and coordinator of Wheaton's M.A. in Biblical Exegesis program. His books include The Book of Revelation (New International Greek Testament Commentary), 1-2 Thessalonians (The IVP New Testament Commentary Series), The Right Doctrine from the Wrong Texts? Essays on the Use of the Old Testament in the New, and The Temple and the Church's Mission: A Biblical Theology of the Dwelling Place of God.