A New Testament Biblical Theology: The Unfolding of the Old Testament in the New

by Gregory K. Beale

Christianity Today 2013 Book Award Winner

In this comprehensive exposition, a leading New Testament scholar explores the unfolding theological unity of the entire Bible from the vantage point of the New Testament. G. K. Beale, coeditor of the award-winning Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament , examines how the New Testament storyline relates to and develops the Old Testament storyline. Beale argues that every major concept of the New Testament is a development of a concept from the Old and is to be understood as a facet of the inauguration of the latter-day new creation and kingdom. Offering extensive interaction between the two testaments, this volume helps readers see the unifying conceptual threads of the Old Testament and how those threads are woven together in Christ. This major work will be valued by students of the New Testament and pastors alike.

Genres: Theology, Biblical Studies, New Testament, Christian, Christianity, Reference, Old Testament

1047 pages, Hardcover

Published December 1, 2011

About the author

G. K. Beale (PhD, University of Cambridge) is professor of New Testament and biblical theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is the coeditor of the Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament and the author of numerous books, including A New Testament Biblical Theology: The Unfolding of the Old Testament in the New.

Reviews

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why the Church and the World Need Biblical Theology

Growing up as a kid, I was catechized in Bible stories, even before I was catechized with the Westminster Confession of Faith. Whether it was Veggietales, flannel-graphs, Bible movies, or Scripture readings at family worship, it was the Biblical narratives that I knew best, combined with some basic Evangelical "invite Jesus into your heart" glosses.

Growing older, I started to read the Bible on my own, and as I struggled through the tabernacle descriptions, the countless animal sacrifice instructions, and the censuses, I wondered whether there was some deeper symbolic significance and perhaps with a bit more time on my hands, whether I would be able to figure out what it was all about. I am really lucky to be alive at this time.

As a kid you read the Scriptures and often gloss over the most difficult bits. I remember getting to go and get donuts after I read the Bible all the way through, but feeling that Isaiah and much of the prophets bounced off me. Did I really deserve it if I remembered so little? I think that the dirty secret a lot of Evangelicals have nowadays is that we don't pray and we actually have a hard time knowing the prophets and poetry in the Bible, or even seeing the big picture.

I recall growing up hearing about how the Old Testament looked forward to Jesus, but all the so-called Messianic prophecies seemed to be wrenched from their context and "made to fit." For instance, the passage that still troubles me is "For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption." This is interpreted in the New Testament as not possibly referring to David, since he died, while it applies to Christ whose body did not decay. That seems to take it away from the context, which in an era when Christians most definitely don't do contextual exegesis very well, is deeply troubling. It's also troubling if you have a nagging sense that the Jews could score some points on this: how can the Gospel be true if it has to be twisted to fit Old Testament prophecies.

This is why we need works like Beale's to help us with these kinds of questions. Beale is not an exciting writer, and indeed as I read through this book, time and again I found that I had discovered most of what he says through my own Bible study. But I find that incredibly encouraging because it shows that we are not making this up. When you realize that the Bible is not a pure documentary, written by eyewitnesses trying to grab every little detail, but a careful literary work, based on real events, but depicting it in stylized ways, it's easy to feel that your literary criticism is controlling the text rather than allowing the text to speak for itself.

That is why Beale is so good. The whole book is boring. A friend of mine observed that Beale's material is like a very beautiful woman in an ugly sweater: the content is exciting, but the writing can feel dry, awkward, and choked with footnotes. But I prefer that, and I love the fact that Beale has chosen to be careful and to avoid controversy, for the most part. We feel that it is careful exegesis, and that he is signalling when he is going out on a limb, rather than simply asserting what he thinks. In this particular book, Beale helpfully struggles with another question that I grappled with in my head: how do we find the themes that predominate the Biblical text? Evangelical and Reformed preaching tends to gravitate to Paul, then to the Gospels, and finally to the Bible stories. How do we find a way of incorporating the stuff that seems to be off to the side? How do we wrestle with preaching the full counsel of God and not forcing the text to fit our own presuppositions of where it's going?

So much of Evangelical preaching seems to want to make Paul or Jesus say whatever they are saying, and while a lot of what they are saying is really good and probably more Biblical than anything I would ever think up, there is a nagging sense that pastors care more about Sunday school lessons (which tend to be all about moral improvement or emotional Evangelical catharsis) than about the stuff that's in the text. This is why I have found some non-Christians and just plain weird Christian exegetes to be very helpful in dealing with the Biblical text. John Piper and John MacArthur, holy and good men though they be, do not sound like Moses or Paul, though I have no doubt they understand a great deal more of what it must have been like to be Moses or Paul.

This isn't the only place where Beale struggles with the key issues. He grapples with the New Perspective on Paul for instance and affirms that justification is both a declaration and a vindication of God's people. I had found this elsewhere, but found it helpful to hear it again from a scholar defending imputation and once-for-all justification. I had seen gardens in Scripture in various places, and I noticed that Abraham is given the same type of blessing as Adam and Noah, and thus that their blessing is symbolically richer than, say, late twentieth century dispensationalism would indicate. I also appreciated how he argued for amillennialism, leaning heavily on the fact that the Scriptures are full of already-not yets. I think the already-not yet can be a dodge, but I still was struck that appeals to "it says this will happen this way" are weak, since the way the New Testament fulfills the Old Testament is very, very surprising. Beale is wrestling with this too.

One of my favorite bits was when Beale pointed out that in Colossians, the Christians are tempted by false philosophy, which Beale follows contemporary scholarship in seeing as Judaizers. He says that the call to renew one's mind has echoes of Genesis. I had always wondered about "renewing one's mind." I also had never noticed how the clothing imagery of "putting on Christ" would be connected to Adam and Eve being clothed by God. I had seen the promises to bring the Gentiles into Israel, I had seen the church as new Israel and Jesus as new Israel themes, and I had known the Temple was an image of heaven and an image of earth. I had not connected the colored thread of the tabernacle and the lamps to the idea of the heavens.

Beale, of course, is presbyterian and has perhaps succeeded in preserving Vos' Biblical Theology project in mainstream presbyterianism. He argues for Sabbatarianism, eldership, and sacraments and uses "marks of the church" language. He deals quite well with dispensationalism, but I think the already-not yet hermeneutic goes a bit further than he wants it to, removing the need for a Sabbath. There's a lot more work to be done in ethics, and it's disheartening to see Beale referencing Frame. Still, he's a grammatical-historical interpreter of Scripture, and in the world of Biblical theology, that's sadly quite rare. This is my team. Here I stand.

Someday I would love to teach a class based on this book. But I'll only assign small portions!

[Chad · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my recurring complaints about biblical scholarship is the focus on the "trees" to the neglect of the "forest," to use a worn-out metaphor. Beale consistently avoids that error. Whether he is writing about the church, Revelation, idolatry, or any other biblical topic, he approaches the subject with the entire canon in view. In this biblical theology of the NT, his overarching goal is (as the subtitle says) to demonstrate that what we see in the NT is the unfolding of the OT. In so doing, he demonstrates the deep, complex, and indissoluble unity between the two parts of the canon. The subtitle of the book could very well have been: "Why You Should Never Read the New Testament Without One Eye on the Old Testament." As such, it's my kind of book.

[Mark Donald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! I feel like I climbed a mountain having completed this book. Read with Michael Abraham in 2020. There were stretches where I felt tired and it was hard going, like any good hike... but when you get to the top It’s worth it!

Take aways:
- I don’t know the Bible nearly as well as I would like!
- inaugurated eschatology is vitally important for understanding so much of the Bible
- I need to reflect more on the end-time new creation as the destiny of all God’s people and how it has already come (partially) in Christ
- pastorally- preaching the enabling power of the gospel for the scriptures commands and the new creational reality of the Christian life needs to be woven more thoughtfully into the “warp and woof” of my ministry.

[Bob Hayton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Christians today are blessed with a wide variety of resources for studying the Bible. In America, it seems that every few months some must-read theology book hits the press and promises to revolutionize our understanding of God’s Word. And many of these books truly are helpful. We really have no excuse for not understanding Scripture more and being more conformed into the likeness of Christ, given the endless resources meant to help us do just this.

At the same time, however, this abundance of resources can serve to puzzle us and leave us lost in an ever expanding maze of theological conundrums. The specialization in biblical studies doesn’t help. Specialists write on the Gospels, or on Paul’s letters, to the virtual exclusion of the input from other New Testament, or Old Testament books. OT specialists develop their understanding and grow in their study completely apart from their NT counterparts. And with the study of God’s Word being so cranial, simple insights and the role of the Holy Spirit’s illumination tend to be ignored. And then today’s scholars often ignore the insights of previous generations, who found Christ throughout the Old Testament, but weren’t versed in the latest scientific insights from form and redaction criticism or literary theory. Many have seen this widening gap, between academia and the church pew, and yearned for scholarship that matters: academic insight for average individuals. And some have hoped for a whole-Bible, biblical theology that would span the differing worlds of OT and NT scholarship and put the entire Bible back together again.

G. K. Beale may have given us just this. His magnum opus is an ambitious project that seeks to integrate the storylines of the Old and New Testaments, and unfold how the New Testament unpacks the promise of the Old as it unfolds for us the glories of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In "A New Testament Biblical Theology: The Unfolding of the Old Testament in the New," Beale displays a masterful grasp on the academy as well as an expert understanding of the second temple Judaistic literature, Ancient Near Eastern writings, and the latest scholarship on both biblical testaments. He is a humble servant of the church, however, and seeks to answer questions the average churchgoer will face and remains ever practical even as he explores a wide array of various topics. And while his book requires careful and (at times) strenuous reading, it truly integrates the entire canon of Scripture in a way that has promise to bring together Old and New Testament scholarship for the service of the church.

The Storyline of the New Testament

The task Beale sets out for himself is huge, and his book is too. With over 960 readable pages, this book will take the average reader some time to conquer. It took me about a year to wade my way through it, although admittedly I tend to be a fickle reader and so left the book for seasons at a time. Beale sets out to explore the unifying center of the New Testament and finds this in a storyline. Each part of the following storyline gets developed in detail and by the end of the book he has adequately proven his thesis. Here is Beale’s NT storyline:

Jesus’s life, trials, death for sinners, and especially resurrection by the Spirit have launched the fulfillment of the eschatological already-not yet new-creational reign, bestowed by grace through faith and resulting in worldwide commission to the faithful to advance this new-creational reign and resulting in judgment for the unbelieving, unto the triune God’s glory. (p. 958, italics and underlining removed)

Recapping the Old Testament

One of my favorite sections in Beale’s work was his few chapters spent detailing the Old Testament’s own storyline. He uses the first three chapters of Genesis as a key for unlocking the story of the entire Old Testament. Adam was to be a vice-regent of God, extending His rule throughout the world. But Adam failed, and was exiled from the Edenic paradise of fellowship with God in a garden-temple. From this wilderness, God called out his people Israel, referred to as God’s firstborn son, and they received an Adamic calling to be vice-regents of God extending the glory of His name as a beacon of light to the nations, centered in their garden-like promised land of paradise – where God would have His name dwell. But they too failed, and were exiled from their special place of fellowship with God. For those unfamiliar with Beale’s extensive work on developing the theme of the Temple throughout the Scripture (cf. Beale’s The Temple and the Church’s Mission, IVP 2004), it is touched on in this section and more fully developed later as Beale turns to the New Testament.

The Role of Eschatology

Beale’s emphasis on the already-not yet, new-creational kingdom, has led many to dismiss his book as one long extensive defense of amillennialism. I would contend that such a dismissal is short-sighted and a biased misreading of his work. His eschatology doesn’t neatly fit into any one theological system, and he prefers the description “inaugurated eschatology.” His discussion of the key terms for “the end times” in both the Old and New Testaments goes a long way toward proving his contention that “in order to understand the NT in its full richness, we must have a keen acquaintance with how the biblical authors viewed the ‘end times’” (p. 16). He argues that the New Testament sees the end times as here in one sense, but not yet fully here. And that the entire New Testament cannot be understood apart from realizing the role eschatology plays. The NT authors understand themselves to be living in the last days, in the beginning fulfillment of what the Old Testament foretold.

New-Creation and Kingdom

Perhaps Beale’s most distinctive contribution to NT biblical theology is his emphasis on the role new-creation plays both in how one understands the kingdom, and in how one understands everything from justification to judgment in the New Testament. Christ’s resurrection was the promise and presence of the new creation, invading our world of space and time. The uncreating of evil has begun, and the recreation of a new world has commenced – and our very spiritual lives with the progress we make in sanctification, is part of God’s making all things new (2 Cor. 5:17, Rev. 21:5).

The Church as End-Time Israel

This is where many people will stumble over Beale’s approach. Some will point to his embrace of the Sabbath and paedo-baptism as errors flowing from his fundamental misunderstanding of the distinction between Israel and the church. I would ask those who will differ fundamentally here to take time to read Beale as there is still much to be gained from his work. But I am convinced his unpacking of the biblical development of the church as end-time Israel is worth the price of the book. He continues his approach of reading Scripture from a grammatical, historical approach – treating the books as the original recipients would have, understanding the genre and tracing out the history of intertestamental biblical interpretation (as an insight into possible ways the NT authors would have understood OT Scripture), and methodically builds an air-tight case for the NT as presenting the church as the heir of the promises made to OT Israel. At this point, I’d like to take some extra time to restate his case for the sake of my readers. And to be clear, Beale is not claiming the church replaces Israel, but that it actually is “the transformed and restored eschatalogical Israel,” being made up of Jew and gentile believers, alike.

Beale finds a “presuppositional basis” for the church being true Israel in some of the hermeneutical presuppositions he claims underlie the exegetical approach of the NT authors. Chief among these is the concept of “the one and the many.” In the OT we often find kings, prophets, or family heads representing their families, or nations who will receive blessing or judgment because of the actions of the “one” representing “the many.” Rom. 5 and 1 Cor. 15 make a similar argument with Christ and Adam. Secondly, Jesus is presented in Scripture as “the true Israel.” And He thus represents the church. Beale elaborates:

Those who identify by faith with Christ, whether Jew or gentile, become identified with him and his identity as true eschatological Israel…. people are identified by faith with Jesus as God’s Son, and so they become “adopted sons of God.” …people become identified by faith with Christ as being in the eschatological image of God, so they begin to regain that image. (p. 652)

And since Israel was a corporate Adam — God’s firstborn — living in its own “garden of Eden,” tasked to do what Adam had failed to do, it follows that Christ as the Second Adam, actually fulfilled what both Adam and Israel was meant to do. Christ as such, is the New Israel – and Beale shows how numerous themes in the New Testament attest to this fact. Then Beale shows how repeatedly throughout the Old Testament, Gentiles were included in Israel and her mission — and now with Christ’s bringing the end-times upon us, the identifying marks required to be a part of Israel of old (circumcision) have been replaced by that of spiritual circumcision and spiritual unity of Christ — who is the head of the church. Beale points out that it is thus the “legal representative” or “corporate” hermeneutic which under-girds this identification of the church as true Israel, rather than an “allegorical or spiritualizing hermeneutic” (p. 655). What Beale then goes on to systematically demonstrate, is that the Old Testament prophecies that Gentiles will become part of the Latter-Day True Israel, using such passages as Is. 49, Ps. 87, Is. 19, Is. 56, Is. 66 and others. Then he shows how the New Testament repeatedly claims that it is in the church that specific prophesies about the restoration of Latter-Day Israel are coming to pass. I appreciate also how he delineates the variety of specific names and descriptors of Israel from the Old Testament are applied to the church – and with so many OT descriptors of Israel given to the church, it is not surprising to see the actual term Israel bestowed on it as well, in Gal. 6:17.

With the land promise, Beale once again unpacks how the Old Testament itself leads us to expect that the land is typological, pointing to a greater reality, and that it will become greatly expanded and universalized. And the New Testament shows us just this, as it also brings the church in to the recipients of that very promise (see Rom. 4:13, Matt. 5:5 and others).

Additional Themes

Beale’s work covers a host of additional themes my review cannot cover in detail. He highlights how the expected tribulation of Israel was being experienced by the New Testament church, and still is in most parts of the world today. He gives space to the new-creational marks of the church such as Sabbath observance (although his view on this finds it radically altered through Christ’s work), worship, baptism, the Lord’s Supper, church office and the NT Canon. He looks at the work of the Spirit as part of the inaugurated end-time new creation as a chief theme in the NT story. He also gives space to the Temple and to idolatry and the image of God being restored. He also explores questions such as how much the Old Testament saints would have enjoyed this same experience we do in the NT. And he concludes his book focusing on the glory of God as the purpose for the very storyline itself.

Evaluation

I was told that you don’t pick up a book like this and read through it. You just use it as a resource. And for many that is going to be how they will encounter Beale’s work. Thankfully, it is organized in a very clear way with helpful indexes and a detailed table of contents that is sure to help such a reader. Those who want a taste of Beale’s work could read the first few chapters, and chapter 27 – which recaps the entire work giving each theme a brief yet fairly detailed overview. Others might find it more useful to read through Beale’s section on resurrection or justification, or the question of Israel and the church as they study that topic out further. The footnotes will point you to other important discussions in the book so that you won’t miss something you need in getting Beale’s take on a given subject.

I differ with Beale on a few matters, most notably baptism, but I found the exercise of plodding my way through his work to be immensely helpful. My copy of the book has numerous notes, underlines, and countless dog-eared pages. I have already turned back to parts of this book for the second or even third time now, and know I’ll be returning to this book for many more years in the future. This truly is a monumental work, and one that even a layman like me can appreciate. Granted, I have had some theological training, and at times this book does go deep. But for the most part, Beale’s work is accessible and has takeaways that pastors and teachers as well as students, will benefit from. More importantly, Beale helps one find a compass through the maze of the two testaments of Scripture. And his work is detailed enough to stand the test of time. It carefully explains how the New Testament authors arrived at the conclusions they did, and follows their thoughts after them, reading the Old Testament in a careful and ultimately Christ-centered way. I encourage you to find some space on your shelf for Beale’s "A NT Biblical Theology". Dip your toe in, get wet, then take the plunge and bask in the beauty of a fully developed Biblical Theology. You won’t regret it.

[Daniel Bouchoc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptional book:
- The go-to for the Amil/already not yet.
- From a Biblical Theological lense, covers most topics in Systematic Theology.
- Teaches the reader how to think about the Bible in a connected way.
- The scope of this book is incredible. A significant portion is given to the OT which isn't clear from the title
- You will get more from spending a few months in this book than most seminary classes.

While I'm not sure how long I will stick around in the Amil camp, this is by far the most thorough unpacking I've read and I'm a better thinker for reading it.

[Eric Chappell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beale is a beast. Great addition to the Vos-Kline-Ridderbos tradition. I think the book as a whole is best used as a reference work, though to gain the most from it you should read it cover to cover. I will be returning to passages and parts of this book over and over again. I especially profited from his discussion on the biblical storyline, eschatological tribulation, idolatry, and the temple motif

My only complaint is that because of the work's largesse, Beale brings up controversial issues (infant baptism, ecclesiology, Rom 7, etc.) and only hints at conclusions. I suppose this leaves room for further biblical-theological work on particular topics, but at some points it was annoying.

The one thing that would have improved this book (but made it even longer than it is) would be a methodology for how to discern what is a legitimate echo or allusion to the OT in the NT. I think Beale just recently published the Handbook on the NT Use of the OT--so that's probably where one needs to go.

[Phillip Howell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vitamins For the Soul

My friend, Dustin, has always told me that reading Beale is like taking vitamins for the soul. Just like with vitamins most of what you consume you will pass through your body (you will be pee it out), but the small good parts that you keep are really good for you. In the same way, much of what Beale writes here is not going to stick with me.

The book is so thorough that it feels like he provides every possible bible verse to make each point. On the one hand, this is a testimony to his incredible work and the depth of his scholarly ability. On the other hand, it makes it a chore to read through. I suggest if you want to just take the pure nutrients and not bother with the pages of supporting commentary, then simply read the last two chapters. They are great summaries of the whole book. After reading them, you can think about the points being made and then read the specific sections or chapters that are of interest.

[Mitch Bedzyk · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolute goldmine, covering arguably every major biblical theme in rigorous detail. The way Beale masterfully shows the OT unfolding in the NT serves to highlight the glory of God and the majesty and unity of Scripture. Anyone considering "unhitching" themselves from the Old Testament would do well to read this. I will definitely be returning to this book for years to come (partly because I've already forgotten several of the specific points, arguments, and surprising inter-biblical connections tucked away in its 962 pages!).

I can see this book being used more like a reference work, making use of the 50+ page Scripture and Subject indexes. The last two chapters, that make up the conclusion, provide an excellent summary of many canonical themes tackled in the book.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Greg Beale's magnum opus. There are plenty of points at which one will likely disagree with Beale and the way he has constructed his project, but you have to give a little respect to a guy who writes an eleven hundred page biblical theology. Likely, this is the culmination of thirty years of his teaching. It took me a month to chew through it.

[Pascal Denault · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely useful book. I love this theme in every chapter: "The Story of... as inaugurated End-Time New Creation". I use it to prepare my sermons.

[Danny Daugherty · Rating 5 out of 5]

While this might not be one of the most purely 'enjoyable' books I've read this year, it may be the most important book to me that I've read this year. Beale does an excellent job of displaying the disparate threads of the Old Testament and displaying how they all weave together into the incredible tapestry of the New Testament. A few aspects of the book were particularly helpful:

1: Beale does an excellent job displaying how deeply important Genesis 1-3 is to the rest of the Old Testament, and to understanding the person of Jesus Christ as the perfect Adam and image-bearer who did what Adam and Israel failed to do: ruling and subduing the earth so that the presence of God may spread to the whole earth. It's impossible to miss these themes throughout the rest of Scripture after reading this book.

2: The concept of the future new creation breaking into the present through the incarnation, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus is the most prominent theme in this book, and Beale does a great job exploring how so many doctrines, such as justification, reconciliation, sanctification, tribulation and judgment, the work of the Spirit, etc are all colored by the in-breaking new creation. This makes every single one of these doctrines more rich.

3: I couldn't believe how many New Testament texts subtly allude to Old Testament books and passages, particularly Genesis and Isaiah. I gained a whole new appreciation for how deeply steeped the New Testament writers were in the Old Testament, and it made me more in awe of the unity of Scripture.

I could go on and on, but overall the reason I appreciate this book so much is because it made me a deeper lover of Scripture. A commitment to reading this book is similar to a commitment to consistency work out. The act itself isn't always enjoyable, but you won't look back on the decision with regret because the investment led to greater health.

[Josh S]

Listening to this book (as a 46-hour audiobook) was probably a mistake. It would have been better to read this and look up every Bible reference as it went along. But then it would have taken me multiple years to finish this. This book was plodding, with flashes of glorious truth. I didn’t like when there were edifices founded on potential allusions or plausible arguments rather than clear statements of Scripture. I sometimes zoned out while listening, then would refocus again on a particularly beautiful section of writing-- only to realize that it was beautiful because he was quoting Scripture.

Reading this and The Unseen Realm together made me want to stop reading so many books about the Bible and just focus more on the Bible itself.

I'd give this 3/5 but I don't feel like it's completely fair given an audiobook listen rather than a full read.

[Michaël St-Amour · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book. Beale exposes some major themes in the New Testament throughout their implication in the Old Testament. The book is well constructed, provides major analysis and exegesis, and offers defense in some orthodox doctrines. It will certainly help students, pastors and teachers to dig down some themes in the NT.

[Mary Wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading any of Greg Beale's books is a lifetime proposition! I am taking on this challenge because I heard him speak on the subject and promised I would give it a try. He makes the subject very intriguing. So far so good.

[Lance Kinzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I spent almost two years working my way through this 900 plus page tour de force of Biblical theology and am sad that it has come to an end. Beale's passion for God's Glory shines through in this work which I am sure I will return to often in years to come.

[Scott Rudy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful. A great in depth look an the progression of eschatology through the course of Scripture.

[Gabriel Magill · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book does an excellent job of tracing the eschatological themes of redemption and new creation through the whole of the biblical narrative. While I would need to a much deeper study to fully flesh out Beale's arguments and see how they stand up to Scripture, my initial impression on my first read through is that Beale's exegesis is solid and the connections he makes between various passages are handled well. I have recently been reevaluating my eschatology and I found Beale's comprehensive of the Old Testament's view of the eschaton was very helpful as I have rarely seen that topic viewed through an OT lens. Overall, this is a great resource book for pastors and biblical students.

[Jeremy Fritz · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. I feel like this could have been 300-400 pages shorter and accomplished the goal. But it was very good!

[Danny Barulli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely eye opening!

[Joel Lomman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every time I opened this book I got an itchy knee.

[Jeremy Hendon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is Beale’s magnum opus! I’m in awe of the sheer amount of work that has to go into this kind of resource. Beale unpacks inaugurated eschatology (what is “already, but not yet”) throughout the Bible and I uncovered many gems as I read. This is one I will be returning to throughout my life.

[Eric Yap · Rating 5 out of 5]

Took me months to finish this 1000-page tome because of intermittent reading commitments/patterns. It's hard to succinctly review Beale's magisterial work on biblical theology, but even though Beale titles his work "A New Testament Biblical Theology," it is not a stretch to categorize this magisterial work as a "whole bible/OTNT biblical theology," as Beale aims to demonstrate how the biblical narrative of the NT is the fulfilment of the OT, hence the subtitle of the book: The Unfolding of the OT in the NT. Beale develops and describes the narrative of the OT in his opening chapters as "the story of God, who progressively reestablishes his new creational kingdom out of chaos over a sinful people by his word and Spirit through promise, covenant, and redemption, resulting in worldwide commission to the faithful to advance this kingdom and judgment (defeat or exile) for the unfaithful, unto his glory," and the narrative of the NT as "Jesus’s life, trials, death for sinners, and especially resurrection by the Spirit have launched the fulfillment of the eschatological already–not yet new-creational reign, bestowed by grace through faith and resulting in worldwide commission to the faithful to advance this new-creational reign and resulting in judgment for the unbelieving, unto the triune God’s glory." Granted, the BT/redemptive narrative of the OTNT that Beale postulates are not entirely new thoughts and are commonly accepted frameworks in biblical theology, but what is brilliant and paradigm-shifting is Beale's presentation of biblical theology through demonstrating how the NT authors cite and employ the OT texts (if you are familiar with Beale's work, his speciality and doctoral research is in the NT use of the OT). Hence, this tome is an exegesis/hermeneutics heavyweight, as Beale shows how the NT authors demonstrate the OT is fulfilled in Christ by exploring all the citations and allusions to the OT texts, comparing the original language and theology of the NT and OT authors that revealed a consistent biblical narrative through the entire scripture. One reviewer actually suggested to read this book side by side with an open bible, but the amount of hermeneutical and exegetical workings is so massive and detailed that it would take me a far longer time to finish this book if I had work through all the biblical texts and theological conclusion in Beale's book. Additionally, Beale also employs Judaism/Qumran/Philo materials as theological commentaries for the OT, not as authoritative scriptures, but as comparisons to the NT, revealing what Judaism or the Qumran community believed about or how they interpreted the OT, showing that the NT authors have not misconstrued the OT but are consistent to how Judaism has understood the OT as eschatological/forward-pointing, at the same time differing with Judaism/Qumram as the NT authors are unabashedly Christocentric in its fulfilment of the OT. Beale's work is also an extension to Vos-Gaffin's works on the eschatological/already not-yet framework to biblical theology, as Beale explores many themes in OT prophecies, the inaugurated-eschatological reality in the NT (already in fulfilment), as well as the future consummated reality (not yet in complete fulfilment), with chapters on the church as the New Israel due to her participation in Christ, the law in the new covenant, the Sabbath, the role of the Holy Spirit, justification/sanctification, suffering/persecution of the church and many other thematic elements of biblical theology/redemptive history, locating these themes in an eschatological storyline that have begun to unfold in the death and resurrection of Christ and is unfolding towards the final consummation. Again, it is hard to succinctly review Beale's magnum opus here, but if you would only read one comprehensive tome on biblical theology, let it be Beale's, as his NTBT is unlike every other NT theologies out there (Schreiner, Ladd, Marshall, Guthrie, Thielman) as the highlight of this work is really in Beale's exegetical demonstration of the way the NT authors employed the OT to present a coherent, redemptive-historical, eschatological, biblical storyline. On a side note, TGC has a course by Beale from WTS on his NSBT, delivered and recorded before this book was published, but the lectures are a good companion to the book.

[Kenneth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm currently some 200 pages deep into this magisterial study of the New Testament in relation to the Old Testament. Beale's thesis is that the Biblical storyline, from Genesis to Revelation, is an eschatological storyline: From Genesis 1, there is a forward looking in hope for a promised seed of deliverance from satanic persecution and false teachings. The Book of Daniel becomes a central Old Testament resource for the Gospel and Epistle and Apocalypse writers of the New Testament, as they reveal Jesus of Nazareth inaugurating the end-time Kingdom of God through an ironic reign as the Suffering Servant-King of suffering servant-believers. Christ's earthly ministry is seen as the future kingdom of God breaking through the historical fabric of His lifetime, inaugurating the Kingdom of God which awaits full realization in the future, and which undergoes satanic and antichrist persecution and false teaching and defiling of the temple (which Beale understands to be the church).

He is radically and profoundly altering my understanding of the over-arching narrative of Scripture, and I cannot but praise God for the gift of this teacher to His church in such evil days. I definitely highly recommend it! Clearly written, elegantly laid out. Have patience through the first sixty pages or so, and walk into the astonishment of his overview of the Old Testament, the eschatological atmosphere prevalent in the day of early Judaism (the matrix in which the church evolved), and the New Testament witness to the prophetic nature of even the historical books of the Old Testament as directed towards the promise of deliverance from our chains to the glory of God through Christ! Incredible!

One of the most exciting writings on the New Testament I've come across.

[Caleb Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

G.K. Beale is a scholar that I have admired for a long time. He is arguably the foremost expert on the New Testament use of Old Testament material, which makes him relatively unique among New Testament theologians, insofar as his work provides insight into the whole narrative of scripture.

This topic of the full witness of scripture is precisely what this volume seeks to address. Beale sets out to develop an exposition of what he deems to be the central thematic and narrative focus of the New Testament in light of Old Testament revelation. It is for this reason that the title “New Testament Biblical Theology” is somewhat inadequate to describe this work. It is, in many ways, a theology of the whole Bible.

Beale’s argument is clear and largely convincing (though I have a few minor points of disagreement), though admittedly it is presented in a rather dry and academic manner. Essentially, this 1000 page magnum opus can be summed up in two powerful words, namely, “new creation”! Beale has unpacked these words and their significance within Christian theology in a way that is truly impressive. I fully recommend this book.

[Laurent Dv · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitively excellent. The book to be read concerning Biblical Theology. If everyone could have access to this book, much more believers would be able to understand the coherence and the relevance of the Bible (particularly of the Old Testament). Israel would not be considered as a boring interlude between the first and the second Adam. What I really appreciated is
- The tremendous quantity of biblical intextuality that Beale notice
- The exposition of eschatological concepts already present in the Old Testament
- His chapter explaning how to understand the prophecies regarding Israel restoration and their accomplishment according to the New Testament. : it's the only book that completely satisfied me on the subject. Really, not one was as clear as Beale's work
You will find in this book all Beale's teaching summed up : in fact there are the content of his books on the Temple and Idolatry.

[Andrzej Stelmasiak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb stuff.

5 stars although it is not free of its idiosyncrasies, I still scratch my head at the idea of attributing John Piper's view of justification (which is basically a repetition of what Richard Baxter thought) to John Owen, who refuted Baxter.
There's a dose of repetition in this book, and because it's not aiming at being comprehensive treatment of everything that Beale mentioned (i.e. the Sabbath, etc.), one can find himself thinking 'that's good, but Beale could go deeper with it'. Mind you, just imagine what that would do to already 1000 pages long book!

Totally recommended. Even if I was familiar with most concepts, I still have learnt some new things. Very glad that my friend has suggested reading it together! (Which is what I would advise to do, helps with perseverance).

[Nathaniel Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remarkable book! Beale reminds us all of his exegetical rigor and careful scholarly thought. Although I do have some concerns regarding the church/Israel, Baptism, and the Sabbath this book is a must for pastors, teachers, and students of Scripture. I will be turning to it for many years to come.

[Scott Korljan · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a Masterpiece! It took me about 3 years to read (1000 pages) and I have forgotten almost everything I read. However, I can tell you with certainty it was really, really good. I will be consulting this book regularly in the years to come

[Kevin Halloran]

I didn't read this whole book, but I did listen to this free audio series through the book's main ideas. So encouraging!

[Ben Duncan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent! Beale's entire volume is superb, but his chapters on how the church is true Israel were awesome.