The Crucifixion of the Warrior God: Interpreting the Old Testament’s Violent Portraits of God in Light of the Cross PDF
Preview The Crucifixion of the Warrior God: Interpreting the Old Testament’s Violent Portraits of God in Light of the Cross
Praise for The Crucifixion of the Warrior God “Nothing shakes the faith of the morally sensitive more than the shocking violence of God as depicted in specific Old Testament texts, and yet nothing confirms the faith of the same people more than the cruciform love and peace of Jesus in the New Testament. Boyd’s pro- posal is to bring these two poles into a cruciform hermeneutic. The oldapproachofMarciondoesn’tresolvetheproblem,anddismissalsof theOldTestamentinfavoroftheNeworquestion-bettingtheological explanationsdon’thelpeither.WhatGregoryA.BoyddoesinTheCru- cifixionoftheWarriorGodisnothinglessthanastunningreimagination of how to read the Bible afresh through the cross of Jesus.” —Scot McKnight, Northern Seminary, Chicago, author of The King Jesus Gospel “Gregory A. Boyd has written an impressive work:theologically alert, carefulandthoroughinitstreatmentofmanydifficulttexts,compre- hensivelyreferenced,andmovingindepththroughbothtestaments.It deserves wide attention from readers across theological disciplines.” —Terence E. Fretheim, Elva B. Lovell Professor Emeritus, Luther Seminary “DirectlyaddressingcriticsoftheOldTestamentGodwhoseeonlyvio- lence in God’s nature—probably the common understanding of Yah- wehthroughoutmostofthechurchage—GregoryA.Boydisbothruth- less and thorough in his responses. Boyd hears the text, he hears the context, and he hears the history of interpretation of the text—but healsohearsmostclearlythecruciformtheology that,forChristians, must inform our final reading of the text. The phrase ‘magnum opus’ andtheterm‘magisterial’trulyapplytothistwovolumework—forthis isBoyd’svoluminousgifttothechurchaswellastothecontemporary theological enterprise. I predict that these volumes will quickly take their place as must-reading for Christian exegetes and theologians of all stripes.” —William Hamilton Barnes, University of Minnesota “Wenowhaveaplenitudeofstudiespreoccupiedwiththevexedques- tion of the violence of God in the Bible. But we have nothing like this study by Boyd, who offers a major contribution and a significant advanceinourthinkingabouttheproblem.Boydbringshisenormous erudition and his acute theological passion to the question. He looks the violence of God, as attested in Scripture, full in the face without flinching. But he submits that testimony to the absolute and ultimate truth of the cross, which both permits and requires the recognition thatwe‘arenotsupposedtotaketheseviolentdivineportrayalsatface value.’BoydmobilizestheremarkableresourcesoftheChristianinter- pretativetraditiontoshowthatsuchdivineviolenceisstrategic,ped- agogical, and accommodating but is not definitional for the truth of God that is to be found in the self-giving of God in the cross. This is a most welcome and daring study that may indeed change the terms of ourongoingwondermentabouthowtoreadScriptureandhowtotrust and obey the God who dwells therein.” —Walter Brueggemann, Columbia Theological Seminary “When I read most scriptural treatments of violence, the enduring question of the coherence of Scripture is far too easily answered by wishful thinking or dismissing scriptural texts that should rightly linger with us. In this evocative new book, Gregory A. Boyd has taken thecanonicityofScriptureseriously,avoidingboththepitfallsofMar- cionism and Christomonism, and articulated what promises to reset theconversationaroundScriptureandviolence.Drawinguponawide rangeoffigures,fromOrigenandAugustinetoT.F.TorranceandKarl Barth, Boyd constructs a christoform way of approaching Scripture thatwillnotsatisfyeveryquestion—Istillhavemany!—butthatisseri- ous, sober, and theologically sensitive. Boyd has pointed toward the scripturalscandalofaGodwhoiscrucified,andaskedustostandstill to consider the implications for how we engage a violent world.” —Myles Werntz, T. B. Maston Chair of Christian Ethics, Hardin- Simmons University, Abilene, Texas “Reading Gregory A. Boyd’s Crucifixion of the Warrior God is like being sweptintoanocean,overwhelmedbythebreadthanddepthofanew world discovered beneath the sea. Here, a world is opened up where the violence of the Old Testament becomes not merely tolerable but illuminestheGodwholoves,nevercoerces,andrejectsallviolencein Jesus Christ. A monumental work. Breathtaking in scope. A stunning accomplishmentfromoneofthebrillianttheologicalmindsofourday. I could not be more thankful for a book.” —DavidFitch,BRLindnerChairofEvangelicalTheology,Northern Seminary, Chicago, and author ofFaithful Presence “DivineviolenceintheOldTestamenthas,inrecentyears,becomeone of the most pressing problems for Christian thinkers. Common ways forward include either synthesizing this material with the nonviolent portraitofGodrevealedinJesusordismissingitaslackinginanyreal revelational import. In this groundbreaking new work, Boyd charts a third way, a largely unexplored path that recovers lost intuitions of the early church. In the process, he offers a new hermeneutic that promises to put ‘Christ and him crucified’ at the center of all biblical interpretationinaconsistentfashion.Thistwo-volumeprojectisboth sweeping in scope and stunning in its many insights.” —Paul Rhodes Eddy, Bethel University “Boyd has never shied away from tackling the most difficult and con- tentious issues that confront thoughtful Christians. And, as usual, his own convictions do not lie hidden. But if readers have followed the arguments, they also know that careful research and discerning thoughthavebeenemployedinordertoreachhisconclusions.Witha workofsuchvastscope,mosteveryonewillhavedisagreements—some maybeserious,evenfundamental.However,anycarefulreaderwillbe rewarded with a substantial education about the issues.” —Mark Thiessen Nation, coauthor of Bonhoeffer the Assassin? Chal- lenging the Myth, Recovering His Call to Peacemaking “BoydcontendsthattheOldTestamentportraitsofaviolentGodactu- ally testify to the God of self-giving, nonviolent love revealed on Cal- vary.Itthatpossible?Plausible?Only,saysBoyd,ifweunderstandthe crucified Christ as the definitive self-revelation of God and therefore read all of Scripture with a cross-centered hermeneutic. Thoroughly researched and passionately written, this is a perceptive, timely, dar- ing, and controversial proposal regarding one of the most important issues in Christian theology.” —Michael J. Gorman, Raymond E. Brown Professor of Biblical Studies andTheology, SaintMary’s Seminary andUniversity, Bal- timore, Maryland The Crucifixion of the Warrior God The Crucifixion of the Warrior God Interpreting the Old Testament’s Violent Portraits of God in Light of the Cross Gregory A. Boyd Fortress Press Minneapolis THE CRUCIFIXION OF THE WARRIOR GOD Interpreting the Old Testament’s Violent Portraits of God in Light of the Cross Volumes 1 & 2 Copyright © 2017 Gregory A. Boyd, admin. Fortress Press. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical articles or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Email [email protected] or write to Permissions, Fortress Press, PO Box 1209, Minneapolis, MN 55440-1209. Cover design: Brad Norr 2-volume set: Print ISBN: 978-1-5064-2075-2 eBook ISBN: 978-1-5064-2076-9 The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences — Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z329.48-1984. Manufactured in the U.S.A. This book was produced using Pressbooks.com, and PDF rendering was done by PrinceXML. To my brave sister, Debbie Sparrow
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