‘Return To Me’

Description

“Return to me, says the LORD of hosts, and I will return to you,” (Zech 1:3 ESV).

Repentance concerns the repair of a relationship with God disrupted by human sin. All the major phases of church history have seen diversity and controversy over the doctrine. The first of Luther’s famous ninety-five theses nailed to the church door in Wittenburg in 1517 stated that ‘the entire life of believers should be one of repentance’. In recent times, two divisive debates within evangelicalism over ‘lordship salvation” and “hypergrace” have had repentance at their core.

The theme of repentance is evident in almost every Old and New Testament corpus. However, it has received little sustained attention over the past half-century of scholarship, which has been largely restricted to word studies or focused on a particular text or genre. Studies of the overall theology of the Bible have typically given the theme only passing mention.

In response, Mark Boda offers a comprehensive overview of the theological witness of Scripture to the theme of repentance in this New Studies in Biblical Theology volume. The key to understanding is not simply to be found in word studies, but also in the broader meaning of texts as these communicate through a variety of words, images and stories. The importance of repentance in redemptive history is emphasised. It is fundamentally a return to intimate fellowship with the triune God, our Creator and redeemer. This relational return arises from the human heart and impacts attitudes, words and actions.

CONTENTS

Series preface
Author’s preface
Abbreviations
1. Introduction
2. Repentance in the Torah
3. Repentance in the Former Prophets
4. Repentance in the Latter Prophets: Penitential Process
5. Repentance in the Latter Prophets: Isaiah
6. Repentance in the Latter Prophets: Jeremiah and Ezekiel
7. Repentance in the Latter Prophets: The Twelve
8. Repentance in the Writings: Wisdom and Worship
9. Repentance in the Writings: Exile and Restoration
10. Repentance in the Writings: Chronicles
11. Repentance in Old Testament Theology
12. Repentance in the New Testament
13. Repentance in New Testament Theology
14. Theological Implications of Repentance
Bibliography
Index of Authors
Index of Scripture References

Author

Mark J. Boda is Professor of Old Testament at McMaster Divinity College and Professor in the Faculty of Theology at McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. He is the author of numerous books, including ‘Praying the Tradition’ and ‘A Severe Mercy’, a commentary on 1 & 2 Chronicles, and studies of Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi. He is co-editor of the ‘Dictionary of the Old Testament: Prophets and Seeking the Favour of God’ (3 volumes).

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