A Brief History of Old Testament Criticism: From Benedict Spinoza to Brevard Childs

Listen to a sermon by Mark Gignilliaton Isaiah 6. (Red Mountain Church)

Publisher's Description

Modern Old Testament interpretation arose in an intellectual environment marked by interest in specific historical contexts of the Bible, attention to its literary matters, and, most significantly, the suspension of belief. A vast array of scholars contributed to the large, developing complex of ideas and trends that now serves as the foundation of contemporary discussions on interpretation. In A Brief History of Old Testament Criticism, Mark Gignilliat brings representative figures---such as Baruch Spinoza, W.M.L. de Wette, Julius Wellhausen, Hermann Gunkel, and others---and their theories together to serve as windows into the critical trends of Old Testament interpretation in the modern period.

This concise overview is ideal for classroom use. It lays a foundation and provides a working knowledge of the major critical interpreters of the Old Testament, their approaches to the Bible, and the philosophical background of their positions. Each chapter concludes with a section "For Further Reading", directing students to additional resources on specific theologians and theories.

192 Pages
Published June 2012

About the Author

Mark Gignilliat (PhD, University of St. Andrews) is assistant professor of divinity at Beeson Divinity School in Alabama, where he has taught Hebrew, Old Testament Exegesis, and Biblical Theology since 2005. Before coming to Beeson Divinity School, he taught at Wycliffe Hall, University of Oxford. Gignilliat is the author of Paul and Isaiah’s Servants and Karl Barth and the Fifth Gospel: Barth’s Theological Exegesis of Isaiah. He has articles published in Scottish Journal of Theology, Horizons in Biblical Theology, Westminster Theological Journal, Biblica, and The Journal for Theological Interpretation. In his pre-doctoral days, he served as youth director at North Hills Community Church in Greenville, South Carolina. Gignilliat and his wife, Naomi, have two sons.