The Functions of Old Testament Law

The relationship between the two Testaments has been debated from a time even before Marcion made his infamous assertion that the Testaments must be referring to two completely different Gods. Questions remain regarding the exact meaning of the Old Testament law, its relationship to the Pentateuch, and its later association with the New Testament. Without a proper understanding of the relationship between the law and the Testaments, modern Christianity risks either overstating or ignoring the relevance of the Old Testament altogether. The Old Testament legal functions provide a platform to apply the law to modern life in a co-identified relationship with God that is highlighted by the final shape of the Pentateuch, which points to a Messiah that restores people to God by grace through faith. First, a brief analysis regarding how the Old Testament Law functions within the event space of ancient Israel highlights God’s character, covenant, wisdom, and mission. Next, an examination of progressive moral wisdom built upon the foundation of divine co-identification answers how the Old Testament law applies to modern life. A final section discusses the meaning of the Pentateuch within the canon of Scripture as a whole, which ultimately points to a Messiah, Jesus Christ.

The Function of the Old Testament Law in Ancient Israel

Character of God

Old Testament Law for Christians: Original Context and Enduring Application

The function of the Old Testament in the event space of ancient Israel is not only debated but also multi-faceted within each of the differing views. Roy Gane provides a traditional approach to the function of the Old Testament law and suggests that its function arises from its purpose.[1] According to Moses, the purpose or at least one of the purposes of the Old Testament law was to set forth guidelines for the Israelites to follow so that they may live, multiply, and be blessed by God in the promised land (Deut 30:16). However, the multi-faceted nature of the Old Testament law moves beyond the setting of guidelines, and it functions to reveal God’s character, define the covenant relationship, teach wisdom, and encourage Israel to serve as a role model for other nations.[2] Each of these specific functions require further explanation. Furthermore, due to their foundational nature, the functions will also be periodically revisited throughout the remainder of the research.

First, regarding God’s character, the relationship between the law’s attitudinal and behavioral direction and the character of God is wrapped in the concept of holiness. Foundational to the laws written in the Holiness Code is the command, “You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy (Lev 19:2).”[3] To be sure, ancient Near Eastern law codes that regulated societal norms existed within Israel’s broader cultural milieu. However, John and Harvey Walton assert that the Old Testament law is not a list of rules or demands, but instead, a reflection of Yahweh that reveals to the Israelites what it means to image God.[4] The distinction is significant because holiness and morality, especially in the Old Testament, are often conflated. The Israelites are called to an ontological reality of “being” holy, rather than a behavioral reality of “doing” holy. In other words, as Walton and Walton explain, the holiness referred to by Leviticus 19 is about co-identification or a conferred holiness.[5] Accordingly, a function of the Old Testament law is to highlight God’s holy character and encourage the Israelites to become who they already are. It is through a covenantal relationship with Yahweh that co-identification with Israel occurs.

Covenant of Grace

It is difficult to overestimate the importance of God’s covenantal framework that encompasses the Old Testament law. Prior to Yahweh revealing the legal material to the Israelites, a covenantal relationship with the Israelites already existed within a framework of grace. In short, Yahweh and Abram entered a covenantal relationship in Genesis 12:1-3, which was ratified in Genesis 15 and extended to Israel in Exodus 6:6-7 with a promise of redemption. Furthermore, an ongoing relationship is offered to the Israelites as communicated by Yahweh to Moses, “If you indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exod 19:5-6). The extension of God’s covenant of grace to the chosen people of Israel, a nation without merit, is palpable. However, in order for the Israelites to obey, they needed to understand the rulership of their king. Accordingly, John Currid explains that Yahweh patterned the relational dynamics after the suzerain-vassal treaties common in the ancient Near Eastern culture between a king and his subjects.[6] The treaty format would have been familiar to the Israelites, and the collection of laws provided by Yahweh would have been understood as functioning as stipulations to the covenant.

Two important questions remain that pertain to the function of the law. First, why did God think it necessary to provide additional laws at Mount Sinai in Exodus 20 if the Israelites already had a body of laws to administer justice in Exodus 18? Second, why were additional laws necessary if the relationship between Yahweh had already been established through faith with Abraham (cf. Gen 12:2-3; 15:5-6). A glimpse into the answer might arise from reflection on the Apostle Paul’s words to the Galatians when he states, “Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made” (Gal 3:19). John Sailhamer applies compositional analysis to the narratives in Exodus 19 and concludes that “God’s initial intention at Mount Sinai was a relationship with Israel much like his covenant with Abraham, based on faith and having no laws.”[7] Specifically, Sailhamer asserts that all the people were to meet God on the mountain, but instead, they remained fearful in their camp, they lacked faith.[8] Accordingly, without faith, nothing existed to keep the Israelites loyal to their covenant with Yahweh, thus the laws, the covenant stipulations, were required to keep the people loyal. The addition of the laws due to the sin of faithlessness confirms Paul’s assertion that the law was added because of transgressions. The fear of God’s presence due to the lack of faith, according to Sailhamer, shifted the relational focus from faith to the temple, and shifted Moses’s role from a prophet to a priestly mediator.[9] In sum, the law functioned to keep the disbelieving Israelites loyal to the covenant.

Teaching of Wisdom

Another important function of the Old Testament law is to teach wisdom. According to Claude Cox, torah and wisdom have a reciprocal relationship: torah embraces wisdom and wisdom embraces torah.[10] Scholars often assert that the legal material in the Old Testament was not codified legislation, but instead, aligns with the genre of wisdom lists, similar to the book of Proverbs.[11] More specifically, Gane notes that the New Testament asserts that the Old Testament law functioned to motivate the Israelites to use wisdom in following the divine principles and values established by Yahweh.[12] A specific application of wisdom is evident within both the direct and indirect consequences articulated by the Old Testament laws. Additionally, the warnings provided by the laws (cf. Lev 18:26-29) impart practical advice for everyday living, another attribute of wisdom.

Wisdom and its relationship with the law also find their way within the compositional structure of the Pentateuch, especially with regard to wisdom’s paradoxical nature. Wisdom is evident within the literary structure of the Pentateuch. First, wisdom applies to all parts of life from the mundane to the abstract and from the personal to the relational. Similarly, Sailhamer notes that the reason the Pentateuch recorded the law in considerable detail was to show the deep concern that Yahweh had for every detail of life.[13] Second, the law also functioned to show Israel that they failed to adequately keep the law, meaning that they did not keep the law by faith.[14] Paradoxically, Moses, who lived under the law (cf. Exod 20:1-20) could not enter the Promised Land, while Abraham, who lived prior to the law was said to have kept Yahweh’s law (Gen 26:5). Third, Sailhamer explains that the law functioned to paradoxically teach the readers of the Pentateuch that the laws were not added to stop the Israelites from sinning, an impossibility, but “to keep them from disappearing into the world of sin around them.”[15] Finally, Sailhamer explains that the law functioned to teach its readers a spirit of justice in regards to the practical matters of life.[16] Without question, the Old Testament law and its relationship to the Pentateuch’s composition function to teach wisdom.

Reclamation of Nations

The final function of the law is to serve as a role model for other nations. Gane suggests that the well-being of the Israelites from following the law would be attractive to other nations and pull them toward the Source of their blessing.[17] Gane is not exactly wrong, but something beyond a modified version of the prosperity gospel is likely occurring, something more missiological in the spiritual sense. Michael Heiser explains that God disinherited the pagan nations to other gods (Deut 32:8) when He made Israel His own “portion” (Deut 32:9), thus God created the Abrahamic covenant to reclaim the pagan nations (Gen 12:3), and ultimately every nation is given the opportunity to be reconciled to Christ (Acts 17:30-31).[18] The missiological aspect of the law that functions as part of Yahweh’s reclamation of the nations, also entails a messianic aspect. The angel of the Lord tells Abraham that “in your offspring (זֶ֫רַע) [seed] shall all the nations of the earth be blessed” (Gen 22:18). Sailhamer argues that the seed is a type of grammatical homonym that means both plural, the many physical descendants of Abraham, and singular, the one Christ (cf. Gal 3:16).[19] Accordingly, the function of the Old Testament law has implications for the reclamation of the nations that include aspects of role modeling, missiology, and messiahship. In sum, the multi-faceted functions of the law illuminate the character of God, the covenant of grace, the teaching of wisdom, and the reclamation of the nations. Finally, the functions of the Old Testament law in ancient Israel provide the impetus for launching a discussion regarding the law’s modern application.

The Function of the Old Testament Law in Modern Life

Variegated Approaches

The function of the Old Testament law within the current theological and experiential life of the church ranges from radical discontinuity to radical continuity. A brief analysis of the diverse approaches to applying the Old Testament law is in order. Gane references Christian Reconstructionism as an example of radical continuity, which espouses the idea that the Old Testament laws are permanently applicable to all areas of life.[20] Alternatively, the concepts of practical impossibility, dispensationalism, and traditional Lutheran theology provide examples of differing forms of discontinuity.[21] For the purpose of the following analysis, a moderating position is taken. However, even within moderating positions, various options exist.

Moderating positions find a combination of both continuity and discontinuity between the Old Testament law and modern life. A popular approach arises from Reformed theology, which attempts to categorize law as moral, ceremonial, and judicial to determine which directives continue to apply. Scott Duvall and Daniel Hays’s approach embraces the concept of principlism, which assumes the theological principles revealed in the Old Testament laws apply to both the original audience and to modern believers.[22] Numerous variations upon the theme of principlism also exist.[23] Additionally, Gane notes that Waldemar Janzen and Christopher J. H. Wright espouse a paradigmatic approach that focuses less on specific principles and more on a system of belief and value paradigms.[24] Finally, under the influence of the moderating approaches, Gane provides his own approach: progressive moral wisdom.

Progressive Moral Wisdom

Many approaches that apply Old Testament law to the current theological and experiential life of the church build upon the law’s function as a teacher of wisdom. The New Testament framework emerges from 2 Timothy 3:15-17 where Paul explains that all Scripture is profitable, and the sacred writings “make you wise for salvation.” According to Gane, moral maturity is achieved through progressing in wisdom, and the purpose of progressive moral wisdom is serving others.[25] Gane’s approach is progressive in four ways: it progressively  enhances understanding, facilitates God’s will, fosters morality, and restores creation ideals.[26] In general, when applying progressive moral wisdom to an Old Testament law, the interpreter first analyzes the function of the law to uncover the value it represents. Once the specific value is identified, then the scope of the analysis is broadened to larger contexts.

Gane’s progressive moral wisdom consists of five steps.[27] First, the specific law is analyzed. For example, Gane uses the law, “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey going astray, you shall bring it back to him” (Exod 23:4). The law addresses the topic of stealing and seeks to limit hostility between two parties. Second, the context of the analysis broadens to the entire corpus of Old Testament laws. Although a parallel law exists in Deuteronomy 22:1-3 that needs analyzed, the return of property represents the value in the Decalogue that opposes theft. Furthermore, the law resides under the higher value of love, which includes both respecting life and helping others. Third, the context of the analysis now broadens to the ancient Near Eastern life setting. In the case of Exodus 23:4, comparisons can be made with ancient Hittite Laws and the Mesopotamian Laws of Eshnunna to provide a nuanced understanding of the values highlighted within the Old Testament law. Fourth, the contextual scope of the analysis then broadens within the process of redemption, which includes the New Testament. For example, due to the fall, the law necessarily leads people back to harmony and focuses the reader on wisdom principles as developed in passages such as Romans 12, which leaves vengeance to God and extends the value of love to anyone regardless of situational or cultural barriers. Fifth, the function of the law is applied to modern life. Exodus 23:4 encourages the return of any property not owned and, simultaneously, calls modern believers to assist individuals who are considered enemies.

Creation Ideals

Progressive moral wisdom’s approach to applying the Old Testament laws to modern life is built upon two important perspectives: vertical and horizontal. Gane explains that the vertical perspective assumes a hierarchy of values that flow from love using general systems theory.[28] Love provides the value at the top of the hierarchy. Subvalues include loving God and loving humans. Loving humans would include attributes such as sexual purity, honesty, or kindness to an enemy, which complete the pyramidal shape. The use of general systems theory allows for granular applications of love.

Concurrent with the vertical perspective is a horizontal perspective. According to Gane, the horizontal perspective allows for value propositions to be placed on a progressive continuum starting from the creation ideals and moving chronologically through the Fall, the Old Testament period, and into the time of Christ.[29] The example of divorce is used by Gane. Specifically, the creation ideal is a permanent union between a husband and wife, and the guidelines of separation throughout the Old Testament and New Testament are divine accommodations to the creation ideal.[30] Gane’s treatment of the creation ideal is the most important aspect of his analysis, and where his approach begins to breakdown.

Co-identified Relationality

Without question, Gane’s approach to applying the Old Testament law to modern life has much to offer. First, it connects Old Testament laws to divine values, the unchangeable values that reflect God’s character such as love. Second, progressive moral wisdom masterfully engages the broader context of the law. Third, Gane’s approach ultimately applies the law to modern life. The challenge for Gane’s approach is not so much his methodology as it is the foundation upon which progressive moral wisdom is built.

As mentioned above, Sailhamer asserts that the Old Testament laws were added due to transgressions, the Israelite’s lack of faith. Alternatively, God’s original creation was setup to empower Abraham to obey by grace through faith, a faith credited to him as righteousness (Gen 15:6), and to keep the law without the law (Gen 26:5). Christ’s new cosmic reality inaugurates a new creation (2 Cor 5:17) that empowers New Testament believers to obey by grace through faith (Eph 2:8-10), a faith credited to them as righteousness (Rom 4:5), and fulfills the law without the law. It is not that the Old Testament law should not be applied to modern life; it is that the Old Testament law must be applied within a new cosmic reality inaugurated by Christ. In short, the Old Testament laws do not provide the empowerment to follow them. The Old Testament laws simply tell the reader what life would be like if the individual co-identified with Yahweh as exemplified by Abraham or co-identified with Christ as exemplified by the converted Paul. Accordingly, any approach to applying the Old Testament laws to modern life must entail a re-appropriation of the legal principles into a new cosmic reality in Christ.

For illustration purposes, the principles of co-identification can be used to underpin Gane’s case study of Exodus 23:4. First, when addressing a morally hazardous life situation such as facing an enemy, Richard Bauckham states that we must find “our true selves in Christ, we identify with him who loved us.”[31] The connection between identifying with Christ and the extension of value-based living is summarized by Michael Gorman who explains that “to be co-crucified with the Messiah entails severing any attachment to normal human values, even the most religious ones.”[32] Practically speaking, the reason enemies are often hated is because they sullied a reputation, took something precious, or undermined a performance. However, if Bauckman is correct and the self is found in Christ, then the believer no longer finds the self in perceptions, possessions, or performance and can let go of the animosity toward the enemy and, instead, extend grace, a handshake, and even a donkey. In other words, Gane’s application of the law through progressive moral wisdom shows the believer what life may look like if he lives out of his co-identified relationship with God; it does not provide specific direction for application. In sum, Gane provides an adequate approach to applying the Old Testament law to modern life if, and only if, it is built upon a foundational first step of co-identification between the believer and God. An examination of the multi-faceted functions of the law and the application of the Old Testament legal values to current theological and experiential life naturally lead to the question of how the Old Testament law connects to the Pentateuch as a whole.

The Meaning of the Pentateuch

Meaning Determined

Any effort to explore how meaning is determined, and more specifically, how the meaning of the Pentateuch is determined within a few short paragraphs borders on foolishness. However, in the simplest terms, the question may boil down to a rather abstract notion of whether meaning arises from words or from things. At the core of Sailhamer’s initiative is the quest for the original author’s intent, an assumption that the author meant to say what was said.[33] However, finding authorial intent can be quite allusive. To be sure, scholarly consensus does not exist. Sailhamer advocates the “historical-grammatical” method, which seems at first as the standard protocol for evangelical scholarship, which consists of two parts: the historical, which affirms the narratives as real history, and the grammatical, which emphasizes the semantic and grammatical relevance of the original languages.[34] However, Sailhamer accuses modern evangelical scholarship of straying from the original intention of the historical-grammatical method. The shift occurs when scholars move away from the historical accounts of the events and toward the events themselves.[35] Said differently, instead of the words giving meaning to history, history gives meaning to the words, and thus, the meaning of the words inside the Pentateuch arise from the data outside the text. The data may include historical reconstructions, archaeological discoveries, and ancient Near Eastern literature, which may or may not undermine the historical-grammatical methodology.[36]

The rise and influence of historical-critical scholarship likely contributed significantly to the evangelical shift. The downside, according to Sailhamer, was that the process of historical development took precedence over the final shape of the Pentateuch. In Sailhamer’s words, when “it comes to the meaning of the biblical texts as historical narrative, the evangelical view of history is such that historical reconstructions of the biblical events and narratives cannot and should not be allowed to take the place of the close study of the written texts and the meaning they give to the events they recount.”[37] In short, meaning arises from the words.

Pentateuch Making

The relationship between the Old Testament laws and the Pentateuch continues to be debated. Sailhamer sees a clear distinction between the two. To understand Sailhamer’s perspective, one must first examine how the Pentateuch was made. Sailhamer aligns with conservative scholars by asserting that Moses is the author of the Pentateuch, which was primarily a singular composition, Pentateuch 1.0.[38] However, in opposition to some profoundly conservative scholars such as William Barrick, who claims that Sailhamer’s views lack evidence, Sailhamer’s compositional approach espouses a Pentateuch 2.0.[39]

The Pentateuch 2.0 was a prophetic rewrite of the Pentateuch 1.0 with the purpose of preserving the “original Mosaic Pentateuch by recasting and positioning it within the growing body of Scriptural literature.”[40] Accordingly, the retrofit became a decisive step toward final canonization. The payoff is that the additions preserved in the composition point to important links between version 1.0 and 2.0, while simultaneously taking Mosaic authorship seriously and acknowledging the reality of later content. The reader can discern the words of Moses alongside the inspired prophetic additions, which provide commentary and redactional glue for the canon as a whole.[41] Finally, Sailhamer claims that Moses used various sources and provided commentary when writing 1.0, but an intelligent design informed the literary and canonical shaping by later prophets that resulted in its final form, the form that must be studied.[42]

Messianic Reality

The redactional glue that occurred from prophetic shaping has its most significant impact on the Pentateuch’s messianic message, the core construct of Sailhamer’s analysis. Multiple points of contact provide evidence of unity and purpose. Sailhamer asserts that the Pentateuch’s compositional strategy suggests that four primary themes contribute to its meaning: land, faith, messiahship, and the new covenant.[43] The key is to identify exactly how the compositional strategy of the Pentateuch relates to the four themes, which occurs as follows: Much of the Pentateuchal content focuses on the land promised to the Israelites, blocks of narrative surround the theme of faith, the arrangement of narratives occur around several important messianic poems, and the arrangement of the law collections around the golden calf incident points to the need for a circumcised heart reflective of the new covenant.[44]

The Pentateuch’s compositional structure is further illuminated when placed within the context of the messianic poetry. Sailhamer’s compositional approach to the Pentateuch is found within the following formula: narrative + poetry + epilogue.[45] The larger narratives within the Pentateuch are connected by the shorter poems and epilogues that follow. The compositional pattern is first explored within Genesis 1-11. Each of the narratives in the first eleven chapters ends with a poem, which provides an interpretive summary, and an epilogue, which prepares the reader for the next narrative.[46] The poems in Genesis 1-11 are the glue holding the narratives together that provide explanation and commentary.

The climax of Sailhamer’s compositional approach is the utilization of the four major poems within the Pentateuch: Genesis 4:1-28, Exodus 15:1-18, Numbers 23-24, and Deuteronomy 32-33. The common themes and the language “in the last days,” which introduces all but the Exodus poem, supports a common authorship emphasizing the eschatological message of a future king.[47] Cross-referencing and intertextuality also support Sailhamer’s perspective. Specifically, the poems cite each other, reference other parts of the Pentateuch, and highlight the themes of kingship, dominion, and eschatology through both editorializing and commentary.[48] Ultimately, the compositional seams of the final version of the Pentateuch point to a messianic hope and the reality of a New Covenant, a viewpoint of the prophetic authors.

The question remains as to whether Sailhamer’s compositional approach adequately explains the meaning of the Pentateuch. On the one hand, Joe Sprinkle accuses Sailhamer of proof texting.[49] On the other hand, Kevin Warstler states that Sailhamer provides “more than sufficient proofs and discussions for everything he asserts.”[50] Without question, Sailhamer provides two valuable contributions: (1) a focus on the text and (2) a focus on the compositional structure. Sailhamer’s conclusions answer apparent discrepancies, resolve potential conflicts, and reconcile the Pentateuch with the prophets and the New Testament. When the canon is taken as a whole, Sailhamer’s view not only appears coherent, but also reasonable. Whether one agrees with Sailhamer or not, any serious study of the Pentateuch’s meaning must engage his analysis.

Blessed Nations

Although the compositional structure of the Pentateuch is at the core of Sailhamer’s work, it would be difficult to complete the examination without addressing the ultimate implications of his analysis. Sailhamer’s compositional approach makes little distinction between the Abrahamic covenant and the Sinai covenant, the basis of both was “obedience by faith exhibited by faith.”[51] Furthermore, each of the covenants directly relate to the nations. The Abrahamic covenant reaches out to the nations and the Sinai covenant makes a distinction between the nations, while both highlight the divine commitment to share in a relationship with Israel.[52] The angel of the Lord promises Abraham that “in your offspring [seed orזרע ] shall all the nations of the earth be blessed” (Gen 22:18, emphasis added). Sailhamer uses intertextual analysis to link Genesis 15 with Genesis 14, Exodus 2-3, and Deuteronomy 33 to support the hypothesis, as mentioned above, that the “seed” is a grammatical homonym that means both Abraham’s descendants and an individual heir.[53] Accordingly, the authorial intent encompasses the poetic seams within the narratives of the Pentateuch that point to the king of Judah, Jesus Christ, as confirmed by the Apostle Paul in Galatians 3:19-29.[54]

Sailhamer confirms the assertion that the nations will be blessed in Him in the prophetic works of Jeremiah 4, 23, Psalm 72, and Hosea 11 that all look back to the Pentateuch and forward to a messianic eschatological reality.[55] In other words, the seed is not the church and the seed is not Israel, the seed is Jesus, and in Him all the nations are reclaimed as the church and Israel participate in Christ. Accordingly, although the law is part of the Pentateuch, the meaning of the Pentateuch transcends the law, which his secondary. The meaning of the Pentateuch is found in its final compositional shape that not only encompasses but also points to a seed, a person, a king, a Messiah, who has already, but not yet, reclaimed and restored all nations in Himself to Yahweh by grace through faith.

Conclusion

The multi-faceted functions of the law specifically illuminate the character of God, the covenant of grace, the teaching of wisdom, and the reclamation of the nations. The functions of the law in the event space of ancient Israel provide the basis for their application. Although Gane provides an adequate approach to applying the Old Testament law within the current theological and experiential life of the church, his progressive moral wisdom must build upon a foundation of co-identified relationality between God and the believer that re-appropriates the legal principles into a new cosmic reality in Christ. Finally, the compositional seams of the final version of the Pentateuch point to a messianic hope and a reality of a New Covenant. Accordingly, the meaning of the Pentateuch is found in its final shape that points to a Messiah that will reclaim and restore all nations in Him. Without question, the functions of the Old Testament law provide a platform to apply the law to modern life in a co-identified relationship with God that is highlighted by the final shape of the Pentateuch, which points to a Messiah that restores all people to God by grace through faith. Finally, opportunities for further research abound, which include expanded intertextual research, inter-disciplinary studies, and soteriological considerations.

_______________________________

[1] Roy E. Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2017), 17.

[2] Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians, 39.

[3] Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the English Standard Version (Wheaton: Crossway, 2008).

[4] John H. Walton and J. Harvey Walton, The Lost World of the Torah: Law as Covenant and Wisdom in Ancient Context (Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2019), 204.

[5] Ibid., 204–205. Note that Walton and Walton’s observation regarding co-identification becomes a critical aspect of the critique of Gane’s progressive moral wisdom.

[6] John D. Currid, A Study Commentary on Deuteronomy. (Darlington, England: Evangelical Press, 2006), 13–14.

[7] John H. Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch: Revelation, Composition, and Interpretation (Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2009), 379.

[8] Ibid., 383.

[9] Ibid., 398.

[10] Claude E Cox, “When Torah Embraced Wisdom and Song: Job 28:8, Ecclesiastes 12:13, and Psalm 1:2,” Restoration Quarterly 49, no. 2 (2007): 71.

[11] See John H Walton, “Understanding Torah: Ancient Legal Text, Covenant Stipulation, and Christian Scripture,” Bulletin for Biblical Research 29, no. 1 (2019): 5–7. See the fusion of Torah and wisdom through the exploration of the Dead Sea Scrolls, Ben Sira, and Tobit in John J. Collins, “Torah as Narrative and Wisdom,” in The Invention of Judaism, 1st ed., Torah and Jewish Identity from Deuteronomy to Paul (Oakland: University of California Press, 2017), 80–96. See also the Torah viewed as wisdom in Deuteronomy in John J. Collins, “Wisdom and Torah,” in Pedagogy in Ancient Judaism and Early Christianity, ed. Karina Martin Hogan, Matthew Goff, and Emma Wasserman (Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2017), 59–80.

[12] Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians, 49.

[13] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 559.

[14] Ibid., 559–60.

[15] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 561.

[16] Ibid., 561–62.

[17] Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians, 54.

[18] Michael S. Heiser, The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible, First Edition. (Lexham Press, 2015), 120.

[19] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 442.

[20] Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians, 163–64.

[21] Ibid., 168–73.

[22] J. Scott Duvall and J. Daniel Hays, Grasping God’s Word: A Hands-On Approach to Reading, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible, 3rd ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012), 41–42.

[23] See Walter Kaiser’s principalizing model, William Webb’s redemptive-movement model, Kevin Vanhoozer’s drama-of-redemption model, and Daniel Doriani’s redemptive-historical model, all of which attempt to apply Scripture to contemporary culture in Gary T. Meadors, ed., Four Views on Moving beyond the Bible to Theology, Zondervan Counterpoints Collection (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009), 100.

[24] Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians, 181–87.

[25] Ibid., 198–99.

[26] Ibid., 201.

[27] Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians, see Gane’s full analysis of his five steps on pages 202–14 and Gane’s detailed case study of Exodus 23:4 on pages 219–35.

[28] Gane, Old Testament Law for Christians, 147–55.

[29] Ibid., 155–61.

[30] Ibid., 160.

[31] Richard Bauckham, The Bible in the Contemporary World: Hermeneutical Ventures (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2015), 143.

[32] Michael J. Gorman, Participating in Christ: Explorations in Paul’s Theology and Spirituality (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2019), 133.

[33] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 69.

[34] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 100.

[35] Ibid.

[36] Ibid., 101.

[37] Ibid., 104.

[38] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 200.

[39] William D Barrick, “The Meaning of the Pentateuch: Revelation, Composition and Interpretation,” The Master’s Seminary Journal 23, no. 1 (2012): 154.

[40] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 203.

[41] Ibid., 223.

[42] Ibid., 207–09.

[43] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 242–43.

[44] Ibid.

[45] Ibid., 304. Also, for a more recent analysis that extends Sailhamer’s work especially with regard to how structure informs understanding through the narrative, poetry, and epilogue formula, see Kevin S. Chen, The Messianic Vision of the Pentateuch (Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2019).

[46] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 305–15.

[47] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 332–35.

[48] Ibid., 335–41.

[49] Joe M. Sprinkle, “The Meaning of the Pentateuch: Revelation, Composition and Interpretation,” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 53, no. 4 (December 2010): 810.

[50] Kevin Warstler, “The Meaning of the Pentateuch: Revelation, Composition and Interpretation,” Criswell Theological Review 9, no. 1 (2011): 117.

[51] Sailhamer, The Meaning of the Pentateuch, 354.

[52] Ibid., 368–369.

[53] Ibid., 442–54.

[54] Ibid., 479–81.

[55] Ibid., 481–521.

Bibliography

• Barrick, William D. “The Meaning of the Pentateuch: Revelation, Composition and Interpretation.” The Master’s Seminary Journal 23, no. 1 (2012): 154–156.
• Bauckham, Richard. The Bible in the Contemporary World: Hermeneutical Ventures. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2015.
• Chen, Kevin S. The Messianic Vision of the Pentateuch. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2019.
• Collins, John J. “Torah as Narrative and Wisdom.” In The Invention of Judaism, 80–96. 1st ed. Torah and Jewish Identity from Deuteronomy to Paul. Oakland: University of California Press, 2017.
• ________. “Wisdom and Torah.” In Pedagogy in Ancient Judaism and Early Christianity, edited by Karina Martin Hogan, Matthew Goff, and Emma Wasserman, 59–80. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2017.
• Cox, Claude E. “When Torah Embraced Wisdom and Song: Job 28:8, Ecclesiastes 12:13, and Psalm 1:2.” Restoration Quarterly 49, no. 2 (2007): 65–74.
• Currid, John D. A Study Commentary on Deuteronomy. Darlington, England: Evangelical Press, 2006.
• Duvall, J. Scott, and J. Daniel Hays. Grasping God’s Word: A Hands-On Approach to Reading, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible. 3rd ed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012.
• Gane, Roy E. Old Testament Law for Christians. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2017.
• Gorman, Michael J. Participating in Christ: Explorations in Paul’s Theology and Spirituality. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2019.
• Heiser, Michael S. The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible. First Edition. Lexham Press, 2015.
• Meadors, Gary T., ed. Four Views on Moving beyond the Bible to Theology. Zondervan Counterpoints Collection. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009.
• Sailhamer, John H. The Meaning of the Pentateuch: Revelation, Composition, and Interpretation. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2009.
• Sprinkle, Joe M. “The Meaning of the Pentateuch: Revelation, Composition and Interpretation.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 53, no. 4 (December 2010): 809–811.
• Walton, John H. “Understanding Torah: Ancient Legal Text, Covenant Stipulation, and Christian Scripture.” Bulletin for Biblical Research 29, no. 1 (2019): 1–18.
• Walton, John H., and J. Harvey Walton. The Lost World of the Torah: Law as Covenant and Wisdom in Ancient Context. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2019.
• Warstler, Kevin. “The Meaning of the Pentateuch: Revelation, Composition and Interpretation.” Criswell Theological Review 9, no. 1 (2011): 114–118.