Last week we received Scott Hahn’s newest book The Kingdom of God as Liturgical Empire. I was really intrigued when I first saw this presented and so I’ve been looking forward to reading it. I’m not very far into it but I enjoyed this section which Hahn entitled “The Genealogy of Grace”.
“On the other hand, there is a distinct outlook of hope in the Chronicler’s genealogy. Israel, the children of Abraham, called to be God’s firstborn among the nations, has been laid low by its sinfulness, divided, and scattered. And yet God’s purposes are not mocked. His will is not frustrated by human failure. This already is the unmistakable subtext of the Chronicler’s genealogy, which will be borne out in the narrative that follows. The God of the Chronicler is the God of surprises, the God of the unexpected. Israel’s history, preserved and amplified in this introductory genealogy, proves that firstborns and others can fail, beginning with the firstborn of creation, Adam. But that same history proves that God does not fail: he remains faithful to his covenant promises.
“Chronicles begins with a genealogy of grace that opens to a narrative of eschatological hope. The God who created Adam, Abraham, Israel, and David is still at work in history. God’s reign on earth, realized provisionally in the David-Solomonic kingdom, will be established once and for all. The Chronicler’s faith is not based on the righteousness or merit of the people, but on God’s faithfulness to his covenant, to his promise of an everlasting kingdom to the descendents of David. With the prophets of the captivity–Hosea, Isaiah, Micah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel–and the postexilic prophets Haggai and Zechariah, the Chronicler looks forward to the restoration of the Davidic kingdom.” (39-40)
Each commentary section is broken up into three parts. Hahn first offers a “synopsis of the text” followed by the “theological exegesis and commentary.” Each section then concludes with a “Christian interpretation.” 1 & 2 Chronicles are often neglected by Christians. I’m hoping that this commentary will spark some conversations on some very important books of the Old Testament.
The Kingdom of God as Liturgical Empire is from Baker Academic. It is a paperback with 240 pages and sells for $24.99.
Scott W. Hahn, PhD, holds the Pope Benedict XVI Chair of Biblical Theology at St. Vincent Seminary and is professor of theology and Scripture at Franciscan University of Steubenville. Founder and president of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology, he is the author of over twenty books, including Covenant and Communion, The Lamb’s Supper, Reasons to Believe, and Kinship by Covenant, and coauthor of Rome Sweet Home. Hahn is also the general editor of the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible, The Catholic Bible Dictionary, and Letter and Spirit: A Journal of Catholic Biblical Theology.
Timothy
February 27, 2012 at 2:56 pm
Louis,
I have been waiting for this book since reading an article Hahn wrote for his ‘Letter and Spirit’ journal a few years back about 1 & 2 Chronicles. I have it on pre-order from another site, as a gift, so I hope to have it in my hands in a week.