Lesson 6: The Covenantal Horizon
Using Rich Resources
Now that we understand the feedback loop of interpretation and know what biblical theology is, it’s time to get practical.
This is the paramount step of this lesson.
The whole lesson has been moving toward this practical application. If each step so far has been part of a staircase leading upward, this is the top step, the reason this lesson exists. The remaining steps in the lesson are only another staircase leading back down.
So let’s focus on looking at the Covenantal Horizon through the lens of extrabiblical literature.
Asking the Two Questions
Extrabiblical literature will help you answer the two specific questions of the Covenantal Horizon. The temporal question asks, “When?” The thematic question asks, “What?”
- Temporal question: When does my passage take place within the plotline of redemptive history?
- Thematic question: What theme in my passage should I trace through the plotline of redemptive history?¹
What if the Bible were a movie?
The temporal question asks, “What scene are we watching right now? What happened before this scene, and where does the story go from here?” The thematic question asks, “Where else in the movie have we seen this object or heard these words?”
The temporal question seeks to comprehend the scene in light of the whole story, while the thematic question seeks to better understand one element of the story. But both questions are related to the progression of the story.
Let’s say you’re watching Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets for the second time. If you wanted to understand the big picture of the story, you could ask yourself the temporal question (in relation to the movie, not the Bible). For example, one scene near the beginning occurs in Flourish and Blotts bookstore. When you see Mr. Malfoy remove one of Ginny’s books from her cauldron and then put it back, along with another book, you could ask, “Where does the story go from here? How does this scene fit into the larger story?” Your mind might jump ahead in the story to Harry’s conversation with Tom Riddle in the Chamber of Secrets, in which that book is central. Only in the light of that conversation does Mr. Malfoy’s action gain its true significance.
So it is with the Bible! Only when you ask, “Where does the story go from here?” do the scenes in the Old Testament (for example) gain their true significance in light of the New Testament.
To answer the thematic question, you could track the existence of Tom Riddle’s diary: you’d look closely at the scene when Mr. Malfoy slips it into Ginny’s cauldron; proceed to Harry discovering it in a toilet, watch his journey inside it when he is deceived by Riddle, see his horrified realization of the book’s power, and finally cheer as he plunges a basilisk fang into it and destroys it.
On a larger scale, though, you still wouldn’t understand the diary until near the end of the sixth book in the series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, where a darker reality is revealed, central to the problem of defeating Lord Voldemort. So you could ask and answer the thematic question on the level of one book, or on the level of the story arc of the entire series.
So it is with the Bible! You can trace themes both throughout individual books, and through the story arc of the entire Bible.
Answering the Two Questions
Now let’s get practical: let’s talk about the principles of choosing resources to help you answer these two questions, and a process for integrating them into your study.
Principles
Remember our definition of a good commentary back in Lesson 3? (Feel free to take a moment to click the link and remind yourself.) Let’s rephrase those three points for finding good biblical theology resources.
A good resource’s underlying presuppositions are biblical.
You should look for resources written by authors who share your basic assumptions, the assumptions the Bible demands about biblical theology: the unity of the Bible, and Christ as the focus of the promises in the Old Testament and of the fulfillment in the New (see Luke 24:27, 44; John 5:39; Acts 3:18–24; 1 Cor 15:3). So, for example, D.A. Carson will be more helpful to you than Bart Ehrman.
The recommended resources later in this section will introduce some trustworthy authors to you who have written many articles you can read for free online, and whose other works you can explore on your own.
A good resource matches your abilities.
Some books introduce biblical theology on a basic level, while others discuss its details on a high academic plane. Both types of books are useful, but you need to be honest about your own abilities to know whether or not a book will be too difficult to help you.
A good resource helps you accomplish your purpose.
Which of the two questions are you trying to answer? Why are you trying to answer it—to help you prepare a sermon, or a Sunday School lesson? To help you grow in your knowledge of the Bible, or to explain a biblical theme to an unsaved friend? Depending on your goal, you will find some resources more helpful than others.
Process
There is a two-part process to wisely using resources on biblical theology.
Read
If you’re new to biblical theology, here are three first steps to take:
- Start by reading some free articles.
- Then purchase and read an introductory book.
- Buy and read more advanced books to keep delving deeper.
You can find each type of resource above in the next step. The simplest way to begin is by reading the three articles from the NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible, and then Jim Hamilton’s What Is Biblical Theology? A Guide to the Bible’s Story, Symbolism, and Patterns.
I also encourage you to ask your coach for their specific recommendations, based on your interactions together.
Rummage
This is the second step for a reason: If you haven’t read much biblical theology, you won’t know what to rummage for!
So once you have familiarized yourself with some profitable articles and books on biblical theology, you can rummage through them to find material you need as you are studying a passage.
Here’s what that looks like in answering both questions of the Covenantal Horizon:
1. Answering the temporal question
You’ll likely find books that explain biblical theology the most helpful, such as What Is Biblical Theology?, by James M. Hamilton, Jr. (see the detailed list in the next step). Our biblical timeline from the Interpretation course (on this page) provides a helpful overview as well. You’ll be able to find where the events of or the writing of the passage you’re studying took place in redemptive history, what happened before them, and what would happen after. The study Bibles in the next step will be very helpful also. Some commentary series discuss biblical theology as well (see the recommended resources later in this lesson for details).
2. Answering the thematic question
First, identify a theme. Start with a list of the Bible’s main themes. Books about biblical theology will help you with this, such as Chris Bruno’s The Whole Message of the Bible in 16 Words. He lays out the following themes in his book in three different categories, as if they were the parts of a building:²
Rooms:³ Temple, Messiah, Israel, Land, Idols, Judgment, Exodus, Wisdom, Law, Spirit, Mission
Structure: Creation, Covenant, Kingdom
Foundation: The End, God
Then explore that theme. A Bible dictionary or encyclopedia, like the Lexham Bible Dictionary (see the previous lesson on this resource), will help you further explore your chosen theme, as will a lexicon if the theme is a word found in the original languages. Some commentaries will have a list of themes in a biblical book, and they may discuss them in the light of biblical theology.
See the Recommended Resources step later in the lesson for more recommendations of helpful books in the categories mentioned here.
Now it’s time to look at some specific recommended resources for the Covenantal Horizon, before we see how this step works in practice by applying it to a passage in Haggai.