Coming later this year from the New Studies in Biblical Theology (NSBT) series is Brian Rosner’s Paul and the Law. There is significant debate on how New Testament authors (particularly Paul) understood the place of the law in the life of the Christian, and Rosner’s contribution looks to present a reasonable way forward.
Rosner taught on the subject back in 2011 at Moore College in Australia. I’ve almost worked my way through his lectures and they’re both enjoyable and informative. Trust an Aussie to insert a good amount of humour and slang in a scholarly lecture on the Law!
Check out the lectures here.
To give a (very) simple summary of Rosner’s argument, Paul does three things with the Law in light of Messiah Jesus:
- He repudiates it as law
- He replaces it with the law of Christ
- He reappropriates it as a) prophecy and b) wisdom
To better understand, Rosner helpfully compares his thesis to a college firing a staff member, replacing them with someone else, but keeping the original member on in a different role.
To hear his actual argumentation you’ll have to hear the lectures, or better yet preorder the book here Paul and the Law! I eagerly await this book through IVP. The IVP UK release date is 21st of June while IVP USA will release it in September. One of the benefits of being in the UK!
Here is the link to other lectures from Moore, including three sets that have also become NSBT books:
- Possessed by God – David Peterson
- A Clear and Present Word – Mark Thompson
- A Mouth Full of Fire – Andrew Shead
Thanks to Nijay for bringing this book to my attention.
