Themelios 51, 1 (Spring 2026)

The most-recent Themelios is online here (and available here as a single pdf) is a special issue dedicated to D.A. Carson for his work in the field of biblical theology.

Here’s the opening paragraph from the Editorial:

‘This special edition of Themelios is dedicated to D. A. Carson for his work in the field of biblical theology. While several tributes have been written to honor Carson, we wanted to honor him for his critical role in shaping biblical theology within evangelicalism. We invited authors who contributed to the New Studies in Biblical Theology (NSBT) series to participate, and they heartily agreed. Carson has wisely edited this esteemed series for the last thirty years. The articles in this Themelios issue either develop a point of their existing NSBT volume or build upon it. We would like to thank Inter-Varsity Press UK and B&H Academic for cosponsoring this issue and for their vital role in distributing the NSBT series. The goal of this editorial is to appreciate D. A. Carson’s understanding and vision of biblical theology and to offer a few suggestions for the future of the discipline.’

The bumper issue contains the below articles.

Benjamin L. Gladd

D.A. Carson’s Influence on Biblical Theology

G.K. Beale

The Temple in Biblical Theology

Richard Lints

A Biblical Theology of Image and Idol

Gary Millar

A Call for Biblical-Theological Reformation: Prayer and Biblical Theology

Karl Deenick

Righteous by Promise: Reflections on Circumcision

Stephen G. Dempster

Abraham’s Ominous Silence: Missed Opportunity or Settled Faith?

Sam Emadi

From Prisoner to Prince: The Typological Character of the Joseph Story

L. Michael Morales

A Biblical Theology of Israel’s Exodus out of Egypt

Oren R. Martin

The Land Promise in Biblical Theology

David G. Firth

Reflections on Including the Stranger

Peter H.W. Lau & Gregory Goswell

Ruth to Restoration: Tracing Temple and Kingship in Canonical Perspective

Ray Ortlund

God’s Unfaithful Wife: A Biblical Theology of Spiritual Adultery

Timothy S. Laniak

Shepherds, Here to Stay

Matthew S. Harmon

The Servant of the Lord and His Servant People

James M. Hamilton Jr.

The One Like the Son of Man Is the Highest One: The Two Most Highs in Daniel 7:15–28

Daniel C. Timmer

Friends, Non-Israelites, and the Surprising Grace of God: A Grateful Retrospective on NSBT at 30

Richard P. Belcher Jr.

Key Questions Concerning the Book of Ecclesiastes: An Explanation of the Negative Views of Qohelet

Graham A. Cole

The God Who Became Human

Matthew Emadi

A Better Priest and the Problem of Abiathar: Literary and Biblical-Theological Reflections on Mark 2:23–28

Peter Orr

Reflections on the Risen and Exalted Christ

Alan J. Thompson

The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus

J. Daniel Hays

Ethiopians, Deliverance of the Gentiles, and Judgment on Jerusalem: Allusions in Acts 8 to Jeremiah’s Ebedmelech Narrative

Chris Bruno, Jared Compton, and Kevin W. McFadden

Reading the Bible with the Apostles

Brian S. Rosner

The Puzzle of Paul and the Law: A Hermeneutical Solution

Mark A. Seifrid

The Faith of Christ and the Message of Justification for Today

Brian J. Tabb

Seated on the Throne: The Centrality and Supremacy of God in Revelation

David G. Peterson

Sanctification Revisited

Andreas J. Köstenberger

Toward a New Testament Theology of Mission

Book Reviews

Themelios 39, 2 (July 2014)

The latest Themelios is online here (and available here as a single pdf), containing the following articles:

Editorial

D.A. Carson

What Are Gospel Issues?

Off the Record

Michael J. Ovey

Projection Atheism: Why Reductionist Accounts of Humanity Can Lead to Reductionist Accounts of God

Brian J. Tabb

Engaging with Edwards: Essays on America’s Theologian

Ralph Cunnington

A Critical Examination of Jonathan Edwards’s Doctrine of the Trinity

This article critically examines Jonathan Edwards’s doctrine of the Trinity with a particular focus upon his understanding of the person of the Holy Spirit. While his restatement of Augustinian orthodoxy served the church well during a time of great doctrinal heterodoxy, it created some problems of its own. These problems were rooted in his use of philosophical idealism, his reliance upon trinitarian analogies, and his adapted doctrine of perichoresis.

Gerald McDermott

Jonathan Edwards and God’s Inner Life: A Response to Kyle Strobel

This article surveys the state of Edwards studies today, focusing particularly on its philosophical theologians who have zeroed in on Edwards’s doctrine of God. It addresses current debates over dispositionalism, reviews a new book by Kyle Strobel, and criticizes recent uses of analytical philosophy in analyzing Edwards’s doctrine of God.

Jeremy M. Kimble

That Their Souls May Be Saved: The Theology and Practice of Jonathan Edwards on Church Discipline

A great deal of research has been done on the life and theology of Jonathan Edwards. However, there is a dearth of interest as it pertains to Edwards’s ecclesiology. As such, while certain moments in Edwards’s ministry dealing with excommunication have been dealt with, there is a need to look not only at the cases he oversaw, but also the theology that undergirded that practice of discipline. Setting Edwards in his historical context and looking specifically at both his ecclesiology and his doctrine of the perseverance of the saints, this article demonstrates how these doctrines coincided for Edwards to form a practice of church discipline that was exacting and rigorous in relation to many of his contemporaries in whose churches discipline was largely on the decline.

Kenneth J. Stewart

John Henry Newman (1801–1890) in His Second Century

In the current fascination of younger evangelicals with the ethos of both Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, John Henry Newman (1801–1890) has become something of a ‘poster child’. The autobiographical and polemical writings of this celebrated convert to Rome (largely reflecting the first half of his career) enjoy ongoing popularity; these are taken to ‘define’ the man. Yet what this current fascination tends to overlook is that across the twentieth century Newman has been taken up as the theme of critical and ecumenical inquiry. Critical scholarship stops well short of the overly deferential attitude to Newman, all too characteristic at the present time. This article surveys this ongoing discussion of Newman up to our time.

Pastoral Pensées

Eric Ortlund

Laboring in Hopeless Hope: Encouragement for Christians from Ecclesiastes

The book of Ecclesiastes diagnoses humanity’s tendency to link the value of human life with permanent accomplishment in our work. As a wisdom text, Ecclesiastes warns its readers that this approach leads to hatred of life as we realize that, from an “under the sun” perspective, we gain nothing permanent in all our labor. The wisdom of the book of Ecclesiastes rather associates the value of human life and work in its status as a gift from God, irrespective of what we accomplish. Qohelet also explains why God has so disposed the present order of things that human beings labor much, but without permanent accomplishment. This article attempts to articulate Qohelet’s wisdom for living within the present age so that we can fully engage with and enjoy God’s gifts of life and work.

Book Reviews

D.A. Carson on Hebrews

Trinity Evangelical Divinity School has kindly posted online videos of four lectures by D.A. Carson on Hebrews, part of a longer module on ‘Acts, Pauline, and General Epistles’ taught by Carson.

As well as the videos, transcripts of the lectures are available from the same page.

Here’s the blurb:

‘In these four lectures, Dr. Carson covers the basic questions involved in interpreting Hebrews such as authorship, date of composition, and intended audience, as well as covering its content and focusing in particular on major themes of Christology. Hebrews is unique in the New Testament in its explanation of Christ’s high priestly work and its extended application of Yom Kippur imagery to Jesus’ death and resurrection. Dr. Carson highlights the unique, once-for-all quality of Jesus’ sacrificial death as presented by Hebrews as well as the reality of Christ’s ongoing high priestly ministry on behalf of believers.’

D.A. Carson on the Church in Great Britain

Many will know of the furore a few weeks back kicked off by some comments by Mark Driscoll (here) about the state of the church in Great Britain.

I read some of the responses to Driscoll (including those by a number of my friends) with interest, but (for the most part) kept myself out of the discussion. Truth be known, I confess I found some of the responses quite ‘knee jerk’ in their nature. But I realise it’s sometimes difficult to balance the double-sided wisdom of when and how to respond (cf. Proverbs 26:4-5).

Now that I am referring to it, I would like to say I personally found Eddie Arthur’s post (here) to be wonderfully sane and helpful, reframing the debate through cultural assumptions.

Anyway, all of this is to say that D.A. Carson has now written a set of ‘Reflections on the Church in Great Britain’. As might be expected, these are heavily freighted towards the Reformed and conservative end of the spectrum in terms of what’s going on in the country (and I fully anticipate he will be blasted and lampooned for that), but I particularly enjoyed reading his fifth and final reflection:

‘We must not equate courage with success, or even youth with success. We must avoid ever leaving the impression that these equations are valid. I have spent too much time in places like Japan, or in parts of the Muslim world, where courage is not measured on the world stage, where a single convert is reckoned a mighty trophy of grace... I find no ground for concluding that the missionaries in Japan in the 20th century were less godly, less courageous, less faithful, than the missionaries in (what became) South Korea, with its congregations of tens of thousands. At the final Great Assize, God will take into account not only all that was and is, but also what might have been under different circumstances (Matt 11:20ff). Just as the widow who gave her mite may be reckoned to have given more than many multi-millionaires, so, I suspect, some ministers in Japan, or Yorkshire, will receive greater praise on that last day than those who served faithfully in a corner of the world where there was more fruit. Moreover, the measure of faithful service is sometimes explicitly tied in Scripture not to the quantity of fruit, measured in numbers, but to such virtues as self-control, measured by the use of one’s tongue (James 3:1-6).’

Andy Naselli on D.A. Carson’s Theological Method

Andrew David Naselli, ‘D.A. Carson’s Theological Method’, Scottish Bulletin of Evangelical Theology 29, 2 (2011), 245-74.

Andy Naselli has been D.A. Carson’s research assistant since 2006, and is well placed to write this lengthy essay outlining what he sees as Carson’s theological method. The article is a revision of a paper submitted to Kevin J. Vanhoozer in December 2006 for his ‘Advanced Theological Prolegomena’ PhD seminar.

D.A. Carson on Putting the Gospel First

The Acts 29 Network has posted an excerpt from D.A. Carson, Basics for Believers: An Exposition of Philippians (Grand Rapids, Baker, 1996, published by IVP in the UK), 22-28.

I was present when this exposition of Philippians was first delivered as a series of messages at Word Alive in Skegness (in the mid-1990s?), and have regularly recalled this particular comment about the danger of the gospel moving from something that is affirmed to something that is assumed and then abandoned:

‘In a fair bit of Western evangelicalism, there is a worrying tendency to focus on the periphery. [My] colleague... Dr. Paul Hiebert... springs from Mennonite stock and analyzes his heritage in a fashion that he himself would acknowledge is something of a simplistic caricature, but a useful one nonetheless. One generation of Mennonites believed the gospel and held as well that there were certain social, economic, and political entailments. The next generation assumed the gospel, but identified with the entailments. The following generation denied the gospel: the “entailments” became everything. Assuming this sort of scheme for evangelicalism, one suspects that large swaths of the movement are lodged in the second step, with some drifting toward the third.’

Essays for D.A. Carson

Andreas J. Köstenberger and Robert W. Yarbrough (eds.), Understanding the Times: New Testament Studies in the 21st Century: Essays in Honor of D.A. Carson on the Occasion of his 65th Birthday (Wheaton: Crossway, 2011), 400pp., ISBN 9781433507199.

D.A. Carson’s 65th birthday is being honoured with this publication of essays, which includes a section on ‘New Testament Studies Around the World’.

Andreas J. Köstenberger’s essay (‘Lifting Up the Son of Man and God’s Love for the World: John 3:16 in Its Historical, Literary, and Theological Contexts) is excerpted here, and Douglas J. Moo’s contribution (‘Justification in Galatians’) is available here.

D.A. Carson on the Bible’s Literary Genres (2)

The London School of Theology 2011 Laing Lecture, given by D.A. Carson – on ‘The Bible’s Literary Genres: Reflections on What They Say About God’ – came in two main parts:

(1) What does the diversity of genres itself tell us about God?

(2) What do each of the genres individually say about God?

I’ve already posted on part 1 here, and summarise part 2 below. Once again, it’s worth recognising that I was scribbling notes furiously and so won’t necessarily have caught all the nuances Carson managed in the actual address.

The second main part of the lecture asked, What do each of the genres say about God? As with the first part, Carson developed a number of points:

1. Lessons from the occasional nature of New Testament letters and Acts.

When Paul writes Romans, he is not giving a complete summary of doctrine. He is responding to different pastoral needs. Particular occasions call forth particular responses – but there is no single document containing Paul’s entire theology. Through the letters, God addresses particular churches with particular needs. If we take any one of the letters and try to make it say all that needs to be said on a topic, we distort its teaching.

Carson cited the example of Paul refusing to circumcise Titus (Galatians 2), as (in that context) it would jeopardise the exclusive sufficiency of Jesus. And yet, he is happy to have Timothy circumcised (in Acts) in a different context where there is an issue of removing an unnecessary source of offence.

By way of application, Carson used the example of alcohol – and the different ways we might act in different situations – whether to avoid offence or to issue a challenge where a particular practice is jeopardising the exclusive sufficiency of Christ.

2. Lessons to be learned from the historical books.

God discloses himself in space-time history, and we have access to history through witnesses. According to Carson, if it could be proved that Gautama the Buddha never existed, it would not make any substantial difference to the buddhist system. Or, if it could be proved that Krishna never existed, nothing in Hinduism would be placed in jeopardy. In principle, in Islam, Allah could have given his final revelation to someone other than Muhammad, for Allah could give it to anyone he pleases. But it is quite different in Christianity where, if we pull Jesus out, there is nothing left. Jesus is not just a medium for the revelation of God, he is the revelation of God.

As Carson reminded us, in 1 Corinthians 15, for instance, certain entailments follow if Jesus did not rise from the dead. The truthfulness of faith’s object is necessary for faith. This is significant, Carson noted, because ‘faith’ on the street means either ‘religion’ (a particular faith) or ‘a personal subjective religious choice’, with no necessary connection to truth – which is not how Paul sees faith.

There are lessons from historical books which show how God works through history, attested by witnesses, which is why Christians are interested in historical issues.

3. Lessons from wisdom.

One of the most interesting features is the way wisdom thinks in polarities – lady wisdom or dame folly. Much of Jesus’ teaching also sets up simple polarities – two houses, two ways, etc., in this wisdom style.

Noting that wisdom literature can be abused from the pulpit, Carson used the example of Psalm 1, sometimes said to be a wisdom Psalm, drawing a polarity between the ‘righteous’ and the ‘wicked’. He noted the challenge of always living up to the criterion of, say, delighting in the law of the Lord and meditating on it day and night. Who of us always manages to do this, and never fails to do so? Constant preaching of simple polarities, Carson warned, will produce a congregation of legalists or hypocrites.

Narrative, however, allows more nuance. David might well be a man after God’s own heart, and yet he commits murder and adultery. In Judges, with its downward spiral, even the ‘good guys’ are disgusting by the end of the book.

When it comes to Job, Carson noted that some critics love the moral ambiguities expressed in the poetic portions of the book, but then assume the ending of the book (where everything is reinstated, and there is a happy ending) must have been written by a different hand. But it’s wisdom, Carson said, and so we should expect there to be polarities. Much of contemporary culture enjoys moral ambiguity for its own sake – and there is moral ambiguity, Carson noted – but it will be resolved by God in the end.

Carson ran out of time at this point, and so left off a further two sections on apocalyptic and typology.

•••

There was time afterwards for three questions.

• Someone asked whether Melchizedek could be understood to be an appearance of the pre-incarnate Christ. Carson responded that he thought nothing in the Old Testament account suggested that to be the case. Some of the description in Hebrews 7 might suggest it to be the case, but the writer here is simply exegeting the Genesis passage, noting Melchizedek’s lack of genealogy, etc. Moreover, the author of Hebrews says that Melchizedek is like the Son of God. He becomes a figure that prefigures someone else, and what’s picked up is that he is a priest-king – a prototype of the ultimate priest-king.

• Riffing (a tad cheekily, I think) on Carson’s lines about whether it would make any difference if Buddha or Krishna had not existed, someone asked about Genesis 1-2 and whether it would make any difference if Adam had not existed. Carson responded that this was a genre-identification question that he had not been addressing in the lecture, and that he would normally ask for four hours to deal with it. But he did express the opinion that if one denies a historical first couple and a space-time fall, it’s difficult to make sense of Paul. A historic Adam, he said, ‘is non-negotiable’.

• Someone asked about the negative side of Scripture’s diversity. Carson responded that he didn’t see it as a ‘negative’ so much as an ‘entailment’. We are finite, and God cannot download omniscience to us (it is one of his ‘incommunicable attributes’), which means that everything he says to us, and every way he communicates with us, will be, in some sense, necessarily limited. There would have been a ‘downside’ to any way he communicated. Moreover, Carson noted, there is a ‘hiddenness’ to God’s revelation. What was prophesied in the Old Testament is now fulfilled; but it is also said in some places that what was hidden in the past has now been revealed. Many truths are hidden in plain sight.

D.A. Carson on the Bible’s Literary Genres (1)

I was present at the London School of Theology 2011 Laing Lecture earlier this week. The speaker was D.A. Carson, and the title was: ‘The Bible’s Literary Genres: Reflections on What They Say About God’.

There was lots of familiar material for those who have heard or read Carson before, but it was good to have it reiterated. The lecture came in two main parts:

(1) What does the diversity of genres itself tell us about God?

(2) What do each of the genres individually say about God?

I’ll post separately on these two questions; obviously since these are my notes of his lecture, it’s possible that I’ll misrepresent something he said and/or fail to do it proper justice; but here goes...

On the first point, Carson began by reminding us of the sheer diversity of literary genres in Scripture – narrative, poetry, apocalyptic, letter, etc. – as well as genres within genres (beatitudes and parables within gospels, for instance) and genres within genres within genres (e.g., metaphors).

After this brief preamble, he took us through a number of points:

1. Although many true things can be said about God, God cannot be domesticated.

Systematic theology has its place, of course, but a biblical narrative can push the categories we use. We can line up biblical passages that speak of God’s sovereignty. He is sovereign, but is also a personal, talking, interactive God. Or we may speak of his aseity (his utter independence, his need of nothing), but then find other passages that strain the categories we use. Unlike Islam (described by Carson as ‘monotheism simplex’), Christianity (‘monotheism complex’) holds that God is love.

2. The diversity of Scripture’s literary forms attests different modes of inspiration.

Unlike, say, The Book of Mormon, or the Qur’an. 2 Timothy 3:16 says that Scripture is ‘God-breathed’; his word may be breathed out in different ways – but the result is always that Scripture is his word. In one case, Jeremiah dictates God’s word to Baruch. Which is different from the way God’s word comes to Daniel – through visions, which Daniel does’t even understand. Other forms are different again, such as David’s psalms, which are a reflection of his own experience, where he is not a ‘dictation machine’, like Baruch – and yet the resulting word is still God’s word. Luke engages in careful research before he writes. Etc.

3. Biblical treatments of interaction between God and humans are recorded not only in affirmations, commands, and propositions, but in stunning depictions.

There are affirmations and commands (Carson cited parts of the Sermon on the Mount and Philippians as examples), but biblical depictions push us in other ways:

• Genesis 15:19-20 – God and human interaction in one and the same event in the different intentions of Joseph’s brothers and God – the mysteries of providence.

• Isaiah 10:5-19 – God uses Assyria (as one would use a club) to bring judgment on his people, and then promises to punish the Assyrians.

• Acts 4:27-28 – The apostles recognise the evil that brought about the crucifixion of Jesus, and yet also describe it as ‘determined beforehand’.

4. The diversity of materials placed along an historical axis generates some of the most important trajectories in the Bible.

Carson used the example of Melchizedek here, in his three occurrences in Genesis 14, Psalm 110, and Hebrews 7. They are different literary genres, but when placed in historical sequence say some crucial things about Jesus.

• Genesis 14 – Melchizedek is described as a priest and king, which could never happen under the Mosaic covenant, and he receives a tithe from Abraham. Unlike other significant characters in Genesis, he has no genealogy, seemingly arriving out of nowhere and disappearing again.

• Psalm 110 – Between Genesis 14 and Psalm 110 comes the Mosaic covenant, where priests descend from Levi, and kings (after Saul) from Judah; the two roles are not found in the same person. David becomes king and rules from Jerusalem over a united kingdom. The kingship is established and the priesthood is established, but – as David writes in Psalm 110 – there was a priest-king (of Jerusalem? Salem?) a long time before, who was great enough for Abraham to pay him homage.

• Hebrews 7 – God’s promise of a priest-king only makes sense if the priesthood itself, in principle – including the covenant on which it was based – was becoming obsolete.

5. Sometimes there are interesting lessons to be learned within literary genres.

Ecclesiastes, Job, and Proverbs are all wisdom literature – but are very different.

What is a gospel, and why are there four of them? Carson pointed here to the titles of the gospels – The Gospel According to Matthew, etc. – such that there is one gospel with several witnesses. The gospel is the good news of what God was doing in his Son – which is why we announce it and preach it (what else does one do with news?).

I’ll post notes on Part 2 of the lecture anon.

D.A. Carson List of Publications

Andy Naselli, research assistant to D.A.Carson, has done a great service in producing what must be a definitive list of Carson’s publications, divided into five categories: (1) Books; (2) Articles; (3) Reviews; (4) Lyrics; (5) Edited Series.

Many of these are downloadable as pdfs (retaining original pagination), seven of which are entire books – listed below – freely available.

The list is posted here on the Gospel Coalition website. Andy Naselli’s original post (with some background information) can be found here.

Letters Along the Way: A Novel of the Christian Life (Wheaton: Crossway, 1993).

Holy Sonnets of the Twentieth Century (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1994).

For the Love of God: A Daily Companion for Discovering the Riches of God’s Word, Volume 1 (Wheaton: Crossway, 1998).

For the Love of God: A Daily Companion for Discovering the Riches of God’s Word, Volume 2 (Wheaton: Crossway, 1999).

The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God (Wheaton: Crossway, 2000).

Love in Hard Places (Wheaton: Crossway, 2002).

Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor: The Life and Reflections of Tom Carson (Wheaton: Crossway, 2008).

D.A. Carson

I was a Christian of not more than a few months old in 1981 when I first heard D.A. Carson speak at my home church in Southport. I can remember the sermons to this day. I remain profoundly grateful for the times I have heard him since then, and for his many books and articles.

Justin Taylor, who blogs at ‘Between Two Worlds’ (and which I check every day) has published a brief sketch of Carson and his enormous output in teaching and writing.

Carson signs off all his books with Soli Deo gloria, ‘to God alone be the glory’.