Eric Ortlund
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Piercing Leviathan : God’s Defeat Of Evil In The Book Of Job
$28.00Add to cartOne of the most challenging passages in the Old Testament book of Job comes in the Lord’s second speech (40-41). The characters and the reader have waited a long time for the Lord to speak-only to read what is traditionally interpreted as a long description of a hippopotamus and crocodile (Behemoth and Leviathan). The stakes are very high: is God right to run the world in such a way that allows such terrible suffering for one of his most loyal servants? Is Job right to keep trusting God in the midst of much criticism? But it is difficult for modern readers to avoid a sense of frustrating anticlimax as the book ends.
Eric Ortlund argues that Behemoth and Leviathan are better understood as symbols of cosmic chaos and evil-that a supernatural interpretation fits better exegetically within the book of Job and within Job’s ancient Middle Eastern context. It also helps modern readers to appreciate the satisfying climax the narrator intended for the book: in describing Behemoth and Leviathan, God is directly engaging with Job’s complaint about divine justice, implying to Job that he understands the evil at loose in his creation better than Job does, is in control of it, and will one day destroy it.
In this New Studies in Biblical Theology volume, Ortlund considers different interpretations of the Lord’s second speech and their potential exegetical and pastoral weaknesses. He shows how a supernatural interpretation of Behemoth and Leviathan puts modern readers in a position to appreciate the reward of Job’s faith (and ours) as we endure in trusting God while living in an unredeemed creation.
Addressing key issues in biblical theology, the works comprising New Studies in Biblical Theology are creative attempts to help Christians better understand their Bibles. The NSBT series is edited by D. A. Carson, aiming to simultaneously instruct and to edify, to interact with current scholarship and to point the way ahead.
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Job : A 12-Week Study
$9.99Add to cartThe Knowing the Bible series is a resource designed to help Bible readers better understand and apply God’s Word. These 12-week studies lead participants through books of the Bible and are made up of four basic components: (1) reflection questions that help readers engage the text at a deeper level; (2) “Gospel Glimpses” that highlight the gospel of grace throughout the book; (3) “Whole-Bible Connections” that show how any given passage connects to the Bible’s overarching story of redemption, culminating in Christ; and (4) “Theological Soundings” that identify how historic orthodox doctrines are taught or reinforced throughout Scripture. With contributions from an array of influential pastors and church leaders, these gospel-centered studies will help Christians see and cherish the message of God’s grace on every page of the Bible.
This 12-week study invites us to take an honest look at the agony and pain experienced by Job, which are immediately relevant to the suffering we all experience while on earth. However, it takes us beyond the suffering and into the sovereignty and trustworthiness of God in the midst of our trials. Eric Ortlund helps us see God’s purposes in suffering as we look ahead to the restoration of all things in the new creation.