Who Is God?
Key Moments of Biblical Revelation
by Richard Bauckham
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Pub Date 21 Jul 2020 | Archive Date 31 Jul 2020
Baker Academic & Brazos Press | Baker Academic
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Description
Accessible for laypeople and important to scholars, this volume begins by exploring three key events in the Bible in which God is revealed: Jacob's dream at Bethel (the revelation of the divine presence), Moses at the burning bush (the revelation of the divine Name), and Moses on Mount Sinai (the revelation of the divine character). In each case, Bauckham traces these themes through the rest of Scripture. He then shows how the New Testament builds on the Old by exploring three revelatory events in Mark's Gospel, events that reveal the Trinity: Jesus's baptism, transfiguration, and crucifixion.
This book is based on the Frumentius Lectures for 2015 at the Ethiopian Graduate School of Theology in Addis Ababa and on the Hayward Lectures for 2018 at Acadia Divinity College, Nova Scotia.
Advance Praise
“Richard Bauckham here distills his massive biblical scholarship into an exciting and easily accessible study of nothing less than the character of God. This is a short, powerful book on a huge, vital topic.”—N. T. Wright, research professor of New Testament and early Christianity, University of St. Andrews; senior research fellow, Wycliffe Hall, Oxford
“Richard Bauckham writes as a scholar of deep and learned mind; he writes as someone who can talk about God in a way that is as easy to understand as it could possibly be. And he talks about the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament in a way that shows how this is one God, concretely and consistently portrayed in both testaments.”—John Goldingay, professor of Old Testament, Fuller Theological Seminary
“In this brilliant and readable little tome, Richard Bauckham asks and answers the perennial question: Who is God? In doing so, he models how to do deeply revelatory biblical theology. This is a book to savor: its clear prose and profound biblical scope leads the reader to encounter the God of the Bible afresh.”—Mariam Kovalishyn, assistant professor of New Testament studies, Regent College
“This is a fantastic little book for anyone who wants to know God. With his customary lucidity and accessibility, careful treatment of evidence, and presentation of convincing arguments, Bauckham shows us that knowing God depends on God’s self-revelation and his initiative to be with humanity as the God of immediacy, intimacy, and active presence. By interpreting the stories of Jacob’s dream and Moses’s burning bush experience and discussing three key moments of divine revelation in Jesus’s baptism, transfiguration, and crucifixion, Bauckham beautifully explains how God seeks to be ‘God-with-us’ through Jesus and his Spirit. Bauckham illustrates these stories with ancient art from Ethiopia, where Christianity has existed for almost 1,700 years. In so doing, Bauckham emphasizes the universality of God’s revelation and his dynamic and personal presence through Jesus Christ. This book—whose significance goes well beyond its size—will be appreciated by anyone who wants to know God better.”—Desta Heliso, lecturer in New Testament and Jewish literature of the Second Temple Period, Ethiopian Graduate School of Theology
“There are only a handful of scholars I turn to, to learn something new and important about the Bible and its God that I had not considered before. Richard Bauckham is one of them. Who Is God? is a book about God’s self-revelation, and it is in itself a revelation! God is self-determining, and he has determined to reveal himself in his own way, at his own time, to his own chosen audiences. He has even revealed his personal name, after a fashion. And amazingly, that specific, named God, the only God of all creation, desires and has determined to be with us, now and forever, particularly in the person of Jesus Christ. This book should be on the shelf of every pastor, layperson, and interested party who desires to know better who God is. It is Bauckham at his most lucid and soul nourishing—an instant classic.”—Ben Witherington III, Amos Professor of New Testament for Doctoral Studies, Asbury Theological Seminary; emeritus professor, St. Andrews University
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781540961907 |
| PRICE | US$22.99 (USD) |
| PAGES | 128 |
Featured Reviews
Benjamin S, Reviewer
This book is fantastic. Richard Bauckham is a fantastic scholar and a clear writer, and this little book provides a thorough and compelling biblical presentation of the Christian doctrine of God. This is a very helpful survey that provides insight into the language, history, and culture of the Bible. I recommend it.
Educator 676205
How has God revealed himself, and what do these revelations say about his identity? The series is introduced as 'a critical assessments of major issues that the church faces in the twenty-first century.'
You might presume that the Revelation of God to Israel and the world is reasonably settled in the history of theology. Still, in a mere 116 pages, Bauckham (Professor Emeritus of New Testament Studies, St Andrews) takes the reader through the major points of revelation and explains what these key moments mean for us - Jacob at Bethel (Genesis 28); The Burning Bush (Ex 3); Mount Sinai (Ex 34); The Baptism of Christ (Mark 1); The Transfiguration (Mark 9) and the Centurion’s Confession (Mark 15).
Nothing presented here will unsettle the reader, but again and again, you may think, like me, 'why I didn't I make that connection already?' Bauckham points out that God's presence is assured with Jacob the wander so that he doesn't need to climb 'Jacob's Ladder,' as might be expected, and indeed as I'd probably long presumed. With deftness, he introduced me to a parallel I’d never seen before, the closing (28 and opening (1-2) chapters of Matthew where in both places Christ is acknowledged as King, as Messiah, is worshipped, and is 'with us'. This alone will change my Christmas sermons! Indeed, the ending of Matthew is presented as a response to Jacob's Ladder. I had also never considered the radical importance of the revelation to Moses at Mount Sinai, where God is revealed as merciful, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness - but only a few days later, when preaching on Ash Wednesday, this very text was placed in front of me via Joel.
As Bauckham puts it, these are 'moments that reverberate through the whole story...their significance is not grasped all at once and forever...moments whose meaning is never exhausted.' I’ve been studying Theology for almost 20 years, and I found more in this short book than in many larger tomes. I've already bought two copies as gifts.
