An exciting look at the world of the Old Testament, especially in light of its canonical form. Brueggemann balances the OT’s canonical order for Christians (Gen. – Malachi) with the Jewish canon (Gen. – Chronicles) and explains why we should pay attention to its final shape. He borrows heavily from Brevard Childs, arguing that the canon is the shape of Israel’s imagination, which includes borrowing and reinterpreting past stories to understand the present and the future. The exodus story, for example, is not only about the Israelites escaping from Egypt; it also serves as a model for later “liberation” narratives of Israel, as when it frees itself from Babylonian captivity or oppressive Roman rule.

That the shape of the canon is different for Christians as it is for Jews is significant. For Christians, the OT ends with prophecies concerning the Messiah who will save Israel (and ultimately humanity), which is fulfilled in Christ. For Jews, the story ends in the sweeping “historical” narrative of Chronicles, functioning as a reminder of Israel’s past, present, and future; Israel looks forward to building a second temple and reinheriting the land of their forefathers.

Still, this does not mean all imaginative interpretations are valid – Brueggemann argues that it is the job of the church, via its creeds and teachings, to be faithful to previous models of reinterpretations and to extrapolate truth that is consistently orthodox.

This was refreshing compared to the old historical model of reading the OT (is it historical fact? Did it really happen? What did it mean to the original audience?), which can be impossible to discern. I’m in agreement with Brueggemann for the most part, although I hesitate to say that both Jewish and Christian reinterpretations are valid.