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16 - Theological Tensions in the Book of Isaiah

from Part IV - Afterlives of the Book of Isaiah

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 November 2024

By
Matthew R. Schlimm
Edited by
Christopher B. Hays
Christopher B. Hays
Affiliation:
Fuller Theological Seminary, California
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Summary

With its many voices that are joined together, Isaiah is akin to a massive choir or symphony, and it sometimes strikes dissonant notes. Matthew R. Schlimm, in “Theological Tensions in the Book of Isaiah,” looks at a number of different themes on which the book contains contrasting testimonies: God is portrayed as both a loving savior and a wrathful punisher; God is said to be a mighty sovereign, and yet humans frequently do not act according to his will; God is universal and transcendent, and yet is also portrayed as intimate with his people, particularly Zion; humans are sometimes seen as pervasively sinful, but are exhorted to do good; the creation, too, is sometimes good and blessed, and yet elsewhere seen as corrupted; and the same leaders and empires are alternately condemned and used as divine agents. Schlimm reflects on the way in which these complexities press readers beyond simple answers.

Keywords

Old TestamentIsaiahGodtheological anthropologysinpeople of Godcreation
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Companion to the Book of Isaiah , pp. 261 - 280
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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References

Further Reading

Abernethy, Andrew T. The Book of Isaiah and God’s Kingdom: A Thematic Theological Approach. New Studies in Biblical Theology 40. London: Apollos/. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2016.Google Scholar
Barton, John. “Ethics in Isaiah of Jerusalem.” Pages 130–44 in Understanding Old Testament Ethics: Approaches and Explorations. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2003.Google Scholar
Childs, Brevard. The Struggle to Understand Isaiah as Christian Scripture. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2004.Google Scholar
Childs, Brevard. Isaiah. Old Testament Library. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2001.Google Scholar
Claassens, L. Juliana. “Isaiah.” Pages 209–22 in Theological Bible Commentary. Edited by O’Day, Gail R. and Petersen, David L.. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2009.Google Scholar
Couey, J. Blake. “The Book of Isaiah.” in Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Religion. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780199340378.013.153.Google Scholar
Darr, Katheryn Pfisterer. Isaiah’s Vision and the Family of God. Literary Currents in Biblical Interpretation. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 1994.Google Scholar
Goldingay, John E. The Theology of the Book of Isaiah. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2014.Google Scholar
Gowan, Donald E. Theology of the Prophetic Books: The Death and Resurrection of Israel. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1998.Google Scholar
Kim, Hyun Chul Paul. Reading Isaiah: A Literary and Theological Commentary. Reading the Old Testament. Macon, Georgia: Smyth & Helwys, 2016.Google Scholar
Pleins, J. David. “The Ethics of Desolation and Hope: Isaiah.” Pages 213–75 in The Social Visions of the Hebrew Bible: A Theological Introduction. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2001.Google Scholar
Poulsen, Frederik. The Black Hole in Isaiah: A Study of Exile as a Literary Theme. FAT 125. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2019.Google Scholar
Roberts, J. J. M. “Isaiah in Old Testament Theology.” Interpretation 36 (1982): 130–43.Google Scholar
Sawyer, John F. A. The Fifth Gospel: Isaiah in the History of Christianity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996.Google Scholar
Tull, Patricia K. Isaiah 1–39. Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary. Macon, GA: Smyth & Helwys, 2010.Google Scholar

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