Robert Yarbrough’s fascinating new book described the state of New Testament studies and the divide that has formed between reading the Bible in the academy and in the church. He argued that since the Enlightenment, New Testament studies have developed in directions that actually exclude people from believing these documents, especially in ways that the church has always understood them, if they are to maintain ‘proper’ academic credentials.

Yarbrough’s outline of this development is incredibly insightful, and every past, present, or future seminary student should read this book. It provides an easily readable background and survey of many of the problems rampant in modern academic biblical studies. Yarbrough’s point, however, was not that conservatives should avoid academic study of the New Testament, but he actually called for the opposite, that we would engage as confessional churches with new rigour and enthusiasm in deep study of the Scripture and make academic arguments to prove the unbelieving approach to be the sham that it is.

This book is available to purchase from Blackwells.

Harrison Perkins, London City Presbyterian Church