Book Notice: Providence: A Biblical, Historical, and Theological Account

Mark Elliott has already published two books dealing with providence, and a third is due to be published by Baker Academic in April 2020. Here’s the blurb:

Mark W. Elliott, Providence: A Biblical, Historical, and Theological Account

This book by a leading scholar of Christian theology and exegesis is a capstone of years of research on the history and theology of the doctrine of providence. Addressing a topic of perennial interest in Christian theology, Mark Elliott offers a constructive account of the doctrine of providence and shows that, contrary to received opinion, the Bible has a lot to say about providence as a distinct doctrine within the wider scope of God’s acts of salvation.

Elliott explains that providence operates outside the range of knowledge and full comprehensibility, eluding faith and transcending revelation. Therefore, readers must look for traces of God’s action in the stories and philosophies of the biblical authors, which appear in the biblical corpus in such themes as the hand of God, the face of God, the kingdom, the plan of God, blessing, life, breath, enduring order, judgment, protection, and the hidden God. Elliott explores these themes in such a way that the entirety of the Bible across both Testaments bears witness to the theme of providence. He concludes by showing how the findings of his analysis speak to the concerns of systematic and practical theologians.

Contents

1. Is Providence Topical or Even Biblical?

2. Alternative Themes to Providence in the Bible

3. Providence and Divine Action, Viewed Biblically

4. Finding Providence across the Old Testament Genres

5. Providence as Set Forth in the New Testament

6. Systematic Considerations in the Light of Biblical Theology

Indexes

I had mixed thoughts about The Heart of Biblical Theology and Providence Perceived, but Providence: ABHTA looks to be a more constructive piece. I shall look forward to getting this in due course.