My Book – An Update

Posted on by Paul Henebury

I thought I would write something about the book I have been writing for some time now. The book is called The Words of the Covenant: A Biblical Theology. It’s subtitle is Old Testament Expectation.

I am working with the publisher to finalize the manuscript. Lord willing it will be at the printers in the summer. Let me explain a little about what I’m trying to do in the book.

In late 2006 I completed my dissertation called ‘Method and Function in Dispensational Theology: A Theological Prolegomenon.’ As the title suggests, the work was my attempt to do something that, as far as I could tell, had not been attempted before; to write an Introduction to Method for Dispensational Systematic Theology.

To make a long story short, in working through the thesis the penny dropped that Dispensational Theology did not have a worked out understanding of methodology beyond “grammatical-historical hermeneutics.” One often hears that “Dispensationalism is a hermeneutic.” This betrays a rather shallow self-understanding (which I shall not go into here); a trait that sadly characterizes much Dispensational scholarship as it is come across in Systematics and Commentaries. One of my main aims is to show that the Biblical Covenants provide a far superior foundation for Biblical and Systematic Theology than do dispensations.

In 2007 I began tentatively writing about and teaching something I dubbed “Biblical Covenantalism.” From what I can find it appears that I have been using this term since the middle of that year. My book is a Biblical Theology of the Old Testament focusing on the Divine Covenants; the Noahic, Abrahamic, Mosaic, “Priestly,” Davidic, and of course the New. It emphasizes the role of Messiah, especially His strong association with the New Covenant. I interact with a lot of non-dispensationalists to demonstrate that my exegetical decisions and conclusions are solidly based, even if my overall outlook on “The Creation Project” that runs along the track of God’s covenants is “new.”

Here is the Table of Contents:

The Words of the Covenant: A Biblical Theology

Volume One – Old Testament Expectation

Paul Martin Henebury

Preface

Acknowledgements

Introduction: The God of the Covenants                                                                        

PART ONE: CREATION AND THE COVENANTS OF GOD

1. The Creation Project and the Divine Covenants: The Trajectory of Biblical Theology  

2. The Covenants of the Bible: Where God Says It Is All Heading                                  

3. Christ as the Center: How the World is Covenantally Bound to Jesus Christ                

4. Summary                                                                                                                

PART TWO: CREATION AND COVENANT FOUNDATIONS INGENESIS

5.  The Theology of the Creation Narrative                                                                   

6.  Genesis Two and Theological Decisions                                                                  

7.  The Account of the Fall                                                                                           

8.  From the First Murder to the First Covenant                                                               

9.  The Choice of One Man                                                                                          

10.  Abraham, Isaac and Jacob                                                                                     

11.  Summary                                                                                                              

PART THREE: A SHORT HISTORY OF ISRAEL

12.  Redemption Comes to the Fore                                                                              

13.  The Downward Spiral and the Throne of David                                                      

14.  Deterioration, Exile and Covenant Hope                                                                 

15.  Summary                                                                                                              

PART FOUR: COVENANT IN THE PSALMS AND WISDOM LITERATURE

16.  The Wisdom Literature                                                                                          

17.  Covenant and Christology in the Psalms                                                                 

18.  Summary                                                                                                              

PART FIVE:  THE PROPHETS (PT.1)

19.  What is a Prophet?                                                                                                

20.  The First Writing Prophets: Hosea, Amos, Micah                                                      

21.  The Book of Isaiah                                                                                                  

22.  The Book of Jeremiah                                                                                             

23.  The Book of Ezekiel                                                                                                

24.  The Book of Daniel                                                                                                 

25.  Summary                                                                                                                

PART SIX: THE PROPHETS (PT.2)

26.  Haggai and Zechariah                                                                                           

27.  Covenantal Development in the Remaining Prophets                                                 

28.  Summary                                                                                                                

PART SEVEN: COVENANT EXPECTATION

29.  The Big Picture of the Old Testament                                                                       

30.  The Tenacity of the Creation Project                                                                        

Appendix 1: The Intertestamental Period                                                                          

Appendix 2: The Cosmic Temple and Spiritualization                                                       

Appendix 3: The Apocalyptic (Wrong) Turn                                                                    

Bibliography

Person Index

Scripture Index   

The Words of the Covenant (Vol. 1) is to be published by Xulon Press. I’ll keep you posted.

Published by Paul Henebury

25 thoughts on “My Book – An Update”

  5. I am so intrigued about this… what a “blindspot” you’ve picked up on here. Good on you. I’ve followed your work from my early studies through to my now postgraduate work and I’ve greatly benefited. Thank you! Looking forward to your publication. I’ll make space on my shelf!

  6. Dr. Henebury,

    Thank you for your labors! We enjoy the sweet fruits of bitter diligence. I am so excited.

    If you permit, could you talk a little bit about the publishing process? I’ve heard before that “dispensational”works like Dr. Vlach’s “He will reign forever” have difficulty getting published by the big names, despite the excellent scholarship, because it’s dispensational. Did you face any of those difficulties?

    I look forward to your interaction with the opposing views of reputable scholars and brothers in Christ. We want to see truth honored

    2. Jaxson,

      I actually conferred with Dr. Vlach about publishing, which helped me avoid wasting time with big name publishers and going through a self-publishing company. I chose Xulon after looking at several. The book should be out (DV) in about 2 months.

  8. Just discovered you and I am delighted so far with your lectures on Biblical Covenantalism. You are addressing some questions that have been rolling around in my head but I haven’t had time to address. Your analysis that Dispensationalism is hindered by how it is defined was excellent. Looking forward to the book. You certainly should have a voice at the table.

  9. Dr. Henebury, I look forward to this, as it fills a lacuna. I understand the decision to self-publish. I’ve published 3 books, and done it differently each time. In my view, marketing is the key piece.

    1. Thanks Matt. I may come and pick your brains one of these days. I’m finding pre-production a chore. The Rep I have usually takes 3/4 days to reply, and when she does it is as brief as possible. They almost look like form letters. I have to wonder if she has actually read all my email(s). Live and learn I guess.

  10. I read The Words of the Covenant in 2022 and found it extremely stimulating. I look forward to the second New Testament volume! Do you know when Volume 2 will be published? Thank you.

  11. Well, I am working hard on it. I am editing the 3 chapters on Paul at the moment. There is work to do on the Petrine letters and Jude, and then I have to edit the Revelation stuff. Finally, I have a couple of Intro chs to finish and some appendices. It could be a few months.

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