My copy arrived today of Tremper Longman’s new commentary on Proverbs in the Baker Commentary on the Old Testament Wisdom and Psalms. I have been looking forward to this precisely because Longman is one of the few Old Testament commentators in contemporary evangelical life to understand that the point of the Proverbs, and the rest of the Old Testament Scriptures, is Jesus of Nazareth.
I haven’t read the entire commentary yet, but I am very pleased by Longman’s introduction to his method of interpretation. He writes:
“The Bible is one continuous and organic story, though told in a variety of genres and by a variety of authors, who provide different perspectives on the same truth. The Bible is composed of many books but in the end is a single book. It has many authors but ultimately is the product of a single Author. It is important to study the books of the Bible from the perspective of their distinctive contribution as well as their connection to the whole.
“In terms of the latter, the Bible is like any narrative. On a first reading the story of the OT unfolds in ways not expected. However, on a second and further reading of the canon, one cannot, except as an intellectual exercise, read the beginning without knowledge of the end. In terms of the study of the OT, Christian scholars should initially do their best to bracket their understanding of how the story ends in the NT. However, such a reading is an intellectual exercise. In reality, one cannot and ultimately should not read the beginning of a story the same way twice. Indeed, a second reading of the beginning of any story and in particular the story of the Christian Bible will be accompanied by recognition of how that story ends.”
In other words, the hermeneutic employed by Jesus and the apostles is not a “special” hermeneutic. It is exactly the way we read any story. If you bracket out the first chapter of Moby Dick, you’re going to understand the foreboding imagery better once you’ve seen the end of the story. Melville wrote both parts.
The Old Testament is shrouded in mystery. But Jesus tells us we should see that it is pointing to him and to his glory (Luke 24:44-49). And Paul tells us that mystery, hidden for ages, has been revealed, in Christ Jesus.
As the Book of Proverbs puts it:
Surely I am more stupid than any man, and I do not have the understanding of a man. Neither have I learned wisdom, nor do I have the knowledge of the Holy One. Who has ascended into heaven and descended? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has wrapped the waters in His garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name or His son’s name? Surely you know! [Prov 30:1-4]
