Journal: Westminster Theological Journal
Volume: WTJ 86:2 (Fall 2024)
Article: Reviews Of Books
Author: Anonymous

WTJ 86:2 (Fall 2024) p. 241

Reviews Of Books

Karen H. Jobes, John Through Old Testament Eyes: A Background and Application Commentary. Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2021. Pp. 400. $29.99, paper.

Karen Jobes contributes the second volume in the Through Old Testament Eyes series with her section-by-section commentary on John’s use of the OT. This series addresses a widespread deficit in modern engagement with the OT by exploring the most essential connections to the OT in each volume. Alongside the running commentary, readers will find periodic summaries of the broader use of the OT throughout the book and sections dedicated to important structural features. Many chapters also include additional reflections about the practical implications of each passage. The series as a whole intends to provide accessible commentaries on the NT use of the OT for interested ministers and laypersons, with modest references to relevant secondary literature and minimal technical argot.

Jobes’s volume appears to find the appropriate balance between scholarly depth and accessible authorship, in keeping with John’s own style: “As has often been said, John’s gospel is shallow enough for a baby to wade in yet deep enough for an elephant to swim in” (p. 14). The introduction offers a concise summary of significant background issues. Since John’s use of the OT is highly situational, readers must keep in mind the narrative positioning of Jesus’ words and actions against the backdrop of the synagogue, the temple, the legacy of the patriarchs, and the Israelite feasts. The commentary incorporates insights from the OT and Second Temple Judaism, particularly where they inform John’s Christology. It is the “verbal artistry” of the OT that will explain the significance of Jesus’ teachings and his redemptive mission in John’s Gospel (p. 24).

From this standpoint, John challenges and expands the traditional notion of Jewish monotheism with his revelation of the incarnate Logos, rooted in the OT identity of Yhwh and his personified word rather than Greek philosophy (pp. 31–32). These foundational observations pave the way for the recurring expositions of Jesus’ deity in the formal “I am” statements. John 10:30 yields another representative example, where Jobes addresses the theological tension between Israel’s traditional understanding of the Shema and Jesus’ announcement of his abiding union with the Father (p. 181). After a brief but nuanced examination of the grammar in v. 30 (“I and the Father are one” [Gk. hen]), Jobes concludes that Jesus has simultaneously challenged the theology of Israel’s leadership and preserved the unity of the Shema. The c...