Immanuel in Our Place: Seeing Christ in Israel's Worship

Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, Jun 2003 by Lubeck, Ray

Immanuel in Our Place: Seeing Christ in Israel's Worship. By Tremper Longman, III. The Gospel According to the OT. Phillipsburg: P&R Publishing, 2001, 224 xii pp., $12.99 paper.

Tremper Longman, professor of biblical studies at Westmont College and an active member in ETS, is not only the author of this title but also co-editor of the series to which it belongs (The Gospel According to the Old Testament), the purpose of which is "to encourage Christ-centered reading, teaching and preaching of the Old Testament" for laypeople and pastors. Longman's work is predicated upon the conviction that our understanding of the significance of Jesus' death rests on the OT features of the tabernacle, sacrifices, priesthood, and festivals (p. xi). His book is organized around four parts: sacred space, sacred acts, sacred people, and sacred time.

In the first section he relates God's presence to special locations. In separate chapters he discusses Eden, pre-Sinaitic altars, the tabernacle, the Solomonic temple, the temple furnishings, and the relationship of sacred space to the NT believer. In a helpful excursus (pp. 21-23) he explains how an omnipresent, bodiless God is nevertheless present in special ways in particular places. Yet in this first section the author's focus of attention is unclear. That special places serve as venues for the concentrated mani-festation of the presence of God is clear, but if Longman's emphasis is upon God's preincarnate presence, then one would expect discussion of the burning bush, the pillars of cloud and fire, and God's theophanic presence at Sinai, none of which are treated here. Moreover, he introduces confusion by including sacred objects such as the Menorah into his discussion of sacred space, which seems to constitute a category mistake.

In Part 2 (chaps. 7-10), Longman deals with the sacrificial system, and here he provides an excellent summary of the function, nature, and purpose of each of the specified sacrifices in OT worship, well-suited for easy understanding by its targeted popular audience. The section culminates in a chapter-length explanation of Christ as the consummate sacrifice.

Part 3, on sacred people, centers on the priestly office in the OT, especially the Levitical-Aaronic line. Longman describes their ordination, distinctive lifestyle, and their priestly responsibilities. The final chapter again relates the priestly role to Christ, showing his superiority not only to the Levitical priesthood but also to Melchizedek.

The final section (chaps. 15-19) takes up the issue of sacred times, starting with the Sabbath in OT and the NT (one chapter each). Subsequently each of the festivals and holy days is explained and then related to NT fulfillment. The final chapter is on Purim as the "latecomer" sacred time.

The book has several drawbacks. In addition to the curious conflation of sacred objects into sacred space mentioned above, the book lacks a conclusion (there is a half-page postscript). By ending with a questionable attempt to relate Purim to the NT, it ends on, well, "the weakest link." More importantly, if the book had either a stronger introduction or a conclusion, its overall purpose would presumably be clearer. As it stands, it is not clear whether the primary focus is on relating Christ to God's presence in the OT (see the title), or to Israel's worship (see the subtitle), or to those things that are sacred (see section titles).

Aside from these caveats, the book is successful in achieving the series goals of demonstrating a Christocentric reading of these OT institutions-easily read by its target audience, well researched, and full of helpful insight.

Ray Lubeck

Multnomah Bible College, Portland, OR