Typos: The Typological Interpretation of the Old Testament in the New

by Leonhard Goppelt

Overview

This is a print on demand book and is therefore non- returnable.

In 1938-39 Leonhard Goppelt finished his doctoral dissertation at Erlangen entitled "Typos: Die typologische Deutung des Alten Testaments im Neuen." The lasting value of his work was evidenced in 1969 when this dissertation was reprinted, with an appendix on "Apocalypticism and Typology in Paul." Goppelt's work has maintained its significance because it deals with biblical hermeneutics — the study of the methodology of biblical interpretation — a subject of renewed interest in the last few years.

In his search for a normative hermeneutics, Goppelt appeals to the New Testament's interpretation of the Old Testament as a guide. He offers "a study of the interpretation of Scripture that is characteristic of the New Testament" in order to provide a standard guide for interpreting the Bible today. The focal question for Goppelt is how the Old Testament and Jesus Christ are related, and Goppelt's answer to this question is found in how the New Testament interprets the Old Testament — typologically.

Goppelt begins with a brief survey of the various definitions of typology to determine how it is distinguished from allegory, with which it is often confused. After this introductory chapter, Goppelt divides his work into three parts: Typology in Late Judaism, Typology in the New Testament, and Apocalypticism and Typology in Paul. In his survey of late Judaism, Goppelt examines both Palestinian and Hellenistic Judaism to determine the place of typology in their literatures. Turning to the New Testament, Goppelt looks first at the portrayal of Jesus Christ in the Synoptic Gospels and Acts. Elements of this portrayal are Jesus as the Prophet, as the Son of David and Lord, and as the Son of Man. Goppelt finds each of these characterizations typologically related to the Old Testament. Similarly, in his next chapter on the church as portrayed in the Synoptics and Acts, Goppelt finds a number of typological relationships between the people of God in the Old Testament and the church in the New Testament.

Goppelt next examines the Pauline epistles for Paul's use of Scripture in general and for his view of Christ and the church. Goppelt here appends brief treatments on 1 and 2 Peter and Jude. In following chapters Goppelt deals with Hebrews, the Gospel of John, and finally apocalypticism and typology in Paul. Here he also examines traditional approaches to the relationship between the Old Testament and the New, the origin and legitimacy of the typological approach, and the relationship between typology and the historical-critical method.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780802809650
Publisher:	Eerdmans, William B. Publishing Company
Publication date:	10/06/1982
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.65(d)

About the Author

Leonhard Goppelt (1911-1973) was professor of New Testament at Hamburg and Munich. His other publications include A Commentary on 1 Peter, Apostolic and Post-Apostolic Times, and Theology of the New Testament.

Table of Contents

	Foreword	ix
	Author's Preface to the German Reprint	xxi
	Preface	xxiii
I.	Introduction	1
Part 1	Typology in Late Judaism
II.	Palestinian Judaism	23
1.	The Apocrypha	23
2.	The Pseudepigrapha	24
3.	The Rabbinical Writings	25
a.	The Sources	25
b.	The Interpretation of Scripture in the Haggadah of the Tannaim	28
4.	The Eschatology	32
III.	Hellenistic Judaism	42
1.	Philo	42
a.	General Characteristics	42
b.	Biblical Interpretation in Philo's Writings	43
i.	Philo's Exposition of the Mosaic Law	43
ii.	Philo's Commentary on Genesis	47
c.	Philo's Method of Interpretation	48
i.	Literal and Figurative Interpretation	48
ii.	Allegorical Interpretation	48
d.	The Philosophical Basis for Philo's Hermeneutics	50
2.	Hellenistic Judaism before Philo	53
a.	Aristobulus	53
b.	The Epistle of Aristeas	54
c.	4 Maccabees	55
d.	The Wisdom of Solomon	55
3.	Summary: The Place of Typology in Late Judaism	56
Part 2	Typology in the New Testament
IV.	The Synoptic Gospels and Acts: Jesus Christ	61
1.	The Prophet	61
a.	The Basis	62
b.	Jesus' Redemptive Acts	65
i.	His Preaching of Repentance	65
ii.	His Proclamation of Salvation in Word and Action	68
iii.	His Manner of Using His Authority	74
c.	Jesus' Death	77
2.	The Son of David and Lord	82
3.	The Son of Man	90
a.	The Content and Origin of the Concept "Son of Man" in the New Testament	90
b.	The Second Adam	97
c.	The Righteous Sufferer	100
V.	The Synoptic Gospels and Acts: the Church of Jesus Christ	107
1.	The Calling of the Twelve New Tribes	107
2.	The People of the New Covenant and the Means of Their Redemption Are Established in the Institution of the Lord's Supper	110
3.	The Church of Pentecost	116
Appendix I.	Typology in the Early Church's Witness to Christ as Recorded in Acts	121
Appendix II.	Typology in the Epistle of James	125
VI.	The Pauline Epistles	127
1.	Typology and Paul's Use of Scripture	127
2.	Christ the Second Adam Who Brings the New Creation	129
a.	Christ the Antitype of Adam	129
b.	Christianity as a New Creation	130
3.	The Church as the "Children of Abraham" and as the "Spiritual Israel"	136
a.	The Children of Abraham	136
b.	The Israel of God	140
4.	Typology and the Heart of Paul's Theology	151
Appendix I	1 Peter	152
Appendix II	2 Peter and Jude	158
VII.	The Epistle to the Hebrews	161
1.	The Use of Scripture and Typology in Hebrews	161
2.	Jesus, the True High Priest	163
3.	God's Rule over Israel as a Type That Warns and Strengthens the Church	170
4.	Characteristics of the Typology in Hebrews; Comparison with Paul; Terminology	176
VIII.	The Gospel of John	179
1.	The Relationship of John to the Old Testament and the Nature of John's Typology	179
2.	Jesus, the Perfecter of Creation	181
3.	Jesus, God's Perfect Gift	185
a.	Jesus Fulfills the Gifts of the First Age of Salvation	185
b.	Jesus Fulfills the Institutions of the Old Covenant	188
4.	The Unity of John's Use of Scripture and Its Relationship to the Rest of the New Testament	194
Appendix	Typology in the New Testament Picture of the Future	195
IX.	The Nature of Old Testament Typology in the New Testament	198
Part 3	Apocalypticism and Typology in paul
X.	Apocalypticism and Typology in Paul	209
1.	Traditional Approaches to the Relationship between the Two Testaments	209
2.	The Characteristics of Apocalypticism and Typology in Paul	211
3.	The Structure and Origin of Paul's Typology	218
4.	The Extent of Typology in Paul	223
5.	The Origin and Legitimacy of the Typological Approach	225
6.	Typology and the Historical-Critical Method	229
7.	The Relationship between Typology and Apocalypticism in Paul	233
	Index of Subjects	239
	Index of Names	242
	Index of Scripture	245

Editorial Reviews

F. F. Bruce
"The English translation of this important work deserves a warm welcome. It was first published in 1939, at a time when it was politically expedient in Germany to play down the importance of the Old Testament for Christianity. The author was concerned to show how essential the Old Testament was for the life and faith of the church, and how Christians could read it with understanding and profit. A generation later it was reissued, with the addition of a later essay on apocalypticism and typology in Paul. It is this amplified reissue that has now been translated. While it continues to fulfill its primary purpose with regard to the Old Testament, it can be seen today to perform an equally valuable service for the study of the New Testament. The use of the Old Testament in the New, which (in the words of C. H. Dodd) provided the foundation of New Testament theology, is seen to by typographical — that is to say, it is based on the recognition that a dominant pat

Richard N. Longenecker
—Wycliffe College
"A highly significant work that spells out in convincing fashion the typographical undergirding of New Testament thought. Though dated in the treatment of Late Judaism, Goppelt's analyses of Jesus' self-consciousness, of the New Testament writers' various portrayals, and of the New Testament's relation to the Old are masterful. This is a book to be read prior to and in conjunction with studies on specific exegetical procedures."

From the Publisher