From the Prophets to the Son: The Use of the Old Testament in the Book of Hebrews

by Martin Pickup

This was one of the texts for the Hebrews class I took under the author at Florida College. It is not currently published, outside of the copies he provided for us, but I believe will be eventually.

From the preface: “When we look closely at the interpretations that New Testament writers give to passages they cite, we are faced with a puzzling problem. Their interpretations often depart significantly from the apparent meaning of the Old Testament verses in their original contexts. New Testament writers sometimes read a verse as if it spoke of someone or something other than the person or thing originally in view.” Sometimes, the author would change his interpretation mid-stream (e.g. The Hebrew author interprets the “rest” Psa. 95 differently in chapter 4 than he had a few paragraphs earlier, in chapter 3). This has led to the charge of some of the theological liberals that New Testament authors “twist the scriptures” and produce interpretations that are “artificial,” “far-fetched,” and “entirely foreign to the original.”

Pickup tackles this problem, specifically in regard to the Hebrew author’s use of the Old Testament, in this volume. He goes through the various Old Testament citations, one by one, looking at their grammatical-historical interpretation (i.e., what it meant to the original readers) before looking at how the author of Hebrews interpreted it, noting the difference and seeking to give credence to the method used by the Hebrew author. Ultimately, Pickup hangs his hat on “Midrashic Exegesis”—the exegetical method practiced by the first-century Jews. I’d elaborate more on that method, but I’d hate to spoil the surprise!

If you’re looking for a book that will give you 10 Easy Steps to OT Interpretation, or something to that effect, this isn’t the book for you. If, however, you want to be able to combat those scholars who deny the validity of the Bible message based on their misinterpretation of interpretation, you’ll want to pick this book up (once it’s published!).

The Editors do not advocate everything taught by the authors of the books we review. Like us, these authors are fallible humans and those who choose to read these books should measure them by the bible, the one true standard.