15 May 2010

Beale (7): New Creation Recapitulating Creation

More macro-dot-connecting from Dr. Beale's 1997 essay.

[T]he approach in this essay has attempted to root every aspect of New Testament Theology in the Old testament, especially the notion of new creation as the recapitulation of the original creation of Genesis 1, but on a grander scale. The recapitulating story line of the new creation theme is:

(1) Chaos of pre-creation state and creation/commission of Adam, followed by fall;

(2) Chaos of deluge and re-creation/commission of Noah, followed by fall (sins of Noah and his sons);

(3) Chaos of Egyptian captivity and plagues of de-creation (see here), followed by re-creation (at exodus)/commission of Israel (anticipated by commission of patriarchs) followed by fall (golden calf)
(4) Chaos of captivity in Babylon and in Israel's own land, followed by recreation/commission of Jesus the True Israel (in his life, death, and resurrection), followed by no fall of Jesus as Last Adam, and followed by his successful consummation of initial re-creation in eternal new heavens and earth.

--G. K. Beale, 'The Eschatological Conception of New Testament Theology,' in The Reader Must Understand: Eschatology in Bible and Theology (IVP 1997)

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