God the Trinity: Biblical Portraits
Digital Logos Edition
Overview
Is the Trinity biblical? Is it necessary to affirm God as three persons in one being? Despite a renewed interest in the Trinity in recent years, many Christians, including most evangelicals, either relegate the Son of God to creaturely status or repudiate the personhood of the Holy Spirit. In addition, numerous scholars affirm that the doctrine of the Trinity is not clearly revealed in Scripture. Is the Trinity merely a philosophical construction, or is it essential to orthodox Christianity? Drawing on hermeneutics and biblical and historical theology, Malcolm Yarnell crafts a careful and clear response to these issues through exegesis of pivotal texts from both testaments.
He meticulously examines the foundational Hebrew confession known as the Shema, Matthew's great commission, the divine relations in the Gospel of John, Paul's Corinthian benediction, the opening hymn of Ephesians, and the throne room vision of the Apocalypse. Also considered are the relationships of language to revelation and history to metaphysics, along with recent appeals to recover patristic exegesis and the Christian imagination. He also challenges the reader to discern the implications of the Trinity for personal salvation as well as corporate worship.
- Evaluates the biblical source material for the Trinity
- Seeks to address two questions: Is the doctrine that God is Trinity a biblical doctrine? Is it, moreover, a doctrine that is necessary to believe?
- Compares topic of study to the art of painting as a helping metaphor
"Malcolm Yarnell is someone whose scholarship I hold in high regard. He is careful, judicious, and thorough. He is also biblical and orthodox. In God the Trinity: Biblical Portraits, the full array of his scholarly skills is on display. This is a welcome addition to the field of Trinitarian studies and one I am glad to commend without hesitation."
Daniel Akin, president, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
"Malcolm Yarnell has provided us with a masterful introduction to Trinitarian theology. Historically informed, carefully crafted, and well researched. Yarnell's work not only provides a faithful hermeneutical model to help us move from Bible to theology, but it brilliantly affirms why the renewal of Trinitarian theology is exegetically and existentially essential for the people of God. Pastors, teachers, and students alike will find insightful guidance from this constructive presentation. It is a joy to recommend this fine book."
David S. Dockery, president, Trinity International University/Trinity Evangelical Divinity School
"This book is a gallery of eight masterpiece biblical texts on the Triune God interpreted by a scholar steeped in theology and art. He writes with confidence but never arrogance, blending heart and head, aesthetics and systematics. Do not miss the epilogue - it proclaims the necessity of the Triune doctrine with a ring of worship and awe."
Rodrick Durst, professor of historical theology, Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary