Numbers

The book "Numbers" is the fourth book of the Bible. It is so named because it contains a record of the numbering of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai and later on the plain of Moab. This commentary, like each in the series, is designed to serve readers by demonstrating the continuing intellectual and practical viability of theological interpretation of the Bible.

The Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible enlists leading theologians to read and interpret scripture creedally for the twenty-first century, just as the church fathers, the Reformers, and other orthodox Christians did for their times and places. Numbers, like each commentary in the series, is designed to serve the church--through aid in preaching, teaching, study groups, and so forth--and demonstrate the continuing intellectual and practical viability of theological interpretation of the Bible.

"David Stubbs is an able guide as he focuses on the literary shape of the final form of Numbers and its theological implications for the life of the Christian church. Stubbs provides a rich and substantive Christian reading of Numbers, focusing on its vision of who the people of God are to be, the failure of the people to live up to God's vision and God's faithfulness in spite of that failure, and the reorganization and new beginning of an emerging generation of God's people as they prepare for life in the promised land of Canaan. Stubbs interacts responsibly with current Old Testament scholarship on Numbers. He also expands his commentary into a dense theological dialogue with New Testament texts, modern Jewish interpreters, and a wide array of Christian interpreters. And he takes up a host of substantive theological issues and concerns. Stubbs manages to offer up a sumptuous theological feast out of what is sometimes seen as the dry fare of the book of Numbers."--Dennis Olson, Princeton Theological Seminary

"Stubbs's sophisticated literary approach is just what is needed to engage the interplay of law and narrative in this, the most complex book of the Torah. Moreover, his wide-ranging theological and ecclesial imagination is deeply informed by scripture and the history of its interpretation by both Jews and Christians. Stubbs has opened up the riches of a book that was effectively closed to the church, making it accessible and even indispensable for our journey with God."--Ellen F. Davis, Duke Divinity School

General editor: R. R. Reno (Creighton University)
Series editors: Robert W. Jenson (Center of Theological Inquiry)
Robert Louis Wilken (University of Virginia)
Ephraim Radner (Wycliffe College, University of Toronto)
Michael Root (Catholic University of America)
George Sumner (Wycliffe College, University of Toronto)