Johanna van Wijk-Bos: Making Wise the Simple

Johanna W. H. van Wijk-Bos, Making Wise the Simple: The Torah in Christian Faith and Practice (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2005), 353 pages.

Why should Pentecostal preachers read a book written by a Presbyterian scholar whose passion is a study of the “Law” which many Christians often regard as the dullest part of the Old Testament? Dr. Van Wijk-Bos, Dora Pierce Professor of the Bible and Old Testament at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, has given us many reasons in her compelling look at the relationship of the Pentateuch to Christian faith. Central to these reasons are Van Wijk-Bos’ definitions of covenant and torah (Hebrew word for “law”). Covenant provided ancient Israel their identity as the people of God while torah provided their instructions for living out that life as God’s people (p. 281). These concerns relate to Christians as well. We want to know who we are as the people of God’s new covenant and what are we to do in light of that relationship.

Van Wijk-Bos divides her study into five parts. Part I introduces her topic of how the idea of torah has been treated and mistreated by Christian hands. Her personal story of being raised in post-WWII Netherlands instilled in her an obligatory sensitivity to Jewish people and their story of faith. Thus she seeks to show the relevance of the covenant and torah for Christians while not despising the historical people who gave us the Pentateuch. She uses the theme of the “stranger” (Hebrew gēr) as a running motif throughout not just the Old Testament but the New as well.

Part V provides a theological summary of key aspects of the character of God and the relationship of Jesus and Paul to torah. Her presentation of the God Who Regrets, Appears, Accompanies, Is Prejudiced, and Passionate should awaken any reader to the value of Van Wijk-Bos’ book for Christians. She challenges many ideas in both Reformed and non-Reformed theological camps alike. Her discussion of the “new perspective” on Paul will bring the reader up-to-date on a contemporary scholarly issue regarding Paul’s view and use of the law.

In summary, Van Wijk-Bos’ emphasis upon the motif of the stranger acts as the cement to her book. Israel was a foreigner in both its Egyptian and later Babylonian periods of servitude. She links this concept to how the apostle Paul argues that Gentiles, who were once strangers and foreigners to the things of God, have now become part of the covenantal family of God. Readers will welcome this emphasis, though many will question her application of the “stranger” motif to the status of homosexuals in traditional Western societies (p. 227). In regards to the impact of contemporary feminist readings of Scripture, this reader finds Van Wijk-Bos’ feminist orientation to be balanced and not excessive. Her discussion of female aspects of torah is both sensitive and insightful (see pp. 219-223 for a woman’s view of laws dealing with purity and menstruation).

As a Pentecostal, this reviewer would have liked a discussion on the relationship of the Holy Spirit and torah. Moses’ cry, “Oh, that all the Lord’s people were prophets [and] that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them,” in Numbers 11:29 would be a starting point for this discussion. But a writer’s purpose should always be the measure of their success. In light of her aim I would judge this book to be a helpful contribution to understanding how torah relates to believers today.

Reviewed by Malcolm R. Brubaker

Publisher’s page:  http://www.eerdmans.com/Products/0990/making-wise-the-simple.aspx

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