The authors embark on a journey to identify and trace the mission of God toward humanity. They do this by carefully tracing the presence and meaning of mission within the pages of the Bible.

The goal of this mission has remained constant throughout time. However, the objects of the mission have gradually expanded. It has reached a point where salvation is to be proclaimed to the very ends of the earth and to all ethnic groups.

The mission is not simply about conversion. It also encompasses the maturing of disciples within a community. Evangelism is indeed a key component of this mission, but so are community and self-discipline.

I found this book to be both informative and thought-provoking. It offers valuable insights into the mission of God. However, at times, it can be a bit tedious to read. Nevertheless, it is a book that is well worth the effort for those who are interested in exploring this important topic.

This statement presents a highly positive assessment of the treatment of the comprehensive biblical theology of missions.

It implies that the work under consideration offers an outstanding exploration and analysis of the topic.

The use of the term "excellent" suggests that the author has found great value and significance in the way the subject matter is presented.

A comprehensive biblical theology of missions would likely cover a wide range of aspects, including the biblical basis for missions, the nature and purpose of God's redemptive plan, and the role of the church in carrying out the mission.

This kind of treatment would be beneficial for scholars, pastors, and anyone interested in understanding and engaging in the work of missions from a biblical perspective.

It could provide a solid foundation for theological reflection and practical application in the context of global evangelism and discipleship.

Overall, the statement indicates that the work in question is a valuable contribution to the field of missiology and is worthy of further study and consideration.

An excellent biblical theology of missions exists.

It has its moments where it can seem a bit dry, but when considered as a whole, it is engaging.

This work is definitely of an academic nature. As such, I would not suggest this book for the majority of people.

Nevertheless, for anyone who is truly passionate and interested in understanding what the Bible has to say regarding missions, this book would prove to be highly beneficial.

It offers in-depth insights and analysis that can help one gain a more profound understanding of the subject matter.

Despite its dry patches, the overall value of the book lies in its ability to present a comprehensive and scholarly exploration of the biblical theology of missions.

Those who are willing to invest the time and effort in reading and studying this book will likely come away with a greater appreciation and knowledge of the topic.

It is a valuable resource for scholars, students, and anyone with a genuine interest in the intersection of the Bible and missions.

This article offers a very helpful and thorough unpacking of the theme of mission as it is developed in Scripture.

The authors painstakingly work through the significant Old Testament (OT) texts that deal with mission. For a great many people, this work will prove to be a valuable resource in opening up the OT as a rich and surprisingly deep source for the mission theme.

They also carefully work through a large portion of the New Testament (NT) documents, demonstrating how each book develops a theology of mission.

In addition, the authors helpfully point out the issues of continuity and discontinuity between the testaments as they relate to mission.

Overall, this is an important and accessible work that provides valuable insights into the theme of mission in Scripture. It is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding the role of mission in the Bible and its significance for the Christian faith.

IVP has recently released the second and updated edition of the outstanding "Salvation to the Ends of the Earth" by Andreas Kostenberger and T.D. Alexander. This will be a rather perplexing review as, while I believe this book is truly excellent, I also have a significant reservation about it, which I'll elaborate on later.

The book is a medium-format paperback, approximately 340 pages long. The academic style is enhanced by numerous references and footnotes, satisfying any reader. It costs around £17 on Amazon in paperback, and the Kindle version is about half that price. Other bookshops are also options. I read it as a pdf file kindly provided by the publishers.

Subtitled "A Biblical Theology of Mission", the book's contents are hinted at by this title. In the words of the series editor, D.A. Carson, the second edition aims to trace the theme of mission across the Bible's storyline, just like the first edition. Instead of seeing mission as a post-resurrection afterthought, it reveals the organic unity of the theme from Genesis to the Apocalypse. The authors further explain their approach, stating that rather than unilaterally focusing on Jesus' messianic or Paul's apostolic consciousness, they also pay closer attention to the various voices in biblical history and trace their underlying convictions as attested in the multifaceted writings included in the canon of Scripture.

At the heart of the biblical metanarrative is "the story of God's mission through God's people in their engagement with God's world for the sake of the whole of God's creation". After an introductory chapter, the book is divided into two sections. The first section, consisting of one chapter, tells the story of Israel, and the second section addresses the story of Jesus and the Early Christians in five chapters. There is also an appendix that considers the context of second-temple Judaism.
I faced a dilemma while reading this book. To capture the overall development of the theme, it's necessary to read it relatively quickly. However, to understand the details, one needs to slow down and savor the individual arguments. This speaks volumes about the book's gripping central theme, supported by thorough details.
If you want to trace the story of God's plan of salvation throughout the canon, this book is an excellent choice. The way the story of salvation is traced is both fascinating and helpful. The OT chapter follows the story of the woman's offspring, the Abrahamic blessing, the Davidic king, and the prophetic servant, all pointing to the coming Messiah. The NT books are grouped around the Gospels. Chapter 3 looks at Matthew and other writings aimed at a Jewish audience, such as Hebrews and James. Chapter 4 combines Mark and the letters of Peter and Jude. The fifth chapter, based on Luke's two-volume work Luke-Acts, is the longest and most fascinating. Once the authors get into the story of Acts, they introduce Paul's letters at appropriate points, emphasizing that they emerged from a missional context and dealt with real-world issues. Chapter 6 examines John's writings, including the Gospel, the letters, and the Apocalypse.
The concluding summary chapter brings together the arguments from earlier in the book. It should be noted that this second edition is a significant revision. I didn't notice the updates as it's been many years since I read the first edition, but they are mentioned in the introduction.
Now, about the reservation I mentioned earlier. The subtitle calls this book a Biblical Theology of Mission, but there is no universally accepted definition of mission. The authors have clearly adopted one that focuses on the proclamation of the Gospel and often ignores other aspects that most international scholars would consider as mission. As a result, the book gives very little space to the Old Testament and pays relatively little attention to Jesus' ethical teaching. However, I don't think this is a major problem. The book does an excellent job of tracing one aspect of mission through the Bible and is well worth reading. I just don't think the subtitle is entirely accurate. This is a minor complaint, but it needed to be mentioned.
As always, here are some quotes to pique your interest: "From the opening chapters of Genesis onwards, the orientation of the missio Dei is towards the future, culminating in God’s dwelling in a new Jerusalem that is coterminous with a new earth." "Pervading the Matthean mission discourse are references to the prospect of rejection of the gospel message, issuing in persecution of the messengers and division even among a person’s own family." "‘all’ dominates the entire ‘Great Commission’ passage: Jesus has ‘all authority’; his followers are to go and make disciples of ‘all nations’; and Jesus will be with them ‘always’." "Finally, at the climax of Mark’s Gospel, the Roman centurion exclaims at the foot of the cross, ‘Surely this man was the Son of God!’ indicating that now the messianic secret has been lifted even for the (Roman) Gentiles." "While Matthew and Mark provide significant accounts of Jesus’ mission and his vision for the discipling of the nations following his ascension through his new messianic community, it is Luke who raises the New Testament’s mission theology to new heights." "…the stages of the apostolic witness should be conceived ethnically as well as geographically: (1) In Jerusalem, Jesus completed his mission and Israel was restored in the form of the Jewish remnant of believers in Jesus as Messiah. (2) Next came Judea-Samaria. (3) The apostolic witness will spread to ‘the ends of the earth’." "If Rome, therefore, is not to be identified with ‘the ends of the earth’, the endings of the book of Acts is intentionally open-ended: ‘The ends of the earth are never reached in Acts. The mission goal is never completed. It remains open.’" "Thus, the church’s persecution in Jerusalem provided an important impetus for the gospel to reach the ends of the earth." "The Fourth Gospel’s primary focus is the mission of Jesus: (1) he is the one who comes into the world, accomplishes his work and returns to the Father; (2) he is the one who descended from heaven and ascends again; (3) he is the Sent One, who, in complete dependence and perfect obedience to his sender, fulfils the purpose for which the Father sent him. (4) He is also the shepherd-teacher who calls followers to help gather his eschatological harvest. The mission of Jesus’ followers is presented within this framework."
As I noted earlier, I was provided with a review copy of this book by the publishers. I have not allowed this generosity to influence my review. It's a very good book, and if it were a disappointment, I would have said so.

I wouldn't initially choose this book, but I'm truly glad that I ended up reading it! It really makes one stop and think.

As it states, "there will be a time with no more mission. The choices will have been made." This idea is quite profound. It makes us realize that at some point in the future, all the decisions will have been finalized.

"All that will remain to be done is for history to be concluded." This gives a sense of finality and the completion of a grand plan.

Mission is described as a means to an end, and that end is "a total focus on the worship and glory of God in our Lord Jesus Christ." This emphasizes the ultimate purpose and goal of our existence, which is to give glory and worship to God through Jesus Christ.

Overall, this book has provided me with much food for thought and has deepened my understanding of the importance of our mission and the ultimate end that we are striving towards.

Ambitious. Faithful. But ultimately disappointing.

I really wanted to like this book, but I found it quite a struggle. It does contain a wealth of sound theology. However, there was so much that a 'biblical theology of mission' could have included that this book didn't, and vice versa. Moreover, the way it is structured is too baffling for me.

I don't want to be overly negative. The book did have a really helpful definition of mission. The author's conception of mission was biblically informed and consistently applied. The single chapter on the Old Testament also provided a useful grounding in mission, especially from Genesis. But with so little attention given to the rest of the Old Testament, we were left with a disappointingly sparse understanding of mission's increasingly important place in God's cumulative revelation. The prophets were only given a cursory mention. Joel 2:28-32 surely has enormous significance in a biblical theology of global mission, as seen in its use at Pentecost (Acts 2) and by the apostle to the Gentiles in Romans 10, but it was completely absent from the discussion of the Old Testament - what a disappointment!

In contrast, the New Testament material was thorough, but to a confusing degree. The comprehensive tour through every book of the New Testament felt exhaustive, but it was difficult to work out the relevance of the data gathered until the conclusions at the end of each chapter. Epistles that potentially have a lot to say about mission (such as Philippians) were given little more prominence than books that had relatively little to say on the subject (e.g. John's epistles). The conclusions, when they did arrive, were briefly drawn together at the end of each chapter and again in a final chapter, but the huge implications of the lessons were not given enough space to be fully explored.

Structuring the NT tour by connecting epistles to a gospel was a nice idea, but it didn't work well. Matthew is not saying the same thing as James, nor Mark/2 Peter. While it had the potential to work with Acts/Paul, drawing out connections geographically meant that the discussion of some epistles lacked helpful context that could have been brought out if more attention had been paid to the chronology of Acts.

The appendix, which was apparently a chapter in the first edition, was poorly edited. It twice referred to the "upcoming material" on the New Testament, even though that material was already contained within the body of the book. Had it been placed in its original location, it may have provided a useful step in the building argument through the book, suggesting that centrifugal mission is ultimately a result of Christ having come. But it was pushed to an appendix, and that meant the book lacked that crucial step in its developing argument.

In short, the book was ambitious and faithful, but not selective enough and insensibly structured. I haven't read the first edition, but it seems that whatever clear 'biblical theology of mission' it contained has been buried by a confusing shuffling of material in this second edition. So why three stars? Because Kostenberger is a sound theologian who has done some excellent work unpacking the theology of the New Testament, touring lots of material and giving some useful insights along the way. My problem with this book is not what it says, but how it selects and organizes it. As a search for a 'biblical theology of mission', this could be a great step forward, but it feels like we haven't quite arrived yet - or perhaps we've gone too far.

The description provided is truly very good.

It offers a comprehensive overview of Scripture's teaching on mission. There is one chapter dedicated to exploring the Old Testament (OT) and its significance in relation to mission. This helps to establish the foundation and context from which the concept of mission has evolved.

Subsequently, there is a chapter on 2nd Temple Judaism, which further enriches our understanding by examining how the ideas and practices of mission were shaped during that particular historical period.

Finally, the work includes a chapter on every section of the New Testament (NT). This detailed exploration allows for a in-depth analysis of how the teachings and actions of Jesus and the early Christian community contributed to the development and implementation of the mission.

Overall, this approach provides a well-rounded and thorough examination of Scripture's teaching on mission, making it a valuable resource for those interested in understanding this important aspect of the Christian faith.

The text seems rather fragmented and needs some expansion and clarification. Here is an expanded version:

The material is hard to read. It is very academic in nature, yet it fails to provide a single clear definition. This lack of clarity can make it challenging for readers to fully understand the concepts being presented.

On the other hand, it offers a thorough treatment of the mission of God throughout each book of the Bible. This aspect makes it a great topical resource when conducting a particular book study. By delving into the specific details and themes related to God's mission in each book, readers can gain a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the overall narrative and purpose of the Bible.

However, the academic style and the absence of clear definitions may limit its accessibility to a wider audience. It would be beneficial if the author could strike a better balance between providing in-depth analysis and presenting the information in a more understandable way.

This book has a great deal to recommend it.

The first chapter delves into the question of mission in the Old Testament, which provides a solid foundation for understanding the concept.

The chapter that explores whether Second-Temple Judaism was a missionary religion offers valuable insights and perspectives.

The chapter on Paul is also quite interesting, shedding light on his important role in the spread of the gospel.

However, there were also aspects of the book that I felt were unnecessary and overly lengthy.

The authors go through the gospels almost paragraph by paragraph, considering the topic of missions.

This approach made the book feel rather cumbersome and could have been more effectively presented by topically summarizing their findings in the gospels.

Overall, while I agreed with the content of the book, it felt much longer than it needed to be, and there were many points where it was difficult to get through.

Despite these drawbacks, the book does offer some valuable contributions to the study of mission in the context of the Bible.