Wilderness Gleanings by John de Silva, 2015; published by and available from John Ritchie Ltd; 93 pages. Price £7.99. (9781910513231)
The first part of this book is a collection of mostly very short chapters arranged in sequence around the epic journey taken by God's ancient people from Egypt to Canaan. Stages and stops on the wilderness journey are examined and useful spiritual lessons drawn for our benefit; hence the title Wilderness Gleanings. Positive and negative experiences (e.g., Marah and Elim, Horeb and the golden calf) are examined and carefully applied in the light of present day Christian living.
Some more substantial sections are based on types and ceremonies found in Exodus and Leviticus to make up the rest of the book. All are Christ centred and Christ exalting, as the author uses his considerable knowledge of and interest in all the Scriptures to good effect.
The five Levitical offerings are viewed in relation to the order in which we are told about them, and a 7-page section on the Passover focuses on the price and power of redemption. A further chapter deals with the importance of typology in general, showing how valuable it is in enhancing our understanding of the New Testament and our appreciation of Christ, whilst cautioning against taking types too far "into realms of fantasy and falsehood".
This reviewer found the chapter on the distinction between the Church and Israel most helpful and very clear indeed, a valuable treatise in itself in view of current erroneous thinking in some circles. The last few pages take the reader into the Hebrew epistle to gather up helpful thoughts about worship and holiness, including what is meant by "outside the camp" and "within the holiest", and the implications of these.
This little book is worth reading and referring to. Like other works by this Australian author recently called Home, it is basically about Christ and the call for us all to be more devoted to Him.
RWC
Coming Back from Exile by Malcolm Davis; published by Precious Seed Publications and available from John Ritchie Ltd; 264 pages. Price £7.50. (9781871642728)
Precious Seed Publication's Overview Series is a welcome feature of the publishing house's work. It has always been difficult to address needs among able younger Christians and recent converts, who are not-so-young. At 264 pages in length, Coming Back from Exile must be among the longer books in the series, and understandably so, for it deals with eight Old Testament books: Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Ezekiel, Daniel, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi.
The author addresses each of the eight studies in the same systematic way, including identifying why the book was written under the guidance of Holy Spirit, its historical background, some biographical details of the author, often explanatory of the Holy Spirit's choice of that author. Each of the analyses provides the reader, whether reading the particular book for the first time or after many years of having meditated upon it. Helpfully, the author provides an overview of each chapter, not of each section of the book under consideration. Malcolm Davis's ability to summarise has been thoroughly tested in commentaries published by John Ritchie. Each chapter overview enables the reader to grasp the teaching of the chapter, thus providing a valuable starting point for further study related to outline mentioned above.
The author's scholarly background equips him to comment on textual matters. In introducing Ezekiel's prophecy he draws attention to some scribal errors in copying, but assures the reader that the accuracy of the original inspired text is not affected but it does mean that textual scholars carefully compare Hebrew manuscripts with the Greek Septuagint translation.
Coming Back from Exile will prove helpful to a wide spectrum of readers from young Christians to those skilled in their handling of the sacred text. The reader will conclude that the eight books considered in this volume are relevant today. Malcolm Davis himself does draw attention to lessons in each book that the reader should consider. The reviewer commends Coming Back from Exile to a wide readership, including those carefully reading for the first time the eight Old Testament books outlined in this volume.
TW
