Were Pagans Supposed To Obey The Torah?

Bryan Blazosky

The Law’s Universal Condemning and Enslaving Power: Reading Paul, the Old Testament, and Second Temple Jewish Literature
BBRS; Philadelphia, PA: Eisenbrauns/University of Pennsylvania, 2019.
Available at Eisenbrauns

Bryan Blazosky (Adjunct Professor of New Testament at Bethlehem College and Seminary and Pastor of Richfield Bible Church in Richfield, Minnesota) wrote a very good PhD thesis at Ridley College on whether Paul thought that the Gentile world was obligated to obey the Torah or be held accountable by God on the basis of the Torah.

While much has been written about the apostle Paul’s view on the relationship between Gentile Christians and the Mosaic law, comparatively little attention has been paid to Paul’s writings on the laws of Moses and how they apply to Gentile unbelievers. In this book, Bryan Blazosky examines Paul’s teaching on the subject and how it relates to the lessons of the Old Testament and literature of the Second Temple period.

Blazosky explicates Paul’s views on Gentiles and law as they are articulated in the New Testament texts Galatians, Romans, Corinthians, Ephesians, Colossians, and Timothy, and he compares the Pauline perspective to those expressed in other Jewish writings, such as the Old Testament, the third Sibylline Oracle, Liber antiquitatum biblicarum, and 4 Ezra. Through a comparison of these texts, Blazosky finds that Paul—in line with the Old Testament and other Jewish texts—interprets the Mosaic law as having the power to universally condemn. Despite being gifted to Israel, the law’s ability to curse, condemn, and enslave reaches beyond its covenantal boundaries.

As the first book-length study on the relationship between Gentile unbelievers and the Mosaic law in Pauline literature, The Law’s Universal Condemning and Enslaving Power will be welcomed by all who study the New Perspective on Paul, Gentile accountability, and the New Testament.

Here’s the TOC

Introduction

I. The Research Question

II. The Need

III. The Methodology: What This Book Is Not

IV. The Methodology: What This Book Is

V. The Significance

Chapter 1. The Torah

I. Pre-Law Narratives

II. The Mosaic Covenant

III. The Plight of the Canaanites in Leviticus

IV. Deuteronomy and the Curse of the Law

Chapter 2. The Prophets and the Writings

I. Gentiles and Law in the Former Prophets

II. Gentiles and Law in the Latter Prophets

III. Gentiles and Law in the Writings

IV. Conclusions on the Theology of the OT concerning Gentiles and Law

Chapter 3. The Second Temple Jewish Literature

I. Surveying the Secondary Literature

II. My Approach to the Jewish Literature

III. e Law in the Jewish Literature

IV. Gentiles and Law in the Jewish Literature

V. Conclusion

Chapter 4. Galatians

I. An Analysis of the First Person Plural Personal Pronouns in Galatians

II. Gal 3:10–14 on Gentiles and the Law’s Condemnation

III. The Law’s Inextricable Bond with Ἁμαρτία, Σάρξ, Στοιχεῖα, and Κόσμος in Galatians

IV. Concluding Reflections on Paul’s View of Gentiles and Law in Galatians

Chapter 5. Romans

I. The Law and Gentile Condemnation in Rom 1:18–3:20

II. The Law and the Enslaving Powers of Darkness in Rom 5:12–8:17

III. A Summary of Paul’s View of Gentiles and Law in Romans

IV. Comparing and Contrasting Gentiles and Law in Romans and Galatians

Chapter 6. 1 Corinthians and the Disputed Pauline Epistles

I. Clarifications on whether Νόμος Divides or Unites Humanity

II. Confirmation of the Union of Θάνατος, Ἁμαρτία, and Νόμος: 1 Cor 15:55–57

III. Confirmations of the Universal Extent of the Law’s Condemning Power

IV. Conclusion

Chapter 7. Conclusion

I. The Book in Review

II. Paul’s View of Gentiles and Law

III. Paul’s View in Relation to the OT and the Second Temple Jewish Literature

IV. My Proposal in Relation to Current Proposals on Gentiles and Law

V. Areas for Further Study

VI. Concluding Reflections

Were Pagans Supposed to Obey the Torah?