David L. Barr

Book Review: On the Genre and Message of Revelation: Star Visions and Sky Journeys

and scripture in the Church. Hence the author attends to issues and concerns that emerge from the praxis of devotional, liturgical, and confessional life. Departing from the usual questions of critical scholarship, Mays seeks to situate the critical-historical study of the Psalms at the service of that praxis. Readers will find this departure both refreshing and challenging. The book is divided into five parts. Part one treats the Psalms as the liturgy of the kingdom of God. Part two considers the psalms of lament, declarative praise, and confidence, although the thrust is not per se form-critical. Part three takes up the hymns or the psalms of descriptive praise. Part four investigates David as both psalmist and messiah. Finally, part five looks to the Psalms as book and scripture. Borrowing his title from Psalms 93, 96-97. and 99, Mays makes a very convincing case for finding the center of the Psalms in Yahweh‘s royal actions. There as well as in Psalms 47, 95, and 98, such actions can be summarized under three rubrics: (1) spheres of dominion, (2) institutions of that reign, and (3) acts of sovereignty. Yahweh‘s reign includes all that is. Yahweh‘s throne and holy mount characterize that reign. Yahweh‘s sovereign activities include creation and making Jacoh-Israel his choice heritage. The psalmic functions of praise, prayer, and instruction are responses to the Lord’s reign and articulations of its wonder, hope, and guidance. To be sure, Mays does not deny the variety and pluralityofthought about God in the Psalms. The Lord’s reign, however, “does announce a metaphor that transcends and lies behind the variety. It is what every reader and user of the psalms may know as the code for understanding all of them” (p. 22). Praise in the Psalms has, among others, doxological, confessional, and evangelical functions. The hymns are sung to give God glory. They also announce who this God is. Finally, they invite the whole earth to join this doxology. Readers will quickly subscribe to the author’s view that praise is the sound of life. Because this book is a collection ofpreviously published material, there is necessarily some degree ofoverlap. For example Mays treats Psalm 13 in chapter five and then devotes all of chapter six to its interpretation. The initially brief but later fuller analysis also holds for Psalm 2. This is a rather minor inconvenience, however, when one considers the wealth of perception and insight in this treatment of the Psalms. The work is pastorally sensitive and theologically provocative. The author has put all of us in his debt. John E Craghan St. Norbert College DePere, WI54115

Book Review: The Rapture Exposed: the Message of Hope in the Book of RevelationThe Rapture Exposed: the Message of Hope in the Book of Revelation by RossingBarbara R.Westview, Boulder, 2004. 212 pp.,

as well as from without. Like many others, Thurston assumes that Philippians was written to deal with a problem in the church, rather than taking seriously her own comments about this being a letter of consolation or friendship. There is no indication, even in 3:2-4 and 18-19, that the people about whom Paul warns his readers are in the church itself. Ryan believes that Pauls appeal to Philemon to receive Onesimus as a brother included the expectation of manumission. She accepts the view that Onesimus was a runaway slave, and thinks it likely that Paul is hinting that he needs Onesimus to assist him. Philemon is normally dealt with swiftly by commentators, but Ryans commentary on this short letter is far more detailed than Thurstons on Philippians. While it is good to be shown Pauls theological insights in Philemon, I would have welcomed more comment on Philippians, which is such an important letter. The book is nevertheless a welcome addition to the series, and will be useful to preachers in particular.

24.00 (cloth). ISBN 0-8133-9156-3.

the replacement of the old by the new in chaps. 2-4, and the emphasis on the Jewish feasts in chaps. 5-12. In this respect he is very close to the view of Dodd in some respects but particularly close to that of Brown. Nevertheless, in his detailed outline of the public ministry he focuses on a number of Christological themes (Jesus as Mediator of Life and Judgment, as Bread of Life, as Water and Light of Life, etc.) as the main topics concerning the Evangelist rather than the themes of replacement or the feasts. After Brown and Schnackenburg one might well ask whether anyone could really write a respected commentary on John in one volume. Beasley-Murray’s work gives a clear affirmative