Overview of Argumentation
Seven canon-wide biblical theologies have emerged within the field of contemporary biblical theological scholarship, with each contending for a certain center or major theme of the Christian Bible (see T. Desmond Alexander and Simon J. Gathercole, eds., Heaven on Earth: The Temple in Biblical Theology (Carlisle, England: Paternoster, 2004); Walter C. Kaiser Jr., The Promise-Plan of God: A Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008); James M. Hamilton Jr., God’s Glory in Salvation through Judgment: A Biblical Theology (Wheaton: Crossway, 2010); G. K. Beale, A New Testament Biblical Theology: The Unfolding of the Old Testament in the New (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2011); Peter J. Gentry and Stephen J. Wellum, Kingdom through Covenant: A Biblical-Theological Understanding of the Covenants (Wheaton: Crossway, 2012); Thomas R. Schreiner, The King in His Beauty: A Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2013).
Respectively, these significant contributions do not consider or engage with the Mesopotamian religio-historical background to Genesis 6:1-4 and the Great Flood, nor do they address the Tower of Babel event in light of Deut 32:8-9 and other supporting passages. Consequently, the narratival arc of Gen 1-11, and its foundational backdrop to the grand narrative of Scripture, was unseen or obfuscated in these seminal works.
However, evidence supports the notion that the sons of God motif enhances each of the seven canon-wide biblical theologies and brings more coherence to the Christian canon as a whole.
Thesis Statement
The paper contends that the sons of God motif fills key knowledge gaps concerning Genesis 1-11 among seven canon-wide biblical theologies while exhibiting its own significance within the grand storyline of Scripture.
Contribution to the Field:
The paper compares seven canon-wide biblical theologies with the sons of God motif as displayed in Genesis 1-11, through an examination of the original languages of the Bible, germane ancient Mesopotamian and Second Temple literature, and thus warrants contribution to the subject of biblical theology.