When discussing mission it is easy to rely on the New Testament and overlook the importance of the Old Testament. Walter Kaiser corrects this tendency by focusing on the missiological importance of the Old Testament and explaining its missionary message.

Kaiser questions the notion that the New Testament represents a deviation from God’s supposed intention to save only the Israelites. He argues that–contrary to popular opinion–the older Testament does not reinforce an exclusive redemptive plan. Instead, it emphasizes a common human condition and God’s original and continuing concern for all humanity. Mission in the Old Testament shows that the Israelites’ mission was always to actively spread to Gentiles the Good News of the promised Messiah.

Pastors, missionaries, professors, students, and everyone interested in mission will find this accessible text enlightening and informative. Tools such as indexes, glossary, and bibliography contribute to the usefulness of this book.

Mission in the Old Testament challenges the axiom that the gospel mandate begins with the New Testament. Dr. Kaiser rightly begins with Genesis 1-11 as the opening drama of redemptive history that explains the subsequent developments in the story of salvation. The connecting point between the testaments is God’s promise to Abraham to include all the clans of the earth in his blessing (Gal 3:8,9). The book offers great insights for all concerned with the direction of the church.–Willem A. VanGemeren, professor of Old Testament and Semitic Languages, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

Too often we are caught up in the details of biblical revelation. Walter C. Kaiser helps us regain the big picture of what God is doing in human history. . . . His challenge helps us put mission back into the center of our lives and ministries, . . . demonstrat[ing] clearly that God’s mission to the world is the central theme binding Old and New Testaments together. For us to focus on anything else is to miss what God has done and continues to do in human history.–Paul G. Hiebert, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School