Areas of Expertise

Featured Publications:

• “The Covenant Lawsuit: A Comparison of Isaiah 1 and Jeremiah 2.” The Student Forum 8 (1989): 3.
• Book Review of Joseph: A Story of Divine Providence. A Text Theoretical and Textlinguistic Analysis of Genesis 37 and 39-48, by Robert E. Longacre. In The Southwestern Journal of Theology 34 (1991): 72.
• “Air Force Kids and War.” Radio News Commentary on “Morning Edition.” KERA Public Radio. Dallas, Texas. February 22, 1991.
• “American Society and Religious Language.” Radio News Commentary on “Morning Edition.” KERA Public Radio. Dallas, Texas. April 10, 1991.
• “Life's Great Inconsistencies and Coming of Age.” Radio News Commentary on “Morning Edition.” KERA Public Radio. Dallas, Texas. May 8, 1991.
• “Motivation and American Education.” Radio News Commentary on “Morning Edition.” KERA Public Radio. Dallas, Texas. June 19, 1991.
• “King Ashurnasirpal and His Earrings.” Radio News Commentary on “Morning Edition.” KERA Public Radio. Dallas, Texas. August 15, 1991.
• “The Second Grade Science Test.” Radio News Commentary on “Morning Edition.” KERA Public Radio. Dallas, Texas. October 9, 1991.
• “Quotation Formulas in the Abraham Narratives.” Journal of Translation and Textlinguistics 5 (1992): 348-63.
• “Verb Forms in the Expository Discourse Sections of Ecclesiastes.” Journal of Translation and Textlinguistics 7 (1995): 9-18.
• “The Cushites: A Black Nation in Ancient History.” Bibliotheca Sacra 153 (July-September 1996): 270-80.
• “The Cushites: A Black Nation in the Bible.” Bibliotheca Sacra 153 (October-December 1996): 396-409.
• “From the Land of the Bow: Black Soldiers in the Ancient Near East.” Bible Review 14 (August 1998): 28-33, 50-51.
• “Ebedmelech.” “Zerah.” In Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000.
• “Moses: The Private Man Behind the Public Leader.” Bible Review 16 (August 2000): 16-26, 60-63.
• Coauthor with J. Scott Duvall. Grasping God’s Word: A Hands-On Approach to Reading, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2001. Fourth Edition, 2020.
• “Applying the Old Testament Law Today.” Bibliotheca Sacra 158 (January-March 2001): 1-15.
• Book review of Ezra and Nehemiah, by Gordan R. Davies. Berit Olam. Collegeville: Liturgical, 1999. In Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society (2001): 518-19.
• Coauthor with C. Marvin Pate. Iraq: Babylon of the End Times? Grand Rapids: Baker, 2003.
• “If He Looks Like a Prophet and He Talks Like a Prophet, then He Must Be . . . .” In Israel’s Messiah in the Bible and the Dead Sea Scrolls. Edited by R. Hess and D. Carroll. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2003.
• From Every People and Nation: A Biblical Theology of Race. New Studies in Biblical Theology. Edited by D. A. Carson. Leicester: InterVarsity, 2003.
• “Has the Narrator Come to Praise Solomon or to Bury Him? Narrative Subtlety in 1 Kings 1-11.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 28.2 (December 2003): 149-74. Reprinted in Harold Bloom, ed. The Bible. Bloom’s Modern Critical Views. Chelsea House Publishers, 2006.
• “Jeremiah, the Septuagint, the DSS, and Inerrancy: What Exactly Do We Mean by the ‘Original Autographs’?” In Evangelicals & Scripture: Tradition, Authority and Hermeneutics. Edited by V. Bacote, L. Miguelez, and D. Okholm. Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity, 2004.
• Coauthor with C. Marvin Pate. Apocalypse: An Historical Novel. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2004.
• “The Historical Books: Sin and Exile,” and “The Prophets: Sin, Exile and Restoration.” In The Story of Israel: A Biblical Theology. Edited by Marvin Pate. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity, 2004.
• Coauthor with Terry Carter and J. Scott Duvall. Preaching God’s Word. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005. Second Edition, 2018.
• “Reconsidering the Height of Goliath.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 49.4 (December 2005): 701-714.
• Coauthor with J. Scott Duvall and C. Marvin Pate. The Dictionary of Biblical Prophecy and End Times. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007.
• “Racial Bias in the Academy . . . Still?” Perspectives in Religious Studies 34/3 (2007): 315-29.
• “The Height of Goliath: a Response to Clyde Billington.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 50/3 (2007): 509-16.
• Coauthor with J. Scott Duvall. Journey Into God’s Word. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008; Second Edition, 2020.
• “Developing Spiritual Vision: A Biblical Perspective.” The Ouachita Circle (Fall 2008): 2-3.
• “An Evangelical Approach to Old Testament Narrative Criticism.” Bibliotheca Sacra 166 (Jan-Mar 2009): 3-18.
• “A Biblical Perspective on Interracial Marriage.” Criswell Theological Review 6.2 (Spring 2009): 5-24.
• The Message of the Prophets: A Survey of the Old Testament Prophetic and Apocalyptic Books of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010.
• “How to Interpret the Old Testament Law.” In Read the Bible for Life. Edited by George Guthrie. Nashville: Broadman and Holman, 2010.
• “Central Paradigms for the Gentile Inclusion: An Intertextual Comparison of Jeremiah’s Ebedmelech and Luke’s Ethiopian Eunuch.” Sapientia Logos 3.1 (2010): 1-24.
• “Inerrancy and Evangelical Old Testament Scholarship: Challenges and the Way Forward.” In Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Authority of Scripture: Historical and Biblical Perspectives. Edited by Carlos Bovell. Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2011.
• “Paul and the Multi-Ethnic First Century World: Ethnicity and Identity.” In Paul as Missionary: Identity, Activity, Theology, and Practice. Edited by Trevor Burke. Library of New Testament Studies. Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 2011.
• Co-edited with J. Scott Duvall. The Baker Illustrated Bible Handbook. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2011.
• “(OT) Prophecy and Eschatology in Christian Theology.” In Dictionary of the Old Testament: Prophets. Edited by Mark J. Boda and J. Gordon McConville. Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2012.
• “‘Sell Everything You Have and Give to the Poor’: The Old Testament Prophetic Theme of Justice as the Connecting Motif of Luke 18:1-19:10.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 55/1 (March 2012): 43-63.
• Coauthor with J. Scott Duvall. Living God’s Word: Discovering Our Place in the Great Story of Scripture. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012.
• “The Divine Dialogue in the Book of Habakkuk.” Biblical Illustrator 39.2 (Winter 2012-13): 11-14.
• “1-2 Samuel.” In What the Old Testament Authors Really Cared About. Edited by Jason S. DeRouchie. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2013.
• Twenty-five articles in Baker Illustrated Bible Dictionary, ed. Tremper Longman and Mark Strauss. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2013.
• Book Review of Writing Up Jeremiah: The Prophet and the Book. Eugene, OT: Cascade Books, 2013. In Journal for the Evangelical Study of the Old Testament 3.2 (2015): 233-35.
• “The Persecuted Prophet and Judgment on Jerusalem: The Use of LXX Jeremiah in the Gospel of Luke.” Bulletin for Biblical Research 25.4 (2015): 453-73.
• Jeremiah and Lamentations. Teach the Text Commentary. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2016.
• Co-edit with J. Scott Duvall, The Baker Illustrated Guide to the Bible: A Book-by-Book Companion. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2016.
• The Temple and the Tabernacle. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2016.
• “What Are We For?” in The Gospel and Racial Reconciliation, The Gospel for Life Series, ed. Russell Moore and Andrew T. Walker. Nashville: B & H, 2016.
• 28 articles in CSB Baker Illustrated Study Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2018.
• “6 Ways the Bible Changed My Perspective on Ethnic Diversity,” post on The Gospel Coalition website, March 27, 2018.
• Coauthor with J. Scott Duvall. God’s Relational Presence: The Cohesive Center of Biblical Theology. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2019.
• “Preaching on Race from Jeremiah.” In Preaching on Race. Edited by Daniel Darling and Trillia Newbell. Lexham Press, 2020.
• Coedit with J. Scott Duvall. The Baker Illustrated Bible Background Commentary. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2020.
• A Christian’s Guide to Evidence for the Bible: 101 Proofs from History and Archaeology. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2020.

Featured Presentations and Lectures:

• “The Cushites and Their Contribution to the Biblical World.” Presented to the Heritage and Hope Conference, Arlington, Texas. February 22, 1995.
• “The Presence and Influence of a Black Nation in the Bible: A Study of the Cushites.” 5 Presented to the Society of Biblical Literature, Southwest Regional Meeting, Dallas, Texas. March 11, 1995.
• “Black Soldiers in the Ancient Near East: Ebedmelech Reconsidered.” Presented to the Society of Biblical Literature National Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana. November 25, 1996.
• “The Two Wives of Moses.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, San Francisco, November, 1997.
• “Black Soldiers in the Ancient Near East: Ebedmelech Reconsidered.” Presented to the American Schools of Oriental Research, Southwest Regional Meeting, Dallas, Texas. March 14, 1998.
• “Teaching the Prophets: Synthesis and Contextualization.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Orlando, November, 1998.
• “Why Hermeneutical Distinctions Between Civil, Ceremonial, and Moral Laws? A Consistent Approach to the OT Law.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Boston, November 1999.
• “Jeremiah, the LXX, and the Dead Sea Scrolls. Just What Exactly Do We Mean by the Original Autographs?” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Nashville, November, 2000; at the Southwest Regional meeting of the Institute for Biblical Research, Dallas, March, 2001; and at the Wheaton Theology Conference, April 2001.
• “If He Looks Like a Prophet and He Talks Like a Prophet Then He Must Be a . . . .” Presented at Denver Seminary’s Conference on the Messiah, Denver, February 2001.
• “Has the Narrator Come to Praise Solomon or to Bury Him? Narrative Subtlety in 1 Kings 1-11.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Colorado Springs, November 2001, and at the Southwest Regional Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature, March 2002. Also presented as the plenary address at the NW Regional Meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, Tocoma, Washington, March 2003.
• “Does Systematics Drive Old Testament Exegesis, or Can God Still Change His Mind? Questions Regarding Interpretive Method.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Toronto, November 2002.
• “Responsible Scholarship and Pop Eschatology.” Presented at the SW Regional Meeting of the Institute for Biblical Research, Irving, Texas, March 2003.
• “Anthropomorphism, Revelation, and the Nature of God in the Old Testament.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Atlanta, November 2003.
• “A Biblical Perspective on Inter-racial Marriage.” Presented at the conference “Slavery, Oppression, and Prejudice: Ancient Roots and Modern Implications.” Baylor University, 2004.
• “The Case for a 6’9” Goliath: Theological Implications.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, San Antonio, November 2004.
• “The Use and Abuse of Biblical Prophecy.” The Piedmont Lectures. Dallas Christian College. September 2005.
• “The Artistic Side of God’s Character: a Biblical Study.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Valley Forge, PA, November 2005.
• “Racial Bias in the Academy . . . Still?” Presidential Address at the Southwest Regional Meeting of the National Association of Baptist Professors of Religion, Irving, Texas, March 2006.
• “The Role of Cush in Isaiah.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Washington DC, November 2006.
• “America’s Best Hope for Racial Harmony: The Next Generation,” and “A Biblical Perspective on Interracial Marriage.” Presented at Interact 2007: A Conference on Racial Harmony, Miami, March 2007.
• “The Role of Cush in Isaiah 1-39.” Presented at the Southwest Regional Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature, Irving, TX, March 2007.
• “An Evangelical Approach to OT Narrative Criticism.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, San Diego, CA, November 2007.
• “The Old Testament Prophetic Theme of Justice and a Narrative Reading of Luke 18:1-19:10.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Providence, RI, November 2008; and the Southwest Regional meeting of the Institute for Biblical Research, Irving, TX, March 2009.
• “Central Paradigms for the Gentile Inclusion: An Intertextual Comparison of Jeremiah’s Ebedmelech and Luke’s Ethiopian Eunuch.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Atlanta, November 2010.
• “Just How Glorious Was Solomon’s Temple? A Narrative and Theological Comparison of Solomon’s Approach to Building the Temple with Moses’s Approach to Building the Tabernacle.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, San Francisco, November, 2011.
• “The Use of LXX Jeremiah in Luke-Acts.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Milwaukee, 2012; and at the Society of Biblical Literature National Meeting, Chicago, 2012.
• “The ‘Persecuted Prophet’ and Judgment on Jerusalem: The Role of LXX Jeremiah in the Gospel of Luke.” Presented at the Southwest Regional meeting of the Institute for Biblical Research, Irving, Texas, March, 2014.
• “The Relational Presence of Yahweh in the Prophets: A Central Theme of Blessing, Judgment, and Restoration.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Atlanta, November, 2015.
• “The Influence of E. D. Hirsch on Evangelical Biblical Interpretation.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, San Antonio, TX, November, 2016.
• “A Response to Hermeneutics as Apprenticeship, by David Starling.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Providence, RI, November 2017.
• “Narrative Criticism: Our Most Useful (but not the only) Tool in Our Narrative Interpretive Toolbox.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Providence, RI, November 2017.
• “The Old Testament and the Mission of God.” Presented at the conference Christianity and the Death of the Old Testament. FBC Branson, MO, October 6-7, 2017.
• “1 Samuel 16-31.” Taught at Downline, Conway, AR. November 9, 2017, and November 7, 2019.
• “An Inter-textual, Narrative Comparison of Solomon’s Construction of the Temple in 1 Kings 6-7 with Moses’ Construction of the Tabernacle in Exodus 25-31 and 35-40.” Presented at the Southwest Regional meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature, Irving, TX, March 2018.
• “The Presence of Yahweh in the Book of Exodus and the Meaning of the Name Yahweh in Exodus 3 and 6.” Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society National Meeting, Denver, CO, November 2018. 

 

Involvement

• Professional Society of Biblical Literature
• Evangelical Theological Society
• Steering committee for the Old Testament Narrative Literature section (2015-present), Institute for Biblical Research
• Editorial board for the Bulletin for Biblical Research (2015-2018), National Association of Baptist Professors of Religion (SW Region)