The book contains 32 brief chapters, each a lesson using the movie’s plot as a springboard (or plank) for discussion. Each chapter begins with a “pirate’s hook,” a snapshot from the movie illustrated the pearl of truth. The topics range from honoring codes and mutiny to captains needing crews and trusting our anchor.

Perhaps my favorite treasure/lesson in the book was “One Good Deed Deserves…” In the movie, Commodore Norrington tells Jack, “One good deed is not enough to redeem a man of a lifetime of wickedness.” Wesemann pillages this spiritual truth wonderfully: “Maybe a better question is whether one good act should redeem us from a lifetime of iniquity.” (30)

With almost any book of this nature, one appropriately expects a certain amount of cheesiness. While there are cheesy elements in Swashbuckling Faith (such as the JSV Bible translation- Jack Sparrow Version), it’s kept at an appropriate level without going too far over board. Tim Wesemann is a poetic writer who skillfully navigates the deeper waters of living faith. Avast me heartys, this be a fun and practical read whether yer landlubbin or out to sea. Now, bring me that horizon…

Mrs. Orr-Ewing begins with the most postmodern objection- “Isn’t it all a matter of interpretation?” She analyzes contemporary language (mostly through Foucault) and describes reader responsibility through proper interpretation. The next challenge addressed is similar- whether history is something we create or something we learn. 

These two issues set the foundation for directly addressing the Bible. Mrs. Orr-Ewing looks at whether the biblical manuscripts are reliable, whether their content is reliable, why we hold only to the traditional 66 books of the Bible, and how the Bible compares to the scriptures of Islam and Hinduism. She also looks at the Bible’s view of women, war, and sex. The final chapter asks the question: “How can I know?” After sharing her testimony, she explains that we can know Jesus because God has revealed Him to us.

There are a couple of points that detract from this otherwise great book. One is that readers unfamiliar with the philosophic discussion of postmodernism will likely not easily grasp some of the points in the first chapter on matters of language. Apart from the section, though, the book is incredibly beginner friendly. The other point is that in her discussion on the Bible’s view of women, Amy Orr-Ewing offers some less than accurate portrayals of the biblical data and contemporary views of it. For example, she states “God is predominantly spoken of with male imagery.”(97) This is a real understatement since the Bible describes God with more than just male imagery; it describes Him with male language almost universally.

These points are small exceptions to a book that does an excellent job introducing readers to a variety of issues while providing helpful answers to difficult questions. Weighing in at only 127 pages, Is the Bible Intolerant? should be the first choice for those seeking quick answers about challenges against the Bible.

Dr. Horton begins in the first chapter by looking at the big picture of covenant thinking and why it matters. According to him, our understanding is important because “God’s very existence is covenantal” and “we were not just created and then given a covenant; we were created as covenant creatures.” (10) Chapter two looks more directly at Scripture by comparing Old Testament covenants with some secular covenants contemporary to them (known as suzerain treaties). From the Old Testament, Dr. Horton draws out two types of covenants and explores them in his third chapter: covenants of works and covenants of grace.

Following the examination of covenants in the Old Testament, Dr. Horton looks to the New Covenant noting that it is entirely distinct from the previous Sinai covenant. After the foundation work in the Bible is done, chapter five moves the discussion to systematic theology by considering the larger categories of the covenants of redemption, creation, and grace. In the sixth chapter, Dr. Horton explores themes of common grace from free will to how Christians are to view their place on Earth.

Finally in chapter seven, covenant theology is compared against its main theological competitor (dispensational theology) and looks at the relationship between Israel and the Church. The eighth chapter explores baptism and the Lord’s Supper as signs and seals of the New Covenant. In the final chapter, Dr. Horton distinguishes between different understandings of biblical law in order to explain Christian obedience under the New Covenant.

As much as I agree with Dr. Horton on the major issues and mostly enjoyed the book, there were a number of issues that detracted from its quality. On at least point, Dr. Horton’s position is unclear, and at worst inconsistent. On one hand he affirms that those in the New Covenant are true believers-“There are real partners in this covenant (God with believers and their children)” (105), but on the other he asserts, “not everyone in the covenant of grace is elect.” (182) Another problem is that on a few occasions (pages 105, 131, 167, 182) he references children as members of the New Covenant, with the implication that they are eligible for the sacrament of baptism, but never supports this idea. Since infant baptism is a contentious issue among Reformed believers, he should have at least attempted to make a case for it.

A common criticism of theological discussion these days is that it’s not practical. Following the principle that good practice is built upon sound theology, Dr. Horton had a great opportunity to make the book incredibly practical in the last chapter by explaining specifically what laws Christians ought to view as guidelines. Unfortunately, his (worthwhile) discussion remained abstract and readers will have to do their own work to figure out what use it has for Christian living.

Though the book is an introduction to covenant theology, it is more academic in nature, so readers would do well to have some theological experience. However, God of Promise fulfills a substantial need in our Reformed libraries. Very few books address the system of covenant theology directly, and Michael Horton is likely the best contemporary theologian to do so. God of Promise is a valuable resource for those seeking to understand the picture of biblical teaching and the resulting categories of Reformed theology.