Meredith Kline
| Meredith G. Kline | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 15, 1922 |
| Died | April 14, 2007 (aged 84) |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | theologian and Old Testament scholar |
| Known for | Framework interpretation |
| Religion | Christian (Reformed) |
| Academic background | |
| Education | Gordon College, Westminster Theological Seminary |
| Alma mater | Dropsie College (PhD) |
| Academic work | |
| Institutions |
Westminster Theological Seminary Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary Claremont School of Theology Reformed Theological Seminary Westminster Seminary California |
Meredith G. Kline (December 15, 1922 – April 14, 2007) was an American theologian and Old Testament scholar. He also had degrees in Assyriology and Egyptology.
Academic career
Kline received his A.B. from Gordon College, Th.B. and Th.M. from Westminster Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania, and Ph.D. in Assyriology and Egyptology from Dropsie College. He enjoyed a long and fruitful professorial career spanning five decades and two coasts, teaching Old Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary (1948-1977), Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (1965-1993), the Claremont School of Theology (1974-1975), Reformed Theological Seminary (1979-1983), and Westminster Seminary California (1981-2002). Kline was a professor emeritus at Westminster Seminary California and Gordon-Conwell until his death. He was an ordained minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.
Work
Building on the legacy of Geerhardus Vos, Kline was an influential voice for covenant theology in the Reformed tradition, providing both new insights into biblical accounts and critical engagement with contemporary biblical scholarship. He is perhaps best known for his contributions on the subject of ancient suzerain–vassal treaties, specifically on the relationship of treaties from the 2nd millennium BC to covenants found in the Bible.
Kline is also well known for propounding the framework interpretation of the creation account found in the first chapter of Genesis.
Theologian John Frame has called Kline "the most impressive biblical theologian of my lifetime," adding that Kline's work "is orthodox, yet often original, and it always provides [a] rich analysis of Scripture."[1]
In 2000, a festschrift was published in Kline's honor: Creator Redeemer Consummator: A Festschrift for Meredith G. Kline, ed. H. Griffith and J. R. Muether (Greenville, SC: Reformed Academic Press), featuring scholars (and former students) such as Tremper Longman and Charles Lee Irons.
Publications
Some of Kline's many publications include:
Books
- Kline, Meredith G. (1958). The Habiru: Kin or Foe of Israel (Ph.D.). OCLC 39846689.
- ——— (1963). Treaty of the Great King: The Covenant Structure of Deuteronomy: Studies and Commentary (1st ed.). Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans. OCLC 23320371.
- ——— (1968). By Oath Consigned: A Reinterpretation of the Covenant Signs of Circumcision and Baptism. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans. ISBN 978-0-802-81621-4. OCLC 10128053.[2]
- ——— (1980). Images of the Spirit. Baker Biblical Monograph. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House. ISBN 978-0-801-05416-7. OCLC 6672708.
- ——— (1997). The Structure of Biblical Authority. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans. ISBN 978-0-802-81475-3. OCLC 520918.
- ——— (2001). Glory in Our Midst: A Biblical-Theological Reading of Zechariah's Night Visions. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock. ISBN 978-1-579-10599-0. OCLC 50337531.
- ——— (2006). Kingdom Prologue: Genesis Foundations for a Covenantal Worldview (Reissue ed.). Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock. ISBN 978-1-597-52564-0. OCLC 70160948.[3]
- ——— (2006). God, Heaven, and Har Magedon: A Covenantal Tale of Cosmos and Telos. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock. ISBN 978-1-597-52478-0. OCLC 70853391.
- ——— (2012). Treaty of the Great King: The Covenant Structure of Deuteronomy: Studies and Commentary (Reissue ed.). Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock. ISBN 978-1-610-97698-5. OCLC 799060467.
Articles and chapters
- ——— (1958). "Because It Had Not Rained". Westminster Theological Journal 20: 146–57.[4]
- ——— (1969). "Canon and Covenant (part 1 - Canon and Covenant)". Westminster Theological Journal 32 (1): 49–67.
- ——— (1969). "Canon and Covenant (part 2 - All Scripture Covenantal)". Westminster Theological Journal 32 (2): 179–200.
- ——— (1970). "Canon and Covenant (part 3 - Canon Community)". Westminster Theological Journal 33 (1): 45–72.
- ——— (September 1977). "Lex Talionis and the Human Fetus". Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 20: 193–201.
- ——— (Feb 1994). "Covenant Theology Under Attack Journal=New Horizons".[5]
- ——— (1996). "Space and Time in the Genesis Cosmogony". Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith 48: 2–15.[6]
- ———; Irons, Lee (2000). "The Framework View". In Hagopian, David G. The Genesis Debate: Three Views on the Days of Creation. ISBN 978-0-970-22450-7.
References
- ↑ Chapter 28 from Doctrine of the Christian Life, published serially in Reformed Perspectives, vol. 8, no. 37, Sept. 10-16, 2006.
- ↑ "By Oath Consigned: A Reinterpretation of the Covenant Signs of Circumcision and Baptism". Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ↑ "Kingdom Prologue: Genesis Foundations for a Covenantal Worldview" (PDF). Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ↑ "Because It Had Not Rained". Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ↑ "Covenant Theology Under Attack". Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ↑ "Space and Time in the Genesis Cosmogony". Retrieved April 15, 2016.
External links
- Meredith Kline Online - a website with a comprehensive collection of Kline's writings
- The Upper Register - a website with publications by and about Kline from his former student and collaborator Lee Irons
- Audio lectures by Kline
- "Covenant Theology and Old Testament Ethics: Meredith G. Kline's Intrusion Ethics" by Jeong Koo Jeon, in Kerux: The Journal of Northwest Theological Seminary, vol. 16, no. 1
- A Glossary of Klinean Terminology
- 'The Feast of Cover-Over' (JETS 1994)
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