Creed, Confession, and Cooperation
Southwestern Journal of Theology
Volume 67, No. 2 - Spring 2025
Editor: Malcolm B. Yarnell III
By Vern S. Poythress. Wheaton: Crossway, 2024, 294 pp., $24.99.
Having taught forty-four years at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Vern S. Poythress is Distinguished Professor of New Testament, Biblical Interpretation, and Systematic Theology. An ordained teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America, Poythress has written over sixty books. One of his areas of expertise is biblical hermeneutics.
This book is a helpful introduction to biblical typology and analogy (223), written from a biblically conservative viewpoint and a high view of Scripture (29–34). Poythress describes Edmund Clowney’s triangle method of interpreting types, giving good biblical examples to help the reader understand the method (43–71). Poythress adds to and improves this method by adding five additional steps one can use to better understand and interpret biblical types (137–47). In addition to types and analogies, he also deals with symbols and prophecies. He defines and illustrates them with Scripture, but he also notes the lines between each of them can be fuzzy (117–29). In the latter part of the book, Poythress modifies Clowney’s triangle and offers a helpful tool for use in interpreting analogies in Scripture as a Triangle of Analogy (189–97), giving examples for its beneficial use (199–224).
Strengths. Poythress’s book does a commendable job in tying together the Old Testament (OT) and New Testament (NT), showing important connections in Christology, ecclesiology, and eschatology. He gives helpful descriptions of progressive revelation (32–33, 89, 110, 119). After clearly explaining what typology and analogy are, he gives useful guidelines (43–51) and principles (73–76), boundaries (153–57) and maxims of interpretation (159–60), as well as examples of misuse (128–29, 155–56, 244, 251). He uses some good illustrations, such as a new revelation God gives about an OT teaching is connected to it like a tree growing from a seed rather than isolated like a new marble added to a bag of marbles (91). The General Index and Scripture Index are welcome additions to the book, enabling the reader to return to important areas of the book for further reflection (283–94).
An effective way to teach a concept is to use an opposite example: what it is not. Poythress does well in explaining how the practice of “allegorization” is both unbiblical and dangerous and goes beyond what an appropriate allegory can do (128–29).
Minor Issues. The use of footnotes indicates this is an academic work, but the paucity of footnotes implies the book is intended for a lay audience. Although this book appears to aim at both groups, it would strengthen the book if Poythress had used more footnotes, such as more suggestions for further study as well as contrary views and how they differ from his view. For instance, who are some examples of text-critical scholars who treat God’s involvement in Scripture as “absent or nonexistent or irrelevant” (87)? Who finds more distinctions between analogies, symbols, and types, and who sees fewer differences (120–25)? Such examples could help the reader contrast them with Poythress’s view and better evaluate it. Also, Appendices A–C are likely at the appropriate place for a lay reader (233–45), but a student should probably read them first for a helpful background.
Some of the chapters are very short. Chapters 20, 21, and 24 are less than two pages long. Each of these chapters would benefit from additional information, such as more elaboration on the maxims of typological interpretation (159–60). Also, although most of Poythress’s examples and support come from the Bible, some come from the Westminster Confession of Faith, which may be a problem for some readers (75–76, 146, 239). But this use is understandable considering his career of teaching over four decades at Westminster Theological Seminary.
This is an excellent introduction to typology and analogy that is faithful to the biblical text. Poythress gives the reader helpful tools to find where they occur in the Bible as well as how to interpret them. He offers clear guidelines and boundaries as well as examples of incorrect interpretation. Both lay people and theological students can benefit from this book.
