He that believeth not… by Paul McCauley; published by and available from John Ritchie Ltd; 216 pages. Price £8.99. (9781909803633)
He that believeth not… is sub-titled "The Errors of Universalism and Annihilationism Explored". The subject matter of this carefully-argued book is even more starkly defined as "Hell – who goes there, why and for how long?". In his opening paragraph, the author states firmly: "On some issues we cannot afford to err…the eternal destiny of human beings…is immensely relevant, intensely personal and infinitely practical to every single individual who has ever lived". McCauley is deeply concerned that men who were once considered conservative evangelicals are now propagating universalism, i.e. that all will be ultimately saved; or Annihilation, i.e. that unbelievers will ultimately be "put out of existence." Both errors are grave and could mislead thousands. Both errors are thoroughly considered in He that believeth not …
Understandably, the author makes no attempt to allocate the same number of pages in this book to the two major errors - universalism and annihilation. To universalism he devotes 41 pages while 150 pages treat of the dangers associated with the teaching of annihilationism. Most readers will agree that the apparent imbalance is wholly justified. In particular, the vocabulary of annihilationism needs more careful consideration than that associated with universalism.
The author cites key figures related to the two errors. He quotes from them and, using the Scriptures, lays bare the errors latent in their writing. A list of the Scriptures considered might have been helpful to the reader for future reference. In the concluding chapter, McCauley comments that writing He that believeth not… was "far from easy"; he adds that the reader may not have found reading this helpful book "pleasant". Nonetheless, the diligent reader will be rewarded by the careful consideration given to fundamental gospel truth.
-TW
War in the Gates by John F Parkinson; published by and available from John Ritchie Ltd; 138 pages. Price £6.99. (9781907731648)
War in the Gates is the third book from the pen of John F Parkinson, the second published by John Ritchie. As the sub-title suggests, War in the Gates is a collection of "Case histories from the Book of Judges". The Publishers' note explains that this book is not a verse-by-verse exposition but a narrative outline. The Publishers add that moral and spiritual decline so evident in the 21st century world involves the embracing of "the ancient Canaanite worldview", including even a return to pagan nature worship, which will inevitably bring "terrible consequences".
Understandably in a work of this size, the author does not devote much space to dating the Book and, more problematically, the date at which it was authored. He suggests the Book of Judges covers 335 years from 1425-1095 BC.
The narratives of the judges are dealt with thoroughly. Those judges about whom the book has little to say – Tola, Jair, Ibzan, Elon and Abdon – are included, but only a few paragraphs tell what can be gleaned from the text of Scripture. However, Parkinson does comment that Tola's epitaph was "excellent": "There arose to save Israel Tola … a man of Issachar" (Judg 10.1). Given that most occurrences of the particular Hebrew verb "save" relate to God Himself, it is praise indeed.
The pen portraits of better-known characters are worthy of careful consideration. They lead the author of War in the Gates to discuss the will of God, the Gentile mind - its religion, values, ambition, thinking and conduct - and the battle of light and darkness.
War in the Gates is a book that will be helpful to a wide readership. The author writes succinctly and thoughtfully, conveying to his reader the relevance of book a describing Israel at times when their cycles of backsliding brought them into judgment under the iron heel of idolatrous enemies. War in the Gates reinforces forcibly that the root of Israel's difficulties was their disobedience, a lesson as relevant today as it was when the first readers of Judges considered the contents of that Book.
-TW
