Overview

In Reading Backwards, Richard Hays examines how the Gospel authors read and use scripture to portray Jesus as the embodiment of the God of Israel. With their own distinctive emphases, each evangelist interprets the Old Testament, not as containing predictive material, but as displaying prefigurations of Jesus’ life and ministry. Mark’s figural reading of scripture incorporates allusion and mystery in its understanding of Jesus’ relation to YHWH (chapter 2). Matthew, on the other hand, sees Jesus as a fulfillment of prophecy, embodying both the fate of Israel and the nation’s God, and as Emmanuel (“God with us”), who is worthy of worship in his unique association with the Lord (chapter 3). Luke stresses the continuity of the story of Israel and the church and specifically understands Jesus as the Son of God in a spiritual, rather than solely a royal sense (chapter 4). Finally, John sees Jesus as the divine Logos who preceded creation, uniquely prefigured in the temple and Jewish festivals (chapter 5). Hays identifies a few advantages to reading backwards (allowing the New Testament to illuminate the Jewish scriptures). He states that this allows us to recognize the multiple senses through which the Hebrew Bible speaks to its readers as a story, rather than just law and prediction. Acknowledging inevitable pushback by critical scholars, Hays states that Christians today should read the Old Testament figurally like the Gospel authors did; for if one believes the God of Israel is living, active, and present in the life of Jesus, reading backwards cannot be seen as twisting the message of the Jewish scriptures.

Critical Review

While his overall message was lost at times in his in-depth analysis of each author's use of the Old Testament, Hays’ study provides a scholarly breath of fresh air against the claims of the modern church, on one side, which demands that the prophets spoke directly about Jesus and, on the other, of the skeptic who argues that the Gospel authors intentionally twisted the message of the Jewish scriptures for their desired goals. However, while he makes a thought-provoking case that Christians can read "figurally" like the Gospel authors because the God of the Old Testament is still an active God, it does not follow that the ways in which the evangelists do so are always reasonable, especially given their distinct views and reading techniques.

Church Application

Reading Backwards is a tremendous resource for Christians today who have grown up in more traditional/evangelical circles which often teach that the Old Testament prophets predict the coming of Jesus. When these prophets are read in their own context, this is clearly shown to be an untenable position. Hays does a fantastic job at honoring the prophets’ intent, while also honoring the Gospel authors’ “figural reading.” Church leaders may find this book helpful for intertestamental dialogue and services focused on prophecy, the prophets, or even depictions of Jesus as divine. Introducing congregants to the ways in which the Gospel authors use Jesus as a foil for the nation of Israel and Yahweh is perhaps even more beautiful than straining the argument that the prophets had Jesus in mind in their writings.