Kirkus Reviews QR Code
JESUS' PATH TO EARTH by Bill Peters

JESUS' PATH TO EARTH

by Bill Peters

Pub Date: Sept. 5th, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-5168-4515-6
Publisher: CreateSpace

A spiritual guidebook centering on the biblical genealogy of Jesus Christ.

Peters’ short, telegraphic nonfiction debut differs from most books about Jesus by concentrating less on his deeds and sayings while he was on Earth performing his ministry and more on the long-prophesied path that he took to get there. Using a variety of Bible study guides, Peters takes readers back to the beginning of the book of Genesis and traces the threads of Old Testament prophecies; Peters and his cited authorities say that these prophecies look forward to the later arrival of Jesus—“the ultimate saving sacrifice for all humanity.” All the traditional metaphorical readings are present in these pages, including one addressing the famous Old Testament story of Abraham and Isaac, in which God’s command to Abraham to sacrifice his son is said to prefigure Jesus’ New Testament story. The author periodically digresses to deliver what he calls “a bit of sermonizing,” branching out from scriptural analyses to tackle broader questions, such as, “Are you doing evil in the sight of the Lord?” Peters’ target audience of fellow Christians will find much food for thought in these pages. However, some may have problems with some of Peters’ apologetics, as when he says that the Gospels of Matthew and Luke offer different versions of Jesus’ genealogy because “Matthew was writing for a Jewish audience and Luke was writing for a Gentile audience.” Also, when the author invokes “the incredible willingness of God to forgive those who do evil in His sight,” it’s hard to imagine a reading of the Old Testament that would fully support such a claim. Still, Peters says that he hopes that his book will cement the faith of his readers, and his friendly narrative style is likely to help make that happen.

A short but often engaging overview and interpretation of scriptural prophecies.