Book Review: Finding God in the Hobbit

Finding God in the Hobbit. By Jim Ware. Colorado Springs: SaltRiver. pp. 208. 2006. ($14.99 Hardcover | $9.99 Kindle | 12.98 Audio)

Read a sample chapter!

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FIVE STARS!

Few authors have captured the imaginations of millions through multiple generations like J.R.R. Tolkein. His four primary works, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy introduced us to Middle Earth, and many of us enjoy travelling there once in a while simply because it challenges and changes us. These books speak to us and call our minds to contemplate bigger things. Books like these are rightly considered classics, worth reading and rereading, considering and responding to.

As believers, our responses to works of art, be they written, painted, or filmed, should necessarily be influenced by our faith. I enjoy one church’s online podcast of “Film and Theology” because it encourages us to view things in light of God’s revelation and to appreciate beauty and art as man’s creativity reflecting God’s creativity. Jim Ware’s book, Finding God in the Hobbit, does just that superbly.

This book carefully considers passages from The Hobbit in light of their context and role in the whole narrative of the entire Middle Earth canon and considers how the story reflects God’s story, how Bilbo Baggins unwittingly plays a crucial role in the ultimate destruction of not only Smaug, but the evil Lord Sauron himself, and how we too are created by God to fulfill purposes in His grand design that we ourselves may never be fully aware of.

This book is written well. I don’t say that about many books. And the audio version is narrated by Simon Vance, a veteran narrator, and his light English accent somehow makes the book seem more authentically Tolkein. Though this book came out in 2006, the audio book version is out just in time for the 2012 film adaptation of The Hobbit. I highly recommend that both The Hobbit and Finding God in the Hobbit be on your reading list in the immediate future. It’s that good.

I received this audio book from christianaudio for purposes of review.

Book Review: Commentary on Job 38-42

3 out of 5 stars

David J.A. Clines is considered to be a top-notch biblical scholar and after some 20+ years his commentary set on the book of Job has been concluded in the Word Biblical Commentary18b: Job 38-42. To give a review of Clines work after considering this concluding piece would be like watching the final half hour of The Lord of the Rings and offering up comments. Yet even a cursory overview can shed some light on the overall weight and direction of this work, as well as its usefulness.

I would venture to say this concluding commentary speaks to the most interesting material in the book of Job, save perhaps for the first chapter which sets up the sorry state in which Job lives through most of the book. Clines shows his scholarship in his translation from the Hebrew of the chapters, along with translation notes that rival and may even surpass those of the NET Bible.

Although Clines is a scholar and this work is very thorough (the bibliography for the three-volume set on Job takes up half the book), he does stray from commonly-accepted understandings of the overall meaning and purpose of the book. I would say his excellent analysis of the “trees” has caused him to miss the “forest”. He summarizes the result of the discourse between God and Job this way:

Job is neither triumphant nor defeated. The divine speeches have in the end neither satisfied nor humiliated him. It is almost as if Yahweh had not spoken from the tempest, for Job has chosen not to hear in the divine speeches the sunny side of the world’s structure and management, and he has learned nothing except to have his worst fears confirmed that he will not get justice from God. No doubt he is better off knowing where he stands and having nothing left to hope for.

In the end, Clines argues that Job gives up his quest for an answer to suffering and evil and instead lives his life to the fullest. His conclusions miss the point, and goes to show that a scholarly work is definitely helpful for understanding, but is not our final authority on matters of faith and practice: Sola Scriptura!

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I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their Booksneeze book review program. I was not obligated to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are mine.

Book Review: The Greener Grass Conspiracy by Stephen Altrogge

The Greener Grass Conspiracy was a short book. At 139 pages, it's easy to lose it on my bookshelf, especially if I put it between a systematic theology and a concordance. But I'm content. The book taught me that. And if a 139 page book can help you shift from discontentment to contentment, it's worth looking into.

Part of the reason the book is so powerful is that Stephen Altrogge is not an Ent (remember the Lord of the Rings?). He doesn't take a long time to say something important. He just says it. I published a quote from the book a few days ago, and it is a representative sample of the weight of the book.

Altrogge's style is fluid and conversational. He usually starts each chapter with a humorous anecdote, which he quickly brings it around to a point, and that point is grounded in Scripture. He's pretty honest about his struggle with discontentment, and that honesty forces the reader to take the same examination to his own life.

Since each chapter is quick to read (because of length and his engaging style), it leaves you with more time to reflect. He even includes some application questions at the end of each chapter, which I bounced off my wife a few times. It would certainly make for a good study as a small group.

I've also been reading Rescuing Ambition by Dave Harvey, and I think the two are companion volumes dealing with similar themes. I've found The Greener Grass Conspiracy to be good for reflecting on my overall life, but Rescuing Ambition has been good for my work ethic and goal-setting.

If you're finding yourself dissatisfied with your work, marriage, ministry, or whatever, I think both volumes would be of help. And if you're looking for the support and encouragement of community in your struggle with discontentment, I'd definitely pick up a copy of The Greener Grass Conspiracy.

For a sample chapter of The Greener Grass Conspiracy, click here.
For a sample chapter of Rescuing Ambition, click here.

To buy a copy of The Greener Grass Conspiracy, click here.

To buy a copy of Rescuing Ambition, click here.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received The Greener Grass Conspiracy free from Crossway Books in exchange for writing a review. I was not required to write a positive review. I also won Rescuing Ambition from Crossway in an online drawing, but I didn't have to say anything about it. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."