The Drama of Scripture

I recently read The Drama of Scripture. Though tere are other introductory biblical theology texts that I prefer, this book presents (building off the work of N.T. Wright) a very helpful 6 Act approach to the storyline of the Bible:Act 1 God Establishes His Kingdom: CreationAct 2 Rebellion in the Kingdom: FallAct 3 The King Chooses Israel: Redemption InitiatedInterlude--A Kingdom Story Waiting for an Ending: The Intertestamental PeriodAct 4 The Coming of the King: Redemption AccomplishedAct 5 Spreading the News of the Kind: The Mission of the ChurchAct 6 The Return of the King: Redemption CompletedAnother strength of the book is that authors Bartholomew and Goheen provide one of the best summaries of the intertestamental period that I've ever read.Here's my favorite quote from the book:

The world of the Bible is our world, and its story of redemption isalso our story. This story is waiting for an ending --in part becausewe ourselves have a role to play before all is concluded. We musttherefore pay attention to the continuing biblical story of redemption.We must resist the temptation to read the Scriptures as if they were areligious flea market, with a basket of history and old doctrines here,a shelf full of pious stories there, promises and commands scatteredfrom one end to the other. Some readers of the Bible turn it intolittle more than an anthology of proof texts asssembled to support asystem of theology. Others seek only ethical guidance, ransacking theOld Testament for stories of moral instruction. Still others look justfor inspirational or devotional messages, for comforting promises andlessons for daily living. The result may be that we lose sight of theBible's essential unity and instead find only those theological, moral,devotional, or historical fragments we are looking for.