You'll have to wait till this fall to get Brian Vicker's forthcoming book, Jesus' Blood and Righteousness: Paul's Theology of Imputation. To whet your appetite, here are the blurbs:
"The historic Reformational doctrine of imputation is under serious duress in our day. Interestingly, it is often evangelical Protestant Biblical Studies scholars who have the doctrine in their sights. The critiques come from different angles but almost all suggest that we’ve read imputation back into Paul, and that it’s high time we understood and articulated Paul’s theology more biblically—which means, they say, rejecting the Protestant confessional formulations of imputation (which reflect the dreaded bane of systematic theology!). Brian Vickers comes to our aid in this important discussion. He gives us a helpful survey of the trajectory of the doctrine in history—from Luther to N.T. Wright—and then engages in a vigorous exegetical and biblical theological defense of imputation. Arguing that imputation is not merely a possible, but a necessary synthesis of Paul’s teaching, Vickers thoroughly analyzes the key passages of Romans 4:1-8 and 5:12-21, and 2 Corinthians 5:21. He counters a reductionist/minimalist reading of those texts and articulates instead a strong Pauline, biblical theological argument for what we would call the traditional view of the imputation of Christ's righteousness. The book is accessible to any intelligent reader with an interest in theology, exegesis, and doctrine, but especially helpful to pastors, teachers and seminarians. For all of us who are servants of the Word, we can ill afford indifference to this debate. It is the very stuff of the Gospel, if our evangelical forebears were right in their understanding of the Bible’s teaching on the gracious and just divine salvation of sinners. Vickers says they were, and does a yeoman’s service in this volume showing why."
--Ligon J. Duncan
"One rarely reads a book anymore that displays knowledge of church history, systematic theology, and biblical exegesis. Brian Vickers's book on imputation is a sterling exception, showing that the best biblical exegesis is informed by, but never captive to, historical and systematic theology. Too often discussions on imputation produce quarrels rather than understanding, but here we have a work that furnishes an exegetical basis for the Pauline teaching on imputation.
--Thomas R. Schreiner
"Unfortunately, the Reformation doctrine of the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to the spiritual bank account of believing sinners is today a matter of debate, even among evangelicals. Brian Vickers, therefore, has performed a valuable service for the church by affirming imputation in Jesus’ Blood AND Righteousness. With great clarity Dr. Vickers bases his theological conclusions on careful, contextual study of the Scriptures. (This is so important today, when theology and exegesis often go their separate ways.) He correctly situates justification as a subset of union with Christ. Wisely, he does not overreach the evidence but makes a cumulative case for imputation based on a synthesis of the teaching of three passages—Romans 4:3; 5:19; and 2 Corinthians 5:21. In my judgment, his case succeeds. And he does all of this with a gentle spirit that refuses to demonize those who disagree with him. I heartily commend this volume as a needed, constructive, and helpful piece of theological exegesis."
--Robert A. Peterson
"Careful exegetical study and refined theological reflection ought always to be wedded by biblical scholar and theologian, alike. Sadly, this union is less common than one might expect. But in Brian Vickers's Jesus' Blood and Righteousness, we see a careful and clear biblical exegesis joined to a richly refined theological reformulation displayed with beauty and grace. Vickers's work is surely to be one of the most significant contributions to the ongoing discussion of the nature both of the imputation of Christ's righteousness and of God's justification of the believer in Christ. The reader will be informed of the broad range of scholarly proposals on these issues, and he will be served well by the judicious judgments Vickers offers. While upholding a fully "Reformational" understanding of imputation, his defense is altogether fresh, at times surprising, and everywhere filled with insight. For the sake of one's own soul, and for richer biblical and theological understanding, I commend to Christians that they read with care this excellent work.
--Bruce A. Ware
