At last, here is a concise one-volume systematic theology that readers will find both accessible and affordable. Equally useful to students, ministers and interested lay people, the work is divided into fourteen chapters, to match weekly sessions in an average-length semester. Each chapter, in turn, contains five roughly equal subsections.

One of the book’s great strengths is to provide a broad interdisciplinary perspective, and within that framework to cover all the key elements expected of any systematic theology: a theological understanding of God and creation; issues concerning theism and atheism; the nature of humankind and of misdirected desire and alienation; the work and Person of Christ; the Person and work of the Holy Spirit; the Church, ministry and sacraments; and two chapters on the last things. Each chapter is built on careful foundations in biblical exegesis, while also interacting with major thinkers through the centuries and today.

Too often systematic theologies yield disappointingly few practical lessons for Christian discipleship and devotion. Thiselton, by contrast, has produced a work that is fully mindful of these practical concerns, injecting into his theological discussions many helpful observations about their relevance to the Christian life.