Jacques Doukhan. On the Way to Emmaus: Five Major Messianic Prophecies Explained. Clarksville, MD: Messianic Jewish Publishers, 2012, 236pp. US$11.60; on Kindle US$7.99.

In this book, Jacques Doukhan approaches the hermeneutically challenging subject of the messianic prophecies of the Old Testament. Each chapter deals with a specific messianic text, titled by a key word: Genesis 3:15, “The Seed”; Numbers 24:15-19, “The Star”; Isaiah 7:14, “The Sign”; Isaiah 53, “The Servant”; and Daniel 9:24-27, “The Sevens.” The biblical passages are investigated with keen sensitivity to intertextual connections and echoes in other parts of the Hebrew Bible and in the New Testament. Doukhan also pays attention to the interpretation of his selected messianic texts in Jewish tradition and successfully demonstrates that Jewish texts also interpreted those passages within a messianic framework.

Going against the grain of the historical-critical method, the author makes a strong defense of the original messianic intention of the biblical passages analyzed. In this regard, this book also represents an important contribution to this topic and brings a breath of fresh air into passages that are usually restricted to a critical interpretation with no room for a predictive announcement of a Saviour to come. Doukhan’s work also makes an important contribution to our understanding of the hermeneutical relationship between the Testaments. An important implication of the entire work is that the New Testament authors did not read messianic meaning into the Old Testament, but read out of the Old Testament a messianic intention that was already there since its inception.

One may not agree with every single detail of Doukhan’s exegesis, but one is certainly challenged to view the text of the Hebrew Bible from different angles of perception. His sensitivity to the Hebrew language and his way of dealing with the biblical text also provide interesting methodological venues for those interested in a better understanding of the Scriptures. And his high view of the inspiration and authority of the Scriptures cannot be commended enough. Therefore, this book can be useful to scholars, pastors, and all church members interested in a deeper understanding, application, and preaching of the Messianic prophecies of the Bible.