This collection of biblical, theological, historical, and pastoral essays celebrates the remarkable forty-year ministry of the Rev. Dr. Robert S. (""Rob"") Rayburn. A man of scholarly gifts and a shepherd's heart, Rob not only faithfully served a single congregation for his entire ministerial career, but also contributed to the wider church through his perceptive theological writings. Just as Rob embodied pastoral warmth, intellectual rigor, and an appreciation for the catholicity of the Christian tradition, so too the essays of this ""ecclesial Festschrift"" seek to bring scholarly expertise into the service of Christ's church. ""What you hold in your hands is a weighty book, a treasure of knowledge, brimming with deep biblical, theological, and historical reflection. These chapters set before the reader the subtlety and richness of the reformed tradition, always rooted in the catholicity of the Christian church. To read them is to glimpse the kind of wisdom that infused the remarkable ministry of Robert Rayburn, a faithful herald of God. Rob embodied the 'pastor-theologian' long before it was trendy, and this book honors his love of learning, his love of the people of God, and above all, his love of God. A fitting tribute "" --Hans Madueme, Professor of Theology, Covenant College ""These essays, written particularly from an ecclesial context, also provide perspective on Rob Rayburn's significant contribution and lasting influence as a member of the Board of Trustees of Covenant College, where Word, scholarship, celebration of God's manifold gifts and callings, and generational continuity are at the heart of the mission. How grateful to God we are for the blessing of his thirty-seven years of leadership at Covenant "" --Niel Nielson, Former President, Covenant College Max Rogland is Associate Professor of Old Testament at Erskine Theological Seminary and Senior Minister of Rose Hill Presbyterian Church in Columbia, South Carolina. He is the author of Haggai and Zechariah 1-8 (2016).
