Legal provisions for Gentile converts in the law of Moses

In our time Evangelical Biblical scholars are beginning to view Gentiles in the Old Testament from a new perspective. The dominant, older perspective, at least in its extreme forms, viewed the Old Testament as a purely Hebrew or Jewish book. The Hebrews were chosen for privilege and blessing, and Gentiles were excluded from any such blessing until after the appearance of Jesus, the Saviour of all humanity. Admittedly, this is an extreme, perhaps even exaggerated, statement of the older view. However, this extreme attitude significantly influences Biblical scholarship of our time. For example, a scholar of undisputed quality, whose work is justly praised as a worthy contribution to Biblical scholarship can refer to “The paucity of emphasis on Gentile blessing in the Mosaic Covenant.” I believe that just the opposite is true. The last four books of Moses, the literary vehicle for communicating the Mosaic Covenant, have much to say concerning the particular blessing involved in witnessing to Gentiles concerning God\u27s truth. The new perspective is one which sees a positive purpose for Gentiles in both Testaments. In this perspective, the Hebrews were not only chosen for privilege and blessing, but also to minister to the Gentile world of their time. Even in the Old Testament, as seen in this newer perspective, covenant election involved the responsibility to witness to Gentiles. Don Richardson is an effective spokesman for this new perspective