fretheim's work is incredibly successful at accomplishing its stated purpose of bringing balance to the church's image of god in the old testament. he powerfully synthesizes the work of feminist, liberation, and process theologians while relying firmly on his expertise as a biblical exegete. the real strength of this work is that fretheim manages to make many of the same critiques common to these movements without sounding like a feminist or a liberation theologian. while he acknowledges their influence on him, the author's tone and focus remain overtly biblical throughout the book.