fretheim brings an air of authority and experience in the task of exegesis that is missing in the works of systematic theologians addressing the same issues. influences like abraham heschel help him keep christian bias to a minimum when approaching the old testament text. furthermore, he does not limit himself to one or two proof texts to support his position. on the contrary, i found myself flipping through my bible constantly while reading his work. he challenges the reader to draw theology from the biblical text rather than to allow our preconceived ideas about god to distort our reading of the old testament.