Why Did Biblical Theology Nearly Disappear in the Late 19th Century?
By the end of the 19th century, biblical theology as a unified discipline had nearly vanished from the scholarly landscape. What began in earlier centuries as an effort to present the theology of the Old and New Testaments together was gradually replaced by separate treatments, competing methods, and a loss of confidence in the possibility of an “all-biblical” theology.
The story of this decline involves shifts in intellectual climate, changes in biblical scholarship, and tensions between faith and reason. While the situation was discouraging, it also set the stage for later renewals that would influence how the church could once again proclaim the Bible’s unified message—one that speaks of Christ’s reign over creation, His covenant faithfulness, and the hope of new creation.
1. Intellectual Climate of the 19th Century
The Enlightenment’s legacy profoundly shaped 19th-century biblical scholarship. Reason was elevated as the ultimate authority, and many scholars sought to separate theological claims from historical analysis. Rationalism encouraged the belief that universal moral truths could be extracted from Scripture, while “time-conditioned” elements—especially the supernatural—were dismissed.
In this context, revelation was often subordinated to reason. Biblical theology, traditionally concerned with God’s redemptive acts in history, was reframed as a search for timeless ethical principles acceptable to the modern mind.
2. Influence of the Historical-Critical Method
The rise of the historical-critical method reshaped how scholars approached the Bible. Instead of focusing on the received canonical text, they dissected it into hypothetical sources, examined its development, and placed it within broader ancient cultural contexts.
This method brought valuable historical insight but often divorced biblical texts from their theological function in the life of the church. As a result:
Old Testament and New Testament studies became increasingly separate disciplines.
The diversity within Scripture was emphasized over unity.
Doctrinal reflection was sidelined in favor of historical reconstruction.
3. Division of Old and New Testament Theologies
By the mid-19th century, the dominant scholarly approach followed the model of G. L. Bauer, who published separate volumes on Old Testament theology and New Testament theology. This division became standard among both critical and conservative scholars.
The shift had far-reaching consequences:
The possibility of a single, coherent biblical theology was called into question.
Theological connections between the Testaments—central to the church’s proclamation of the Gospel—were weakened.
The Bible began to be treated as two loosely related collections rather than one unified story of God’s redemptive plan.
4. Rise of the History of Religions Approach
Late 19th- and early 20th-century scholarship increasingly adopted the Religionsgeschichte (history of religions) approach, which compared biblical faith to other ancient religions. Archaeological discoveries and comparative studies revealed similarities between biblical texts and the myths, laws, and rituals of surrounding cultures.
While this provided helpful context, it also led to conclusions that undermined the uniqueness of biblical revelation:
The Bible was treated primarily as a record of human religious experience.
The authority of the canon was disregarded, with noncanonical literature given equal weight.
Theology was replaced by the study of religion as a purely historical phenomenon.
5. Impact of Liberal Protestantism
In this era, liberal Protestantism often downplayed or neglected the Old Testament. Influenced by the historical-critical method and by philosophical idealism, some scholars sought the “essence of Christianity” in universal moral teachings rather than in the historical acts of God recorded in Scripture.
This trend led to:
A selective reading of Scripture that marginalized key biblical themes such as covenant, kingdom, and eschatological hope.
An overemphasis on ethics detached from the biblical storyline.
A diminished view of the Old Testament as preparatory for and fulfilled in Christ.
6. Decline of Biblical Theology as a Unified Discipline
The cumulative effect of these factors was a near-complete breakdown of biblical theology as a single discipline. By the late 19th century:
Scholars questioned whether the unity of Scripture could be recovered.
Theological work became fragmented into specialized, isolated fields.
The post-Gablerian separation of biblical theology from the faith and life of the church left it largely an academic exercise.
For about a century—from roughly 1870 to the mid-20th century—works attempting to treat the theology of both Testaments together were rare. Where they did appear, they often lacked the confessional and canonical grounding necessary for the church’s proclamation.
7. Implications for the Church and the Gospel
The near-disappearance of unified biblical theology had significant consequences for the church’s witness. Without a robust sense of the whole biblical narrative, preaching and teaching risked becoming fragmented, moralistic, or disconnected from Christ’s Kingdom mission.
A healthy biblical theology proclaims:
The unity of God’s redemptive plan from creation to new creation.
The fulfillment of Old Testament promises in Jesus the Messiah.
The hope of final restoration when Christ returns to reign.
The absence of this vision in much of 19th-century scholarship left a gap that later movements—such as the mid-20th-century biblical theology revival and the development of the canonical approach—would seek to fill.
Conclusion
Biblical theology nearly disappeared in the late 19th century due to a convergence of rationalism, the dominance of the historical-critical method, the separation of Old and New Testament studies, the rise of the history of religions approach, and the influence of liberal Protestantism. These trends fractured the Bible’s unified witness and distanced biblical scholarship from the life of the church.
Yet the Gospel itself demands a unified biblical theology. From Genesis to Revelation, Scripture tells one story—the story of the God who reigns, redeems, and will renew all things in Christ. The loss of that vision in the 19th century is a cautionary tale, but it also underscores the importance of recovering and proclaiming the full scope of the “bigger Gospel” today.
