Kevin has written a very helpful book! There are a number of false teachings popularly held in the church in the West today and up until a few months ago, were held by me too. Among these is the teaching that God can't forgive human beings until He has poured out wrath He has stored up in response to our sins on someone who is perfectly innocent and infinite (whatever infinite within this context even means) like His Son. Ideas such as these are found and reinforced in everything from our songs to the messages of our most popular preachers to the presuppositions of our most popular Christian apologists. I am mainly referring to those in the protestant, evangelical Church, but the Roman Catholic Church holds to this teaching as well. It is so ingrained that it is almost impossible to read the Bible and not interpret it through a PSA (Penal Substitutionary Atonement) colored lens without a lot of effort.

This idea is so central to so many Christian's beliefs that as soon as you remove it, most are left having no clue why Jesus came or died for them. This certainly included me. Despite having read the Bible a number of times and certainly not being Biblically illiterate, I had no idea what else the Bible taught about why Jesus lived, died or resurrected and since removing the PSA colored lens, I have found the Bible actually has a lot to say on these things. It is very sad and I believe it has led to much struggle for many and may lead to eternal destruction for many more. It certainly contributed to some of my own struggles and also made reading the Bible much more confusing than it needed to have been. A lot of confusion arises when trying to understand the Bible while reading it through the lens of what so many churches and Christians claim is true.

The first thing that helped me start breaking free from the false teaching of PSA was Warren McGrew's video series on it on his YouTube channel, Idol Killer. I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in this topic. Also, I discovered videos on the YT channel, Theological Dark Web which I found very helpful. I am not sure if I agree with everything he says on his channel, but he has certainly shed a lot of light on things that I hadn't considered or been aware of before. A video titled "Deception Theory The end of Calvinism and Penal Substitution" by Richard Colburn is also a wonderful resource.

I have been reading the Bible with a newfound intensity and passion. Everything makes so much more sense now and is much simpler and more consistent. After letting go of some of the false beliefs I had, I literally felt as if I had been released from bondage and was born again like the Bible teaches. My love for God and appreciation of what He has done for me has increased immensely. I came to believe most, if not everything of what Kevin shares in his book before I read it. I believe 99.999% of what he shares is consistent with what the Bible says. That was very encouraging to me. It is hard to read the Bible and come to believe it is saying something that goes against what most people seem to believe. Finding others who have come to the same beliefs after doing their own study and research has been very helpful. Learning that the early church fathers believed very similarly and that the beliefs held by many today were more recently introduced was helpful.

Kevin did a great job of explaining the culture and beliefs of those the NT was written to and demonstrated that there are more clear and helpful ways to translate many of the words found in the Bible that have been co-opted or poorly translated by PSA advocates to reinforce their unBiblical ideas. What I appreciated most was Kevin's clear love and respect for the Word of God. As he says on the back of his book, he isn't a progressive who is trying to water down God's Word, but rather is someone who wishes to hold to what it clearly says and oppose that which it clearly doesn't say and even teaches against. The one thing I have gained throughout all of this is a much clearer understanding of and appreciation for the genuinely transformative power found in all God has chosen to reveal to His creation, especially the revelation found in His Son's life, death and resurrection which is most clearly testified to in His wonderful Word.

There are 6 or 7 different atonement theories out there that try to explain the mechanics of salvation. George's book deals with the most popular one called Penal Substitutionary Atonement. My perplexity has always been: The Bible tells us at Romans 6:23 that the "wages of sin is death." If Jesus died as our substitute, "in our place," then we Christians should not be dying.

Also, if Christ died to take the place of sinners, did he do this? If the fate of sinners is unending torment, is Christ being tormented eternally? If the fate of the sinner is eternal death (annihilation), is Christ eternally dead? For those who believe in universal salvation, what would have been the fate of sinners if no Savior had been sent; did Christ assume this fate in their place? The answers to each of these questions is no. So how can it be said that Jesus died in our place since he did not receive the eternal fate of the lost for whom he (allegedly) substituted?

Kevin George examines Penal Substitutionary Atonement, analyzing the Greek wording of verses used to support this view, bringing insight to the issue of Biblical atonement. This is an important work, establishing the good news we should be sharing with the world.

Kevin George brings a great deal of clarity to the topic of atonement by anchoring his definition in the Old Testament/Hebrew Scriptures. Protestants and Catholics read their understanding of the Gospels and Epistles back into the Hebrew Scriptures. No wonder the result is a skewed understanding! The Torah abiding Jews of the first century were not looking for forgiveness. They already knew that Yahweh promised forgiveness when people came to Him genuinely repentant. This is His mercy to us! Read Kevin's account in order to bring clarity to your understanding of Yahweh and what He asks of us!

I’m only on page 19 and I like it so far but on page 19, they wrote Acts 3:37-38. It should’ve been chapter 2

Brilliant! Kevin does excellent work on getting to the core of Christ’s saving work and why He was crucified. Fantastic summary of the weaknesses of penal substitution and why we as Christians need to take understanding Christ’s saving work seriously. He focuses on scripture and helps the reader come to better understand the love of Christ.

Kevin George has entered the fray with a well-written and scripturally sound (read, "rock solid") book about the failure of PSA (Penal Substitutionary Atonement) to explain the Life, Death, Resurrection and Ascension of Jesus. I am looking forward to future editions when he articulates the Levitical/OT sacrificial system better. This is the only reason why I don't give his book 5 stars. Recent scholarship has brought greater clarity to the means and meanings of the Hebrew sacrifices. Mr. George has a very loose understanding and would do well to shore up the uneven and unbalanced take.

However, where he lacks in OT understanding he certainly brings the scriptural receipts from the NT regarding Jesus' work and the character of God. (Read Rillera's, "Lamb of the Free", Hess', "Killing the Great Serpent" and Bray's, "Leviticus on the Butcher's Block" for much deeper OT and sacrificial understanding.)

Congratulations to Mr. George on bringing heaps of Biblical coal to this gospel area that desperately needs our attention.

The clarity of thought, and the passion of the author to focus on scriptures in its proper context on the matter is impressive. The book features extensive analysis of passages of scriptures. Its short digestible chapters make so easy to read and captivating. The author elegantly demystifies a theological issue that is often wrapped in much religious jargon. His approach is not only illuminating, but can also ignite a desire in the reader to please God from the heart.

There are still some unanswered questions in the book and areas that I may have to re-read.

However, it is still a very good book and I highly recommend.

This book will get Christians thinking. Kevin George shows how atonement is focused more on a covenant relationship between God and humans rather than a legal transaction.

The covenant was established by God through Jesus. The covenant is a blood covenant, not a blood payment.

Much of the book is a well organized book by book, chapter by chapter, verse by verse exposition of passages that have typically been put forth to promote a Penal Substitutionary Atonement plan.

A thought provoking coverage of the subject, which challenges traditional understandings objectively.

The author has done a thorough research for this subject, and it is unambiguously described in this book. All based on Biblical verses, and employs correct translation of the original text. It is well written and easy to understand= very clear analysis. There is no other book as Atonement and Reconciliation, because of the uses of so many Scriptures of O.T. and N.T. It is an important work regarding the Character of GOD. Unexpansive. It is a treasure of informations.