God's Rivals

Why Has God Allowed Different Religions? Insights from the Bible and the Early Church

Gerald R. McDermott

• Publisher: IVP Academic
• Year: 2026
• eBook ISBN:
  9781514019092
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Theology

In the providence of God, why are there other religions? Was the God of the Bible wise in allowing for them? Can they serve any purpose?

Gerald R. McDermott explores reflection on teaching from the Old and New Testaments and from a number of key teachers from the early church to suggest an answer to this perplexing but intriguing question. In the end McDermott provides considerable insight into the troubling clash of world religions and offers a helpful Christian response.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• 1 The Scandal of Particularity: Why Has the True God Come to Only Some People at Some Times?
• 2 Not Even in Israel Have I Found Such Faith: Surprising Knowledge of God Among Bible People Outside Israel and the Church
• 3 The Lord of Hosts: The Old Testament and the Real Existence of Other Gods
• 4 Principalities and Powers: The New Testament on Other Real Supernatural Powers Besides God
• 5 Seeds of the Word: Justin Martyr on Seeds of the Word in Other Religions
• 6 Divine Pedagogy: Irenaeus Explains How God Uses the Religions
• 7 A Divine Gift to the Greeks - Clement of Alexandria and the Gentile Covenants
• 8 Diverse Destinies by Diverse Choices: Origen’s Warnings About Other Religions
• 9 What Are the Religions? And Why are They There? Collecting the Strands
• Appendix: God and the Masculine Pronoun
• Notes
• Author and Subject Index
• Scripture Index
• About the Author
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