does in Galatians 4:21–31. To be quite honest, the fact that Paul said ‘Now this may be interpreted allegorically’ (Gal. 4:24) made me really nervous. Continued study of the Scriptures has led me to the position that the task of biblical theology is one of learning to understand and embrace the interpretive perspective of the biblical authors.3 Gradually I came to the view that if Moses can treat the covenant between Yahweh and Israel as a marriage, and if Hosea can write a prophecy in which he himself