The publication of The Oxford Handbook of Reformed Theology in November 2020 marks the culmination of seven years of hard but joyful work. Friends warned Michael Allen and me that editing a volume of 39 chapters written by over 40 different authors would demand more of us than we could anticipate; and they were right! […]
John Bower’s new book on the Westminster Confession of Faith
I’m frequently asked about good resources for studying the Westminster Standards. Over the past several years, we have witnessed the publication of a number of helpful works on these historic ecclesiastical documents (see, for example, here and here). John Bower’s new book on the Westminster Confession of Faith makes a notable contribution in this regard. […]
Oliver O’Donovan on good biblical interpretation
I’ve been re-reading Oliver O’Donovan’s trilogy on moral theology over the past few weeks (see here, here, and here). These volumes are an example of Christian theology at its best: deeply informed by scriptural exegesis, conversant with a wide-range of classical and contemporary theological and philosophical resources, profound in theological judgment, elegant in architectonic structure. […]
“Perfectly sufficient for himself and for us”: Petrus van Mastricht on the doctrine of God
Petrus van Mastricht begins his treatment of the doctrine of God by means of brief exegetical comments on Hebrews 11:6: “for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” According to Mastricht, this verse reveals three truths about God that are essential to saving […]
The humility of God
“Humility” might sound like a strange attribute to predicate of God. Two recent studies suggest otherwise. Grant Macaskill’s The New Testament and Intellectual Humility is not a study of divine humility per se. Its broad concern is the nature and cultivation of humility as an intellectual virtue. Because of his commitment to theological interpretation of […]
Reframing the relationship between theology proper and theological method
Systematic theology at its best devotes its attention not only to individual topics such as God, salvation, church, and sacraments. It also devotes its attention to relationships between such topics. One of the most important relationships that systematic theology considers is the relationship between the doctrine of God (i.e., theology proper) and theological method. Either […]
