Reformed Dogmatics, Volume 1: Theology Proper

Geerhardus Vos’ Reformed Dogmatics volume 1, is a wonderful gift to the church. As it has been promoted, this work that is now available in English, is a work that many Reformed Christians will cherish. This book has made a profound impact on my own Christian life. This particular volume covers: The Knowability of God, the Attributes of God, The Trinity, God’s Decrees, Predestination, Creation, and Providence. Each of these subjects were taught faithfully from a Reformed perspective. First of all, I am appreciative of Vos’ ability to take the theological subject of Theology Proper, and systematically put it into notes that we as readers today can benefit from. His work is reminiscent of a catechism, in the way that he asks a question, and then seeks to answer the question. This is both a positive and negative in my opinion. It helps the reader not become bogged down in deep paragraph after paragraph of theological argument. However, because Vos is so intelligent in his theological understanding, it sometimes leaves you desiring more of an answer to some of the questions that he is posing. Second, another great strength of Vos’ work, is his ability to not only argue a subject theologically, but Biblically. Vos’ background in Biblical theology is noticed in this work. He never seeks to answer a question, apart from Scripture. This helps the reader to know and understand better, what Scripture seeks to say about a subject. And this gives the reader confidence in Vos’ answer that is not just his opinion, but is founded upon Scripture. Third, Vos not only argues for the Reformed position of a theological subject, but he gives other opposing views as well. He will almost always address one or two other views of a topic, and show where they fall short (for instance, the Arminian argument of Predestination). He is fair and does not take shots, but shows where that line of thinking falls short in comparison to the Reformed Perspective. Fourth, Vos’ knowledge of Hebrew and Greek comes out in this volume. While the reader does not have to have a full working knowledge of Hebrew and Greek, because Vos typically translates each Hebrew and Greek word, every once in a while, he does not translate it. This is not a negative, but something that each reader must know before reading. Finally, I am thankful for the translators who carefully took much time in translating this wonderful work from Dutch to English. The translators sought to keep the work as close to the original as possible, translating and leaving single words that Vos had in his notes (Page 4). This showed integrity of the translators. Overall, I am extremely thankful for this work. It has challenged me theologically by teaching me certain theological subjects that I was not as familiar with, as well as sharpening some of my own beliefs. Vos’ work and life have also helped to open the door to other Old Princeton theologians such as Warfield and Machen. This work will be a part of my library for the rest of my ministry, and will be used over and over. I received this copy from the publisher, Lexham Press, for an honest review. Thank you Lexham Press, for the opportunity to read and review this wonderful book.