The Promise of the Trinity: The Covenant of Redemption in the Theologies of Witsius, Owen, Dickson, Goodwin, and Cocceius (Reformed Historical Theology)

Publisher's description: The doctrine of the pactum salutis (covenant of redemption) offers the idea of a covenant between the very persons of the Trinity for the redemption of humanity. The doctrine received most of its attention in seventeenth-century Reformed theology, and has been criticized and almost totally forgotten in dogmatics since the eighteenth century. Most recent Reformed dogmatics tend to ignore the doctrine or disparage it from biblical, trinitarian, christological, pneumatological, and soteriological perspectives-namely, the doctrine lacks scriptural basis; it is tritheistic; it leads to subordination of the Son; it omits the role of the Holy Spirit; and it applies a deterministic idea for the Christian life. The theologies of Witsius, Owen, Dickson, Goodwin, and Cocceius portray a very robust form of the doctrine. Witsius argues with the help of a peculiar methodology of cross-referencing and collation of related scriptural texts that the doctrine is firmly based on biblical exegesis that was passed on from the patristic era. The doctrine formulated by Owen endorses the doctrines of inseparable operations and terminus operationis so as to give deep insight into the Trinity. In Dickson's doctrine, the Son's voluntary consent and obedience to the will of the Father are highly emphasized. Likewise, Goodwin's depiction of the Holy Spirit secures the divinity of the Spirit as well as his indispensable role for the transaction and accomplishment of the pactum. The doctrine in the theology of Cocceius sheds much light on the vibrant dynamic of the Christian life in accordance with the ordo salutis. The doctrine of the pactum salutis of the five Reformed theologians clearly shows that the doctrine is both promised and promising for theology and the life of faith The doctrine of the pactum salutis (covenant of redemption) offers the idea of a covenant between the three persons of the Trinity for the redemption of humanity. However, most of recent Reformed dogmatics tend to criticize it from biblical, trinitarian, christological, pneumatological, and soteriological perspectives. B. Hoon Woo will demonstrate that the Reformed doctrine of the pactum salutis formulated by Witsius, Owen, Dickson, Goodwin, and Cocceius can give satisfactory answers to modern criticisms. His study is designed not only to demonstrate the invalidity of these criticisms of the doctrine but also to point to its practical implications for theology and the church B. Hoon Woo supplements and corrects previous studies on the Reformed doctrine of the pactum salutis. He gives satisfactory answers to modern criticisms of the doctrine and also shows that the doctrine includes very highly useful implications in relation to the doctrine of the Trinity, Christology, Pneumatology, and soteriology Reformed doctrines as answers to modern criticisms of itself and as source of practical implications for theology and church