Systematic Theology

by Louis Berkhof

Publisher:

Eerdmans

, 1938

Overview

For decades, Louis Berkhof’s Systematic Theology has remained one of the most important and widely-used systematic theologies. It provides the clearest and most succinct articulation of Reformed theology. From its first publication in 1932, Berkhof’s work was revised, reprinted, and translated into Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, and Portuguese, and it had become a standard theological text by 1950. It has gained near-universal use in seminaries and Bible colleges across the world, and is widely cited and used by pastors, theologians, and students of nearly all denominational affiliations.

Although many of Berkhof’s ideas are not original—he wrote squarely within the Reformed tradition of Abraham Kuyper and Herman Bavinck—they are succinct, clear, and well-organized.

Louis Berkhof’s Systematic Theology was first published by Eerdmans in 1932 as a three-volume set: an introductory volume, plus two volumes entitled Reformed Dogmatics. Much of the material in these volumes was transcribed from his lectures at Calvin Theology Seminary between 1926 and 1928. In 1938, Berkhof revised the 2-volume Reformed Dogmatics, and it was published in smaller type by Eerdmans as a single volume entitled Systematic Theology. Berkhof’s Introductory Volume to Systematic Theology was published separately. For decades, both the Systematic Theology and its introductory volume have been reprinted as two-volume sets or combined one-volume editions.

Key Features

• Clear articulation of Reformed theology
• Organized into six sections for easy navigation
• Ideal for pastors, theologians, and students

Contents

• Doctrine of God 
• Doctrine of Man in Relation to God 
• Doctrine of the Person and Work of Christ 
• Doctrine of the Application of the Work of Redemption
• Doctrine of the Church and the Means of Grace
• Doctrine of the Last Things

Top Highlights

“It is not Christ that leads us to the Church, but the Church that leads us to Christ” (Page 553)

“For us the existence of God is the great presupposition of theology. There is no sense in speaking of the knowledge of God, unless it may be assumed that God exists. The presupposition of Christian theology is of a very definite type. The assumption is not merely that there is something, some idea or ideal, some power or purposeful tendency, to which the name of God may be applied, but that there is a self-existent, self-conscious, personal Being, which is the origin of all things, and which transcends the entire creation, but is at the same time immanent in every part of it.” (Pages 20–21)

“The only proper way to obtain perfectly reliable knowledge of the divine attributes is by the study of God’s self-revelation in Scripture.” (Page 54)

“There are good reasons for starting with the doctrine of God, if we proceed on the assumption that theology is the systematized knowledge of God, of whom, through whom, and unto whom, are all things.” (Page 19)

“The world everywhere reveals intelligence, order, harmony, and purpose, and thus implies the existence of an intelligent and purposeful being, adequate to the production of such a world.” (Page 26)

Endorsements

There are a number of systematic textbooks that have appeared since Louis Berkhof wrote, but nobody, it seems to me, matches Berkhof for his skill in saying much, very straightforwardly in a small space. He goes to the heart of every truth. He says it quickly…what Berkhof gives you is constantly, point after point, good stuff.

— J.I. Packer

Product Details

• Title: Systematic Theology
• Author: Louis Berkhof
• Publisher: Eerdmans
• Print Publication Date: 1938
• Logos Release Date: 2009
• Pages: 784
• Era: era:contemporary
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Reformed Church › Doctrinal and controversial works; Theology, doctrinal
• Resource ID: LLS:STBERKHOF
• Resource Type: Systematic Theology
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-02-12T08:47:54Z

About Louis Berkhof

Louis Berkhof (1873–1957) was a Reformed theologian whose works remain highly influential. He taught at at Calvin Theological Seminary from 1906 and served as its president from 1931–1944.

Berkhof’s writings, including his Systematic Theology, presented Reformed thought in the tradition of John Calvin, Abraham Kuyper, and Herman Bavinck. Throughout his tenure at Calvin, he stressed the importance of orthodoxy, a focus shown in his works.