Since its founding in 1812, over 20,000 students have graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary. Its early founders and professors were staunch proponents of Calvinist doctrines, and their Reformed theology has had an enduring impact on Christianity for the last two centuries. The Princeton Theology Collection (55 vols.) brings together the works of four Princeton principals, together known as the Great Princeton Theologians:
- Archibald Alexander Collection (20 vols.)
- Charles Hodge Commentary Collection (4 vols.)
- A. A. Hodge Collection (11 vols.)
- B. B. Warfield Collection (20 vols.)
The Archibald Alexander Collection contains twenty volumes of works on biblical studies and theology. This collection includes Alexander’s important writings on biblical authority—the first works in Princeton theology to defend biblical inspiration against the claims of higher critics—a project greatly expanded by his successors Charles Hodge and B.B. Warfield. The Archibald Alexander Collection also includes Alexander’s works on religious experience, church education, and his two massive volumes on the history of Israel. This collection also contains numerous sermons, lectures, and other addresses, including his address delivered at his own inauguration as professor of theology at Princeton.
The four commentaries in the Charles Hodge Commentary Collection serve as the basis for Hodge’s life and thought, making his commentaries important for both biblical scholars and theologians. The volumes contain verse-by-verse commentary on every chapter in Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, and Ephesians, along with textual analysis, doctrinal points, and helpful chapter summaries. Each commentary also includes a lengthy introduction and overview written by Hodge himself, in which he examines the authorship and dating of each book, along with the historical, cultural, political, and theological context of the original audience.
The 11-volume A. A. Hodge Collection includes six volumes authored by Hodge, plus two volumes co-authored by Hodge on the Westminster Confession, the famous biographical sketch of Hodge’s life, A Discourse in Memory of A. A. Hodge by Francis L. Patton, and Princetoniana, by a student. His theology stemmed from his experience as a pastor, his work in India as a missionary, and his teaching career spent with the students and faculty of Princeton. Hodge’s theological exploration was intended for the members of his church and for the direct benefit of his students.
The B. B. Warfield Collection includes the entire 10-volume Works of Benjamin B. Warfield, published in the decade following his death in 1921, plus 10 additional volumes which contain books, articles, and lectures not found in the original 10 volumes. As a prolific writer and accomplished scholar, Warfield defended Reformed confessionalism against the extremes of nineteenth century modernist and revivalist theology, and defined the parameters of theological method for the twentieth century.
