The Judaizing Calvin

by Aegidius Hunnius, Paul A. Rydecki (Translator), James Heiser (Introduction)

In "The Judaizing Calvin," Lutheran theologian Aegidius Hunnius (1550–1603) analyzes the writings of John Calvin, the chief teacher of the Reformed Church—and documents a persistent pattern of interpretation in Calvin which undermines the fundamental teachings of the New Testament concerning Christ Jesus. Hunnius contends that Calvin was a "judaizing" theologian—one who favored a Rabbinic Jewish interpretation of Old Testament prophecies—and that Calvin's interpretations undermined the New Testament teachings concerning the Incarnation, the doctrine of the Trinity, and the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus. Hunnius provides the reader with a passionate and substantial refutation of Calvin's flawed interpretations, and upholds the apostolic understanding of the connection between Old Testament Messianic prophecy and the New Testament fulfillment of those prophecies.

116 pages, Paperback

First published September 21, 2012

Reviews

[Zac Reeves · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m not entirely sure how to rate this book because I really disagree with Hunnius, but I’m still glad I read the book. This is a polemical work against Calvin’s exegesis, specifically relating to how Calvin sees the use of the Old Testament in the New and how he sees Christ being present in the Old Testament. Although this work has all the polemical language of the time (Hunnius calls Calvin the angel of darkness), I came away more convinced of Calvin’s exegesis. It seems to me that Hunnius sees the Old Testament pointing to Christ in a rather two-dimensional way, he looks at the Old Testament and sees a two-dimensional picture of Christ. Calvin though, is seriously concerned with the original authors’ intent and how the original audience would have received it—hence the derogatory “judaizing.” But Calvin does not trade a two-dimensional image of Christ for a two-dimensional “judaizing” hermeneutic, rather Calvin reads the text in a three dimensional way. He is concerned—yes with the original context but also—with how the text points to Christ. As I read Hunnius’ interpretation of various texts it seemed to me that he views Old Testament prophecies as “crystal ball prophecies,” where the author is not speaking of his own experience (and perhaps not even to his own time) but only toward Christ. For instance Hunnius sees nothing else in Psalm 22 except Christ, whereas Calvin sees both David and Christ. I have trouble discerning what Hunnius’ would have thought the purpose of much of the Old Testament served until Christ arrived. Calvin though is great at showing what the original context and application was and how it points to Christ. To me Hunnius’ lacks nuance. Perhaps theologically I would find much agreement with him, but he is a poor reader of the text in my opinion. Whereas Calvin reads the texts as (sacred) literature and like a literature major, observing all the hills and valleys of the text and showing how all the rivers and streams flow to the fount, Hunnius only gives us that two-dimensional image of the Scriptures. Hunnius reads the Bible like it’s a Bible code or a crystal ball, whereas Calvin reads it like a lover of good literature.

[Manuel Marbun · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was Calvinist. I left Calvinism not because of reading this book. Today, I'm more convinced that Calvinism is heresy. Modern Christians do not understand how pestilential Calvin's way of interpretation was. Our Lutheran fathers once said that it is better to be Papist than Calvinist. Not because they opened room for Papism, but because Calvin is a plague in the Church of God. If you are a convinced Reformed, I really recommend this book to help you open your mind.

[Ben Mizrahi · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I did not agree with absolutely all of Hunnius' interpretation, this charming booklet did indeed deliver on its main promise: Exposing Calvin's destruction and distortion of the Trinitarian verses in both the Old and New Testament, as well as demonstrating how Calvin undermines the messianic prophecies of the Old Testament.

[Connor Longaphie · Rating 5 out of 5]

caught red-handed with his hand in the Talmud jar

[K B · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting reading and certainly thought-provoking