Predestination: Biblical Predestination & Predestination in the Old Testament

by Gordon H. Clark

Book by Clark, Gordon H.

Genres: Theology, Christian, Philosophy, Christianity

215 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1969

About the author

Gordon Haddon Clark was an American philosopher and Calvinist theologian. He was a primary advocate for the idea of presuppositional apologetics and was chairman of the Philosophy Department at Butler University for 28 years. He was an expert in pre-Socratic and ancient philosophy and was noted for his rigor in defending propositional revelation against all forms of empiricism and rationalism, in arguing that all truth is propositional and in applying the laws of logic. His system of philosophy is sometimes called Scripturalism.

The Trinty Foundation continues to publish his writings.

Reviews

[John Rabe]

Clark's clear-headed, biblical logic is always a breath of fresh, bracing air in an age of muddle-headed fuzziness. He'll have none of the "antinomies" or "paradoxes" of most other authors, which, far from being a sign of piety are actually (as Clark calls them) "a charley horse between the ears."

Perhaps the best and most unapologetic presentation of the Reformed doctrine of predestination and God's sovereignty in print.

[Davey Ermold]

Can a book be comprehensive and brief at the same time? If so, Clark briefly outlines the Word of God's teaching on God's sovereignty over the entirety of His creation. I wouldn't say the book is by exhaustive by any means, but Clark certainly presents a straightforward and convincing argument.

[Dayo Adewoye]

An in-depth discussion of the theme of Presestination. He brings together the classic texts as well as a large collection of little noticed passages which bear on the topic. Predestination, with its twin doctrine of Reprobation, has of course been highly detested by the Arminian scheme. So he spends much time in directly engaging with the objections.

[Tony Lee Ross Jr.]

An overview of the Calvinist interpretation of the doctrine of predestination.

[The Great Asπ e]

Dr. Clark seeks to explain the presence of predestination in the Bible and thus the overall importance of it to a consistent theology.

[AARON]

Clark's argument for supralapsarianism is clear and forthright.

[Rachel]

I am currently exploring different views on predestination. This is the book I chose to learn more about the Calvinist perspective, and I must say that Clark is very persuasive in his arguments, particularly because he relied so heavily on Scripture instead of just moral/hypothetical/emotional arguments. If you're looking for Scripture that supports the Calvinist perspective, this book has an amazing collection. I continue my journey in my predestination research in the meantime!

[Justin]

This felt rock solid. I took my time with this one. Some days I read an entire chapter and some days just a page or two because I had to think about so much.

I highlighted lots and will probably be referring back to it.

[Douglas Wilson]

Good. Also read in March of 1988.

[Seth]

Best book I've yet read on the subject.

[Felipe Sabino]

Fantástico!