Jonathan Edwards on God and Creation
Oliver D. Crisp
Reviews and Awards
"This book is the most important interpretation of Jonathan Edwards's philosophical theology in a generation." --The Journal of Theological Studies
"Once every generation or so a book comes along that redefines prevailing interpretation of a figure or event. This is just such a book for understanding Edwards, one of the most significant figures in early modern religious history and in Christian thought. Addressing long-standing and recent debates about Edwards's theology, philosophy, and metaphysics, Oliver Crisp achieves a new synthesis of Edwards's influences, context, innovations, tensions, and relevance. This is a pivotal achievement with which any serious reader of Edwards will have to grapple."--Kenneth P. Minkema, Executive Editor and Director of the Jonathan Edwards Center, Yale University
"Oliver Crisp contributes in a magisterial and decisive way to the lively contemporary re-appropriation of Edwards. His study arises out of prolonged and collegial discussion. In focusing specifically on Edwards's account of God and creation, he offers an original and lucid exploration of Edwards's doctrine of divine excellency, asking how such an understanding of simplicity is relatable to a belief that creation is a necessary output of God's nature. I thoroughly recommend it."--Iain R. Torrance, President, Princeton Theological Seminary
"Oliver Crisp provides a clear and patient exhibition of Edwards's creative thought. This is combined with the deployment of the analytic skills which are evident in Crisp's earlier books. Here he exposes to view central Edwardsean themes, and offers a judicious comparison with the seventeenth-century Reformed tradition. A noteworthy achievement."--Paul Helm, Teaching Fellow, Regent College