- A Relation of
Fellowship - A Spiritual
Seed - Gathered in the
Generations - Unconditionally
of Grace - Realized and
Perfected
The Idea of the Covenant of Grace
By Rev. Henry Danhof
(Rev. H. Danhof, deceased, was one of three ministers suspended or deposed by Classes of the Christian Reformed Church for refusal to submit to the decisions of the Synod of Kalamazoo, Michigan concerning Common Grace.)
An Address Given for the General Ministers’
Conference
in Grand Rapids, Michigan
June 4, 1919
Translated by David J. Engelsma
"And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God." James 2:23
Foreword (by Rev. H. Danhof)
It was not originally my intention to publish the following address, which was given for the general (Christian Reformed) ministers' conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan. A repeated and friendly request directed to me from more than one quarter that I would do this has caused me to change my decision. Although rather late, the address is now published without change.
I have hesitated for a long time. I thought that I should wait until someone else would have explained to us the relation of church and world from another viewpoint, in the place of Rev. Groen, who was prevented from making his contribution because of sickness. At the same time, I judged the circumstances to be unfavorable to a treatment of profound questions of principle. Our age seems to call to us, "Hold fast what you have, so that no one take your crown; one should not in these times think of any development of doctrine."
Finally, I felt that this contribution calls for thorough study of many related subjects, such as so-called common grace; the incarnation of the Word; the idea of central humanity; etc. Indeed, the idea of the covenant of grace concerns the deepest and most intimate relation between God and man. The real covenant-relation governs every other relation. For reasons really that everyone will understand, I did not dare to think even of venturing an attempt to demonstrate and develop all this in a short speech. First of all, the time for this was too limited. But also the logical train of thought demanded that I limit myself to my subject. For this reason, I held back.
Nevertheless, there was also another side to this matter. The ministers' conference insisted on publication. There is in my opinion great need for more doctrinal truth. We must develop the truth. Something is better than nothing. The study of related subjects can, if need be, wait until later. Besides, about some of the matters that I have just mentioned, I have already spoken repeatedly in public. One would not even be able to suggest a hiding of one's own conviction. In addition, the gathering of the general ministers' conference of last year was announced in the church papers.
Finally, it ought not to be concealed that, in the meantime, a certain group are always zealously promoting a view of the relation of church and world which, in my opinion, may not be ours. The idea of the "absolute antithesis" must, in my opinion, be placed emphatically on the foreground in our world-view. We must be of the party of the living God. Also as regards practice, it is the covenant-conception that must always determine our relation to everything about us, but especially in relation to the world in a moral sense.
This covenant-idea I have tried to give in its most fundamental sense.
Let the sympathetic reader judge in how far I have succeeded.
The address appears unchanged. After careful deliberation, this seemed to me to be the most desirable.
The Lord willing, I hope to devote my powers to related subjects in the future. We must preserve that which we possess by adding to that which has been obtained.
May the Lord confirm the covenant of His friendship with us in the Beloved.
Rev. Henry Danhof,
Kalamazoo, MI,
May, 1920
The material is taken from the Protestant Reformed Theological Journal and was published between 1996-1998.
The Theological Journal is available on line.
Go to: Protestant Reformed Theological Journal
The following is the Translators note from the last installment:
Translated by David J. Engelsma
Translator's Note.
This installment concludes my translation of Henry Danhof's De Idee van het Genadeverbond, the expanded text of an address given in 1919 to a conference of Christian Reformed ministers in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The three preceding installments appeared in the Protestant Reformed Theological Journal 30, no. 2 (April, 1997): 5-11; 31, no. 1 (November, 1997): 10-19; and 31, no. 2 (April, 1998): 13-23. An introduction to the translated booklet, "An Introduction to Henry Danhof's 'The Idea of the Covenant of Grace,'" was published in the Protestant Reformed Theological Journal 29, no. 2 (April, 1996): 51-61. This article showed the significance of Danhof's address for the controversy in the Christian Reformed Church in the early 1920s over common grace resulting in the formation of the Protestant Reformed Churches. It also related something of Danhof's later ministry.
Henry Danhof's profound treatise on the covenant is now available to the English reading public for the first time. The work was seminal for the doctrine of the covenant maintained and developed by the Protestant Reformed Churches. It demands to be taken into account by all Reformed theologians, including ministers, as they study Scripture's fundamental doctrine of the covenant of grace.
As in the preceding installments, all footnotes are the translator's, including the biblical references, which Danhof for the most part did not indicate. The chapter divisions also are the additions of the translator, as are the introductions to the chapters, in italics.
Contents
The Idea of the Covenant
Chapters
From the Translator's Note:
By Prof. David Engelsma
Henry Danhof's profound treatise on the covenant is now available to the English reading public for the first time. The work was seminal for the doctrine of the covenant maintained and developed by the Protestant Reformed Churches. It demands to be taken into account by all Reformed theologians, including ministers, as they study Scripture's fundamental doctrine of the covenant of grace.
As in the preceding installments, all footnotes are the translator's, including the biblical references, which Danhof for the most part did not indicate. The chapter divisions also are the additions of the translator, as are the introductions to the chapters, in italics.
From the web editor:
The material presented is taken from the Protestant Reformed Theological Journal, where it was first published. As indicated, by Prof. D. Engelsma, the chapter divisions are his additions.
To format the material for the web chapter titles have been added by the web editor and are his responsibility. The original footnotes have been moved to the end of each chapter as linked endnotes, due to the demands of web formatting. This has also required some renumbering from the original Journal format.
TCM