Translated for the first time from Dutch into English, this is a defence of the power of the gospel against several well-meant offer men, including Dr. Abraham Kuyper’s son. Among other things, this work deals with the subject of Calvin and the free offer.
An examination of the “well-meant offer of Salvation.” This book can also be read on-line.
Does the eternal, unchangeable, all-powerful, and sovereign God really have a temporal, changeable and weak desire to save those whom He has unconditionally reprobated (Rom. 9:22), for whom the Son did not die (John 12:31) and whom the Holy Spirit will not regenerate, sanctify or glorify (John 3:8)?
Pelagianism, Semi-Pelagianism, Roman Catholicism, Lutheranism, Anabaptism, Arminianism, Amyraldianism and Marrowism say yes to the well-meant offer of the gospel. The biblical, Augustinian, Reformed and creedal position is no!
Emeritus professor of church history, Herman Hanko, guides us through fascinating doctrinal controversies in the early, Reformation and modern eras of the church, taking us to North Africa, Switzerland, France, England, Scotland, the Netherlands and America, and emphasizing the teaching of the great theologians, such as Augustine and John Calvin, on God’s particular grace, which is always irresistible and never fails or is frustrated.
In dealing with the historical perspective of God’s absolutely sovereign grace versus the well-meant offer, this book fills a gap in the literature, and does so in a way that is warm and easily understood.
An earlier version of this book can be read on-line.
Chapters of this book have been translated into Polish.
For an excerpt of this book in Spanish, click here.
“Biblical Calvinism has been so diluted it’s amazing so many have the audacity to claim they are Reformed.” – S. Wales
“Excellent, excellent book!” – North Carolina, USA
“I’m enjoying Corrupting the Word of God by Hanko. Packed with useful material.” – England
1) Augustine, The Enchiridion on Faith, Hope and Love, ed. Henry Paolucci, trans. J. F. Shaw (Chicago, IL: Henry Regnery Co., 1961). Augustine of Hippo (354-430) in North Africa was undoubtedly the greatest theologian of the early church. Toward the end of his eventful life, he wrote a handbook for a Roman called Laurentius, summarizing the Christian faith around the three theological virtues (faith, hope and love) and the Apostles’ Creed. This work, which has been very popular in the church’s history, contains a lengthy section (xciv-cvii) on eternal election and reprobation, and God’s omnipotence and immutability, which sharply opposes the free offer and its misinterpretation of I Timothy 2:4 and Matthew 23:37, in the light of Scripture (esp. Ps. 115:3; 135:6; Rom. 9).1
2) Francis X. Gumerlock, Fulgentius of Ruspe on the Saving Will of God: The Development of a Sixth-Century African Bishop’s Interpretation of I Timothy 2:4 During the Semi-Pelagian Controversy (Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen Press, 2009). In 520, Fulgentius of Ruspe (468-533) wrote a synodal letter, in the name of his fifteen fellow North African bishops (who were banished by the Vandals to Sardinia), opposing the well-meant-offer views of the Semi-Pelagian monks in Constantinople. Gumerlock’s fascinating book traces the development of Fulgentius’ views through several stages until he confessed the full Augustinian position and embraced the predestinarian understanding of Matthew 23:37, I Timothy 2:4 and II Peter 3:9.
3) Victor Genke and Francis X. Gumerlock (eds. & trans.), Gottschalk and a Medieval Predestination Controversy: Texts Translated From the Latin (Milwaukee, WI: Marquette University Press, 2010). Saxon monk and missionary to Croatia and Bulgaria, Gottschalk of Orbais (c.808-c.867) was even more forceful and antithetical than Augustine on Christ’s particular atonement and God’s effectual saving desire, occasioning the biggest theological controversy of the ninth century, involving several councils, the leading churchmen of Western Europe and even the successors of Emperor Charlemagne: his son and grandsons. For his stand for the truth, confessor Gottschalk was excommunicated, brutally flogged on two occasions and placed under house arrest, dying after twenty years in captivity. This recent book contains many excellent writings of Gottschalk never before published in English.
4) John Calvin, Calvin’s Calvinism (Jenison, MI: RFPA, 2009). This superb publication contains the French Reformer’s fullest and most detailed treatment of God’s eternal predestination over against several Roman Catholic theologians, who argue that God desires to convert everybody, appealing to the usual texts, especially I Timothy 2:4, on which Calvin (1509-1564) faithfully follows the Augustinian exegesis. Part one of this book, God’s Eternal Predestination and Secret Providence or the Consensus Genevensis (1552), its longest section, was sent forth with the consent of Geneva’s Venerable Company of Pastors.2
5) Jonathan Rainbow, The Will of God and the Cross: An Historical and Theological Study of John Calvin’s Doctrine of Limited Redemption (Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 1990). In this powerful work, Rainbow convincingly demonstrates that Calvin stands in the line of Augustine of Hippo, Fulgentius of Ruspe, Gottschalk of Orbais and others, including the Strasbourg Reformer Martin Bucer (1491-1551), on Christ’s particular atonement and God’s saving will towards His elect alone.
6) John Knox, On Predestination, in Answer to the Cavillations by an Anabaptist (1560), in The Works of John Knox, ed. David Laing (USA: Banner, 2014), vol. 5, pp. 7-468. In his longest and most profound theological work, John Knox (c.1514-1572) establishes the absolute sovereignty of God from Scripture, with frequent appeals to Augustine (including his Enchiridion), Calvin (including his Consensus Genevensis) and Theodore Beza (1519-1605). When his English Anabaptist opponent argued from the four frequently cited texts (see below) for a desire of God to save the reprobate, Scotland’s greatest Reformer successfully refuted him on all of them.3
7) Pierre du Moulin, Anatomie of Arminianism (London: T. S. for Nathaniel Newbery, 1620). Du Moulin (1568–1658) was one of the four representatives delegated by the French Reformed Church to the great Synod of Dordt (1618-1619) but was forbidden to go by King Louis XIII under pain of death. In writing against the doctrines of the Arminians, du Moulin strongly opposed their notion that God wishes to save everyone.4
8) Jonathan Moore, English Hypothetical Universalism: John Preston and the Softening of Reformed Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2007). In setting forth the free-offer theology of John Preston (1587-1628) regarding the divine decree, the death of Christ and the gospel call, Moore explains how it was a watering down of the solid Elizabethan particularism of John Bridges (1536–1618), William Perkins (1558-1602) and John Dove (1561-1618) in Puritan England, as well as being contrary to such continental Reformed worthies as Theodore Beza in Geneva, and Jacobus Kimedoncius (c.1550-1596) and Jeremias Bastingius (1551-1595) in Heidelberg.
9) The Geneva Theses (1649), in James T. Dennison, Jr. (ed.), Reformed Confessions of the 16th and 17th Centuries in English Translation, vol. 4 (Grand Rapids, MI: Reformation Heritage Books, 2014), pp. 413-422. This binding confession from Calvin’s citadel explicitly and repeatedly rejects the free-offer view of God’s will and love as taught by the Amyraldians, and opposes their interpretation of Ezekiel 18:21ff. and 33:11, I Timothy 2:4 and II Peter 3:9. The two pastors and theological professors who drafted the Geneva Theses were Antoine Léger (1594-1661) and Théodore Tronchin (1582-1657), who was a Genevan delegate at the Synod of Dordt which condemned Arminianism.5
10) David J. Engelsma, Hyper-Calvinism and the Call of the Gospel: An Examination of the Well-Meant Offer of the Gospel (Jenison, MI: RFPA, 2014). Though this book is mainly a theological and biblical refutation of the free offer, it does treat historical aspects of the issue, including, for example, the English hyper-Calvinists in the eighteenth century, Dutch secession theologians in the nineteenth century and developments in twentieth-century North American churches, especially the Christian Reformed Church and the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. It also contains chapters on the sound teaching on the gospel call by John Calvin, Francis Turretin and Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920).
The Four Main Texts Wrongly Appealed to as if They Taught the Well-Meant Offer
Besides the authorities from various ages and countries mentioned above (including Augustine, Fulgentius, Gottschalk, Calvin, Knox, Beza, Bridges, Kimedoncius, Bastingius, Perkins, Dove, du Moulin, the Geneva Theses, Turretin, Gernler, Heidegger, Kuyper, Rainbow, Engelsma and Moore), quotes from and about other theologians, who do not interpret the four main texts urged by free-offer advocates as if they support a (temporal and failed) desire of God to save the reprobate, have been compiled on-line.6
1) I Timothy 2:4, includes Januarius, Caesarius of Arles, Students of Cassiodorus (sixth century), an old Irish gloss (c. 700), Sedulius Scottus, Florus of Lyon, Prudentius of Troyes, Servatus Lupus, Ratramnus of Corbie, Remigius of Lyon, Hugh of St. Victor, Peter Lombard, Bonaventure, Thomas Aquinas, Duns Scotus, Thomas Bradwardine, Gregory of Rimini, John Wycliffe, Laurenzo Valla, Martin Bucer, Jerome Zanchius, Zacharias Ursinus, Daniel Tossanus, William Ames, Jacobus Trigland, Thomas Watson, Herman Witsius, Bernardinus de Moor, Johann van den Honert, Hendrik de Cock, William Cunningham, George Smeaton, Lorraine Boettner, John W. Robbins, Peter Barnes, etc.7
Apart from the worthies mentioned in the select bibliography and in connection with I Timothy 2:4 (above), the text upon which the free-offer debate has focussed historically, quotes from other theologians are also given regarding the three remaining scriptural passages below.
2) Ezekiel 18:23, 32 and 33:11, includes Wilhelmus à Brakel, James Henley Thornwell, John Kennedy of Dingwall, Herman Hoeksema, John H. Gerstner, Richard A. Muller, John Bolt, Christopher J. Connors, Raymond A. Blacketer, Sean Gerety, etc.8
3) Matthew 23:37 and Luke 13:34, includes Peter Martyr Vermigli, John Owen, Christopher Ness, Peter Nahuys, John Gill, William Young, Richard Bacon, W. Gary Crampton, James R. Whyte, Matthew Winzer, James Gracie, Vincent Cheung, etc.9
4) II Peter 3:9, includes the Venerable Bede, the Geneva Bible (1599), the Confession of Tarcal (1562) and Torda (1563), David Dickson, Stephen Charnock, Matthew Henry, Thomas E. Peck, A. W. Pink, Gordon H. Clark, Robert L. Reymond, R. C. Sproul, etc.10
This book ably sets forth and defends the Reformed doctrine of the call of the gospel against the hyper-Calvinistic restriction of the call on the one hand, and the Arminian universalizing of grace in a well-meant offer, on the other hand. This issue is very much alive in Calvinistic circles today.
Professor Engelsma examines Scripture, the Reformation confessions and the Reformed tradition, including John Calvin, Francis Turretin, Simon Van Velzen, Abraham Kuyper and Herman Hoeksema.
Dr. John H. Gerstner: “This is certainly an interesting, informative, lively, learned discussion of the essence of the gospel call to all mankind. In my opinion, Professor Engelsma carefully defines and convincingly avoids ‘hyper-Calvinism’ himself and clears his denomination, the Protestant Reformed Churches [PRC], of so teaching … Herman Hoeksema, the Protestant Reformed denomination, and our author David Engelsma in this book emphatically reject the ‘well-meant offer’ as including God’s desire and intention to save reprobates. As a Calvinist … I feel it absolutely necessary to hold with [the PRC] here where she stands, almost alone today, and suffers massive vituperation and ridicule from Calvinists (no less), for her faithfulness at this point to the gospel of God” (from the “Foreword”).
“Here is a clear statement from one of the most vigorous Reformed communities in North America. No serious study of the matter can avoid considering the Protestant Reformed perspective on the issue” (Christian Observer).
“This book is an opportunity to listen to a committed five-point Calvinist speaking to other five-point Calvinists about what he considers to be an extreme form of Calvinism on the one hand, and the free-will positions of Arminians, on the other. It is a fascinating book. I think it is well worth reading and having” (Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society).
“The reader of this book who wishes to be consistently biblical (Reformed) in his views should find this book a helpful historical and biblical study of an important, if not crucial, doctrine which affects not simply one’s view of preaching but also of evangelism and missions” (Vox Reformata).
“A well-written defence of ‘pure’ Calvinism against the inroads of Arminianism … Anyone who is interested in reading a clear presentation of what pure Calvinism is can find it in this book” (Wisconsin Lutheran Quarterly).
“There is here the high ground of Protestant Reformed apologetic with chapters on Calvin, Turretin and Kuyper” (Calvin Theological Journal).
“Best book on ‘free offer’ controversy” (Still Waters Revival Books).
“I must comment on the re-print of Professor Engelsma’s poignant re-print of Hyper-Calvinism and the Call of the Gospel. Firstly, I am grateful to have it back in print. The new graphics are superb. The re-print is truly refreshed. This book has done more to stimulate and further my study of the Scriptures than any other work concerning the doctrine of Grace. Not being Reformed, there was a decided gap in areas of my biblical training. Professor Engelsma’s book brought me face to face with the wonderful truth that God alone sought me and bought me from before the foundations of the world. NOTHING is more amazing to consider. This book is essential reading for every serious student of Holy Scripture.” – Russ Spees, Institute for Biblical Textual Studies
“When I arrived in Brazil, I started to talk about common grace with my pastor, the teacher of systematic theology at the seminary I attend, who believed in it. I gave to him the copy of Hyper-Calvinism and the Call of the Gospel you sent to me … My pastor says he now denies common grace. Now he teaches against common grace at the seminary and in his preaching. I say this as a testimony about what the work with translations and books is doing for the pure doctrine and the glory of God.” – Chile
“I found the book Hyper-Calvinism and the Call of the Gospel of great help in clarifying my thoughts upon the preaching of the gospel. It is in the process of being lent to some of my friends. In the UK (as I am sure you know) The Banner of Truth are pushing the well-meant offer as Reformed orthodoxy which I am very worried about. In his Spurgeon v Hyper-Calvinism Iain Murray defends and promotes a very confusing thesis and uses John Murray to do so (especially upon the issue of the love of God).” – Newcastle, England
“I am re-reading Prof. Engelsma’s Hyper-Calvinism and the Call of the Gospel which I must have read about 25 years ago. Once again, I thank God that I have always believed in reprobation. It to often is the unwelcome doctrine in the Reformed faith to so many Calvinists.” – Co. Antrim
“I think David Engelsma is very accurate and biblical in his teaching about the call of the gospel. It is very Reformed, Calvinistic, orthodox and sound. I really enjoyed the book. It was easy to read and gripping. In the future, I plan to buy further copies to give to friends.” – England
Review by Rev. Rodney Kleyn
In defence of the gospel and of the doctrines of sovereign grace, the RFPA has recently published a third edition of David J. Engelsma’s book Hyper-Calvinism and the Call of the Gospel: An Examination of the Well Meant Offer of the Gospel. Since I first read this book, some twenty years ago, it has been a favorite of mine, high on the list of books I recommend to others. If you want to be a biblically consistent Calvinist and if you want to understand how the church is to preach the gospel call, you must read this book.
So, what is hyper-Calvinism and what is the well-meant offer? These are the rock on the one side and the whirlpool on the other, through which “the reformed doctrine of the preaching of the gospel must sail,” so that it “neither be smashed on the one nor swallowed up by the other” (65).
Because the label “hyper-Calvinism” is used very loosely today to speak disparagingly of anyone who is more Calvinistic than oneself, Engelsma gives this careful and precise definition of hyper-Calvinism: “[It] is the denial that God in the preaching of the gospel calls everyone who hears the preaching to repent and believe. It is the denial that the church should call everyone in the preaching. It is the denial that the unregenerate have a duty to repent and believe” (15). Hyper-Calvinism says that the gospel call in the preaching is to be addressed only to those who “show signs of regeneration and, thereby, of election” (15). Hyper-Calvinism manifests itself in “a minimizing of Christ’s mission mandate to his church with an appeal to election as the guarantee that God will save his people” (191). Upon this rock, we must never be smashed. The Reformed faith should never “recommend passivity or excuse negligence in the matter of missions but calls the church to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, commanding all men everywhere to repent and believe” (192).
On the other side is the whirlpool of Arminianism, the alluring outer swirls of which are the teaching of the well-meant offer of the gospel. “The free offer, according to those who hold to it, is the grace of God to all men in the preaching of the gospel, grace rooted in God’s love for all men” (39). Engelsma’s objection to the free offer of the gospel is not because of its “teaching that the church must preach the gospel to everyone and must call all hearers to faith in Jesus Christ” (37). Rather, “the error of the doctrine of the offer, and the reason a Reformed man must repudiate it, is its teaching that the grace of God in Jesus Christ, grace that is saving in character, is directed to all men in the preaching of the gospel. Inherent in the offer of the gospel is the notion that God loves and desires to save all men; the notion that the preaching of the gospel is God’s grace to all men, an expression of God’s love to all men, and an attempt by God to save all men; and the notion that salvation is dependent upon man’s acceptance of the offered salvation, that is, that salvation depends on the free will of the sinner” (36–37). The outer swirls of the well-meant offer lead right into the whirlpool of Arminianism and we need to be wary of being sucked in to this whirlpool.
Between the rock and the whirlpool sails “The Reformed Doctrine on the Call of the Gospel,” the title of the third chapter in this book. In preaching the gospel we do not set aside the biblical and Reformed truth of predestination and preach the gospel as a declaration of God’s universal love to all who hear, or as an “invitation” or an “offer” from a God who cannot accomplish what He desires. We are not motivated to preach the gospel because God wants all men to be saved or desires as many as possible to be saved. Rather, the biblical teaching of double predestination stands behind, is a part of the message of, and is the motivation for gospel preaching. God is pleased to use the call of the gospel, the command to believe in Jesus Christ, to gather His elect and to leave the rest who hear with no excuse. Through the preaching, God accomplishes His eternal purposes of predestination. To reduce preaching to an expression of God’s universal love (which is what the well-meant-offer does), is to deny the most basic teaching of the Reformed faith, the sovereignty of God in predestination and in the salvation of the sinner.
Many who read this book will dismiss it as merely an attempt to clear the Protestant Reformed Churches of the charge of hyper-Calvinism because of their denial of the well-meant offer of the gospel. Engelsma anticipates this and he pleads with the critics, “Is it too much to ask that rather than condemning the book out of hand you attempt to refute it?” And fair enough, not only because of how earlier editions have been reviewed, but also because the book itself is much more than just a defence of the Protestant Reformed denomination. The charitable reader will find in this book a consistent setting forth of the “reasonable” faith of Calvinism. He will find here a sound and balanced—not hyper—defence of the Reformed faith. He will be educated in the history of this debate, learning along the way that John Calvin, Francis Turretin and Abraham Kuyper all repudiated the notion of a well-meant offer in the preaching of the gospel. He will also be instructed from the Reformed confessions and Scripture in the content and manner of true gospel preaching and so will learn himself, if a preacher, how to issue the call of the gospel, or if a pew-sitter, to listen with discernment for the inroads of Arminian thinking into Reformed pulpits. And if he takes all this to heart, not just to head, he will grow in his love for the Reformed faith and in his desire to see the gospel preached through missions to the ends of the earth.
Click here to read a chapter of this book in Hungarian.
Click here to read the “Foreword” to this book in Portuguese.
Click here to read a chapter of this book in Portuguese.
Deals with universal divine love, the will of God & the Five Points of Calvinism. An Exposure of “The Free Offer of The Gospel” by Professor Murray and Stonehouse as an Amyraldian Modification of the Doctrine of Decrees. It can also be read on-line.
Analyses and answers to K. W. Stebbin’s “Christ Freely Offered.” It can also be read on-line.