Book Reviews

The close of December can be a time when well-intentioned resolutions are made about reading the Scriptures in their entirety in the year to come. An honest desire to know God’s Word more can quickly flounder, however, when pushed back by the reality of busy days and divided attention. While this can be symptomatic of […]

In 2012, a new five volume edition of the minutes and papers of the Westminster Assembly (1643-52) was published (Oxford University Press). This was the fruit of years of work by Rev. Chad Van Dixhoorn. This monumental work will probably form the basis for study o the Westminster Assembly for the remainder of this century […]

In spring 1991, a gathering of pastors in Leicester were listening intently to a preacher expounding the doctrine of sanctification. Their hearts burned within them as in three sessions he gave a masterly overview of his subject and drove home his message with real conviction. What particularly riveted their attention was the way that all […]

William Tyndale is remembered as a Bible translator and martyr: a key player in a sequence that led to the King James Bible. In fact, as the compilers of this attractive little work show, there was far more to Tyndale than Bible translation- vital as that was. Indeed it is argued that William Tyndale’s work […]

John Calvin’s sermons are very different to his commentaries, they are also as helpful as the day they were delivered. There are 47 expositions of Genesis 11:5-9 to Genesis 20:4-7, in this latest book, published for the first time in the English language. Those who already have Professor McGregor’s first volume, Genesis 1-11, will want […]

I’m not too keen on the title of this book, though I understand the context in which it was chosen, but I do love the author unequivocally. Elly Achok Olare and his brother Barnabas are two wonderful men, former students of mine whom I taught in the Pastors’ Theological Course in Nairobi, Kenya. I think of […]

To write a brief review of these seven precious volumes seems superfluous, to say the least. When I was an incumbent in the Liverpool Diocese, 1981-1986, the Suffragan Bishop of Warrington told me that the Diocesan staff still receive letters from overseas, addressed to Bishop Ryle, despite his ‘promotion to glory’ in 1900! Our memory […]

Apart from the occasional mealtime conversation at a Banner of Truth Conference, to my great disadvantage, I did not really get to know John Marshall. John J Murray’s succinct, yet fulsome, biography paints a most helpful portrait indeed. I read it in one sitting (it’s only just under 70 pages) and found myself satisfactorily informed, […]

The God who knows everything about himself has by no means told us all. There are many things that remain a secret, known only to himself. Much, we may be sure, has been passed over in total silence. And when he has spoken, he has told us only a very little. The mysteries of Christianity […]

Calvin’s sermons on Paul’s epistle to Titus have been available in the form of a facsimile of the 1579 edition of Calvin’s sermons on the letters to Timothy and Titus. This new translation by Robert White, however, has the pleasing effect of making them more accessible to the modern reader, as well as more portable. […]

A remarkable book has appeared entitled With Mercy and With Judgement and with a sub-title, Strict Baptists and the First World War. It is written by Matthew J. Hyde. Dr. Hyde is a research scientist and a minister among the Strict Baptist Churches. He has done years of research into the stories of the soldiers, […]

The occasion of this book of David Randall’s on A Sad Departure is the recent departure from the Church of Scotland of forty or so ministers and an (unspecified) number of other office-bearers and members. The book provides a rationale for this departure. The author was one of the ministers who separated from the Kirk […]

This ‘splendid work . . . should be read by all exercised Christians’. Rev Murdoch Campbell (whose own books were largely devotional) wrote this assessment of Scottish Theology around the time it was first published. It might seem strange to emphasise that all exercised believers should read this type of book. At first glance, the […]

Those who know what it is to say of Christ, ‘I sought Him but I found Him not’, will find much which resonates with their experience in this work by Sibbes; it is taken from volume 6 of Sibbes’ Works. In the early part of the book he deals with Mary’s experience of seeking, and […]

This is a modern English translation by Dr Rob Roy McGregor from the French text and first published by Banner in 2009.There are 49 sermons in all on chapters 1 to 11:4 and they were preached in Geneva between September 1th 1559 and January 23rd 1560. The words of Calvin come fresh and clear even […]

This is a new translation by Robert-White of four sermons by John Calvin (JC). First published in 1552, the original title (in English) was ‘Four sermons of Master John Calvin, entreating of matters very profitable for our time, with a brief Exposition of Psalm 87.’ Included here are three letters by JC, one of the […]

This is a book that frankly you wish didn’t have to be written but which you are glad has been. It became necessary because of the recent developments in the Church of Scotland which have seen the denomination reject the authority of Scripture and its biblical roots and accept the ordination of ministers who are […]

A review by Bob Thomas of Preparation For Ministry.1 Carl Trueman calls this book ‘A brief but brilliant book on ministry’, and so it is. Allan Harman’s wisdom gathered over half a century’s involvement in theological education, more latterly as Professor of Old Testament and then Principal of the Presbyterian Theological College, Melbourne, is distilled […]

‘a great little book … delightfully simple … [appendices] incredibly helpful for pastors and ministerial students.’ – Carl Trueman on Allan Harman’s Preparation For Ministry. In the Notes below are links to selected online reviews of Banner titles, mostly posted October/December 2015. The views expressed are of course those of the respective bloggers/reviewers. For each […]

A review by Stephen J. Tracey of Sinclair B. Ferguson’s From the Mouth of God: Trusting, Reading, and Applying the Bible.1 One old Scottish preacher on visiting members of his congregation would habitually ask, ‘What portion of God’s word did you read today?’ It was a wise question for two reasons. First, it was an […]

A review by Julian Bull of Media Gratiae’s multimedia presentation Logic on Fire: The Life and Legacy of Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones.1 Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones has been described by some as the ‘greatest preacher of the 20th century’. His ministry at Westminster Chapel in Buckingham Gate, London spanned the years from before WWII to the end […]

A review by Brian Garrard of John Calvin’s Sermons on the Epistle to the Ephesians.1 These sermons by John Calvin (JC) were first published in 1562 and were in French. An English translation by Arthur Golding appeared in 1577, followed by a revision by Leslie Rawlinson and S. M. Houghton in 1973. JC is justly […]

A review by Donald Mackay of The St Andrews Seven: The finest flowering of missionary zeal in Scottish history by Stuart Piggin and John Roxborogh.1 This is a reprint of a book that first appeared in 1985. A Korean edition was published in 2002. The claim implicit in the subtitle of the book is not […]

A review by Gervase N. Charmley of John Knox, by Jane Dawson (Yale University Press, 2015), 384 pages, clothbound, ISBN 978-0-30011-473-7, £25/$45. John Knox was born in either 1514 or 1515, and so this period has called forth a welcome variety of works celebrating, or at least commemorating, the Scottish Reformer. This handsome volume, standing […]

‘it is now possible for multitudes of individuals from all generations and from all over the world to reap the benefits and blessings of God’s gift to His church in the form of the life and ministry of one of His most able preachers.’ – Julian Bull on the Media Gratiae multimedia presentation Logic on […]