Review of Reformed Covenant Theology

Perkins, Harrison. Reformed Covenant Theology. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Academic, 2024, 520 pages, $49.99, hardcover.

The volume will instantly become a necessary point of interaction for any student or professor writing on the covenants. This book is highly recommended for those interested in unpacking the doctrines of covenant theology.

Harrison Perkins earned a Master of Divinity at Westminster Seminary California and a Ph.D. at the Queen’s University in Belfast, United Kingdom. Perkins is a visiting lecture in systematic theology for Edinburgh Theological Seminary and online faculty in church history at Westminster Theological Seminary. He is the author of Catholicity and the Covenant of Works as well as several articles both at the popular and academic levels. He served in various pastoring roles in the United Kingdom before accepting his current role as the lead pastor of Oakland Hills Community Church (OPC) in the Detroit area.

Perkins’ aim in Reformed Covenant Theology is to cover under-discussed aspects of covenant theology from the perspective of systematic theology. The book attempts to show through its five major divisions that covenant theology is essential for the life of the church and that it developed out of the Catholic tradition rather than the Reformed tradition, making it the way the church has read the Bible through all of history. Each chapter discusses categorical elements of covenant theology and ends with the pastoral use of the doctrines covered. The thesis of the book is that human beings are “creatures made for communion with God, and covenants are the way that God facilitates that communion” with them (p. 1). Part one lays the groundwork by discussing the covenant of works where God creates a context “for God and Adam to demonstrate their love for one another,” specifically through Adam’s obedience to the moral law (p. 19). Part two covers the inter-trinitarian covenant of redemption, which anticipated Adam’s failure to obey God. The author dedicates the final three parts of the book to the covenant of grace, where he examines substance and administration before unpacking what it means to live as the people of God within the covenant of grace. The final chapter contains six clear theses that Perkins was trying to prove through his writing with short explanations thus neatly summarizing the contents of the volume.

Perkins should be commended for several elements of Reformed Covenant Theology. First, he chews through numerous confessional texts supplemented with works from major early church theologians such as Irenaeus and Justin Martyr and confessional texts such as the Westminster Confession, the Heidelberg Catechism, and the Belgic Confession. This foundation of the argument grounds his research in both Scripture and history. Second, a comparison between Adam and Christ is made continuously throughout the volume, demonstrating how Jesus was able to complete every obligation placed upon Adam but that Adam failed to do so, thus making Jesus the most glorious Savior. This feature of the book should leave the academic, the pastor, and the layman marveling in the glory of such a profound salvation in Christ. Third, the author meticulously explains how Christ is the Substance of each historical covenant. This helps draw the Scriptures together in a way that satisfies the questions one might have about the unity of the Bible. Finally, the pastoral charges at the end of each chapter are welcome applications to aid in moving theology from the head and the heart to the real life of the church. Pastors will greatly appreciate these conclusory sections.

Perkins’ aim in Reformed Covenant Theology is to cover under-discussed aspects of covenant theology from the perspective of systematic theology. The book attempts to show through its five major divisions that covenant theology is essential for the life of the church and that it developed out of the Catholic tradition rather than the Reformed tradition, making it the way the church has read the Bible through all of history.

Despite these praises, there are several areas for criticism that need to be addressed. First, the pattern of Perkins’ argumentation feels uncomfortable at times. He will explain an element of a covenant, then follow it with proof texts from confessional documents and reformed theologians before addressing Scriptural data. This causes one to question whether the author is organically arriving at his covenantal conclusions from Scripture alone, or whether he is attempting to prove that Reformed theologians have been correct in their reading of Scripture. A second criticism tied to this is the use of pre-Reformation theologians. While Perkins cites several texts from the 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th centuries, these texts are sparser than anticipated, given that he hoped to show how covenant theology was deeply rooted in church history rather than a Reformation development (p. xvii). Furthermore, Medieval theologians are almost entirely absent, leaving the reader in the dark about covenant theology’s presence in the Middle Ages.

A more acute critique and personal curiosity of the reviewer concerns the address of Old Testament progressive sanctification. Perkins defines sanctification as “our present experience of resurrection life” and that “the Spirit has been active throughout the whole covenant of grace to work in God’s people to bring them to faith and produce newness of life in them” (pp. 236, 239). The author then quotes Irenaeus, who says those who died before Christ “had in them the Spirit of God” (p. 239). When viewed in contrast with the section “A Covenantal Ethic” in chapter 16 where virtue ethics are applied to the concept of a continuous and developing pursuit of holiness, readers are left uncertain about how the word sanctification is being used by the author. Did Old Testament saints have the indwelling Holy Spirit? Is the meaning of sanctification different in the Old and New Testaments? There are Old Testament figures such as Abraham, Moses, and David who were commended by God for their faithfulness at times only to have serious moral lapses after their commendation. The author may explain the seeming lack of progressive sanctification to improve the work. Perkins may have helped his argument about the unity of the covenants with Christ as their substance by sharpening the definition of sanctification as it pertains to Old and New Testament use and how it concerns both Old Testament saint and Christian holiness as a progressive development.

Criticisms aside, Perkins’ work is a welcome contribution to those seeking a more robust understanding of covenant theology. The address of covenant theology from a systematic and pre-Reformation historical perspective is a needed contribution since covenant theology is usually addressed via a biblical theological pathway. Academics, pastors, and laymen partial to covenant theology will find this volume helpful given its detailed articulation of the intricacies related to the covenantal perspective. Those who disagree with a covenantal perspective of the Bible will still find Perkins’ work helpful for sharpening their own thinking on the unity and diversity of Scripture. The volume will instantly become a necessary point of interaction for any student or professor writing on the covenants. This book is highly recommended for those interested in unpacking the doctrines of covenant theology.