PAUL

An Outline of His Theology

Herman Ridderbos

Translated by

John Richard De Witt

William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company

Grand Rapids, Michigan / Cambridge, U.K.

Originally published as Paulus: Ontwerp van zijn theologie,

© 1966 Uitgeversmaatschappij J. H. Kok N. V., Kampen, The Netherlands.

English translation © 1975 Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

All rights reserved

Paperback edition 1997

Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

2140 Oak Industrial Drive N.E., Grand Rapids, Michigan 49505 / P.O. Box 163, Cambridge CB3 9PU U.K.

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Ridderbos, Herman N.

Paul: an outline of his theology.

1. Bible. N.T. Epistles of Paul — Theology.

I. Title

ISBN 978-0-8028-4469-9 (pbk.: alk. paper)

www.eerdmans.com

Author’s Preface

It is with great pleasure and gratitude that I present to the English-speaking world my studies on the teachings of Paul. This work is a translation with minor corrections of the foregoing Dutch editions of Paulus (Kampen: Kok, 1967, 1969, 1972). Although discussions of Pauline themes continue, my basic thesis and argumentation remain unchanged and hence I did not feel it necessary to prepare a new redaction of the work or make any special additions to set forth or defend my position more clearly.

The burdensome task of translation was undertaken by Dr. John R. de Witt, a friend and relative who while studying in the Netherlands lived at my home. He has both grasped and expressed in English the sense and content of my Dutch edition. It has been a long and arduous task, involving numerous difficult details which required understanding of two or more languages and awareness of varied theological traditions. Words cannot adequately express my gratitude and appreciation to Dr. de Witt for his skill, theological acumen, and devoted service demonstrated in this translation. I also want to express my thanks to Dr. Richard Gaffin of Philadelphia and Rev. Marvin Hoff of New York for their willing assistance, helpful advice, and useful suggestions to Dr. de Witt as he prepared this translation.

Finally, to the Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company I owe this opportunity to present in English this work on the Apostle Paul. I wish to thank the editorial staff for many hours of editing, checking the proofs, and preparing indexes to make this work more meaningful and useful to English readers. May this book contribute to the ongoing theological reflection about Paul’s incomparable message in the closing quarter of the twentieth century.

—Herman Ridderbos

Pentecost, 1975

Translator’s Preface

It has been a great privilege to translate Professor Herman N. Ridderbos’s monumental work on the theology of the Apostle Paul, and I am thankful for the opportunity of making it accessible to readers in the English-speaking world. It will be understood that there are certain difficulties involved in executing a task of this kind. Many technical terms are employed which it is not at all easy to reproduce ...