Distinctiveness of Baptist Covenant Theology, The (Revised Edition)

If you are interested in covenant theology and especially if you want to properly distinguish between paedobaptist and credobaptist covenant theology (or federalism), this book is for you. It compares both views in the seventeenth-century context by going through the covenant of works, the covenant of grace, the Old Covenant (which includes a section on the Abrahamic and the Mosaic covenants) and the New Covenant.

The Distinctiveness of Baptist Covenant Theology compares the doctrine of the covenant of grace as formulated in the Westminster Confession of Faith with the Second London Confession of Faith. The thesis is that these two views are the fundamental distinction between the Reformed paedobaptists and the Particular Baptists from which other differences (church and sacraments) emerge.

“This book by Pascal Denault is a welcome addition to the literature on an issue that has vexed many for too long. It is clear that the seventeenth-century Particular Baptists’ formulation of covenant theology in the Second London Confession of Faith was a modified version of the one contained in the Westminster Confession of Faith. But why the different formulation? Denault’s work goes ad fontes (to the sources) to find the answer.” – Richard C. Barcellos

“Pascal Denault deserves many thanks for his labor in researching and describing the nuances of English covenant theology in the Seventeenth Century. He has uncovered significant factors contributing to the differences between Presbyterian and Particular Baptist thought and practice, describing theological categories in easily accessible terms.” – James M. Renihan

“This new study by Pascal Denault is most helpful in providing an accurate summary of the historic discussion between the Baptists and their fellow Puritans, and then showing the way this discussion bears on the contemporary treatment of a vital issue.” – Michael A.G. Haykin

“Whether one agrees or disagrees with Pascal’s arguments and conclusion, nobody can read this book without admitting the seriousness and the soundness of the facts that are reported and that make it a most commendable book on the subject.” – Raymond Perron