Being an owner of Overcoming Sin and Temptation (gratias tibi ago, JBA) I knew what to expect with this title. I am extremely grateful for volumes such as this new edition of John Owen’s Communion with the Triune God published by Crossway. There are several reasons to rejoice at this printing.

First, while John Owen’s works are notoriously onerous and culto, editors Kapic and Taylor have gone to great lengths—while neither abridging nor paraphrasing—to assist the reader in combating reader’s fatigue commonly brought on by antiquated language, page-length paragraphs, and specialized vocabulary. All Latin phrases and quotes are translated. Hebrew and Greek are both transliterated and translated. Scripture references are provided. Extensive outlines and headings assist in tracking the argumentation. All the above are new to this edition and make this spiritual gold mine more accessible than ever, equipping the reader with the tools necessary to join Owen in the task of meditating on (with increasing depth) the triune nature of our great God and King.

Secondly, it bespeaks the utility of the work by the very fact that over three hundred and fifty years later it is still being reproduced. The work’s longevity is due in great part to Owen’s own saturation in Scripture, doing the work of a true systematic theologian tying Scripture together to weave a tapestry of the God who has revealed himself in the Bible. It is here within this work that we are invited to meet with Owen as he treats of the thrice holy God in three parts, answering our objections with grace and passion. Kevin J Vanhoozer in the foreword calls the work “indispensable reading for all those who want to go deeper into the meaning of relationality than one typically goes in the pop-theology boats that float only on the psychological surface of the matter” (12).

The (aspiring) theologian and layman alike will greatly benefit from spending these pages with Owen.

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