• Morning and Evening, by Charles Spurgeon
• Lectures to My Students, by Charles Spurgeon
• The Treasury of David (3 vol.), by Charles Spurgeon
• The Soulwinner, by Charles Spurgeon
• All of Grace, by Charles Spurgeon
• Autobiography of C.H. Spurgeon, by Banner of Truth
• The Forgotten Spurgeon, by Iain Murray
• Spurgeon v. Hyper-Calvinism: The Battle for Gospel Preaching, by Iain Murray
• Spurgeon: Prince of Preachers, by Lewis Drummond
• Spurgeon, by Arnold Dallimore

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Check out the Spurgeon Archive

Puritans

* * *

In his course on the Ancient and Medieval Church at Covenant Theological Seminary, David Calhoun used the textbook The Story of Christianity, Volume 1: The Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation by Justo Gonzalez. In his lecture on “The Study of Church History”, he recommended the following texts:

Clarke, Kenneth.  Civilisation: A Personal View.  1969.
An overview of western history with special emphasis on the arts and a humanistic interpretation of what it all means.

McGrath, Alister E.  Christian Theology: An Introduction.  1994.
Historical theology presented ably and as simply as possible.

Moffett, Samuel H.  A History of Christianity in Asia: Beginnings to 1500.  1992.
The first of two masterful volumes covering the neglected story of Asian Christianity, this history traces the spread of Christianity to Persia and India, and then overland to China, where evidence exists of Christian activity dating from the 7th century.

Pelikan, Jaroslav.  The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine (5 vols.)
The magnum opus of a great scholar (a Lutheran who recently converted to Eastern Orthodoxy).

Potok, Chaim.  Wanderings: History of the Jews.  1978.
A wonderfully written story of the Jews by an acclaimed novelist.

Schaeffer, Francis A.  How Should We Then Live?: The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture.  1976.
Schaeffer’s influential study of the rise and (mainly) the decline of western thought.

Shaw, Mark R.  The Kingdom of God in Africa: A Short History of African Christianity.  1996.
Part 1 covers the church before the emergence of Islam; part 2, the medieval centuries of Islamic domination; part 3, the missions and colonial eras; and part 4, the remarkable story of twentieth-century African Christianity.

Williams, Charles.  The Descent of the Dove.  1939.
Idiosyncratic, brilliant, perplexing, and illuminating history. Eugene H. Peterson wrote in Take and Read, “When I started reading [Charles] Williams [The Descent of the Dove], I was a sectarian, ‘related’ only to a small coterie of people who lived and thought and prayed like me. When I finished, I was part of a congregation centuries deep and continents wide” (p. 1).

* * *

And in the subsequent lecture on “The Growth of the Church,” he recommends:

The Missionary Movement in Christian History: Studies in Transmission of Faith.
One of the most important books of Christian history of the 1990s. By a Scottish mission
historian and missionary.

* * *

In lecture three on The Martyrs, he quotes from and/or recommends the following:

Henryk Sienkiewicz, Quo Vadis

F. F. Bruce, Spreading Flame: The Rise and Progress of Christianity from Its First Beginnings to the Conversion of the English

Maier, Paul L. The Flames of Rome: A Documentary Novel

Dave Ambrose

• www.blueletterbible.org
• www.biblegateway.com

Heather Flies

• The NIV Application Commentary Set
• www. biblegateway.com

Dan Jessup

• The PC Study Bible

Crystal Kirgiss

• Living By the Book: The Art and Science of Reading the Bible; by Howard Hendricks and Willam D. Hendricks
• The New Daily Study Bible

Danny Kwon

• The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament; by Craig S. Keener
• The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament; by John H. Walton, Victor H. Matthews and Mark W. Chavalas

Fred Lynch

• Logos Bible Software
• The Teacher’s Commentary; by Lawrence O. Richards
• Wiersbe’s Expository Outline on the New Testament; by Warren W. Wiersbe
• www.e-sword.net

Mark Matlock

• Bible Knowledge Commentary; by John F. Walvoord and Roy Zuck
• Topical Analysis of the Bible; by Walter A. Elwell
• Playing With Fire: How the Bible Ignites Change in Your Soul; by Walt Russell
• Logos Bible Software

Brock Morgan

• The New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary
• Tom Wright For Everyone series; by Tom Wright

Marv Penner

• Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words; by W. E. Vine, Merrill F. Unger, and William White
• www.blueletterbible.com

Duffy Robbins

• Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture Series
• IVP Bible Background Commentary

__________

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Biblical Encyclopedias

Biblical encyclopedias are often written with regard to a particular subject like Bible Difficulties or Biblical Characters. They often provide more extensive and comprehensive information in comparison to a Bible Dictionary. There are any number of these available depending on what, in particular, you want to study.

Lexicon

Lexicons give you insight into the original languages o the Biblical text. For beginners try A Reader’s Hebrew-English Lexicon of the Old Testament by Terry A. Armstrong, Douglas L. Busby and Cyril F. Carr and A Reader’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament by Sakae Kubo.

Bible Dictionary

Want to get some more information on a Biblical topic? A Bible dictionary is where you want to look. The NIV Compact Dictionary of the Bible by J.D. Douglas, Merrill C. Tenney is both easy to manage and simple to understand.

Concordance

A concordance lists every occurrence of a particular word in the Bible. Strong’s is the most popular, but uses only the King James. If the NIV is more your style, check out The Strongest NIV Exhaustive Concordance by Edward W. Goodrick, John R. Kohlenberger III.

Bible Handbook

Bible handbooks help give you insight into the cultural, religious, geographical and archaeological context of the Biblical narrative. By far the most popular and helpful is Halley’s Bible Handbook by Henry H. Halley.

Commentary

Commentaries are written by Biblical scholars to give you insight into the overarching themes of scripture as well as the details contained within each individual verse. For one trusted and used by academics and casual students alike, check out The Expositor’s Bible Commentary by Zondervan.

__________

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• New St. Andrews College Reading List
• Talking Books – John Mark Reynolds, David Allen White, and Hugh Hewitt
• Lord Acton’s Reading List

* * *

Rare Books At NOBTS Get Attention
By Gary D. Myers

NEW ORLEANS–The strong but pleasant smell of old leather and parchment fills the rare books room in New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary’s John T. Christian Library. Shelf after shelf of ancient books and documents line the walls of this long narrow room.

Stepping into the room is a step back in time -– into the world of Reformers and the dawn of the printing press. It’s also a step back to the earlier days of the seminary when the library’s namesake, John T. Christian, donated the collection shortly before his death. Because they are so delicate, the books have rarely been seen, much less used.

Though closed to the general public, the room has been the site of intense research since February. Last spring Ellen Middlebrook Herron, a Chicago-based scholar specializing in medieval history and rare books, spent four months carefully assessing and cataloging the collection.

For years, library workers suspected that the collection was special, if not remarkable. Herron’s research has confirmed its uniqueness and importance.

“It’s a really nice collection and now that it’s getting organized, it’s a great opportunity to get students fired up,” Herron said. “I’m excited to have a small part in helping these books that have been quiet for 80 years or so live again.”

The books and documents include an illuminated manuscript from the 12th century, a leaf from the Gutenberg Bible, a Geneva Bible and works by the Reformers such as Martin Luther and Ulrich Zwingli. Several books are inscribed with handwritten notes by Charles H. Spurgeon.

In total, the seminary owns 600 rare and unique books and documents.

Herron first became acquainted with the collection in early 2005. At the time, she was serving as the curator of the traveling Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit, for which NOBTS was an institutional sponsor for the exhibit’s stop in Mobile, Ala. In connection with the display of the scrolls, Herron put together an exhibit on the history of Bible translation. She chose several volumes from the NOBTS collection to help illustrate how the Bible has been preserved and passed down through the centuries.

After the Dead Sea Scroll exhibit, Jeff Griffin, director of libraries at NOBTS, invited Herron to assess the NOBTS collection on a contract basis. She planned to come on Aug. 30, 2005, and begin the work of cataloging the collection. When Hurricane Katrina hit on Aug. 29, her trip was postponed.

But the books were safe. Before evacuating, Griffin and his staff packed the rare books in plastic boxes and placed them in an interior room on the second floor of the library.

After the seminary’s initial hurricane recovery stage, Griffin decided to get the rare book project got back on track. In November 2006, he offered Herron a short-term contract to work with the books. For her, it was an easy decision.

“I developed a great affection for the seminary when I was working on the Dead Sea Scrolls [exhibit] and a great affection for the city,” she said. “I wanted to come down and do some things to help.”

Herron said that many universities and seminaries have similar collections that are not cataloged or utilized. She emphasized the importance of organizing, cataloging and registering the existence of these rare books. The cataloging process often leads to surprises.

“You never know what you will find,” she said.

It didn’t take long for Herron to make an exciting discovery at the NOBTS library.

Shortly after arriving in February, she discovered a book she had not seen before -– a collection of sermons by an Italian preacher printed in 1479. She called the volume “one of the treasures” in the John T. Christian Collection. Only two other known copies of this pre-Reformation book exist.

Printed just 24 years after Johannes Gutenberg produced the first press-printed Bible, the volume belongs to a rare class of books called incunabules. Herron said the term means “from the cradle of printing” and refers to books printed before 1500.

“I think this is a particularly great find and needs to have some research done on it,” Herron said. “This is one of my favorite things in the collection.”

Besides the sermons, the book reflects the story of how printing and binding developed, Herron said. “It is a really great example of early printing,” she said. “It looks a lot like a manuscript. It’s a really nice example of book history.”

Early printers carried over the practice of hand-lettering highly decorative initials from manuscript production. The wear of the book also offers a look at early book construction. The missing inside of the cover reveals that the pages were bound together by thick leather straps. The straps also attach the pages to wooden end boards, forming a sturdy cover. The end boards were then covered with fine leather.

The faded shelf mark on the book attests to how books were stored. Unlike current shelving procedure which stores books vertically with the spine out, in that period books were stored flat with titles written across the page edges.

“This is in remarkable condition for a book that’s 550 years old,” Herron said.

Another book that caught Herron’s attention is a volume that profiles the leaders of the Reformation. Written by Theodore Beza in 1581, the book gives descriptions of important Reformers and the work they did. The book also includes engravings of each of the Reformers.

While engravings of John Calvin and Martin Luther are common, Herron said woodcuts of other Reformers are extremely rare.

“I think this is a really neat find. I’ve never seen anything like it,” she said. “To be able to see the faces of the early Reformers, I think, is pretty amazing. The engravings are just beautiful.”

Other collection rarities include a theological work by Zwingli written in 1523 and the Gutenberg Bible leaf from the Book of Isaiah. The collection also features a Mennonite confession from 1620, of which only three other copies of this Dutch text exist.

“This is history,” Herron said about the Gutenberg page. “It’s the first book ever printed. It’s amazing.”

The introduction of metal-alloy moveable type by Gutenberg revolutionized book production. Before Gutenberg developed his technique, books were copied by hand. The press paved the way to increased literacy and the availability and affordability of Scriptures for common people.

Though not as rare as some of the other volumes, the collection includes a copy of the Geneva Bible, an important English Bible printed in 1562. This Bible, sometimes called the “Breeches Bible” due to the somewhat humorous translation of Genesis 3:7, was the first English Bible to include chapter divisions. The Puritans would have had a copy of this Bible with them on the Mayflower, Herron noted.

The quality, quantity and rarity of the collection raises the question, “How did the seminary acquire the books?” Griffin recounted that John T. Christian collected most of the books in Europe in the early 20th century. While pastoring churches in Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky, Christian made frequent summer trips to London. The trained church historian frequented the shops and stalls looking for important and unique books.

One of the seminary’s founding fathers, Christian served on the committee that recommended the establishment of the seminary in 1917. In 1919, trustees elected Christian to the faculty. From 1919 until his death in 1925, he taught church history and served as the seminary’s librarian. Now, 82 years after his death, the full impact of Christian’s diligent work of collection is finally coming into focus.

Griffin said there are no plans to begin showing the books in the current library. However, the board of trustees approved the planning process for a new, state-of-the-art library. When the new library is built, space will be available for display of these important works.

This does not diminish the importance of Herron’s work in cataloging and organizing the collection. Through her efforts, the academic community now knows the existence of additional copies of several rare volumes.

Joseph Aldrich, Lifestyle Evangelism

J.N.D. Anderson, Christianity and Comparative Religion

Kenneth Boa, God I Don’t Understand

Kenneth Boa, Cults, World Religions, and You

James Montgomery Boice, Does Inerrancy Matter?

James Mongomery Boice, ed., The Foundation of Biblical Authority

Colin Brown, ed., History, Criticism, & Faith

F.F. Bruce, The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable?

Edward John Carnell, The Case for Biblical Christianity

Edward John Carnell, An Introduction to Christian Apologetics

Edward John Carnell, A Philosophy of the Christian Religion

J.V. Langmead Casserly, Apologetics and Evangelism

Colin Chapman, The Case For Christianity

Colin Chapman, Christianity on Trial

Gordon, H. Clark, ed., Can I Trust My Bible

Robert E.D. Clark, Science and Christianity–A Partnership

James F. Coppedge, Evolution: Possible or Impossible?

William Lane Craig, the Existence of God and the Beginning of the Universe

William Lane Craig, the Son Rises: Historical Evidence for the Resurrection of Jesus Christ

Bolton Davidheiser, Evolution and Christian Faith

David A. DeWitt, Answering the Tough Ones

David Hugh Freeman, A Philosophical Study of Religion

Norman L. Geisler, Apologetics

Norman L. Geisler, ed., Inerrancy

Norman L. Geisler, Philosophy of Religion

Norman L. Geisler an Paul D. Feinberg, Introduction to Philosophy

John Gerstner, Reason for Faith

Jerry H. Gill, the Possibility of Religious knowledge

Michael Green, Man Alive!

Os Guinness, The Dust of Death

Don J. Gutteridge, Jr., The Defense Rests Its Case

Gary R. Habermas, The Resurrection of Jesus

R. Laird Harris, Inspiration and Canonicity of the Bible

Arthur F. Holmes, Faith Seeks Understanding

Arlie J. Hoover, The Case for Christian Theism

Arlie J. Hoover, Fallacies of Unbelief

Cedric B. Johnson and H. Newton Malony, Christian Conversion: biblical and Psychological Perspectives

C.S. Lewis, The Abolition of Man

C.S. Lewis, God in the Dock

C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

C.S. Lewis, Miracles. A Preliminary Study

C. S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain

Gordon R. Lewis, Judge for Yourself

Gordon R. Lewis, Testing Christianity’s Truth Claims

Paul E. Little, How to Give Away Your Faith

Paul E. Little, Know Why You Believe

Wayne McDill, Making Friends for Christ

Josh McDowell, Evidence That Demands a Verdict

Josh McDowell, More Than A Carpenter

Josh McDowell, The Resurrection Factor

Josh McDowell and Don Stewart, Answers To Tough Questions

Josh McDowell and Don Stewart, Reasons Why Skeptics Ought to Consider Christianity

Alan Loy McGinnis, The Friendship Factor

John Warwick Montgomery, ed., Christianity for the Tough Minded

John Warwick Montgomery, Faith Founded on Fact

John Warwick Montgomery, ed., God’s Inerrant Word

John Warwick Montgomery, History and Christianity

Frank Morrison, Who Moved the Stone?

Henry Morris, biblical Cosmology and Modern Science

Henry Morris, Many Infallible Proofs

Jon Tal Murphree, A Loving God and A Suffering World

J.I. Packer, God Has Spoken

Jim Peterson, Evangelism As A Lifestyle

Clark Pinnock, Reason Enough

Clark H. Pinnock, Set Forth Your Case

Mattew Prince, Winning Through Caring

Richard L. Purtill, Reason To Believe

Earl Radmacher, ed., Can We Trust the Bible?

Bernard Ramm, A Christian Appeal to Reason

Robert L. Reymond, The Justification of Knowledge

Don Richardson, Eternity In Their Hearts

Francis Schaeffer, Escape From Reason

Francis Schaeffer, The God Who Is There

Francis Schaeffer, He Is There and he Is Not Silent

Francis Schaeffer, How Should We Then Live

Hugh Sylvester, Arguing With God

James Sire, The Universe Next Door

A.E. Wilder Smith, Man’s Origin, Man’s Destiny

R.C. Sproul, If There Is a God, Why Are There Atheists

R.C. Sproul, Objections Answered

Kenneth E. Stevenson and Gary R. Habermas, Verdict on the Shroud

John R.W. Stott, Basic Christianity

Merrill C. Tenney, The Reality of the Resurrection

L. Duane Thurman, How to Think About Evolution

Cornelius Van Til, Apologetics

Cornelius Van Til, Christian-Theistic Evidences

Cornelius Van Til, The Defense of the Faith

John Wenham, The Goodness of God

Rheinallt Nantlais Williams, Faith, Facts, History, Science–and How They Fit Together

Clifford A. Wilson, Rocks, Relics, and Biblical Reliability

Nicholas Wolterstorff, Reason Within the Bounds of Religion

Barry Wood, Questions Non-Christians Ask

Edwin Yamauchi, The Stones and the Scriptures

Philip Yancey, Where is God When It Hurts?

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More Books of Interest