Children of Abraham: A Reformed Baptist View of the Covenants

by David Kingdon

First published during a resurgence of interest in Reformed theology, Children of Abraham made a major contribution to the re-thinking of the doctrine of the church and baptism around the world. Now revised and updated, David Kingdon's classic defence of believer's baptism deals cogently with this vital issue through careful exposition of Scripture and seeks to work out a positive view of children and the family in God's redemptive purpose. Commendations 'The issues dividing Baptists and Paedobaptists have to do with much more than the quantity of water and how (and when) it is to be applied. They have to do with matters as large as how we put our Bibles together. The best brief treatment of the topic from a Reformed Baptist perspective is this book by David Kingdon, here reprinted in an expanded form. I was struck by its cogency when I first read the material almost fifty years ago, and my estimation of its value has not changed.' D.A. Carson, Emeritus Professor of New Testament, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School 'I have long considered David Kingdon's Children of Abraham to be the definitive study of the Calvinistic, or Reformed, Baptist defence of our position on believer's baptism. I am thrilled to see this revision and reprint and heartily commend it to the reading of not only Baptists but also our Paedobapitst friends. Both will see that the Baptist position is deeply grounded in not only various Scriptural texts but also in the theological architecture of the Christian Faith.' Michael A.G. Haykin, Chair and professor of church history, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary 'Reading David Kingdon’s Children of Abraham helped to ground my baptistic theology, not so much in the voluntarist/individualistic tradition I was raised into, but in the rich covenant theology of baptist confessionalism. This is one of the reasons why I rejoice in seeing it reprinted and made available for this generation and those to come.' Leonardo De Chirico, pastor of the church Breccia di Roma and lecturer in historical theology at IFED (Padova, Italy) 'At last this valuable little book is back in print! In characteristically thoughtful and measured fashion, David Kingdom lays out a Reformed Baptist view of the covenants. The debates about baptism have continued over the past fifty years, but this volume endures as a persuasive and edifying contribution.' Bill James, Principal, London Seminary 'About thirty years ago, I heard the energetic Erroll Hulse speaking glowingly about Children of Abraham by David Kingdon. He thought it was the best book on the New Covenant and its implications on the place of baptism and children in the church. I am thrilled to know that it is about to bless a new generation of readers soon after its author’s graduation to glory. May the Lord richly reward him for this unique gift to the Christian church!' Conrad Mbewe, pastor of Kabwata Baptist Church and founding chancellor of the African Christian University in Lusaka, Zambia

256 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2021

Reviews

[Gordon Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

My overwhelming impression of this book while reading it was continually one of disappointment. Not because it's bad - it's a very good example of a defence of believer's baptism - but because its title promised to be so much more. The title promises to be, "A reformed baptist view of the covenants", which (and this is entirely my fault) I took to mean it would be a discussion of how baptists put the covenants of Scripture together, an overarching theology of progressive revelation. It's not that, there is a discussion of those issues, but only as needed to service the core apologetic and polemical intent of the book.
That said, it is a very good apologetic for believers' baptism. Unlike other examples of the genre it does take a wider, covenantal view of Scripture rather than merely assaulting the well-known proof texts. The attempt to construct a theology of children is very helpful (although marred somewhat by the insistence on dealing with the non-biblical and ill-defined concept of an 'age of accountability').
The way Kingdon traces out the evolution of the membership of the covenants through the introduction of the 'remnant' idea in the prophetic era is particularly powerful. His argument in the same vein about the significance of the ministry of John the Baptist is equally compelling as it helps in the project of putting the whole of revelation together. It is unfortunate that he deals with that latter subject in the closing chapters of the book, despite saying in them that it is, "an essential preliminary to the debate". If it's an essential preliminary, it begs the question of why isn't it in the first chapter? The preface explains that the closing chapters are a later addition and are placed as they are to, "leave the structure of the original book unchanged", but that seems to me to be an error in judgement when - had the book been restructured - it might have become a discussion primarily of the shape of God's revelation out of which believer's baptism would have emerged inevitably. That would have been a much more powerful argument, and a more fruitful foundation on which to develop further baptist theological thinking, beyond the original bone of contention.
However, overall the book is very helpful.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Children of Abraham’ provides a defence of the credo-baptist position. In interaction with the paedo-baptist position, it considers the covenant of grace & covenant theology, the relationship between circumcision & baptism, and the theology of children. The 2021 edition also explores the implications that John the Baptist has in the argument and how one is to understand the new covenant.

As someone who is inclined to paedo-baptism, I found this book very challenging, particularly the chapters ‘Children and Regeneration’ and ‘John the Baptist’. I’d consider it a worthwhile read for someone studying the issue.

[Mark Reese · Rating 3 out of 5]

While it offered a number of interesting things to think about, I don’t think the book succeeded as a refutation of Reformed Covenantalism, nor do I think it presented a great baptistic vision of the covenants.

It was just ok.

[Ethan Preston · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this to be a helpful book. My main criticism would be that there is not much actual exposition of the covenants. It is more of a baptistic take on many of the classic paedobaptist arguments. Still very helpful and Kingdon has added a chapter on a Baptist theology of children which is very good.