A Treatise on the Law and Gospel

by John Colquhoun

In this book, Colquhoun helps us understand the precise relationship between law and gospel. He also impresses us with the importance of knowing this relationship. Colquhoun especially excels in showing how important the law is as a believer's rule of life without doing injury to the freeness and fullness of the gospel. By implication, he enables us to draw four practical conclusions: (1) the law shows us how to live; (2) the law as a rule of life combats both antinomianism and legalism; (3) the law shows us how to love; and 4) the law promotes true freedom. Table of Contents: 1. The Law of God or the Moral Law in General 2. The Law of God as Promulgated to the Israelites from Mount Sinai 3. The Properties of the Moral Law 4. The Rules for Understanding Aright the Ten Commandments 5. The Gospel of Christ 6. The Uses of the Gospel, and of the Law in Subservience to It 7. The Difference between the Law and the Gospel 8. The Agreement between the Law and the Gospel 9. The Establishment of the Law by the Gospel 10. The Believer's Privilege of Being Dead to the Law as a Covenant of Works 11. The High Obligations under Which Believers Lie 12. The Nature, Necessity, and Desert of Good Works Quote from the Author: "The law and the gospel are the principal parts of divine revelation; or rather they are the center, sum, and substance of all the other parts of it. Every passage of sacred Scripture is either law or gospel, or is capable of being referred either to the one or to the other . . . If then a man cannot distinguish aright between the law and the gospel, he cannot rightly understand so much as a single article of divine truth. If he does not have spiritual and just apprehensions of the holy law, he cannot have spiritual and transforming discoveries of the glorious gospel; and, on the other hand, if his view of the gospel is erroneous, his notions of the law cannot be right."--John Colquhoun

Genres: Theology, Christian, Christian Living, Nonfiction, Christianity

352 pages, Hardcover

First published April 23, 2009

Reviews

[Timothy Decker · Rating 5 out of 5]

A standard for the subject.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Take five stars. Double them. Then give all 10 to this book.

[Brenden Wentworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing short of amazing!
Took a bit longer on this one, as the subject was both heady and the writing was dense. But man, old theologians got so much right, especially regarding the gospel and the clarity of growing in holiness by the gospel. Justified AND sanctified by grace through faith in Christ.
The law says do. The gospel says done.
Distinguishing between law and gospel not only increases your understanding of the scripture but assurance, holiness, and everything in between.
A must read for every Christian who seeks to mature in in their faith and move beyond milk to meat.

[Zach Worden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easily one of the most helpful theological works I’ve ever read. What could be more important than having a biblical understanding of law and gospel?

“To distinguish truly and clearly between the law as a covenant and the law as a rule is, as Luther expressed it, ‘the key which opens the hidden treasure of the gospel.’ No sooner had the Spirit of truth given Luther a glimpse of that distinction that he seemed to be admitted into Paradise, and that the whole face of the Scripture was changed for him. Indeed, without a spiritual and true knowledge of that distinction, a man can neither discern, nor love, nor obey acceptably the truth as it is in Jesus.” (40)

There is so much to glean and learn from Colquhoun in this book. It’s worth its weight in gold—will for sure reread. If you read theology and can make your way through something slightly denser, this is well worth the read.

[Jonathan Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of the most unexpectedly encouraging books I have read. Certainly one of my all time favorites. Understanding the difference and agreement between the Law and the Gospel is of the utmost importance for the Christian. Perhaps the most encouraging thing about this book was how often I was reminded that my standing before God is secured, not because of anything in me, but because of the perfect righteousness that is in the last Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ — that everything required of me in the Law is super-abundantly provided for me in the person of Jesus Christ!

[Christian Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

A significant work on how Christians relate to the law. Colquhoun clearly articulates the need we have for holiness and the hope that we have as Christians in knowing that Christ perfectly upholds the law. A good source if you are looking to understand what role the law plays in our every day lives.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5, rounded to 4.

Good, but painfully repetitive.

[C. Forrest Gard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rather unspeakably beneficial book. Very technical, succinct explanations of the inner workings between the Law and the Gospel, how they serve one another, how they apply in their respective dispensations etc etc. I do say technical, but for even the less theologically minded folks this book is very digestible, as Colquhoun has a knack for simplifying otherwise complex ideas (Truths). Highly recommend.

[Shea Stacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

John Colquhoun's Law and Gospel is a very thorough and instructive discourse and the different ways the Law and Gospel are used in the scriptures and how they work together. Particularly in our day the proper understanding of the Law is most needed amongst Christians.
While his general framework aligned with what I understood in the reformed tradition this was the most focused and systematic approach to the topic I've read. One huge advantage of the book is Joel Beeke's introduction which almost summarizes the whole book and makes the ideas that Colquhoun break down in great detail into bite size bits.

The Law's Three Forms
• The law written on the heart at creation: the law of nature, the same in content as the Ten Commandments.
• The law as a covenant of works, made with Adam and binding on everyone still in Adam.
• The law in the hand of Christ as a rule of life, given only to believers.
His shorthand for the difference: the covenant says "Do and live"; the rule says "Live and do." The covenant commands, "Do or be condemned"; the rule says, "You are delivered from condemnation; therefore do." Under the first you obey in your own strength, under the second in Christ's.

Somewhat repetitive but lots to chew on here, and will return to again.

[Hunter Strength · Rating 5 out of 5]

Presenting a paedobaptistic understanding of the covenants in the beginning, Colquhoun goes on to articulate a beautifully clear and pastoral explanation of the Protestant understanding of the Law for 1. Declaring the holiness of God. 2. The sinfulness of man. 3. The necessity of Christ. 4. A rule of life for the Christian. He goes further to show the beauty of Christ sparking affections in our soul that pour out into obedient and good works.

[Jonathan Josey · Rating 5 out of 5]

It can be somewhat redundant, but in the best possible way. Colquhoun clearly parses both law and gospel and how they’re applicable for the believer. Very important and encouraging, and littered with Scripture on every page.

[Kevin Reep · Rating 3 out of 5]

“The law and the gospel are in such harmony with each other as to have no divided interests.”

Some was good some I disagreed with. On the whole, it was written for a more literate audience than I am accustomed, which made some prolonged portions tiresome.

[Jeff Bys · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a clear treatment on the distinction of the law and the gospel. Every Christian should read this book.

[R. Dwain · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an incredible book. He works through this issue better than I’ve seen in any other work.

I highly recommend.

[Caleb Lofthus · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an in-depth study on the Law & the Gospel. It is long, and a little repetitive, but it will be worth your time. Solid work!

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent treatise on the law and Gospel, justification, sanctification. The first few chapters provide a helpful discussion of the Mosaic covenant and third use of the law for believers.

"Were we, indeed, to perform but a single act of obedience more than we owed to God, we would thereby merit some recompense from Him. But this is impossible for us ever to do. It is not the obedience even of a true believer that merits the blessings of salvation for him, but only the meritorious righteousness of Christ imputed to him" (pg. 80-81).

Colquhoun is also very helpful in distinguishing sanctification from justification and the proper role of good works in the life of believers. Good works are Gospel driven, sanctification flows forth from justification. This is very helpful for a proper understanding of both sanctification and assurance for believers.

"To pretend to sanctification, and then to rely on it for justification, is to derive the fountain from the stream, the cause from the effect, and so to invert the order of the blessings from salvation. It is necessary that our sins are forgiven, and our persons accepted as righteous in the sight of God, in order to our being capable of yielding the least degree of acceptable obedience to Him" (pg. 309).

[Matt Crawford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read Romans then read Galatians. They put it into puritan-esque language and you have John Colguhoun’s treatise on Law and the Gospel. I continually referred to it as law and grace because almost the entire book focuses on the difference between the two covenants. I do wish more had been emphasized on why particular acts belong to each one. Even still it , much like the Marrow controversy, attacks pharisaicalism and legalism as well as antinomianism. There is a small discussion at the end on the place of good works but I believe it is brief because it is sprinkled throughout. It is a reminder that obedience is required but never as a merit to eternal life. Much of it reads like Jonathan Edwards’ Religious Affections and that is a good thing.

[Mason Bruza · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a solid treatment on the Law/Gospel Distinction from a Reformed perspective. Which is really interesting because the Law/Gospel Distinction is often associated with Lutheran Theology, and Reformed Christians who use hold to a firm distinction between Law and Gospel are often described as "crytpo-Lutherans", but this work shows that the distinction does indeed have a place in Reformed Theology.

[Nickvisel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good. But the warning at the beginning, that sometimes things get redundant, definitely applies.

It’s sometimes dry, but the gospel message contained therein is still sweet.

Really helpful, relatively plain language, down-to-earth common sense application of “Marrow” theology. Very incisive on the distinction, difference, and agreement of the law and the gospel.

Final chapter, on good works, is a banger.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

The contents of this book are incredible. It is imperative that every Christian understand the distinctions between law and gospel. However, this might be a difficult access point to these doctrines, simply because it was written in 1815. If you can handle something of that nature, give this a read!

[Dan Yost · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!! What an edifying read!

This book is heady but is a passionately delivered Gospel-centered treatise on the covenant of works and the covenant of grace that is meticulously cited with Scripture. John Colquhoun’s work should be the standard reference material regarding the study of the Law and Gospel for all Christians from lay-person to pastor.

[Alexander Proudfoot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read all but two chapters. Quite an excellent little volume. Generally clear distinctions throughout. He presents a soft-republicationist view (though he prefers to use other language). Only complaint is that his style is repetitious; he makes his point several times, often becoming less clear the more he explains. Would recommend.

[Zach Scheller · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very technical yet precise book on how the scriptures, holistically, understand the relationship between the law and the gospel. My notes for this book are extensive, and for good reason - this is one of the more seminal works on law and gospel distinction. If you’re able to navigate it, it’s well worth the read. (Especially chapter 7 - that’s basically worth reading the entire book.)

[Ronnie Nichols · Rating 5 out of 5]

Law and Gospel

The law gospel distinction is vital in the understanding of the believer and the very essence of true religion. This book is one of the best I have ever read on the subject. Outstanding! Highly recommend!

[Reid Williamson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clear teaching on the distinction between the law in the covenant of works and the law of Christ in the covenant of grace. A distinction which affords help for understanding God’s relationship with men in history.

[Ming Chen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read for seminary.

Very rich, both theologically and practically. There are some parts that are very, very applicable and exhort us to flee from the covenant of works to the covenant of grace and God's gracious provision of his Son.

[K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply superb. The first book on this topic I would recommend to anyone. It's a shame it's not more well known.

[Kyle Gillam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent treatment on distinguishing law and gospel.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent read! Should be read by any pastor/student of theology for a right understanding of the law and the gospel!

[Michaela Bush · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one you can’t just speed-read, but it’s very very worth the time.