"The purpose of this study," writes the author, "is to take a new and hard look at Olevianus's doctrine of covenant and to determine its place in the larger picture of sixteenth-century thought." Bierma analyzes all of Olevianus's work on covenant and challenges the notion that Olevianus was the first to use the covenant idea as the organizing principle of his theology. He maintains that Olevianus's most significant contribution was in using the covenant to provide assurance of salvation.

Author  Lyle D. Bierma is a professor of systematic theology at Calvin Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He received his Ph.D. from Duke University and also studied at the University of Tubingen. He is the editor and translator of A Firm Foundation: An Aid to Interpreting the Heidelberg Catechism by Caspar Olevianus (1995) and co-author of An Introduction to the Heidelberg Catechism: Sources, History, and Theology (2005).

Endorsements  "Dr. Bierma's book is a masterful treatment of an underrated Continental Reformed theologian on the foundational subject of covenant theology. Here is a classic reformed theology at its best, combined with valuable introductions to several important Continental reformed theologians." - Joel R. Beeke, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary