The divine decree

This chapter explores the doctrine of the divine decree in Reformed theology, with specific attention to the tradition’s teaching on election and reprobation. It begins by considering the shape of the doctrine in general, noting some of the doctrine’s more controversial possibilities. It proceeds to focus on the way in which the early Reformed tradition understood the decree in both its positive and negative aspects, drawing variously on the texts of early Reformed writers and confessions and the works of Reformed orthodoxy. It then turns to the work of two more recent figures who have advanced significant revisions of the classical Reformed doctrine-Friedrich Schleiermacher and Karl Barth. It concludes with a concise series of recommendations in respect of ongoing reflection on this doctrine.