Charles Hodge Commentary Collection (4 vols.)

by Charles Hodge

Publishers:

Louis Kregel; Robert Carter & Brothers; A. C. Armstrong and Son

, 1857–1891

Overview

The four commentaries in the Charles Hodge Commentary Collection serve as the basis for Hodge’s life and thought, making his commentaries important for both biblical scholars and theologians. The volumes contain verse-by-verse commentary on every chapter in Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, and Ephesians, along with textual analysis, doctrinal points, and helpful chapter summaries. Each commentary also includes a lengthy introduction and overview written by Hodge himself, in which he examines the authorship and dating of each book, along with the historical, cultural, political, and theological context of the original audience.

Contemporary scholarship remembers Charles Hodge more for his systematic theology than his biblical exposition. Nevertheless, his whole life was primarily devoted to the critical and systematic study of the Bible, and his entire theological method is eminently biblical. In fact, Charles Hodge taught in biblical studies for more than twenty years at Princeton Theological Seminary before he was transferred, reluctantly, to the theological department. Hodge’s theology is rooted in his exposition of scripture; not the philosophical schemes and cultural whims that informed the vast majority of theological reflection in the nineteenth century. That makes the Charles Hodge Commentary Collection an important tool not only for understanding the Bible, but also for understanding Hodge’s systematic theology as a whole.

Logos is pleased to offer the unabridged version of Hodge’s commentaries, with all of Hodge’s Greek completely retained. The Charles Hodge Commentary Collection offers full access to Hodge’s work as it was originally published, making the Logos edition the preeminent standard for Hodge studies and the most accessible way to read the entirety of Hodge’s commentaries. These commentaries will benefit Bible scholars, theologians, and pastors looking for theologically-rich Bible commentaries, and are ideal for anyone interested in discovering the relationship between Hodge’s biblical exposition and his theological method. For those looking for the English-only, abridged versions, Logos also offers Charles Hodge’s commentaries on Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, and Ephesians as part of the Crossway Classic Commentary Collection (13 volumes).

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Key Features

• Comprehensive introduction and overview for each commentary
• Summary of significant doctrinal points follows each chapter

Endorsements

Hodge’s method and matter make him doubly useful in commenting. He is singularly clear, and a great promoter of thought.

—Charles Spurgeon

[Hodge] gave theological structure to the claims of reality that reminded their hearers of the limitations of human achievement and the fragility of true virtue.

—John Farina

About Charles Hodge

Charles Hodge counts as one of the most influential theologians of the nineteenth century and one of Calvinism’s most ardent defenders in America. He was born in 1797 in Philadelphia to Hugh and Mary Hodge. He graduated from the College of New Jersey (Princeton University) in 1815, and was ordained in the Presbyterian Church in 1821. In 1822, at the request of Archibald Alexander, he became a professor at Princeton, and taught biblical literature and systematic theology until 1878. From 1826 to 1828, Hodge also studied in Europe, and became acquainted with Friedrich Augustus Tholuck, Wilhelm Gesenius, Augustus Neander, and Friedrich Schleiermacher.

During his tenure at Princeton, Hodge instructed more than three thousand ministers, served as moderator of the Presbyterian General Assembly in 1846, helped revise the Presbyterian Church’s Book of Discipline, and served on the Board of Foreign Missions. He also founded the Biblical Repertory and Princeton Review and served as its editor for forty-three years. In addition to his systematic theology and four Bible commentaries, Hodge also wrote books on the Presbyterian Church and published numerous articles.

Charles Hodge died on June 19, 1878. Among his last words: “To be absent from the body is to be with the Lord, to be with the Lord is to see the Lord, to see the Lord is to be like him.”