Deus Misereatur

  As one of my seminary professors said, decades ago, "John Owen never met a word he didn't like." You get a good dose of this when you dive into "Communion with the Triune God" edited by Kelly M. Kapic, professor of theological studies at Covenant College in Lookout Mountain Georgia, and Justin Taylor, executive vice president of book publishing at Crossway. This 448-page paperback was initially penned by John Owen in 1657. Kapic and Taylor have done a wonderful service by (1) updating the language to modern English, (2) smoothing out some of the texture that would seem glitchy to modern-day readers, (3) adding footnotes that define Owen's difficult words and translating his quotations that were in Latin and Greek, (4) a snazzy, helpful introduction that explains what Owen was up to, his key thoughts, and the way he was working out his thinking, and (5) a useful set of notes on how they edited the volume that concludes with a detailed outline of the book. O

  O God of our salvation, who visits the earth and waters it; who greatly enriches it; who provides us grain, waters the furrows abundantly, settling its ridges, softening it with showers, and blessing its growth; who crowns the year with your bounty and makes the pastures of the wilderness overflow so that the hills gird themselves with joy, the meadows clothe themselves with flocks, the valleys deck themselves with grain, and they shout and sing together for joy (Psalm 65:9-13). We join all creation as we draw closer to Thanksgiving Day, remembering your rich goodness, and rejoicing! God of the Ages and Generations; thank you for our forbearers in the faith who have gone before us, the examples they have left us, and benefit of their wisdom they have bequeathed to us. Just as we honor our fathers and mothers, may we always honor our fathers and mothers in the faith, even in light of all of their shortcomings and sins. Brace and bolster your people who are presently walking in the p