1. Just briefly, who was B. B. Warfield?

Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield (1851-1921) was the most outstanding theologian of Old Princeton Seminary. He was himself a graduate of Princeton (1873-1876), having studied there under Charles Hodge, returning to occupy Hodge’s famous Chair from 1887 (at the young age of 35) until his death in 1921. Throughout his tenure there he published a seemingly endless number of books, articles, and reviews touching virtually every department of Biblical and theological studies, establishing himself as America’s leading defender and exponent of historic Christian theology. He taught Systematic Theology but was uniquely equipped in all the various academic disciplines related to Biblical and theological studies, and even in his own day was recognized as a Biblical scholar-theologian of unparalleled breadth and depth. Old Princeton had long  been known as a land of giants, but without question Warfield stood above them all. 

2. Why did you first become interested in Warfield?

There was an accumulation of reasons. I began reading Warfield on my own during my undergraduate days, and immediately I began to admire his brilliant mind, his keen exegetical eye, the depth of his theological insight, the breadth of his enormous grasp, and the warmth of his heart for Christ. Reading him just here and there over the years it became increasingly evident that here was a theologian who had it all! And so he became one of my very favorite authors, one from whom I profited every time I read him. As a result, my interest in Warfield grew into an affection for him as I came to know him better. And somewhere along the line it occurred to me that although his name still carried enormous weight, he was not receiving the attention he deserved. This was due in large part, no doubt, to the fact that his writings were mostly occasional in nature, published here and there among the theological journals and periodicals of the day. Many of his works had been collected in the ten-volume Works and the two-volume Selected Shorter Writings, but even so his thought deserved more systematic exposition. Taking on the challenge of reading and digesting everything he wrote so as to produce his own textbook on Systematic Theology (as it were) was daunting, to say the least, but it was richly rewarding at every step. What a wonderful gift he was – and is – to the church.

3. What made Warfield such a great theologian?

I have already alluded to the answer in the two items above. It was recognized in his own day, and it is becoming increasingly recognized again in our own day, that at that momentous time of the turn of the twentieth century no one was doing theology as B.B. Warfield was. He was so broadly and deeply informed that he virtually owned every field of Biblical and theological discussion. Early on he had interest in Old Testament Studies, but when offered a position to teach Old Testament at Western Seminary, he declined – now his interests was in New Testament! Western gave him this opportunity a year later (1878), and by the age of thirty he had begun already to distinguish himself internationally as a Biblical scholar of rare abilities. With this background he entered his work in Systematic Theology at Princeton, and along the way proved as informed in other departments also, such as historical theology, until he was known to excel above all others in virtually every field.

It was not only his abilities that made him great but his energies also. He seems to have read everything – Machen says something about him to that effect – and his own literary output is something that is seldom matched. Machen said at Warfield’s death that he had done the work of any ten men and that there was not a man in the entire church that could fill one quarter of his place.

4. Why is Warfield so important for us to read in our own day?

There are many reasons. First, I suppose, is that he is such an excellent model of theological exegesis. He was first a Biblical exegete of the highest order. As a contemporary said of him, “his dogmatics is but exegesis of the superlative kind.” He possessed both a comprehensive theological grasp and a keen exegetical eye — that rare combination that makes a theologian stand out above all others.

Beyond this he is important, of course, because he is the theologian of the doctrine of inspiration. Everything written on the subject in the last century is but a footnote to Warfield. On virtually all things related to inspiration, Warfield already said it, and he said it better. It would be sad indeed for any pastor or theologian to fail to read Warfield here.

My own favorite reason, however, is that all this outstanding scholarship combines so wonderfully in Warfield with a heart that burns hot for the gospel and for Christ. This pulses through Warfield’s works everywhere. In his own heart of hearts he saw himself as a sinner rescued by divine grace through Christ the Redeemer – the “Ransomer,” as he would prefer to say it. Throughout his career he displays the vibrant fervency of a new convert. And all this, in turn, helps him to see more clearly than most that Christianity is a redemptive religion. He cannot say this enough. He was himself first of all a Christologian – the person and work of Christ was the center of his attention and the subject of his most extensive writing and preaching. But everywhere, in whatever branch of theological discussion, he reminds us that the point of it all is a redemptive one. He is just contagious on this score, and we would all do well to “catch” it from him.

5. Warfield was a Reformed theologian. Explain Warfield’s Calvinism and why it was important in his own day.

Warfield’s career took place during the hey-day of the “modern” era when Enlightenment thinking – “rationalism” – had come to full blossom. The advances enjoyed on virtually every level of learning and society were dramatic, and increasingly men were able to give seemingly plausible explanations of the world apart from considerations of God or the supernatural. Questions inevitably arose: Just what is God’s involvement in this world? Did he create? If so, then how? Did he produce the Scriptures? Does he really rule over all the details of human affairs? And just what is this thing we call “salvation”? The crisis was inevitable. As one historian characterized it, “Men could not forever bow as wretched sinners on Sunday and swell with self-confidence the other six days of the week.”

Calvinism had fallen on bad times, and Warfield saw Calvinism not only as a theology that was thoroughly biblical but as the necessary preservative of Christianity and of the gospel in particular. Its emphasis on the divine initiative and its thorough-going supernaturalism he saw as the answer to the human sin-dilemma, and he devoted all his abilities and energies to its defense and exposition.

6. Warfield was a polemical theologian? What did that mean?

Polemics has to do with controversy, argument, and refutation. Warfield’s title at Princeton was Professor of Didactic and Polemic Theology. We call it Systematic Theology today, and they did as well. But since the beginning of Princeton in 1812 it was part of the responsibility of the Theological Chair not only to teach a Systematic Theology that was grounded in the Scriptures but to expose and combat all the various contemporary alternatives that would arise against it. This part of Warfield’s work he took with great zeal! He eagerly took on all comers, from whatever particular department of biblical or theological study, and was recognized widely as the leading defender of the faith in his day.

“Fear” may not be the word I want here. It may overstate the case; but if so, only slightly. There is plenty of evidence to demonstrate that Warfield’s contemporaries – friends and foes alike – were very aware of him, his watchful eye, his ready pen, and the massive weight of scholarship he would bring to bear on all that contradicted the historic faith “once for all given to the saints.”

7. What theological controversies was Warfield in?

Most famously is the doctrine of inspiration, the defining issue of the day. Against the higher criticism and against the naturalistic world-views that had come to dominate, along with its complete rejection of external authority, Warfield vigorously expounded at great length the nature of and the evidence for the divine origin of Scripture. This was not quite his own “center,” but it was the issue of the day, and it became the defining issue of his career.

The “kenotic” Christologies of the day formed another leading point of controversy for him. Naturalistic understandings of Christ as merely human were on the rise, and Warfield devoted hundreds of pages to the “adoring” display of the God-Man who had come to rescue us from our plight of sin.

Many in his Presbyterian Church were calling for a revision of the Westminster Confession of Faith, and he wrote extensively in attempt to preserve it as is.

And Warfield’s final great controversy was in response to the Keswick Conferences that met at Princeton from 1916 to 1918. As it has been said, without realizing it the Keswicks had entered the lair of the aging lion of Princeton, and fully a thousand pages later the old lion had devoured Perfectionism in all its various expressions.

8. Explain the shoes Warfield was filling at Princeton? Who came before him?

First there was Archibald Alexander, the famous founding professor at Princeton who served with great acclaim and distinction. Then there was the renowned Charles Hodge whose stature, it would have seemed, could never be surpassed. Then there was Hodge’s son, Archibald Alexander Hodge, whose theological expertise was widely recognized but whose career was cut short by his untimely death in 1886. In the wake of his death the board at Princeton could think of only one man who could fill the spot – the young B.B. Warfield who was then teaching New Testament at Western Seminary in Pittsburgh. The letter to Warfield from Caspar Wistar Hodge (brother of A.A. Hodge) on behalf of the Princeton board reveals a deep – I almost said “desperate” – sense of hope that Warfield would entertain their invitation prayerfully. Warfield responded with tones of deepest affection, appreciation, and honor, and of course eventually consented.

9. Explain his stance on evolution and the context he wrote in.

There has been widespread misunderstanding on this score, and you will often find authors referring to Warfield as a theistic evolutionist as though it were an indisputable fact. This has been the “canonical” view for some years now. But it is mistaken. In an article of personal reflections Warfield says that as a young college student he was “a Darwinian of the purest water.” But in this same article, written as an old man, Warfield indicates that he had abandoned the theory of evolution before the age of thirty.

The confusion has stemmed in part from Warfield’s openness on the issue. He never advocated evolution, and in his classroom lectures (and elsewhere) he specifically denied it. But throughout his career he maintained that if it were to be proven, then Scripture would be able to accommodate it. This openness – at one point, at least, even seeming to tilt toward acceptance – has been misunderstood. Evolutionary thinking was rather new in his day, and the pressure to accept these new “discoveries” of “science.” Warfield seems to have felt that pressure, and so he remained open – but never accepting.

10. Tell us about Warfield’s personal life. What kind of Christian man, husband, churchman, etc. was he?

The personal reflections on Warfield that we have by those who knew him and the many notices of his death consistently portray Warfield in terms of deepest admiration and endearment. We know of his personal interest in and financial support of former students in mission work and other gospel causes, his love for children, his good humor, his remarkable wit and sense of humor, and so on. Students recall that personally he was generous and considerate. “Christian gentleman” and other such descriptions of him are common. However, it was his sense of love for and dependence upon Christ that is said to have been his leading personal characteristic.

In a letter to his mother Machen made reference to Warfield’s “glaring faults.” We don’t know what he had in mind, but we can be certain Warfield had his warts like the rest of us. But Machen’s point in this remark was not to criticize but to commend. What he said was that “with all his glaring faults he was the greatest man I have known.”

We know rather little about Warfield as a husband. He and his wife had little public life, but it seems from their correspondence that they enjoyed their evenings together as soul mates. And Anne (his wife) reveals a charming wit of her own. She was well read, and they seem to have enjoyed substantive discussion together. They vacationed in the Pocanos each summer for years until her health failed, and of course in her final years he cared for her faithfully, leaving home only for his classroom responsibilities.

Warfield was not very involved in church affairs. He was not an activist but a quiet scholar. His involvement in church affairs was restricted to writing – addressing the Confession question, the inspiration debate, and so on.

Overall Warfield strikes me as a magnanimous personality but probably a bit aloof. He was a man who would have held your greatest admiration, even affection, and was one with whom you would have wanted to be better acquainted.

11. What books by Warfield should one begin with first?

The best place for laymen to begin with Warfield is any of his three books of sermons, but especially his Faith and Life. These sermons are brief but warm and rich with gospel encouragement. The next step is to read selections from the two volume Selected Shorter Writings which provides an excellent sampling of devotional and academic works.

12. What kind of legacy did Warfield leave behind?

S. Lewis Johnson was a Warfield affectionado also, and he remarked to me once that nothing will add more weight to something you write than adding a footnote that carries the initials “B.B.W.” I have often thought that his remark captured Warfield’s stature very well.

Warfield’s legacy is his writing. Teaching and writing was all he did! There we find who Warfield was. He was the Reformed theologian par excellence. At a critical juncture in the church’s history he was the one God raised up in defense of the faith. Many others at the time were fighting for the same cause – C.H. Spurgeon, J.C. Ryle, James Orr, and others. But no one had the academic muscle – the breadth and depth of learning – that Warfield could bring to bear on every discussion. It is for good reason he has been described as the one who “propelled orthodoxy into the twentieth century.”

13. Do you have any future books on Warfield forthcoming?

Yes. I have a second title coming from Crossway in February, 2012. Justin Taylor and Steve Nichols are editing a series of popular-level books entitled Theologians on the Christian Life. And so there will be Augustine on the Christian Life and several others – Luther, Calvin, and so on. The Warfield title will be Warfield on the Christian Life: Living in Light of the Gospel.

I am in discussion now for a third title also, probably the most “popular” level, which will provide a summary of Warfield’s life and an overview of his work. He has much yet to offer, and I pray through these contributions Warfield will continue to be of spiritual benefit to many, as he has for me.

Fred Zaspel holds a Ph.D. in historical theology from the Free University of Amsterdam. He is currently a pastor at the Reformed Baptist Church of Franconia, PA. He is also an Adjunct Professor of Systematic Theology at Calvary Baptist Seminary in Lansdale, PA. He is also the author of The Continuing Relevance of Divine Law (1991); The Theology of Fulfillment (1994); Jews, Gentiles, & the Goal of Redemptive History (1996); New Covenant Theology with Tom Wells (New Covenant Media); The Theology of B.B. Warfield: A Systematic Summary (Crossway, 2010). Fred is married to Kimberly and they have two children, Gina and Jim.

Matthew Barrett (Ph.D., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is the founder and executive editor of Credo Magazine. Barrett has contributed book reviews and articles to various academic journals and he also writes at Blogmatics. He is married to Elizabeth and they have two daughters, Cassandra and Georgia. He is a member of Clifton Baptist Church in Louisville, KY.