Appearances of the Son of God in the Old Testament (John Owen)

Appearances of the Son of God in the Old Testament

Christ in All Scripture Series Book 1

In 1668, the famous Puritan John Owen began publishing his magnum opus. Twenty-two years in the making, this first volume contained twenty-four “exercitations,” preliminary practices to help the reader understand what is coming in his magisterial study of the book of Hebrews. The tenth of these was titled, “Appearances of the Son of God Under the Old Testament.” It contains a precious discussion on Christ, especially as he appears as the Angel of the LORD, an actual person and character who appears time and again from Genesis to Malachi. This long-neglected treatise is a necessary back-bone holding up the perhaps longer-neglected and often misunderstood larger body of evidence demonstrating that the Second Person of the Trinity is literally present and known to the saints of the era prior to the incarnation. Anyone finding themselves desiring to learn more about this topic from one of the most respected of all the Puritans would do well to master the contents of this little book. We have also added dozens of quotations from Church Fathers and Reformers down to the present day showing the orthodoxy of the often denied doctrine that Christ was not merely typed and prophesied in the Old Testament, he was actually present in his person.

“Oh yes. Owen the unassailable. Unfortunately for modern readers, he rather has the reputation of being Owen the unattainable. But not to fear! Thanks to the skillful editing of my friend Doug Van Dorn, Owen is a clear and present danger to modern unbelief and dullness of heart regarding the OT appearances of Christ. This is Owen at his best, glorying in the mysterious revelations of God the Son to men of old.”

Luke Walker,
Pastor, Redeeming Cross Community Church, Minneapolis
Author, John Owen: The Prince of Puritans