A Review of John Frame’s

The Doctrine of God

By: J. Daniel Spratlin

Summary

It has been fifteen years since the first installment of John Frame'sprojected four volume "Theology of Lordship" series. The second book,

TheDoctrine of God

, takes the reader deeper and further into the truth,particularly dealing with the person of God. Frame's central motif is covenantLordship and he follows his earlier volumes, especially

The Doctrine of theKnowledge of God

, in using as an overarching theme the three "lordship"attributes of control, authority and presence. Frame writes, “The centralmotif of this book is that God is the Lord of the covenant. Since God chosethe name Lord for himself, since it is found thousands of time in Scripture,and since it is the heart of the fundamental confession of faith of God’speople, it would seem to be a promising starting point” (12). However, Framenotes that covenant Lordship does not exclude other biblical themes such ashope, community, or liberation. Rather, they are included within this centralmotif of covenant Lordship as they assist us in seeing how they are allrelated.In the introduction, Frame prepares the reader for the rest of his bookand makes a number of introductory points. Among these points is Frame’sinsistence that while biblical theology is important it should not controlsystematic theology (7-8). He also makes an astute observation that there isa tendency among some evangelicals to base theological judgments ontradition not Scripture (10), a tendency he, thankfully, resists. After theintroduction, the book is divided into six main parts, each consisting of anumber of chapters.Part One, entitled "Yahweh the Lord,” lays out the central motif of covenant Lordship, noting the three "Lordship attributes" of control,authority and presence (21-25). These are central to the content andstructure of Frame's work. Rightly titled “Some Problem Areas,” Part Twotakes on a more apologetic “feel” to it as Frame defends against theapparent incompatibility of human responsibility and freedom (119) and theproblem of evil (160). Frame tackles these classical problems, arguing for acompatibilistic concept of freedom and setting forth the biblical portrait of how the existence of evil highlights God's control, authority, and presence. InPart Three, “A Philosophy of Lordship,” Frame makes the argument thatphilosophy is a sub-division of theology (185) asserting that our philosophyshould be dictated by Scripture and not vice-versa as is normative of manyChristian philosophers today. The philosophy of Lordship is explained interms of ethics (185), epistemology (199), and metaphysics (214). Thisphilosophical prolegomenon lays the foundation for the remaining threemajor sections that explain God's revelation of himself. Part Four, “The Actsof the Lord,” places the acts of the Lord under the rubric of his control,examining God's miracles, providence, creation, and decrees. In Part Five,“Biblical Descriptions of God,” Frame deals with the biblical descriptions of

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God from the perspective of his authority, expounding the divine names,images, and attributes. The latter are classified according to a triad:goodness, knowledge, and power. Lastly, Part Six, “The Triune God,” dealswith the triunity of God as an aspect of divine presence, offering a glimpseinto God's inner life and the life that believers share with him.

Strengths

Frame has provided us with a massive treatise, which not only takes usback deep into

the Scriptures and reaffirms the orthodox doctrine of theChurch, but which also stimulates fresh

thinking. He brings to the subject hisimmense learning, engaging with theologians and

philosophers, both pastand present, from across the theological spectrum. He also demonstrates

areal awareness of the key issues at stake and of the way in which otherscholars have dealt with

these issues.Frame's exposition of the doctrine of God is solidly based on hisexposition of Scripture. Where he questions or rejects the Reformedtradition, he does so on that basis. His commitment to the authority andinerrancy of Scripture is evident throughout, both in positive affirmations of the doctrine and also in the theological methodology he adopts. Frame’shandling of contemporary questions regarding the doctrine of God,specifically the problem of evil in Part Two, highlight Frame’s willingness toconfront head on the issues that are most prevalent in today’s society. He isable to succinctly and satisfactorily provide answers and does so in aReformed vernacular against Arminian positions.

Weaknesses

The length and breadth of Frame’s work, as much as it is a strength, isa possible weakness as well. Most laypersons would look at the 864 pages of Frame’s tome and deem it “too academic” and not “lay-friendly” and, incertain parts of the book, they would be correct. While I appreciate Frame’sscholarly efforts, it is at times, a difficult read and this may lead some toreject it.I believe that a strong case could be made against the amount of appendices that are in the book. Most of them seem to be off topic (i.e.Frame’s response to Mark Karlberg’s critique of

The Doctrine of theKnowledge of God

) and bring nothing to the text itself. In my view, it wouldprobably have been better to work some of the appendices into the maintext of the book. For example, instead of the review of Brian Armstrong's

Calvinism and the Amyraut Heresy

, it would have been better to work adiscussion of Amyraldianism into Part Four on God's decrees. Though Iappreciated the fifty-five pages of republished book reviews, an additionalchapter would probably have been more profitable. The structure of the book aside, there are places where I disagree withFrame and share a difference of opinion. Firstly, I find it inconsistent to denythat our world is the best of all possible worlds while at the same time

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