Perseverance of the saints, sometimes calledpreservation of the saints, is aCalvinist doctrine that asserts that theelect will persevere in faith and ultimately attainsalvation. This concept was first developed byAugustine of Hippo in the early 5th century, based on the idea ofpredestination bypredeterminism. In the 16th century,John Calvin and otherreformers incorporated this idea into their theological framework. The doctrine of the perseverance of the saints is rooted in this specific understanding ofpredestination and remains a central tenet ofReformed theology today.
The doctrine of perseverance of the saints asserts that theelect will persevere infaith until the end of their lives and ultimately achievesalvation. Those who are trulyborn again are the elect who will persevere to the end.[1][2][3]
The alternative term "preservation of the saints" emphasizesGod's role indetermining the elect's perseverance. Conversely, "perseverance of the saints" highlights the human act of perseverance, which is a consequence of God's preservation.[4][5][6] However, "preservation of the saints" is a broader concept that can describe how God preserves the elect, whether deterministically or not. The non-deterministic view, known as "conditional preservation," refers to God protecting the believer’s relationship with Him from external forces, contingent upon the believer’s continuedfaith.[7]
Because one practical interpretation of the Calvinist doctrine of "perseverance of the saints" leads to "eternal security",[8] over time, the term became synonymous with the doctrine itself.[9] By the early 20th century, "eternal security" was used as a strict synonym for "perseverance of the saints".[10] However, given the theological significance of the term "eternal security" in common usage, it's important to distinguish them.[11] Indeed, some Calvinist theologians reject the use of "eternal security" for their doctrine of perseverance,[12] as do proponents of non-Calvinist forms of eternal security.[13]
During his conflict with thePelagians, however Augustine seemed to reintroduce certain Manichean principles into his thought,[23][24][25][26][27][28] a shift notably influenced by the controversy overinfant baptism.[29] His early exposure to Stoicism, with its emphasis on meticulous divinepredeterminism, also shaped his views.[30] According to Manichean doctrine, unborn and unbaptized infants were condemned tohell due to their physical bodies.[31] Augustine asserted that God predetermined parents to seek baptism for their newborns, linkingwater baptism toregeneration,[32] and ultimately predetermining which infants aredamned and which arejustified.[33]
Augustine had to explain why some baptized individuals continued in the faith while othersfell away and livedimmoral lives. He taught that among those regenerated through baptism, some receive an additionalgift of perseverance (donum perseverantiae) enabling them to maintain their faith and preventing them fromfalling away.[34][35][36] Without this second gift, a baptizedChristian with theHoly Spirit would not persevere and ultimately would not be saved.[37] Augustine developed this doctrine of perseverance inDe correptione et gratia (c. 426–427).[38] While this doctrine theoretically gives security to theelect who receive the gift of perseverance, individuals cannot ascertain whether they have received it.[39][16][40]
Proponents of Augustinian soteriology before the Reformation
Orthodox forms of Calvinism view God'sprovidence as expressed throughtheological determinism.[55][56][57] This means that every event in the world is determined by God.[58] As the Westminster Confession of Faith put it: "God, from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatever comes to pass."[59]
Concerning salvation, Calvin expressly taught that it is God'ssovereign decision to determine whether an individual is saved or damned.[60][61] He writes "By predestination we mean the eternal decree of God, by which he determined with himself whatever he wished to happen with regard to every man. All are not created on equal terms, but some are preordained to eternal life, others to eternal damnation; and, accordingly, as each has been created for one or other of these ends, we say that he has been predestinated to life or to death."[62] Indeed, human actions leading to this end are alsopredetermined by God.[63] In accordance, Calvin held to the doctrine of perseverance of the saints, contending for the unconditional preservation of the elect.[64]
Practical interpretations of the doctrine of perseverance of the saints
According to Calvinism,apostasy is not possible for those who are trueChristians.[65] However, being a true Christian is only demonstrated by perseverance to the end.[66] This arises because there are instances where individuals appear to come to God but later display definitive apostasy. To address this phenomenon, Calvinist theologians have postulated thatcommon grace might include effects that cannot be distinguished fromeffectual calling and subsequentirresistible grace. About that issue,Calvin formulated the concept of a temporarygrace (sometimes called "evanescent grace") that appears and works for only a while in thereprobate but then to disappears.[67][68][69][70][71] According to this concept, theHoly Spirit can create in some people effects which are indistinguishable from those of the irresistible grace of God,[72] producing also a visible "fruit" in their life.[73] Temporary grace was also supported by later Calvinist theologians such asTheodore Beza,William Perkins,[74]John Owen,[75]A. W. Pink[76] andLoraine Boettner.[77] This suggests that the knowledge of being a true Christian is theoretically not accessible during life.[78] Thus a first interpretation of the doctrine of perseverance of the saints acknowledges explanations of apparent apostasy like "evanescent grace," which avoids offering to the believer absolute assurance of salvation during life. Several Reformed theologians have expressed a non-absolute assurance of salvation view.[79][80][81][82]
Practical interpretation supporting an absolute assurance of salvation
Calvin heavily drew uponAugustinian soteriology.[49][50] However, bothAugustine andLuther, anAugustinian friar, held that believers, based on their own understanding, cannot definitively know if they are among the "elect to perseverance."[83][84][16] Despite Calvin's inability to offer a clear rationale,[79] he was more optimistic than Luther regarding this possibility.[85] Calvin suggested that some assurance of being an elect might be possible.[86] This possibility of assurance, based on personal introspection, was also expressed by later Calvinist theologians.[87] It was mentioned in theHeidelberg Catechism (1563)[88] and the Westminster Confession of Faith (1646).[89] In the 18th century,[90]Hyper-Calvinism encouraged introspection as a means for adherents to determine their election.[91] The concept persisted into the 19th century.[92] This assurance forms the foundation of unconditional eternal security within Calvinist circles.
The process leading toeternal security unfolds as follows: Initially, the believer must embrace the Calvinist system, emphasizingunconditional election andirresistible grace. Subsequently, through self-examination, they must discern the spiritual influence of theHoly Spirit. Thisintrospection may lead to a faith in their ownpredetermined election. In this context, the concept of the perseverance of the saints may prompt the believer to believe in their irresistible perseverance.[93][94]
Because this practical interpretation of the doctrine of "perseverance of the saints" leads to "eternal security", within Reformed Christianity, the term has become synonymous with the doctrine itself over time.[9] By the early 20th century, "eternal security" was used as a strict synonym for "perseverance of the saints".[10] However, in broader Protestantism, "eternal security" often carries a distinct meaning.[9] It's then important to differentiate the two due to their respective theological significance.[11]
Groups such as thePrimitive Baptists, originating in Georgia in the early 20th century,[95] officially embraced this form of eternal security due to their strong Calvinist beliefs.[96]
In Calvinist circles, thus, two practical interpretations emerge regarding "perseverance of the saints": One interpretation accept explanations of apparent apostasy such as "evanescent grace," which does not offer believers absolute assurance of salvation during life. The other interpretation rejects these explanations, asserting that believers, through introspection, can know with absolute certainty that they are elect, thus allowing belief in eternal security.[8] These two perspectives were already observed in the 16th century.Jacobus Arminius (1560-1609), a pastor of theReformed Church, encountered both perspectives stemming from the doctrine of perseverance of the saints. He labeled the first perspective "despair" (Latin:desperatio) and the second "security" (Latin:securitas).[93] This "eternal security" interpretation of perseverance of the saints was also explicitly condemned by theCouncil of Trent (1545-1563).[97][98]
The doctrine of perseverance of the saints can suggest that a believer have someassurance of final salvation. However, this interpretation faces criticism for its perceived inconsistency. In orthodox Calvinism, while the elect will persevere to the end, believers cannot know they are elect until they persevere to the end.[66] This reality, regardless of explanations for definitiveapostasy, undermines the practical utility of "perseverance of the saints," hindering assurance of salvation. This critique has been advanced by various non-Calvinist sources, including proponents offree grace theology,[99] and advocates ofconditional preservation of the saints, such asArminians.[100]
Within the perseverance of the saints framework, the phenomenon of definitive apostasy is generally explained by Calvinist theologians by the "evanescent grace" concept. This concept implies that the Holy Spirit voluntarily gives temporary faith and related "fruits".[78] Non-Calvinist Christians find this explanation contrary to the revealed character of God and inconsistent with the overall revelation.[101]
The eternal security interpretation introduces a tension in the subject of faith
The "eternal security" practical interpretation of perseverance of the saints asserts that an individual can believe he is an elect and will thus irresistibly persevere.[93]Arminians often highlight a tension in this view between presentfaith inJesus and faith in a past event,[102] namely, election.[85] They argue that such faith in a past event is given equal significance in ensuring finalsalvation as present faith in Jesus.[103] Arminians contend that genuine faith should be unique and focused solely on Jesus.[104]
The eternal security interpretation can lead to antinominianism
The "eternal security" practical interpretation of perseverance of the saints asserts that an individual can believe he is an elect and will thus irresistibly persevere.[93] Such an interpretation can lead an individual to abandon a dynamic understanding ofsanctification in favor of a static,antinomian perspective.[105]
Several warning passages in thebook of Hebrews, especiallyHebrews 6:4–6 andHeb 10:26–39 seem to contradict the Calvinistic doctrine of the unconditional preservation of the elect.[106][107] The debate over these passages centers around the identity of the persons in question, with the following main interpretations proposed:[108]
The hypothetical view: The warnings are genuine but hypothetical, intended to jar believers into moral rectitude and perseverance.[109][110]
The phenomenological-false believer view: The warnings are real and directed toward people who can genuinely commit the sin, but those who can do so are not true believers.[109][111]
The phenomenological-true believer view: The warnings are given to true believers who can genuinely commit the sin.[112][111]
The covenant community view: The warnings concern the rejection of a covenant community by God when the community as a whole turns away from God's will, rather than individual believers.[113][111]
There are several less common interpretations. One suggests that the warnings do not refer to a loss of salvation but rather a loss of eternal rewards.[114][115] Another posits that the warnings could refer toJewish Christians reverting toJudaism.[116][117]
"Hypothetical view": Hebrews 6:4-6 can describe those who temporarily backslide in their faith but does not address the issue of permanent loss of faith.[118] This reading has been criticized for its tendency to weaken the force of the passage.[119][120]
"Phenomenological-false believer view": Hebrews 6:4-6 does not refer to regenerated individuals, but to unbelievers who have received God's gifts and benefited from Hisgrace yet remainedskeptics.[121] This distinction attracts recurring criticism due to its artificial nature.[122][117]
"Phenomenological-true believer view":Oropeza asserts that the recipients of the letter to the Hebrews had facedpersecutions, and the author acknowledges that some members had become apostates despite their genuineconversion experiences. The author warns the current audience that despite their past benefits and experiences confirming their faith, they too couldfall away if they continue in their state of malaise and neglect, with dire consequences for apostasy.[123] While some argue for an irremediable apostasy interpretation,[124] others, contend thatapostasy by aregenerated Christian is possible but not systematically irremediable as long as they are alive. According to this view,McKnight suggests that the author of Hebrews describes an apostasy that exceeds the grace period given by God, which is irremediable, not the remediable apostasy that can occur during a person's life.[125]
Free grace advocates believe that believers are promisedeternal security, but not guaranteed perseverance. Those who do not persevere will face temporal discipline and loss of rewards.[130]
^Grudem 1994, p. 970. "The Perseverance of the Saints means that all those who are truly born again will be kept by God's power and will persevere as Christians until the end of their lives, and that only those who persevere until the end have been truly born again."
^Westminster Assembly 1946, ch. 17, art. 2. "They, whom God hath accepted in His Beloved, effectually called, and sanctified by His Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved."
^abPurkiser 1972, p. 74. "In the majority of cases, however, the doctrine of eternal security is not grounded on the Calvinistic dogma of unconditional predestination. While all who teach eternal security are frequently called "Calvinists," actually the greater portion of them are no more than 20 percent Calvinistic."
^abcJohnson 2008, pp. 21–22. "It is common to hear the term “eternal security” used basically as a synonym for “the perseverance of the saints”. [...] However, the term “eternal security” is often used in a very different and unbiblical way [...] Hence, in common usage, the term “eternal security” can sometimes refer to a doctrine diametrically opposed to the Reformed doctrine of perseverance."
^abUSBC 1941, p. 252. "The first change in the Articles of Faith dealt with the Calvinistic doctrine of "eternal security." It was changed from saying that "all who are regenerated and born again by the Spirit of God shall never finally fall away," to "all who are regenerated and born again by the Spirit of God, and endure to the end, shall be saved.""
^abGrudem 1994, p. 860. "[W]e see why the phrase eternal security can be quite misleading. In some evangelical churches, instead of teaching the full and balanced presentation of the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints, pastors have sometimes taught a watered-down version, which in effect tells people that all who have once made a profession of faith and been baptized are “eternally secure.”"
^Horton 2002, p. 24. "In fact, eternal security itself is not a Calvinistic doctrine but, at least in the expressions with which I am familiar, rests on Arminian presuppositions concerning grace and free will."
^Hunt & White 2009, p. 392. "[As Laurence M.] Vance says: It is the Calvinists who reject the biblical teaching of eternal security. The fifth point of the TULIP,as it was originally formulated and commonly interpreted, is at enmity with eternal security. Perseverance of the Saints...is not the same thing as eternal security."
^Latourette 1945, p. 332. "The young Augustine for a time had fellowship with it [Manichaeanism). It seems to have left a permanent impression upon him."
^Mozley 1855, p. 149. "When St. Augustine is charged by Pelagius with fatalism, he does not disown the certainty and necessity, but only the popular superstitions and impieties of that system."
^Haight 1974, p. 30. "Infant baptism tended to be regarded as an initiation into the kingdom of God and the effects of Original Sin as mediated by society. Only adult baptism included the remission of sin. Augustine denied this traditional view: Man's nature is fundamentally disordered because of inherited sin and this involved personal guilt so that an unbaptized infant could not be save."
^abMcMahon 2012, pp. 7–9. "This is why one finds that every four pages written in theInstitutes of the Christian Religion John Calvin quoted Augustine. Calvin, for this reason, would deem himself not a Calvinist, but an Augustinian. [...] Christian Calvinist, should they be more likely deemed an Augustinian-Calvinist?"
^Helm 2010, p. 230. "[I]t is reasonable to conclude that although Calvin does not avow determinism in so many words, he nevertheless adopts a broadly deterministic outlook."
^Clark 1961, pp. 237–238. "God is the sole ultimate cause of everything. There is absolutely nothing independent of him. He alone is the eternal being. He alone is omnipotent. He alone is sovereign."
^Alexander & Johnson 2016, p. 204. "It should be conceded at the outset, and without any embarrassment, that Calvinism is indeed committed to divine determinism: the view that everything is ultimately determined by God."
^Calvin 1845, 3.23.1. "Those therefore whom God passes by [does not elect] He reprobates, and that for no other cause than He is pleased to exclude them."
^Sproul 2011, p. 37. "If God has decided our destinies from all eternity, that strongly suggests that our free choices are but charades, empty exercises in predetermined playacting. It is as though God wrote the script for us in concrete and we are merely carrying out his scenario."
^abGrudem 1994, p. 860, . "[T]his doctrine of the perseverance of the saints, if rightly understood, should cause genuine worry, and even fear, in the hearts of any who are “backsliding” or straying away from Christ. Such persons must clearly be warned that only those who persevere to the end have been truly born again."
^Calvin 1961, p. 66. "[T]hose who appear to live piously may be called sons of God; but since they will eventually live impiously and die in that impiety, God does not call them sons in His foreknowledge. There are sons of God who do not yet appear so to us, but now do so to God; and there are those who, on account of some arrogated or temporal grace, are called so by us, but are not so to God."
^Calvin 1845, 3:24:8. "Sometimes, however, he communicates it also to those whom he enlightens only for a time, and whom afterwards, in just punishment for their ingratitude, he abandons and smites with greater blindness."
^Calvin 1963, p. 76. "[...] I do not see that this is any reason why He should not touch the reprobate with a taste of His grace, or illumine their minds with some glimmerings of His light, or affect them with some sense of His goodness, or to some extent engrave His Word in their hearts. Otherwise where would be that passing faith which Marks mentions (4.17)? Therefore there is some knowledge in the reprobate, which later vanishes away either because it drives its roots less deep than it ought to, or because it is choked and withers away."
^Calvin 1845, 3:2:11. "Experience shows that the reprobate are sometimes affected in a way so similar to the elect that even in their own judgment there is no difference between them. [...] [T]he Lord, the better to convict them, and leave them without excuse, instills into their minds such a sense of goodness as can be felt without the Spirit of adoption [...] Therefore, as God regenerates the elect only for ever by incorruptible seed, [...] there is nothing to prevent an inferior operation of the Spirit from taking its course in the reprobate. [...] Thus we dispose of the objection, that if God truly displays his grace, it must endure for ever. There is nothing inconsistent in this with the fact of his enlightening some with a present sense of grace, which afterwards proves evanescent."
^Calvin 1845, pp. 478–479, 3:2:11-12. "[Some reprobates are] just as a tree not planted deep enough may take root, but in the process of time wither away, though it may for several years not only put forth leaves and flowers, but produce fruit."
^Keathley 2010, p. 170. "The doctrine of temporary faith, a notion first formulated by Calvin but later developed by Beza and William Perkins, further intensified the problem of assurance in Calvinist and Puritan theology. According to them, God gives to the reprobate, whom He never intended to save in the first place, a “taste” of his grace. Based on passages such as Matt 7:21–23; Heb 6:4–6, and the parable of the Sower, Beza and Perkins attribute this false, temporary faith to an ineffectual work of the Holy Spirit."
^Gribben & Tweeddale 2022, p. 402. "[...] Owen readily admits that the Spirit occasionally induces a partial illumination of the gospel truth, which might produce some conviction of sin and reformation of behavior. [...] For whatever its superficial resemblance to genuine conversion, it nevertheless falls short of that reality and explains the phenomenon of an apparently temporary illumination famously described in Heb. 6.4."
^Pink 2009, pp. 18–19. "Scripture also teaches that people may possess a faith which is one of the Holy Spirit, and yet which is anon-saving one. This faith which we now allude to has two ingredients which neither education nor self-effort can produce: spiritual light and a Divine power moving the mind to assent. Now a man may have both illumination and inclination from heaven, and yet not be regenerated. We have a solemn proof of this in Hebrews 6:4-6."
^Boettner 1932, ch. 14. "In addition to what has been said it is to be admitted that often times the common operations of the Spirit on the enlightened conscience lead to reformation and to an externally religious life. Those so influenced are often very strict in their conduct and diligent in their religious duties. To the awakened sinner the promises of the Gospel and the exhibition of the plan of salvation contained in the Scriptures appear not only as true but as suited to his condition. [...] This faith continues as long as the state of mind by which it is produced continues. When that changes, he relapses into his usual state of insensibility, and his faith disappears."
^abWalls & Dongell 2004, pp. 201–202. "What is truly remarkable here is that persons who receive this partial and temporary illumination appear for a time to be truly elect but in fact aren't. They are deluded by a false hope. This dreadful possibility is what haunts Calvinists who struggle with the assurance and certainty of salvation."
^abCalvin 1961, p. 126. "Men preposterously ask how they can be certain of a salvationwhich lies in the hidden counsel of God. I have replied with the truth. Since the certainty of salvation is set forth to us in Christ, it is wrong and injurious to Christ to pass over this proffered fountain of life from which supplies are available, and to toil to draw life out of the hidden recesses of God." (Emphasis added)
^Keathley 2010, p. 171. "John Bunyan’sPilgrim’s Progress has blessed multitudes of Christians, but his spiritual autobiography,Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, is disturbing. He recounts how, in his seemingly endless search for assurance of salvation, he was haunted by the question, “How can I tell if I am elected?”"
^Keathley 2010, p. 164. "Michael Eaton [quotes the Calvinist preacher Asahel] Nettleton: “The most that I have ventured to say respecting myself is, that I think it possible I may get to heaven.”"
^Paton 2013b. "You ask me: Michael, do you know you are saved? My answer: yes. You ask me: Michael, do you have assurance? My answer: yes. You ask me: Michael, why do you believe you are saved? My answer: because today I am still believing. But I have to test this all the time, as I am not infallible. I could have a false faith, but I don’t believe I do. This ninety percent assurance will have to do."
^Davis 1991, p. 213, "Unlike Calvin and those in the later Reformed tradition, however, Augustine does not believe that the Christian can in this life know with infallible certitude that he is in fact among the elect and that he will finally persevere."
^Davis 1991, p. 216"Whether the believer, now in a state of grace, would remain in grace to the end was for Luther an open question."
^abDavis 1991, p. 217, . "Calvin, however, has greater confidence than Luther and the Catholic tradition before him that the believer can also have great assurance of his election and final perseverance."
^Davis 1991, p. 217, "[For Calvin, when the Church father Gregory the Great] “teaches that we are aware only of our call but unsure of our election, he is badly and dangerously in error.”"
^Keathley 2010, p. 167. "The post-Reformation Calvinists and Puritans held to a [...] view which saw assurance as a grace given subsequent to conversion and discerned by careful self-examination."
^CRC 1988, p. 19, Lord's Day 7, Q. 21. "True faith is not only a knowledge and conviction that everything God reveals in his Word is true; it is also a deep-rooted assurance, created in me by the Holy Spirit, through the gospel, that out of sheer grace earned for us by Christ, not only others, but I too, have had my sins forgiven, have been made forever right with God, and have been granted salvation."
^Westminster Assembly 1946, ch. 18, art. 2. "This certainty is not a bare conjectural and probable persuasion grounded upon a fallible hope; but an infallible assurance of faith founded upon the divine truth of the promises of salvation, the inward evidence of those graces [...]."
^Toon 2011, p. 144. "Hyper-Calvinism led its adherents to hold that evangelism was not necessary and to place much emphasis on introspection in order to discover whether or not one was elect."
^Britain 1827, p. 302, vol. 1. "Election, then will be like a threefold cord let down from heaven, which the believer has a right to view as his eternal security, never to be broken- and which will draw (not drag) him sweetly through sanctification of the Spirit, and a cordial belief of the truth, into the haven of eternal rest."
^Keathley 2010, p. 172. "The later Calvinists and Puritans employed two syllogisms, thepractical syllogism and the mystical syllogism, in their attempt to ascertain assurance by way of logical deduction. [...] The practical syllogism is as follows: Major premise: If effectual grace is manifested in me by good works, then I am elect. Minor premise (practical): I manifest good works. Conclusion: Therefore, I am one of the elect. But how does one know the minor premise of the practical syllogism is true for him? The Puritans attempted to answer this question by an introspective self-examination using the mystical syllogism. The mystical syllogism is as follows: Major premise: If I experience the inward confirmation of the Spirit, then I am elect. Minor premise (mystical): I experience the confirmation of the Spirit. Conclusion: Therefore, I am one of the elect."
^Routledge 1851, Session 6, ch. 16., Cannon 16. "If any one shall say, that he will for certain, of an absolute and infallible certainty, have that great gift of perseverance unto the end, unless that he have learnt this by a special revelation; let him be anathema."
^Geisler 2002, p. 68, n. 7. "Most strong Calvinists claim that full assurance in this life is possible. However, this is inconsistent with their other beliefs that one must maintain a life of faithful works to the end to be sure one is saved and did not really have "false assurance" during one's life and was, therefore, one of the nonelect."
^Purkiser 1972, p. 74, "This turns out to be a curious sort of security. In effect one says, "If I am elected to eternal life, I am eternally secure. But I cannot, in the nature of the case, be sure that I am so elected."."
^Robinson 2022, pp. 352–253. "For God to act in this manner strikes the non-Calvinist as not only ludicrous, but more importantly, as God being deceptive in lulling the temporary believer into thinking that he (and his fellow believers) are true believers and part of God's elect at one time. [...] [I]t is contrary to the character of the God who reveals himself as the God of truth and faithfulness [...] ."
^Wynkoop 1967, chap. 6. "[Assurance] is a growing, deepening, expanding faith in Christ measured by a growth in love and obedience and which looks upward to Him, not backward to some past point, as important as this may be to the “entering in.”".
^Purkiser 1972, p. 74, "Their own faith is lacking because they will not —cannot— trust themselves completely to the love of God as expressed in the finished work of Christ, nor to the promises and privileges of either."
^Wynkoop 1967, chap. 6. "The very conditionality of biblical salvation, then, leads us into a very serious and profound understanding of sanctification. Assurance is not a static, amoral, even antinomian positionalism. [...] The true antithesis to Calvinism is the Wesleyan and (we believe) biblical concept of sanctification with its dynamic, life-involving meaning [...]".
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