Communicating God’s Trinitarian Fullness

“In his work Communicating God’s Trinitarian Fullness: An Exposition of Jonathan Edwards’ End of Creation, Joe Rigney demonstrates a careful approach to scholarship, making a distinctive contribution to the field of Edwards studies. Rigney not only provides a comprehensive examination of the theological underpinnings behind Edwards’s argument in End of Creation, but also offers a comprehensive exposition of this treatise, showcasing an exemplary level of engagement with existing scholarly discourse. Given the ongoing critical assessment of the writings of Jonathan Edwards, Rigney’s scholarship emerges as indispensable in the scholarly evaluation of America’s preeminent theologian.”

“This is a book for heart and for head. It quenches our spiritual thirst by looking into the heart of the triune God. Carefully, Joe Rigney peels out Jonathan Edwards’ insights about the triune God. In doing so, he reveals God’s love for Himself that leads Him to communicate this inexhaustible fullness to his creatures. God’s glory does not compete with our happiness, but it makes us share in God’s own knowledge, love and joy. I like this book, this stuff, this depth, this logic, and this warmth.”

“I love reading books that have clear goals. And Joe Rigney’s Communicating God’s Trinitarian Fullness does just that. It is in the first instance a commentary on Edwards’s End for which God created the world. But more than this, it is also a critique of competing interpretations of Edwards’s philosophical theology, providing a confident path through the debates. And it contains a concise contribution in its own right to Edwards’s doctrine of the Trinity, the basic bedrock for his eschatology. It isn’t a big book, but it does pack a punch beyond its weight.”

“Edwards’ End of Creation has for a long time both dazzled and puzzled readers: it contains such a breathtaking vision of God and the world he created, yet some of its statements appear to suggest that Edwards struggled to affirm a classical articulation of the Christian God. In this tightly reasoned and wonderfully compact book, Joe Rigney artfully compiles a superb set of arguments demonstrating Edwards’s fidelity to classical orthodoxy in End of Creation. It is an outstanding handbook that shines much light on Edwards’s classic!”

“Jonathan Edwards’s Dissertation Concerning the End for Which God Created the World is a rare theological work in terms of its theoretical elegance, argumentative rigor, and depth of systematic insight. Joe Rigney is to be thanked for providing a clear and penetrating analysis of this text which showcases Edwards’s brilliance. Communicating God’s Triune Fullness is an invaluable resource for students of Edwards as well as for theologians, ministers, and Christian laypersons from various theological traditions who want to inquire into the end for which God created the world.”

“Like all theological masterpieces, Edwards’s The End embraces, first, a theological background; second, a text that needs to be carefully understood over against that background; and third, a naturally following series of legitimate questions, understandable misunderstandings, and (less justifiable) misreadings that need to be address. Communicating God’s Fullness ably covers all the three areas above. This readable exposition of Edwards’s ‘metaphysical gospel narrative’ (J. J. Bombaro) will help the reader to gain a renewed appreciation of Edwards’s orthodox, awe-inspiring God-centered view of all things.”