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A Review from the Past

*This review by William Hendricksen was published in the September 5, 1969 edition of The Banner.

BEHOLD, HE COMETH! by Herman Hoeksema (author) and Homer C. Hoeksema (editor and reviser), Published by Reformed Publishing Association, 1969; distributed by Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503. Price: $9.95.

Truly a formidable volume with no less than seven hundred twenty-six pages, it was the last large work written by the pastor of the First Protestant Reformed Church of Grand Rapids, and has been published posthumously. The preparation for publication in book form was begun by the author and completed by his son, who not only did a splendid job of editing but also revised and expanded the exposition of Revelation 19–22.

What is the nature of this book? It is not merely a book of outlines. Neither is it a dry-as-dust exegesis without practical application. It is something far better. It is an exposition in the form of sermons or essays. In serial form the exposition appeared first in The Standard Bearer, of which Rev. Herman Hoeksema was the editor for many years. The author also twice expounded the book of Revelation in sermons. With respect to these his son writes as follows:

His sermons, of which there were two complete sets, totaling well over a hundred…were delivered with a warmth and fervor which kept a large congregation at spellbound attention Sunday after Sunday.

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Behold, He Cometh! now in its sixth printing

Behold, He Cometh! has recently been reprinted (with a new updated interior design) making this its sixth printing! First published in 1969, the RFPA has now printed 10,500 copies of this title. 

Also now available in ebook format for the first time!

His Workmanship

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”  Ephesians 2:10

Lest any man should boast.

God alone is God. As such he must be acknowledged by every creature.

Of him, and through him, and unto him are all things. Never is anything of us and through us. Nor is anything partly of us and through us. Hence his alone is the glory for ever and ever. And this glory must be attributed to him. He will give it to no other.

Therefore salvation is of the Lord.

It is by grace, from beginning to end by grace only; not of works, lest any man should boast.

To boast, to claim part of the glory that belongs to God only, and therefore to claim all the glory that is his alone, is the tendency of sin, the inclination of the sinful heart. “Ye shall be as gods” (Gen. 3:5) is the slogan that expresses the deepest motive of the natural man. He refuses to glorify God as God and to be thankful.

So he is always inclined to deprive God of his glory, to say that salvation is of his own works. It is hard for him to confess that sovereign grace alone is the source and ground and power of salvation. Somehow he always attempts to introduce his work into the work of God, to share in the glory of the divine work that delivers him from guilt and clothes him with an eternal righteousness, that cleanses him from the pollution of sin and sanctifies him unto the service of the living God, that lifts him out of the depth of the misery of death and hell into the glory of eternal life and heavenly bliss.

In various ways he seeks to escape the consequences of salvation by grace and to maintain that he is saved by works. Sometimes he attempts to work out his own righteousness and to make this righteousness of works the basis of his salvation. Sometimes he apparently is willing to confess that he is saved by grace, but he contends that it is works that make him worthy of this grace. But in the measure that he introduces his own works into the wonder of salvation, he deprives the God of salvation of his glory.

Man boasts.

Yet no man may boast in the presence of the Most High.

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Start your graduate’s library with a gift of RFPA books

CONSIDER ONE OF OUR BOOK SETS FOR YOUR GRADUATE UNFOLDING COVENANT HISTORY SERIES (volumes 1-5) From creation to the book of Ruth, Prof. Homer Hoeksema and Prof. David Engelsma teach familiar stories from the unique perspective of God’s covenant. His relationship of friendship with his people of the Old Testament is the same one he makes with us and our children! Buy Now THE TRIPLE KNOWLEDGE SERIES (volumes 1-10) Rev. Herman Hoeksema’s timeless commentary on the Heidelberg Catechism. Your graduate hears...

RFPA Update - Spring 2018

 Click icon to read the full pdf version. The articles in this issue are: "Richly blessed by those books" Keeping RFPA titles in print: Amazing Cross, Behold, He Cometh, Portraits of Faithful Saints Two special Reformation Issues of the Standard Bearer New Releases: Walking in the Way of Love, T is for Tree, Studies in Hebrews Children's books division news What are the next books being printed?: Here We Stand: Commemorating the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation, The Belgic Confession commentary (volume 1), Grace...

Singular Love

“Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God.”—1 John 3:1 BEHOLD! What marvelous love was bestowed upon us! No cold, matter-of-fact statement the apostle makes before the church of all ages. Rather it must be seen as a shout of ecstasy pressed from the author’s heart under the influence of an over-mastering emotion. Rapt out of himself and elevated above the reach of ordinary, natural perception, caught up in...

The Amazing Cross

T H E   A M A Z I N G   C R O S S   "The vicarious suffering of the Lord must occupy a central place in the consciousness of faith and in the preaching of the gospel. On the death and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ depends all of salvation.” So states the author of these powerful meditations on the passion and resurrection of Jesus Christ, giving us all the reason we need to read them and...

The Question of the Necessity of Good Works (7): Losing the Sense of God’s Favor

The Canons of Dordt, doing their part to exhort on the believer the necessity of good works, warn the believer sharply in 5.5: By such enormous sins…they [true believers] very highly offend God, incur a deadly guilt, grieve the Holy Spirit, interrupt the exercise of faith, very grievously wound their consciences, and sometimes lose the sense of God’s favor for a time, until, on their returning into the right way of serious repentance, the light of God’s fatherly countenance again shines...

FRIDAY DEALS!

Today's Friday Deal is Reformed Dogmatics (Volumes 1 & 2). Use code RD27 to get 25% off the retail price!    Reformed Dogmatics (Volumes 1 & 2) by Herman Hoeksema A clear, systematic study and exposition of Reformed theology written by one who held the Chair of Dogmatics for some forty years at the Protestant Reformed seminary. Divided into the six generally accepted branches of theology (theology, anthropology, Christology, soteriology, ecclesiology, and eschatology), this scholarly work is logical, scripturally sound, and faithful to the...

By Grace: Mighty Grace, Abiding Grace

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.”— Ephesians 2:8 Mighty grace. For grace is also the power of God by which we are delivered from the dominion of sin and death. Reconciliation alone is no salvation, nor could it possibly lead to salvation if the operation of grace ceased at the cross. It must be applied, so that from darkness we are translated into life, from sin into righteousness, and...

By Grace: Blessed Grace

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.”— Ephesians 2:8  Blessed grace. For by grace are we reconciled unto God. The same grace that motivated the Most High to ordain us unto salvation, according to which it was his purpose to make us lovely even as he is lovely, explains why he reconciled us unto himself through the death of his Son. Saved we are by grace. This means that we...

By Grace

        “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.” — Ephesians 2:8   FOR! Let us not overlook this little but significant word. For by grace are ye saved. The conjunction presents the truth expressed as a reason for something else, an explanation of something that has been mentioned in the context. It informs us that this statement does not stand alone, that it is not an isolated...

Jehovah Our Sun and Shield

A sun is Jehovah God! Wonderfully significant is the sun in nature as an image of the Lord our God. With relation to our universe, that golden bridegroom of the day, issuing forth from his chambers and going on his way through the firmament rejoicing, is radiating with fullness of life and blessing for every creature. When in the still and dark hour just before dawn of a day in June you repair to a favorite spot—where gentle zephyrs lisp, the...

The Prince of Peace

The Prince of Peace! Wonderful! Magic name in a world of woe and turmoil! Wonderful name, indeed, in a world torn by war, bleeding from a thousand wounds: The Prince of Peace! Small wonder that even they who know Him not and understand nothing of the peace He came to bring are spellbound by the charm and magic of that name, and every Christmas season speak of Him and sing the praises of what they conceive to be the Prince of...