Who Was B. B. Warfield? The Princeton Theologian of the Bible
Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, usually called B. B. Warfield, was an American Presbyterian theologian who lived from 1851 to 1921. For more than thirty years he taught theology at Princeton Theological Seminary in New Jersey. He's best known for his defense of the inspiration and full trustworthiness of the Bible, and for his clear, careful statements of the doctrines of grace. Many readers still count him the greatest of the old Princeton theologians.
He was also a man of quiet faithfulness at home, and a preacher who could move students to tears over the love of God. Here's a fuller look at his life, what he taught, and which of his books to start with.
Kentucky and Princeton
Warfield was born on November 5, 1851, near Lexington, Kentucky. His family was well off and deeply Presbyterian. His mother came from the Breckinridge family, which had given Kentucky preachers, statesmen and a vice president. As a boy he loved science and mathematics, and for a time he expected to become a scientist.
He entered the College of New Jersey, now Princeton University, and graduated in 1871 with high honors. After some time in Europe he turned toward the ministry. He studied at Princeton Theological Seminary and graduated in 1876.
A marriage marked by suffering
In August 1876 he married Annie Kinkead. They traveled to Germany, where he studied under scholars such as Franz Delitzsch. During that trip the couple were caught in a violent thunderstorm. Annie never fully recovered from the shock, and she remained an invalid for the rest of her life.
Warfield cared for her for nearly forty years, until her death in 1915. Accounts of his life say he seldom left Princeton for long, so that he could stay near her. They had no children. He rarely spoke about this in public, but it shaped his days.
Pittsburgh, then Princeton
After a short time in the pastorate, Warfield taught New Testament at Western Theological Seminary in Allegheny, near Pittsburgh. In 1887 Princeton Seminary called him to succeed A. A. Hodge as professor of theology, in the chair once held by Charles Hodge. He stayed in that post until he died.
He was a tireless writer. He reviewed books in several languages, edited a theological journal for years, and wrote long articles for encyclopedias and reviews. Much of his best work was in essays rather than big books. After his death his writings were gathered into a set of ten volumes, and two of those, Revelation and Inspiration and Biblical Doctrines, are in TheWay Library.
He died at Princeton on February 16, 1921, still teaching almost to the end.
What he taught about the Bible
Warfield's name is tied to the doctrine of inspiration. In 1881 he and A. A. Hodge published a long essay called Inspiration. It argued that the Bible was produced by God and human writers together, so that every word is truly a man's word and also truly God's. He held that Scripture, as first given, is without error, and that the burden of proof lies on anyone who claims otherwise.
A proved error in Scripture contradicts not only our doctrine, but the Scripture claims, and therefore its inspiration in making those claims.
Inspiration, Critical Objections Tried
He didn't think this was a new idea. He showed that it was the way Jesus and the apostles treated the Old Testament. His word study on 2 Timothy 3:16 explained that "given by inspiration of God" means "God-breathed":
What is filled with God will certainly be redolent of God, and what is redolent of God will certainly breathe out God.
Revelation and Inspiration, "God-Inspired Scripture"
And he never treated the human side as something to hide:
Every word of the Bible is the word of God according to the doctrine we are discussing; but also and just as truly, every word is the word of a man.
Revelation and Inspiration, Inspiration and Criticism
What he taught about salvation
Warfield was a convinced Calvinist. In The Plan of Salvation he sorted the main Christian views of how God saves, and argued that only the Reformed view keeps salvation wholly God's work. He put the heart of it simply:
Man provides only the sinner to be saved: God provides the entire salvation.
The Power of God unto Salvation, Paul's Earliest Gospel
He also wrote against the perfectionism of his day, and in Counterfeit Miracles he argued that the miraculous gifts of the apostles' time had ceased with them. He did not deny that God answers prayer for the sick. He denied that the apostolic gifts continue.
The preacher and pastor
People who know only Warfield's debates are often surprised by his sermons. He preached often in the seminary chapel, and three books of his preaching are in the library. They are exact about the text, but warm. On John 3:16 he could say:
The greatness of the love of God, the immeasurable greatness of the love of God!
The Saviour of the World, God's Immeasurable Love
And to students about to enter the ministry:
Let all thought of our dignity, our possessions, our rights, perish out of sight, when Christ's service calls to us.
The Saviour of the World, Imitating the Incarnation
His short addresses in Faith and Life show the same man. He prayed, he loved hymns, and he wanted his students to be holy, not only learned.
Why he's still read
Warfield is still read because he took the Bible at its word and explained it with great care. When people ask whether Scripture can be trusted, what "God-breathed" means, or how grace saves, they keep finding that he answered the question a century ago, and answered it well. He was a scholar who never stopped being a worshiper.
Where to start
TheWay Library has eight of his books, all free to read. If you're new to him, start with Faith and Life, forty-one short addresses that join careful Bible study to warm devotion. For his preaching, read The Saviour of the World. For his teaching on the Bible, go to Revelation and Inspiration.
Our guide to B. B. Warfield's books explains how all eight fit together, and our collection of B. B. Warfield quotes gathers his best lines. You'll find all his books on the B. B. Warfield author page.