Children of the Promise: The Biblical Case for Infant Baptism

Rating:
Summary: doesn't cover the whole issue
Review: Booth makes a good case for infant baptism vis a vis dispensationalism, but infant baptism does not necessarily turn on this issue, as Paul Jewett demonstrates in Infant Baptism and the Covenant of Grace. I would recommend that Jewett's book be read along with this one to get a better sense of all the issues involved.

Rating:
Summary: Misrepresentation of ........
Review: I am sad to say that I was not pleased with this book because of the authors misrepresentation of Dispensationalism. The author seems to be a speculator and is really trying to read things into the Bible to fit his view. I don't have a problem with Covenant of Grace, but by reading this book has really grounded me in the views of the dispensationalist. I do commend him on his effort and love for God and the family though so that I will give him the two stars for!!

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Summary: Review by Fred A Malone
Review: I have read many books from both sides of the infant baptism debate, but this is the best yet! However, it still has its imperfections.

His introduction is a supreme example of how to encourage those of an opposing view in the true Church to examine one's view in the light of Holy Scripture.

As a whole the book is excellent. He begins each chapter with an apt (but not superfluous) illustration. He then proceeds to argue his case in a very logical manner. Each chapter is structured into short sections, which is helpful.

He argues from the continuity of the eternal Covenant of salvation, the continuity of the Church in both Testaments, the continuity of the sign of the Covenant, the continuity of the treatment of the children of God's people by God and the continuity of the idea of household in both Tesaments, for infant baptism.

The main imperfections in this book are: his tendency to make jumps in his train of thought; his poor exegesis at a few minor points; and his lack of clear Biblical evidence at some points. I can read between the lines, but a hard-nosed dispensationalist, who says, "Show me Biblical evidence!" could manage to evade the force of the arguments in this book. (If he was more open and fair-minded, he would do better. However, he would still be struggling to evade the force of these arguments, IF he was a careful student of Scripture.)

(My wife and I read this book together and came to the same opinions about it, by the way.)

You may ask, "Why does this guy's opinion about this book matter?"

Although brought up in a solid paedobaptist (i.e. believing in baptising believers infants) church, I could not see this idea in the Scriptures. I thus intended to join a Baptist church when I grew older. However, being a "born-again" Christian and believing that all things should be tested by the Scriptures alone and believing that our forefathers in the historic Presbyterian and Reformed churches were no fools (and knowing that there is no tangible evidence for Baptist theology prior to the early 1500's - see the appendix in this book for a good historical study), I studied this issue intensively from both sides and came to the conclusion that infant baptism was true and that there is excellent Biblical evidence for it.

Further studies led me to read David Kingdon's "The Children of Abraham", a Calvinistic Baptist study of the issue. This was a better proposal than standard Baptist arguments, but it was still unsatisfactory as an explanation of the Biblical facts. I was still confirmed in the belief that baptism is an ordinance commanded by God for the children of believers, as well as new believers who have never been baptised as the child of a believer.

This book has confirmed me even more strongly in this view. As my wife is about to give birth to our first child tomorrow (God willing), I intend to have it receive the sign of the covenant and membership in the visible congregation of God's people, and I thank God my child is holy (1 Cor. 7:14) and that it is His will that I raise up godly offspring (Mal. 2:15).

May God bring it and all my descendants to salvation. And may God show you the truth of infant baptism in this book. AMEN.

Rating:
Summary: Why I am now a former Baptist
Review: I said in my review of Douglas Wilson's To a Thousand Generations that it was one of two books that finally convinced me of the paedobaptist position. This is the other one.

Before I read this book, I was a Baptist, albeit one who had already accepted the basic premises of Covenant Theology.

Booth doesn't merely address baptism in this book. The first part of it is a cogent explanation of Covenant Theology. If every Dispensationalist would read this book, perhaps we would stop "talking past each other." ...

Booth's writing style is easy to read, and the vignettes presented with each chapter do a great job of illustrating his points.

If you are a Baptist with questions on the subject, you owe it to yourself to read this book. If you already believe in paedobaptism, this book should help you understand why.

Rating:
Summary: Gentle, irenic, pastoral, yet powerful in content
Review: I'll make this simple and brief -
Booth's book is simply one of the best advocating infant baptism ("covenantal baptism") available. It's tremendously easy to read, and the writer balances his love of truth with his commitment to the building up of Christ's body. He is therefore, passionate about truth, but never at the expense of his love of is Christian brethren.
He not only deals with the NT considerations, but begins at the beginning - the OT. He shows that any proper evaluation of Christian baptism must begin with a proper understanding of Covenant Theology, the Old Covenant sign of circumcision, and the concept of Covenant Household (Family Solidarity).
Since the NT is based upon and proceeds from the Old, these concepts must be taken for granted when the NT is read. For those who were so steeped in the OT mentality and who applied the sign of the Covenant to their children (Gen. 17), why would they not apply the sign of the New Covenant to their children?
Booth also adds an appendix, "Samuel Miller's Argument from Church History," for those who need some historical verification.

This book is perfect for the beginnner, yet also substantial enough for those well informed on the subject. This book deserves a wide readership!

Rating:
Summary: Gentle, irenic, pastoral, yet powerful in content
Review: I'll make this simple and brief -
Booth's book is simply one of the best advocating infant baptism ("covenantal baptism") available. It's tremendously easy to read, and the writer balances his love of truth with his commitment to the building up of Christ's body. He is therefore, passionate about truth, but never at the expense of his love of is Christian brethren.
He not only deals with the NT considerations, but begins at the beginning - the OT. He shows that any proper evaluation of Christian baptism must begin with a proper understanding of Covenant Theology, the Old Covenant sign of circumcision, and the concept of Covenant Household (Family Solidarity).
Since the NT is based upon and proceeds from the Old, these concepts must be taken for granted when the NT is read. For those who were so steeped in the OT mentality and who applied the sign of the Covenant to their children (Gen. 17), why would they not apply the sign of the New Covenant to their children?
Booth also adds an appendix, "Samuel Miller's Argument from Church History," for those who need some historical verification.

This book is perfect for the beginnner, yet also substantial enough for those well informed on the subject. This book deserves a wide readership!

Rating:
Summary: An excellent resource for those looking into infant baptism.
Review: In this book, Robert Booth does a fabulous job of demonstrating that the essential unity of the various covenants that have been administered by God is the very basis for infant baptism. Understanding this unity will enable one to see that Scripture does indeed enjoin the promises in the covenant (forgiveness of sins and reconciliation with God) not only to us, but to our children. God deals with His people corporately, not simply individually, and it is this that is perhaps most difficult for us in America to understand. Above all else, this book is well-written and faithful to the Word of God.

Rating:
Summary: Helpful Introduction to Infant Baptism
Review: Robert (Randy) Booth, a former Baptist, has put together a fairly compelling case for the practice of infant baptism in a way that is very accessible to the general reader and those new to the debate. More than just a book about baptism, however, this is also a good introduction to Covenant Theology in general, which the author contends is at the heart of case for infant baptism. Contrary to the popular sentiment among many Christians today, that the debate over baptism is some pedantic argument over theological trivialities, Booth points out that one's position on baptism is controlled by fundamental assumptions about how the Bible ought to be interpreted; especially with reference to the relationship between the Old and New Covenants. To his credit Booth remains respectful and gracious throughout to those who disagree with him.

Choosing to build his case on biblical and theological grounds, Booth includes an Appendix which contains the argument from church history for infant baptism, by Samuel Miller. A second Appendix contains a table listing the similarities between circumcision and baptism, along with scriptural references.

Unfortunately this text uses end notes rather than footnotes, forcing the reader to flip back and forth to the end of the chapter to reference a citation. A selected bibliography of works would also have been a helpful addition for those wanting to do further research.

While no one should conclude that this is the definitive work on the subject (some of the other reviews notwithstanding) it is nonetheless a helpful and readable introduction to Covenant Theology, and the general case that can be made for infant baptism.