Pastoral Theology of the New Testament

The lectures here translated were edited by Dr. Bernhard Riggenbach and published in 1880, two years after the author's death. They were read by Dr. Beck in his capacity as tenured professor of theology at the University of Tübingen in two separate courses and gradually brought to their present form over the course of more than thirty years of professorship. They are the fruit of a life dedicated with rare skill and piety to the study of the Holy Scriptures, its scientific and practical exposition. His early labors in the ministry, both in the city and in the country, gave him personal experience in the care of souls, and his "Christliche Beden", which is often referred to in the following pages, was delivered from the pulpit of Tübingen and published in six volumes, testify of the power and insight with which he could apply the truths of Scripture to the life and thought of his time. He had a fundamental principle—to use his own language—that “it is Scripture, in union with nature and life, conscientiously assimilated from all sides and embodied in man’s own experience, that makes the theologian and preacher, teacher and shepherd, able to pave the way to eternal truth among the rocks and currents of the opinions of their time, in all spheres, both small and great, and to shape the people of God, whose characters meet for the kingdom of heaven. It was his consistent application of this principle that greatly contributed to his popularity and attracted so many students from under Baur's influence. The translators, who were students at Tübingen when one of the courses of lectures was given, saw fit to present to English-speaking students and readers this valuable work by one of the most eminent theologians of our time.