Johann Gerhard (1582-1637) has long been recognized as one of the greatest Lutheran theologians. Indeed, no other theologian of the Age of Lutheran Orthodoxy (1580-1713) had as significant of a role in promoting faithful study of God's Word. Gerhard's erudition and piety are reflected in works of profound benefit to the Church. Gerhard's had not yet been published at the time of his death; Gerhard's son, Johann Ernst Gerhard (1621-1668), oversaw the publication of many of his father's works, including this 1643 edition of the Rev. Paul A. Rydecki's translation of the is the first published English translation of this important book. It is the twelfth volume from Gerhard's works to be published by Repristination Press. It is the seventh volume of Rev. Rydecki's translations from the writings of Aegidius Hunnius and Johann Gerhard.