Quotation notes¶
This page logs the direct quotations used in the casebook, with a status for each. The statuses are:
- verified — checked against a published text (or a reliable public-domain edition), with a real citation.
- probable — widely reported and consistent across sources, but not checked against the original.
- paraphrase — not a quotation; the argument is restated in the casebook's own words.
The editorial rule is simple: when in doubt, downgrade. A paraphrase is always safer than a quotation you cannot source.
Policy¶
- Scripture is quoted in the ESV unless another translation is named. Scripture quotations are not logged individually.
- Modern authors are paraphrased by default. Direct quotations are kept to a sentence or two and are logged below.
- Public-domain sources (the fathers, the confessions, Arminius, Wesley, Owen) may be quoted more freely, but still with a citation and without bulk reproduction.
- No invented quotations. If a sentence cannot be sourced, it is paraphrased and the source is cited by argument, not by quotation marks.
- No invented page numbers. Where a page number is uncertain, the citation gives the book, chapter, or section instead.
Log¶
Confessional and public-domain sources¶
| Quotation or paraphrase | Source | Status |
|---|---|---|
| The Westminster Confession's chapter 17 teaches that those effectually called and sanctified "can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace." | Westminster Confession of Faith (1646), 17.1 | verified (standard text) |
| The Canons of Dort's fifth head teaches that the elect are kept by God's decree, Christ's intercession, and the Spirit's presence, and that believers may fall into grievous sins and lose assurance. | Canons of Dort (1618-19), Fifth Head, esp. arts. 1-8 | verified (standard text) |
| The Remonstrance's fifth article affirms that true believers can fall away through negligence and must be restored by grace. | Remonstrance (1610), art. 5 | verified (standard text) |
| Augustine's later anti-Pelagian writings teach a doctrine of perseverance that grounds final salvation in God's gift rather than human effort. | Augustine, On the Gift of Perseverance; On Rebuke and Grace | verified (public-domain text) |
| Wesley teaches that believers can fall away and that assurance is compatible with the possibility of loss. | John Wesley, Standard Sermons, esp. "The Witness of the Spirit" and "The Scripture Way of Salvation" | paraphrase (argument summarized, not quoted) |
| The Shepherd of Hermas treats post-baptismal repentance as a serious pastoral problem. | The Shepherd of Hermas, Visions and Commands | paraphrase (argument summarized) |
| Cyprian's On the Lapsed addresses the restoration of Christians who denied the faith under persecution. | Cyprian, De Lapsis | paraphrase (argument summarized) |
Modern authors¶
The first edition deliberately avoids direct quotation of modern authors. The arguments of Carson, Schreiner, Grudem, Piper, Sproul, MacArthur, Hodges, Ryrie, Chafer, Shank, Marshall, and others are paraphrased and cited by work. Where a page uses quotation marks around a modern author, the quotation must be added to this log with a real citation before publication.
If you find a quotation in the casebook that is not logged here, treat it as unverified and report it. It will be either sourced or removed.
Why so few quotations?¶
Because the argument does not need them. The casebook's case is exegetical: it asks what the biblical text says. Modern authors are conversation partners, not authorities. A paraphrase with a citation is usually more honest than a quotation torn from its context, and it avoids the temptation to win an argument by borrowing a famous name.
The exception is the classical sources. The confessions and the fathers are quoted because the argument is partly about what the tradition actually teaches. Even there, the quotations are short and cited.
A note on translations¶
The ESV is used by default because it is widely available and relatively literal. Where a translation difference matters, the page says so and gives the Greek or an alternative rendering. The casebook does not claim that the ESV is inspired; it is a convenient standard.