A revised and updated version of
Abraham Kuyper: An Annotated Bibliography 1857-2010 by Tjitze Kuipers (2011)
You can buy a printed edition of this book on the site of the publisher.
1902
In his preface Kuyper announces that he is treating the “third touchstone” of grace. After his studies on particular grace (the white and very personal stone of Revelation 2:17), published in 1884.09, and on the doctrine of the convenant, published in 1885.04, he now turns his attention to the third touchstone of grace. This touchstone, however, differs from the preceeding manifestatations of grace insofar as it is definitely not soul-saving. Never before had the theme of common grace on Calvinist lines been systematically set forth in its details and broad connections. Kuyper relates the gift of these three touchstones to the work, respectively, of the Holy Spirit, of Jesus Christ, and of God the creator. He emphasizes the fact that Calvinists have a calling to preserve creation provisionally like salt, and to restore the significance of Christian values in all the domains of the Christian and non-Christian worlds.
This three-volume study (historical, dogmatic, and practical) on common grace furthered the line of thought begun in 1884.09 (about the personal nature of grace) and continued in 1885.04 (about the unifying nature of grace as expressed in the doctrine of the covenant). The chapters in the three volumes were originally published in four series of articles under the heading Van de gemeene gratie [About common grace] in De Heraut, no. 923, September 1, 1895–no. 1228, July 14, 1901.
The historical part—the first of three volumes—discusses the origins and effects of common grace in sixty-seven chapters, taken from De Heraut, no. 923, September 1, 1895–no. 1004, March 21, 1897. Headings have been added to all the chapters. The series of weekly publications in De Heraut was interrupted only by biblical-theological meditations on church holidays and meditations during the summer holidays.
In an editorial entitled “‘Gratie’ of ‘genade’” [“Grace” or “mercy”] in De Heraut, no. 1205, February 3, 1901, Kuyper answered an inquiry about why he had chosen “gratie” and not “genade” as the key term for his exposition (see also the preface to the first volume and 2013.04, pp. [239]–241)..
The first part of the print run was meant for readers of De Heraut, who could sign up for a maximum of two sets. By signing up and paying a temporary surcharge on the subscription to De Heraut (ƒ0.75 per quarter), they received the work as a premie-exemplaar [premium copy] for half price (cf. 1892.17). The number of subscribers totaled 1,915 according to a financial document (KA 186). The remainder subsequently appeared as a trade edition without the phrase premie-exemplaar on the title page. This trade edition (a title edition) was brought into circulation by Wormser according to contract (KA 315). An advertisement for this trade edition in De Heraut, no. 1311, February 15, 1903, announced that it “was published today.”
The second and third volumes were published with the imprint of the Wormser publishing house, as had been settled by contract at a later stage. The three-volume publication of De gemeene gratie was not auctioned with the stock of the Wormser publishing house in 1907 (see 1907.22). Kuyper was the owner of the print run and transferred the remaining sets to the publisher J.H. Kok, Kampen.
A complete English translation of Common Grace will be published within a few years. For that the Acton Institute and Kuyper College (Grand Rapids MI, USA) became partners in a two-year translation project. This major Abraham Kuyper translation project started in 2011. The first volume was published in 2013. Nelson D. Kloosterman is serving as the general translator of the three volume work. Common Grace will be published by Christian’s Library Press, the newly acquired publishing imprint of the Acton institute.