Approaching Calvin from a psychological and literary direction, Oberman looks at the strange reticience of Calvin to open himself up in his theological writings. This lack of self-disclosure sets him apart from the sometimes obtrusive ego of Luther, but may have aided in making Calvin "the compelling spokesman for all [Reformed Christians in the European diaspora. " This essay was first delivered as a lecture in 1990.]

Puckett examines Calvin's judicious use of typology in interpreting the Old Testament through the eyes of the New, noting that Calvin is the first great developer of the Protestant Biblical hermeneutic of grammatical historical exegesis.

Below, Gerrish compares the two great Reformers, Luther and Calvin, asserting that, though Calvin never met Luther, Calvin's image of Luther can be fairly well ascertained through the Genevan's correspondence.

In the following essay, Hesselink proposes that though Calvin sees an antithesis between Law and Gospel, their relationship is complementary in that humanity is "driven by the law to seek God's grace. "

In the following excerpt, Rainbow treats Calvin's views on Predestination in contradistinction to Arminian theologians like the seventeenth-century Frenchman Moyse Amyraut. Rainbow shows that the doctrines of Divine Election, Limited Atonement, and Assurance of Salvation, are intricately knotted together in Reformed theology.

Below, Steinmetz explores Calvin's ideas regarding God's absolute power to act versus His potential to act, noting that Calvin attacked the entire discussion as "speculative doctrine. " Disagreeing with the Scholastics on this matter, Calvin decided to accept the mysteries of Divine Sovereignty on a Biblical basis.

In the following excerpt, De Vries analyzes the importance of Calvin's notion of the Word of God as a "means of grace" and as a paradigm shift.

In the following excerpt, originally delivered as a lecture, Oberman treats Calvinism as a movement made up of various traditions and schools of thought that are not necessarily in agreement with their namesake. Oberman believes that a study of the Reformer—especially in the areas of his humanism, issues of renewal and unity, the eucharist, science, piety, and state theory—leads to "Calvin critiquing Calvinism."