This list of books by David VanDrunen provides a short description and summary of each book, showing the development of the author’s ideas over time. The books are listed in order of publication date. Some titles are written for a popular audience, and others are more academic in nature.

David VanDrunen is a Reformed theologian (OPC) and professor at Westminster Seminary California. He holds a Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Notre Dame. He is known for “Two Kingdoms” theology, emphasizing separation between spiritual and secular realms. His work often focuses on ethics, natural law, and church-state relations.

A Biblical Case for Natural Law

• Published by the Acton Institute, January 1, 2006
• 75 pages
• Goodreads blurb: “This study is for Christians who are perplexed about the biblical standing of natural law. It offers an explicitly biblical defense for the existence and practical importance of natural law. If natural law is taught in Scripture, it should certainly be affirmed in Christian theology.”

Bioethics and the Christian Life: A Guide to Making Difficult Decisions

• Published by Crossway, January 1, 2009
• 256 pages
• Goodreads blurb: “Just about everyone will face a difficult bioethics decision at some point. In this book a theologian, ethicist, and lawyer (author David VanDrunen) equips Christians to make such decisions based on biblical truth, wisdom, and virtue. Though a relatively new discipline, bioethics has generated extraordinary interest due to a number of socially pressing issues. Bioethics and the Christian Life places bioethics within the holistic context of the Christian life, both developing a general Christian approach to making bioethics decisions and addressing a number of specific, controversial areas of bioethics.”

Natural Law and the Two Kingdoms: A Study in the Development of Reformed Social Thought

• Published by Eerdmans, December 30, 2009
• 476 pages
• Goodreads blurb: “Conventional wisdom holds that the theology and social ethics of the Reformed tradition stand at odds with concepts of natural law and the two kingdoms. This volume challenges that conventional wisdom through a study of Reformed social thought from the Reformation to the present.”

Living in God’s Two Kingdoms: A Biblical Vision for Christianity and Culture

• Published by Crossway, October 1, 2010
• 208 pages
• Goodreads blurb: “Modern movements such as neo-Calvinism, the New Perspective on Paul, and the emerging church have popularized a view of Christianity and culture that calls for the redemption of earthly society and institutions. Many Christians have reflexively embraced this view, enticed by the socially active and engaged faith it produces. Living in God’s Two Kingdoms illustrates how a two-kingdoms model of Christianity and culture affirms much of what is compelling in these transformationist movements while remaining faithful to the whole counsel of Scripture. By focusing on God’s response to each kingdom ― his preservation of the civil society and his redemption of the spiritual kingdom ― VanDrunen teaches readers how to live faithfully in each sphere.” 
• Read my review and study guide for Living In God’s Two Kingdoms

Divine Covenants and Moral Order: A Biblical Theology of Natural Law

• Published by Eerdmans, April 30, 2014
• 594 pages
• Goodreads blurb: “David VanDrunen draws on both his Reformed theological heritage and the broader Christian natural law tradition to develop a constructive theology of natural law through a thorough study of Scripture. The biblical covenants organize VanDrunen’s study. Part 1 addresses the covenant of creation and the covenant with Noah, exploring how these covenants provide a foundation for understanding God’s governance of the whole world under the natural law. Part 2 treats the redemptive covenants that God established with Abraham, Israel, and the New Testament church and explores the obligations of God’s people to natural law within these covenant relationships. In the concluding chapter of Divine Covenants and Moral Order VanDrunen reflects on the need for a solid theology of natural law and the importance of natural law for the Christian’s life in the public square.”

Politics after Christendom: Political Theology in a Fractured World

• Published by Zondervan Academic, April 21, 2020
• 400 pages
• Goodreads blurb: “For more than a millennium, beginning in the early Middle Ages, most Western Christians lived in societies that sought to be comprehensively Christian — ecclesiastically, economically, legally, and politically. That is to say, most Western Christians lived in Christendom. But in a gradual process beginning a few hundred years ago, Christendom weakened and finally crumbled. Today, most Christians in the world live in pluralistic political communities. And Christians themselves have very different opinions about what to make of the demise of Christendom and how to understand their status and responsibilities in a post-Christendom world. Politics After Christendom argues that Scripture leaves Christians well-equipped for living in a world such as this. Scripture gives no indication that Christians should strive to establish some version of Christendom. Instead, it prepares them to live in societies that are indifferent or hostile to Christianity, societies in which believers must live faithful lives as sojourners and exiles. Politics After Christendom explains what Scripture teaches about political community and about Christians’ responsibilities within their own communities. As it pursues this task, Politics After Christendom makes use of several important theological ideas that Christian thinkers have developed over the centuries. These ideas include Augustine’s Two-Cities concept, the Reformation Two-Kingdoms category, natural law, and a theology of the biblical covenants.” 

Natural Law: A Short Companion

• Published by B&H Academic, November 1, 2023
• 160 pages.
• Goodreads blurb: “David VanDrunen’s Natural Law – A Short Companion outlines what Scripture teaches about natural law. Scripture never uses the term “natural law,” but it repeatedly refers to the reality of natural law or assumes its existence. The existence of natural law underlies what Scripture says about God’s own nature, the cosmic order, the image of God, human community, the gospel of Christ, and the final judgment. Moreover, the story of Scripture from the original creation to the new creation wouldn’t hold together without natural law.” 

Other Books by David VanDrunen

As of September 15, 2024 — Goodreads lists 29 distinct works where David VanDrunen is listed as the author, contributor, or editor.