Articles by Daniel R. Hyde
Some of these articles first appeared in peer-reviewed academic journals and scholarly venues written for colleagues in the academic guild and the ministerium—Calvin Theological Journal, Puritan Reformed Journal, Mid-America Journal of Theology, and The Confessional Presbyterian. Some are more popular pieces written for church members that read carefully. For a full list, see my Curriculum Vitae.
They explore the history and practice of Reformed liturgy (including the neglected place of absolution), the theology of the Heidelberg Catechism and the broader Three Forms of Unity, the task of preaching, and disputed questions in Reformed history and catholicity.
The journal articles date from 2006 to 2017, written across two decades of pastoral ministry and doctoral work at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Each is available in full text, as a PDF, or both.
If you would like to translate one of my articles into your language, please contact me.
See also my translated articles, books, teachings, and speaking.
When You Trick-or-Treat, Nod to Martin Luther
An opinion piece by Dr. Daniel R. Hyde on Martin Luther, Halloween, and freedom of conscience in the San Diego Union-Tribune (Oct. 28. 2026).
Who Are the Two Witnesses in Revelation 11?
Who are the two witnesses in Revelation 11? Not Moses and Elijah back from heaven, and not two prophets at the Western Wall after a rapture. They are the church in its witness to the world: killed by the beast and raised in plain sight.
Is God a Genocidal Maniac?
Critics like Richard Dawkins call the God of the Old Testament “genocidal,” and 1 Samuel 15 is a favorite example. Here is why God’s sentence on the Amalekites was justice, not ethnic cleansing, and how it points to Christ, who bore that judgment for all who trust him.
Counted And Countless: Who Are the 144,000 in Revelation 7?
Who are the 144,000 in Revelation 7? John hears a census of Israel’s tribes, then turns and sees a multitude no one can count. The 144,000 is the whole people of God: counted by God, countless before the throne.
The Lion Is the Lamb: A Theology of the Cross in Revelation 5
Why does Revelation call Jesus both Lion and Lamb? John hears that the Lion of Judah has conquered, then turns and sees a Lamb standing, as slain — because in Revelation 5 the conquering is the dying.
From Reformed Dream to Reformed Reality: The Problem and Possibility of Reformed Church Unity
Daniel R. Hyde’s address to the 2012 meeting of NAPARC at Mid-America Reformed Seminary. Building on W. Robert Godfrey's "A Reformed Dream," it names sin as the problem dividing the Reformed churches, and the Holy Spirit's work of revival, reformation, and reconciliation as the possibility of their unity.
He Never Left the Room: The Presence of Christ in Revelation
Where is Jesus now? The ascension seems to put him at a distance, but Revelation answers by showing where he walks: in the midst of the lampstands, among his churches.
William Ames’s Exhortation to Students of Theology
William Ames (1576–1633), the English Puritan theologian exiled to the Netherlands, delivered An Exhortation to the Students of Theology at the University of Franeker on August 22, 1623. Convinced that theology is "the doctrine or teaching of living to God," he urged seminary students to know the true end of theology, the high calling of the ministry, and the practical skills it requires. He closed by prescribing five exercises: disputation, sermon rehearsal, prayer, meditation, and mutual exhortation.
Revelation Is Not a Puzzle: 4 Keys to Interpretation
How should Christians read Revelation? Discover four biblical keys: Christ, its purpose, Old Testament imagery, and the call to hear and obey.
The Kind of People God Uses
Paul says the gospel is carried in "jars of clay" — cheap, breakable vessels. This exposition of 2 Corinthians 4:1–12 argues that the weakness of the messenger is not an obstacle to God's power but the deliberate display of it, and that this holds for every servant in a congregation, not only the preacher.
Good Liturgy Is the Best Instructor: How Your Church’s Order of Worship Teaches What Your Church Believes
Every church has a liturgy, and every liturgy teaches. Daniel R. Hyde explains how a Reformed order of worship catechizes God's people from cradle to grave.
Ministering after Miscarriages
Seminary didn't prepare me for this. Miscarriage is the most common form of pregnancy loss, and it will come to your congregation. Here is pastoral counsel drawn from Scripture, the Canons of Dort, and ten years of grieving alongside God's people.
Anointing the Sick with Oil: A Missing Aspect of Pastoral Ministry in the Reformed Tradition
Reformed churches have a strong tradition of elders as officers of prayer and care — yet one thing has been missing since the sixteenth century. This study works through James 5:14–15 in its context, weighs the medicinal, Roman Catholic, historic Reformed, and Pentecostal readings, and argues that anointing with oil remains a valid ministry for Reformed elders today.
The Thirty-Nine Articles and the Belgic Confession: A Review Article
It is not often that I read about an Anglican who has not only heard of the Belgic Confession, but has actually read it. In this review article for The North American Anglican, I respond to a comparison of the Thirty-Nine Articles and the Belgic Confession — on the order of its articles, the Synod of Dort, and whether the Continental Reformed were innovators or catholics.
On Being a Church Planter
There is little written on church planting from a confessionally Reformed perspective. Drawing on nearly a decade of planting, this essay offers principles and aptitudes for the work.
The Holy Spirit in the Heidelberg Catechism
Only one question and answer in the Heidelberg Catechism is devoted to the Holy Spirit. This essay argues that the Spirit nevertheless permeates the Catechism from beginning to end.
The Principle and Practice of Preaching in the Heidelberg Catechism
Why is preaching so central to Reformed worship? This article reads the Heidelberg Catechism’s teaching on preaching as being the Holy Spirit's medicine, prescribing guilt, grace, and gratitude for the believer.
Handling a High Mystery: The Westminster Confession on Preaching Predestination
How should a pastor preach predestination? This article explores the seventeenth-century Westminster Assembly divines' pastoral handling of this doctrine that was meant to give God’s people humility and comfort.
Regulae de Observatione Sabbathi: The Synod of Dort’s (1618–19) Deliverance on the Sabbath
The Synod of Dort (1618–19) dealt with the pastoral issue of the relationship between Sabbath and Sunday by issuing six rules for the Lord’s Day that were neither lax nor legalistic, bridging Continental and Puritan views.
In Defense of the Descendit: A Confessional Response to Contemporary Critics of Christ’s Descent into Hell
Because “he descended into hell” is the most difficult phrase in the Apostles’ Creed, some argue that Reformed churches should remove it. This article traces the clause’s history, biblical roots, and then defends keeping it.