THE PRECIOUS AND SACRED WRITINGS OF MARTIN LUTHER _The Hero of the Reformation, the Greatest of the Teuton Church Fathers, and the Father of Protestant Church Literature_ BASED ON THE KAISER CHRONOLOGICAL EDITION WITH REFERENCE TO THE ERLANGEN AND WALCH EDITIONS EDITED BY JOHN NICHOLAS LENKER, D.D. IN CONNECTION WITH LEADING SCHOLARS OF ALL PARTS OF THE CHURCH LUTHERANS IN ALL LANDS CO., MINNEAPOLIS, MINN., U.S.A. 1904 LUTHER ON THE CREATION A CRITICAL AND DEVOTIONAL COMMENTARY ON GENESIS BASED ON DR. HENRY COLE'S TRANSLATION FROM THE ORIGINAL LATIN. REVISED, ENLARGED, PARTS RETRANSLATED AND EDITED IN COMPLETE FORM BY JOHN NICHOLAS LENKER, D.D. PROFESSOR OF OLD TESTAMENT EXEGESIS, AUTHOR OF "LUTHERANS IN ALL LANDS" AND PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL LUTHERAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION VOL. I. LUTHERANS IN ALL LANDS CO., MINNEAPOLIS, MINN., U.S.A. 1904 COPYRIGHT, 1904, BY PROF. J. N. LENKER, D.D. SECOND INTRODUCTION --to-- LUTHER'S WORKS IN ENGLISH. This introduction or prospectus is supplementary to that in the first volume on the Psalms, in that it likewise emphasizes, though from different view-points, the history and fruits, as well as the present need and future mission of the Protestant Classics of the greatest of all reformers in their relation to the development of the human race. Let us in this introduction briefly notice the following: The progress of the movement to translate and circulate Luther's works in English, and then emphasize the need of developing an interest to read them; first, because of the relation of Luther and his writings to the public library; and secondly, because as the chief of the Teuton Protestant Church Fathers, we need to understand Luther in his relation to the Greek and Latin Church Fathers, and our true historic relations to them all. THE PROGRESS OF THE MOVEMENT. With profound gratitude to Almighty God for his rich blessing bestowed upon the publication and quick sale of the first volume, Luther's Commentary on the Psalms, a book "the mourning soul cannot well be without," we now send forth the first volume of his Commentary on Genesis, with the confidence that those, who think with Melanchthon that "a single page of Luther contains more sound divinity than many whole volumes," will not change their opinion by studying this volume. Having purchased all the copies of Luther on Galatians and his Notes on the Gospels by Dr. P. Anstadt, and the right to reprint them, with two other volumes about ready for the press, one by Prof. E. F. Bartholomew, D.D., and another by Dr. Bernhard Pick, our progress is encouraging, especially since the movement has taken an intersynodical character with colaborers from every branch of our polyglot communion. LUTHER ON THE OLD TESTAMENT NEEDED FIRST.