Preliminary Material

Important Note to the Reader

In seventeenth century Scotland when this Sum was written, knowledge of the Holy Bible and of particular then-current theological concepts was general among the population, even among non-Christians; the authors of this Sum thus wrote accordingly.

Some modern American readers may therefore find some parts and concepts of this Sum confusing or difficult to understand. To rectify this, the editor has included the sections Prerequisite Knowledge and More Helpful Background Information, as well as appendixes 4 and 5, which have more detailed information.

The reader who finds the material in these introductory and chapters and appendixes familiar will lose little time skimming over them, while the reader previously unfamiliar with the material will find them greatly helpful to his or her profitable and enjoyable reading of this modern translation of the Sum of Saving Knowledge.