Office Bearers

GS 2025 Article 162 – SCBP (Book of Praise) Report Section Two, Parts 13, 14 (Corrections)

1.   Material

  • 1.1    SCBP report to GS 2025 (8.2.8.1).
  • 1.2    Letters from the following churches: Aldergrove (8.3.8.1.1), Edmonton (Providence) (8.3.8.1.19), Willoughby Heights (8.3.8.1.46).

2.   Admissibility

  • 2.1    The report was declared admissible.
    • Grounds: The report was mandated by GS 2022 and was received on time.
  • 2.2    The letters from the churches were declared admissible.
    • Grounds: These interact with a report to GS 2025 and were received on time.

3.   Observations

  • 3.1    The Standing Committee for the Publication of the Book of Praise (SCBP) recommends the following minor corrections for a future printing of the Book of Praise:
    • [13.1]  Psalm 47:1.4 – The syllable division needs correction: “humb-ling” should be “hum-bling.”
    • [13.2]  Psalm 52:1.5 – A semicolon is missing at the end of the line. Also, there should be a hyphen preceding “sharp”: ra – zor – sharp.
    • [13.3]  Psalm 103:3.3 – A period is missing at the end of the line.
    • [13.4]  Psalm 113:1.1 – The first exclamation mark should be in regular font (not small caps font).
    • [13.5]  Hymn 30 – Regarding the missing time signature, add the little half-note with the one on top of it (tactus minor symbol) as is found in Hy. 17 and 18.
    • [13.6]  Hymn 48:1.1 – A comma should be inserted after “Come.”
    • [13.7] Athanasian Creed – Article 6, incorrectly has the archaic term “Godhead.” In the prose section of the 1984 Book of Praise, this term was replaced with “divinity,” as in Q&A 48 of the Heidelberg Catechism and in articles 33 and 35 of the Athanasian Creed. Its continued use in article 6 of the latter is an oversight in need of correction.
    • [13.8]  Belgic Confession – In Art. 23, 3rd paragraph, “judgement” in the quote from Ps. 143 should be “judgment,” per the ESV. This error is also in Canons of Dort, I.18, second paragraph, and III/IV, Rejection of Errors 1.
    • [13.9]  Belgic Confession – Art. 24, 2nd paragraph, Luke 17:10 is incorrectly included within the 4 quotation marks.
    • [13.10] Heidelberg Catechism – Lord’s Day 10, q/a 28, footnote 1 needs to be changed from Psalm 39:10 to Psalm 39:9.
    • [13.11] Heidelberg Catechism – Lord’s Day 50, footnote 4 needs to be changed from “Ps…62” to “Ps…62:10,” and from “Ps…146” to “Ps…146:3.”
    • [13.12] “Prayer for All the Needs of Christendom” (p. 636) and “A Closing Prayer for Ecclesiastical Assemblies” (p. 642), – The reference to “our Queen and her house” needs to be changed to “our King and his house.”
  • 3.2    Willoughby Heights notes that the list of corrections found in section 13 are only those since the last print run. They observe that this list does not include changes made by the decision of a general synod and ask that the SCBP be mandated to supply a list of all the changes that need to be made to the current printed version of the Book of Praise, including any to be made to Confessions, Liturgical Forms, and the Church Order, as per decisions of general synods since GS 2013.
  • 3.3    Aldergrove notes that there are some items missing from this list of corrections that should be made to the current Book of Praise Hymn 38 (page 421) and Hymn 66 (page 466): the footnotes regarding authorship etc. are a page too early and should be moved to the next page, after the last stanza. Aldergrove recommends that these corrections be added to the list submitted to Synod 2025.
  • 3.4    Edmonton (Providence) opines that Hymn 45 stanza 2, line 2 contains a spelling error in which the phrase “The prisoners leap to lose their chains” should read “the prisoners leap to loose their chains.”
  • 3.5    The SCBP submits the following proposals with respect to the Book of Praise:
    • 3.5.1    The SCBP recommends restoring Hymn 17:1 to its 2009 version, since GS 2013 unintentionally replaced it with the 1984 rendition without consulting the copyright holder.
    • 3.5.2    The SCBP recommends modifying one line in the liturgical forms for baptism from the present reading, “He adopts us for his children and heirs” to “He adopts us as his children and heirs” to cohere with the language of Ephesians 1:5 and Galatians 4:5 (ESV, NASB, and NKJV), and Romans 8:23 (ESV, NASB).
    • 3.5.3    The SCBP addresses one line in the liturgical form for the Lords Supper. It compares the wording of the 1984 Book of Praise “by his perfect obedience he has fulfilled for us all the righteousness of God’s law” to the version adopted by GS 2007 “by his perfect obedience he has for us fulfilled the righteousness of God’s law” but recommends a further change to “by his perfect obedience he has fulfilled the righteousness of God’s law for us.” The SCBP suggests that the recommended update is more readable and textually clear.
    • 3.5.4    The SCBP recommends changing a Scripture reference in Belgic Confession Art. 5, footnote 3 from 1 John 5:7 to the more straightforward 1 John 5:6b noting that the footnote pointing to 1 John 5:7 by itself does not make much sense.

4.   Considerations:

  • 4.1    Re Observation 3.1: the SCBP correctly identifies errors or omissions that require correction prior to publication of the new Book of Praise.
  • 4.2    Re Observation 3.2: Willoughby Heights correctly observes that future revisions to the Book of Praise will need to include revisions to the Confessions, Liturgical Forms and Church Order.
  • 4.3    Re Observation 3.3: Aldergrove is correct in noting the inconsistent use of footnotes for Hymn 38 (page 421) and Hymn 66 (page 460).
  • 4.4    Re Observation 3.5: the concern of Edmonton (Providence) was addressed at GS 2013 (art. 159 obs. 2.4.1 and cons. 3.3) in support of the current wording.
  • 4.5    Re Observation 3.6.1: the current wording in Hymn 17:1 (“my soul does magnify”) is to be preferred over the 1984 wording (“my soul will magnify”) as the original Greek employs the present tense. It would be helpful if the SCBP could gain permission from the copyright holder to maintain the current wording.
  • 4.6    Re Observation 3.6.2: the proposed correction better reflects the language of the Scriptural references.
  • 4.7    Re Observation 3.6.3: the proposed amendment (“by his perfect obedience he has fulfilled the righteousness of God’s law for us”) is grammatically inconsistent with the preceding sentence (“he bore for us the wrath of God”). The 1984 version referenced by the SCBP presents a more consistent phrasing and superior readability.
  • 4.8    Re Observation 3.6.4: the proposed correction is more accurate.

5.   Recommendations

That Synod decide:

  • 5.1    To note the corrections identified by the Standing Committee for the Publication of the Book of Praise (SCBP) in Observation 3.1;
  • 5.2    To forward Considerations 4.2, 4.3, and 4.5 to 4.8 to the SCBP for implementation;
  • 5.3    To instruct the SCBP to submit as an appendix in their report to the next general synod a full list of corrigenda to the current printed version of the Book of Praise;
  • 5.4    That consideration 4.4 serves as an answer to the Edmonton (Providence) CanRC.

ADOPTED