This research paper, written by Kirby Key at Reformed Theological Seminary – Charlotte, challenges Gavin Ortlund’s argument against Reformed paedobaptism as presented in his 2020 article, “Why Not Grandchildren?” Ortlund claims that Reformed theology is inconsistent with the Abrahamic covenant because it limits baptism to the first-generation children of believers.
Key responds by demonstrating that circumcision in the Abrahamic covenant was not genealogical but covenantal — it marked those who belonged to the visible household of faith, including servants and foreigners under Abraham’s authority. He argues that baptism, as the sign of the New Covenant, continues this pattern of inclusion for believers and their children.
Drawing from Genesis 17, Acts 2, and 1 Corinthians 7, Key shows that both covenants operate on the principle of household faith and representative headship. Infant baptism, therefore, remains a faithful expression of God’s covenant continuity, affirming that the promises of grace extend to believers and their children.
ST5250: Ecclesiology and Sacraments — Spring 2025
