LINCOLN’S GOD: How Faith Transformed a President and a Nation

[David Lockmiller]

LINCOLN’S GOD: How Faith Transformed a President and a Nation
by by Joshua Zeitz

New York Times book review, by Ted Widmer - May 17, 2023

Lincoln borrowed the book [Lincoln's Bible] from a Supreme Court clerk for his 1861 swearing-in at the last minute. Three presidents to date have taken their oaths of office, including Abraham Lincoln. [It was also used by President Barack Obama at his inaugurations in 2009 and 2013, as well as by President Donald Trump at his inauguration in 2017. This information was not in the book review.]

His speeches drew heavily on Scripture, including, in 1858, the “house divided” (Matthew 12:25); then, at Gettysburg, “four score and seven years ago” (paraphrasing Psalm 90); the second Inaugural Address, with its readings from Matthew 18:7 (“woe unto the world because of offenses …”); and Psalm 19 (“the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether”).

Regarding the Second Inaugural Address, Zeitz wrote: "One scholar estimated that “266 of its 702 words were quoted verbatim from the word of God.”

The book reviewer noted: A moving story recounted elsewhere tells of an African American delegation presenting a Bible to the president in 1864 and his response: “All the good the Savior gave to the world was communicated through this book.”