Did A. W. Tozer Write a Study Guide for The Pursuit of God?

Short answer: The original 1948 Pursuit of God contains Tozer’s preface and ten chapters, each ending in prayer, but it does not contain the kind of separate modern study guide or workbook readers often see in later editions. Study questions, annotations, reflection exercises, and workbook material in later editions should not automatically be attributed to A. W. Tozer; the credits for each edition should be checked.

What is in the original 1948 book?

The original text identifies A. W. Tozer as the author and Samuel M. Zwemer as the writer of the introduction. Its contents list:

Following Hard after God
The Blessedness of Possessing Nothing
Removing the Veil
Apprehending God
The Universal Presence
The Speaking Voice
The Gaze of the Soul
Restoring the Creator-creature Relation
Meekness and Rest
The Sacrament of Living

Tozer’s chapters conclude with prayers, but the original contents do not list a separate study-guide section, workbook, discussion questions, chapter quizzes, or modern application exercises.

That distinction is the key fact.

Why are study guides sold under Tozer’s name today?

Later publishers have released editions that combine Tozer’s original book with additional study materials.

For example, Moody Publishers currently sells The Pursuit of God with Study Guide. Its table of contents lists the ten original chapters and then a separate “Study Guide” and “Study Guide Questions” section.

That packaging can understandably cause readers to ask whether Tozer personally wrote every question in the modern edition.

The safe rule is:

Do not infer authorship from the cover alone. Check the edition’s copyright page, acknowledgments, editor credits, or publisher information.

A publisher may market a combined volume under the classic author’s name while including later editorial material.

Tozer did include prayers

One source of confusion is that Tozer’s original work already contains devotional elements.

Each chapter closes with a prayer. Those prayers are part of the original text and belong to Tozer’s devotional design.

That is different from a later study guide that adds:

reflection questions;
discussion prompts;
journaling exercises;
chapter summaries;
Scripture cross-references;
leader notes;
word searches;
application plans;
accountability questions.

Readers should distinguish original devotional material from later instructional supplements.

What about the Our Kingdom Assignment edition?

The Our Kingdom Assignment book is explicitly a modern study guide to Tozer’s classic. The supplemental study, reflection, application, discussion, and disciple-making material should be attributed to Our Kingdom Assignment, not to A. W. Tozer.

Tozer remains the author of the original classic text.

This attribution matters for credibility. A reader should always be able to tell when a statement comes from Tozer and when it comes from a modern editor or study-guide creator.

Why attribution matters spiritually

Accurate attribution is more than a publishing technicality.

If a modern study question is presented as though Tozer wrote it, the reader may give it more historical authority than it deserves. If a modern disciple-making application is treated as part of Tozer’s original argument, the book’s actual emphasis can be distorted.

Clear labels protect everyone:

Tozer’s words remain Tozer’s words.
Scripture remains the final biblical authority.
Modern commentary can be evaluated as commentary.
Study-guide creators take responsibility for their own applications.

How to check an edition before buying or quoting it

Use this checklist:

1. Check the publication date

A study guide published decades after Tozer’s death obviously contains later editorial or publishing work, even when his original text is reproduced.

2. Look at the table of contents

Are the ten original chapters followed by new sections?

3. Read the copyright and credits pages

Look for editor, compiler, study-guide writer, or publisher credits.

4. Separate original chapter text from added features

Formatting, questions, summaries, and notes may not be part of the 1948 book.

5. When quoting, identify the source precisely

If the words are Tozer’s, cite Tozer and the edition. If they are from a modern study guide, cite that study-guide source.

Is a later study guide less valuable because Tozer did not write it?

Not necessarily.

A good study guide can help readers slow down, examine Scripture, discuss difficult ideas, and apply what they read. Its value should be judged by accuracy and usefulness, not by pretending it is original Tozer material.

The question is not whether every useful supplement was written in 1948.

The question is whether the supplement clearly identifies itself and faithfully serves the original work and Scripture.