Theodorus Antonides, the Scholar:
In addition to his pastoral work, Antonides devoted himself with great passion to the study of classical antiquity. He read and studied countless Greek and Latin texts. He also had more than enough time for this. Wumkes (1949) says of this: "This easy work environment offered plenty of time for independent study." According to Wumkes (1949), Theodorus Antonides' predecessors in Westerwijtwerd also made ample use of this.
That Antonides was known as a hard worker is evident from the following passages:
"He channeled his entire mental energy into exegetical work...". From Wumkes (1949).
"Hardly did one work from the presbytery go to press before another followed suit. His exegetical work...". From Wumkes (1949).
P. Rabus writes in the "Boekzaal" (Vol. 1696, p. 414 ff.) very highly of the scholar Theodorus Antonides. He says, among other things, that Antonides was a man: "of unceasing diligence in the research of Christian Biblical wisdom, who..."
The Theological Faculty of Groningen says of Antonides: We thank God that He gave Antonides "the desire and strength necessary for such arduous labor, all the more so..." From: Het Protestansche Vaderland (1903).
"Hardly had the 'Hoofdsumma' seen the light of day, when the diligent man immediately set to work again..." From: Het Protestansche Vaderland (1903).
"A testament to his extensive reading is the list of no fewer than 200 authors cited." From Wumkes (1949). In addition, Theodorus Antonides mastered the basic languages of the Bible. De Witte (2010) states: "Antonides was an outstanding expert in the basic languages of the Bible, and in all of them in Latin, Modern Greek, Old Greek, and Hebrew. Besides these languages, he fluently mastered German, as well as, obviously, his native tongue, Dutch."