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Meet the Puritans: With a Guide to Modern Reprints

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Through the past few decades there has been a great resurgence of interest in the Puritans. This resurgence seems to have begun with Martin Lloyd-Jones who would often refer to their works in his sermons. People would then ask "Where can I get these books?" Banner of Truth began to reprint the books and soon other publishers began as well. Today there are so many available to us that few people could afford to buy or shelve even a fraction of them. This choice has led to confusion as many people, intrigued by what they have heard about the Puritans, hardly know where to begin in reading them. Into this void step Joel Beeke and Randall Pederson with their new book Meet the Puritans.

Meet the Puritans is a resource designed to guide people through the reprints of Puritan writings that have been produced since 1956. The book provides "a brief biography of each Puritan author whose works have been reprinted since 1956 and a short review of those books. We hope this will help purchasers of Puritan books, interest other readers in the Puritans, and guide those already immersed in Puritan literature to further depths of study." It is more a reference book than one you would be likely to read from cover-to-cover, though if you wanted to, you certainly could.

The format of the book is simple. After a Preface explaining how to profit from reading the Puritans, a brief word about where to begin and a brief history of English Puritanism, there comes a long list of authors. Each author has his own chapter containing a short biography and a list of his books that have been reprinted. There is a review of each book along with publishing information and the number of pages. And that is the heart of the book and continues for some 800 pages. Five appendices deal with collections of Puritan writings, Scottish divines, Dutch further Reformation divines, secondary sources on the Puritans and a final word on Puritanism courtesy of J.I. Packer. In short, this is a one-stop-shop for all you could want to know as a beginner to the Puritans. And if you are already a fan of their writing, this book will lead you further and deeper, guiding you to the best books available.

One thing I would like to see in future editions of this book is a more thorough list of the best place to begin in reading the Puritans. The authors do offer a few suggestions, but they are only basic ones. I'd like to see a list of the top ten or twenty books they would recommend. Additionally, it might be nice to have a topical index of sorts, pointing to the best works on a variety of subjects so that a person looking for a Puritan work on worship or sin or other important topics could quickly and easily find the best resources.

Quite simply, if you are interesting in reading the Puritans, this is a guide you won't want to be without! It is endorsed by a who's who of Reformed leaders and authors (the back cover alone has endorsements by Sproul, Piper, MacArthur, Packer and Mohler and there are many more inside!) and deservedly so. Best of all, it promises to be a book that will be updated as time goes on and as these great writings continue to be released.

Randall Peterson and Joel Beeke excel in presenting to the modern reader the 'all-in-one' presentation of the Puritans. It goes without saying that the value of such a work is highly sought-after. The book is large and beautiful - a dust jacket enfolds the Westminster divines in sitting.

The keen theological acumen and reverential awe of the Puritans is most likely never to be repeated again. We therefore, can and must be willing to learn so much from these men and women who shaped the church so fresh out of the Reformation blocks. That they were a cultural phenomenon unparalleled upholds them as true followers of the faith, of Christ Jesus, for they were not only willing to privately profess, but at large and in the public domain, did not shy away from declaring the truth of the gospel.

The biographical presentation is in alphabetical order, starting with the British divines. Then we are introduced to the Scots, and also the Netherland divines. There are too many great names, too many immeasurable sacrifices, too many theological contributions to mention - all in one book! Yet I cannot fail to mention the words of John Bunyan, kept in prison for 12 years for contravening the Act of Non-Conformity, who knew the cold and damp well at Beford jail:

'The Almighty God being my help and shield, I am determined yet to suffer, if frail life might continue so long...even till the moss shall grow upon my eyebrows, rather than violate my faith and principles.' p 106

From an historical point-of-view it is shattering to learn how much we profess today had its origin in that stage of the church's existence. The confessional creeds of Westminster etc. all stem from that solemn age. Yet their lives and ours are worlds apart. Their commitment to an all-encompassing faith was solid, never questionable. That they held that the government was calvinistically bound to honor God in the execution of all its responsibilities, and then sought to rear such a nation in New England, was of utter providence.

A Scottish Covenanter covenanting with his God:
'I offer myself unto Christ the Lord, as an object proper for all His offices to be exercised upon. I choose Him as my prophet for instruction, illumination, and direction. I embrace Him as my great priest, to be washed and justified by His blood and righteousness. I embrace Him as my king to reign and rule within me. I take a whole Christ with all His laws, and all His crosses and afflictions. I will live to Him; I will die to Him; I will quit with all I have in the world for His cause and truth.'
Ebenezer Erskine, p 685

The providence of God and the sovereignty of His majesty is ably and dramatically declared on every one of these pages. An inspiring, timeless contribution to the growing awareness of theological giants; of those who were not only called, but lived their lives as Puritans.

Martyn Loyd-Jones contended that Puritan thought was not only about doctrine but a "desire to carry the reform, which had already happened in the matter of doctrine, further into the nature and life and polity of the Christian church." And in "Meet the Puritans: With a Guide to Modern Reprints" one finds a power-packed resource intended to direct the reader through the numerous Puritan works that have been reprinted since the 1950's.

Within this text of almost 900 pages one reads about Puritans like theologian John Owen (Owen, 1616-1683, was one of the finest Reformed theologians in history; pastor and chaplain to Oliver Cromwell; Dean of Christ Church, Oxford): "To preach the word . . . and not to follow it with constant and fervent prayer for its success, is to disbelieve its use, neglect its end, and to cast away the seed of the gospel at random."

This significant book furnishes numerous biographical sketches of important and less known Puritan authors and a review of their works.

Thomas Watson wrote: "To know that nothing hurts the godly, is a matter of comfort; but to be assured that all things which fall out shall co-operate for their good, that their crosses shall be turned into blessings, that showers of affliction water the withering root of their grace and make it flourish more; this may fill their hearts with joy till they run over."

This work is aimed to assist those interested in Puritan books as a key reference work. Thanks be to God for the work of the Puritans and the labor of the modern publishers of their outstanding writings.

Owen adds: "The whole creation is as a garment, wherein the Lord shows his power clothed unto men; whence in particular his said to clothe himself with light as with a garment (Psa. 104:2). And in it is the hiding of his power. Hid it is, as a man is hid with a garment; not that he should not be seen at all, but that he should not be seen perfectly and as his is. It shows the man, and he is known by it; but also it hides him, that he is not perfectly or fully seen. So are the works of creation unto God, he so far makes them his garment or clothing as in them to give out some instances of his power and wisdom; but he is also hid in them, in that by them no creature can come to the full knowledge of him. Now, when this work shall cease, and God shall unclothe or unveil all his glory to his saints, and they shall know him perfectly, see him as he is, so far as a created nature is capable of that comprehension, then will he lay them aside and fold them up, at least as to that use, as easily as a man lays aside a garment that he will wear or use no more."

Thomas Manton (Manton, the king of preachers, gave spiritual counsel to Christopher Love before Love was executed in 1652, he was with Love when he was beheaded and preached his funeral sermon) declared "Works before conversion cannot engage God, and works after conversion can not satisfy God - all the endeavor and labor of the creature will never procure it"

And C. Love said: "Blessed be God that Thou hast filled the soul of Thy servant with joy and peace in believing."

Love added: "Most Glorious and eternal Majesty, Thou art righteous and holy in all thou dost to the sons of men, though thou hast suffered men to condemn Thy servant, Thy servant will not condemn Thee."

Richard Sibbes observed: "When we grow careless of keeping our souls, then God recovers our taste of good things again by sharp crosses."

The one and only John Bunyan proclaimed: "Do not even such things as are most bitter to the flesh, tend to awaken Christians to faith and prayer, to a sight of the emptiness of this world, and the fadingness of the best it yield? Doth not God by these things (ofttimes) call our sins to remembrance, and provoke us to amendment of life? How then can we be offended at things by which we reap so much good?.... Therefore if mine enemy hunger, let me feed him; if he thirst, let me give him drink. Now in order to do this, (1) We must see good in that, in which other men can see none. (2) We must pass by those injuries that other men would revenge. (2) We must show we have grace, and that we are made to bear what other men are not acquainted with. (4) Many of our graces are kept alive, by those very things that are the death of other men's souls.... The devil, (they say) is good when he is pleased; but Christ and His saints, when displeased."

I love this quote from John Mason: "We need not be ashamed of that now, which we are sure we shall not repent of when we come to die."

John Flavel famously said: "A hot iron, though blunt, will pierce sooner than a cold one, though sharper."

S. Charnock noted: "Let us not satisfy ourselves with a knowledge of God in the mass; a glance upon a picture never directs you to the discerning the worth and art of it."
James Durham rightly admonished: "Neither place, parts, nay, nor graces, will exempt any man from falling. O believers, what need is there to be watchful and humble!"

This excellent resource is an outstanding way to begin one's study of the Puritans and their works. This book is also a fine fit for those who desire a more comprehensive and deeper pursuit of Puritan thought.

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A joke I used to hear to mock the Puritans says that they are the kind of people who stay awake late on Saturday nights worrying that someone somewhere might be having some fun. Surely in the age where triviality reigns and sit-coms dominate the television programs, it is easy to buy into such a misleading stereotype about them. Much justice has been done, however, to correct the numerous bad publicities of this group of people who should have earned our respect instead of scorn, of whom there is so much to learn about their head and heart theology, theoretical, experiential and practical theology and piety; through the publication of excellent texts; the most popular one to the best of my knowledge is J.I. Packers' "The Quest for Godliness," and others that seem to be on-par with Packer's book; I was thinking of Kelly Kapic's "The Devoted Life: An Invitation to the Puritan Classics" and Leland Ryken's "Worldly Saints". But the publication of "Meet the Puritans" is most welcome still considering two unique contributions of this book that the readers do not find in Packer's book, who did a superb job in bringing to light what Puritanism is about drawing from the life and theology of Richard Baxter, John Owen and Jonathan Edwards.

First, it gives a more detailed history of Puritanism, how it was born, the account of persecution they went through, including the Presbyterians in Scotland and the Dutch Further Reformation fueled by the Synod of Dort in 1618. Second, it contains a brief, but not too brief, biography of over 120 British, Scottish and Dutch Puritans; their education, family, ministry, controversy and persecution, and death; followed by their printed works, which ones are available to the readers today, their synopsis and publisher so that interested readers know where to get a hold of them. The list has led me to a greater happiness in enjoying Puritan literature through its recommendation to read at least two books; Richard Sibbes' "The Bruised Reed" and Thomas Manton's "The Temptation of Christ." But more are coming that are in my wish list from John Flavel, Richard Baxter, Richard Gilpin, and others.

Here are my general observations in addition to what the authors analyzed in the first section of the book before they begin with the biography of their ministers, theologians and laymen. First, it seems, though not strictly true, that they all held a doctorate in theology by looking at the humongous amount of publications of the study they produced. Most of them studied at either Oxford or Cambridge graduating with at least an equivalent of Master of Divinity today, which means they were experts in exegesis, having studied Hebrew and Greek intensively at school. Second, they were church leaders; not only pastors, but also vicars, lecturers, deans, tutors at colleges, chaplains to prominent governmental leaders and agencies, and members of Westminster Assemblies. Third, they wrote at least hundreds of pages, sometimes thousands of pages of books consisting of either commentary or sermon collections on the books of the Bible or topical theology; the popular themes I notice are spiritual warfare, conversion, self-examination, Christology, and heaven. The two volumes of Jonathan Edwards, for example, have over 4,000 pages. John Owen has even more. Fourth, in terms of their family, there is a broad range of spectrum where some of them, though a minority, were singles and never married, and others who had a handful of children; some over ten. Fifth, these men were eminent in piety and experimental Christianity. They not only preach powerful sermons and wrote excellent books, but they also live their sermons and books. This last point here from a practical point of view is perhaps the most important. Though we may not have a doctorate or master degree in divinity, this last point is applicable to everyone. Ray Ortlund Jr wrote aptly, "I like Reformed theology. I believe it's what the Bible teaches. But I don't like Reformed culture. I don't believe it's what the Bible teaches." When the head is bloated with knowledge that stays there without flowing to the heart that results in doxology and gracious lifestyle and treatment toward people, the heart remains small and the result is a nasty spiritual arrogance. As Jonathan Edwards puts it that "true spiritual life was a matter not only of intellectual assent, but also of the affections." (p.200).

If there is one criticism, it would be that this book, while enormous in breadth, yet it is lacking in depth in comparison with Packer's book, which seems to be the opposite; having great depth, yet covering only certain eminent Puritan profiles. But I guess one has to choose either or, and not both since if it were both, this book would have easily grown into a ten-thousand-page monster.

After going through the Puritan profiles, I can not but be happily intimidated in a good way and humbled as I look at the dwarfishness of my spirituality, discipline, earnestness and service in comparison to these giant, standing-tall redwoods, as J I Packers puts it. Those who believe there is a crisis of the lack of role models today for young people to follow, look no further than the list in this book. My own words are too weak to commend the Puritans. So the best way to describe the kind of impact the Puritans have that Christians today may benefit from, I should quote George Whitefield and JC Ryle who wrote,

"The Puritans [were] burning and shining lights. Their works still praise them in the gates, and without pretending to a spirit of prophecy, we may venture to affirm that they will live and flourish when more modern performances of a contrary cast, notwithstanding their gaudy and tinseled trappings, will languish and die in the esteem of those whose understandings are opened to discern what comes nearest to the Scripture standard" (George Whitefield).

"Their works still speak for them on the shelves of every well-furnished theological library. Their commentaries, their expositions, their treatise on practical, casuistical, and experimental divinity, are immeasurably superior to those of their adversaries in the seventeenth century. The Puritans as a body, have done more to elevate the national character than any class of Englishmen that ever lived (here I should add, not only Englishmen, but also every affected reader). Ardent lovers of civil liberty, and ready to die in its defense, mighty at the council board, and no less mighty in the battlefield, feared abroad throughout Europe, and invincible at home while united, great with their pens, and no less great with their swords (by which Ryle meant the Bible and their intellectual power), fearing God very much and fearing men very little, they were a generation of men who have never received from their country the honor that they deserve" (JC Ryle).

As a new Christian I was quickly drawn to the writings of the Puritans. Initially I was attracted to how they wrote in such flowery and well decorated sentences. This style combined with my newly birthed passion for Jesus Christ made me a fast fan of the kindred-spirited Puritans.

But as I read I noticed two things, 1) There is a lot of depth to their writings, 2) There are a lot of Puritans.

My problem became clear; I don't have the ability or the time to read everything from everyone. But, I would like to have a thoughtful and thorough reference book that can give me some personal history of these great divines as well as surveys from their writings.

This is why I am thankful for the book Meet the Puritans by Joel Beeke and Randall Pederson. These guys know their Puritans and they do a fantastic job introducing you and keeping you acquainted with their writings.

My book sits on my shelf and serves to be a ready documentary on any guy who is mentioned that I am not familiar with (or have forgotten). I am quickly able to be exposed to his writings and the time in which he ministered. This is very helpful.

If you have benefited from their writings but have been hindered by your own exposure then this resource will probably be helpful to you as well.

Biographies of those who chose to go against the wishes of the government established church and follow their conscience as to what the Bible taught. Ramifications for their disobedience varied on geographic location, local church leaders and Vicar (Government official who could a patron or supporter of a minister). Some went to prison, others banished from certain geographic areas, others forbidden to preach, others forbidden to preach in a physical structure, and others faced no repercussions. A couple of the ministers were arrested while he preached. Puritans came from England , the United States, Scotland and the Netherlands. Some were educated at Harvard University, most were taught in Universities in England, and some like John Bunyan received no formal education. Many taught at Harvard returned to England while others left England for the Netherlands or the New Country to avoid persecution. Theoduros Jacobus Freidlinghuyson from the Netherlands left to Pastor three churches in New Jersey. He faced opposition because of the preaching of revival and a call for its members to more Christ like. This ultimately caused a friction between the church in the Netherlands (Classis Amsterdam). Two churches emerged the Coetus (the Revivalist) and the Conferetie (the Orthodox).

The biographies and the description of works written by the Puritans described in this book will give knowledge about the differences among the Puritans, differences with the Roman Catholic church, and the government established church. Another book written by Joel R. Beeke, one of the authors of this book, is titled The Quest for Full Assurance of Faith: The Legacy of Calvinism and his Successors. This work I assume defines the issues that divided the Anglican Church and the Puritans. Meet the Puritans describe circumstances of the individual at the time and arguments made by the individual. This book is resource book of the issues for further study by detailing books republished recently of these Puritans.

Matthew Henry wrote the Matthew Henry Commentary but he did not complete it. After a horse accident other Puritans completed the exhaustive commentary of the Bible. Matthew Henry's father wrote Christ All in All which describes 40 offices Jesus had. Yes John Bunyan wrote Pilgrim's progress and this book describes two editions of this Christian classic, but also gives a detail description of the three volumes containing 2,400 pages. Four other books by John Bunyan are detailed. This book details the twenty-three volume edition of the works of Jonathan Edwards. It takes 11 pages to give detail to each volume. Thomas Boston's 7,500 page works is detailed in one page. Thomas Manton's works containing 10,500 pages is described in one page. Though the description of their works and other writings are written sufficiently to wet my appetite to find something written by these men.

This book has over 150 biographies of men and one woman Anne Bradstreet (poet). The book does talk of some of them who had a major task min forming the Westminister Confession of Faith. I obviously cannot spotlight all of the people taked about in this book.Some of them wrote long commentaries on specific book of the bible, some on a minor prophet. Thomas Manton gave 190 sermons on Psalm 119; the book comes in three volumes 1,473 pages. George Trosse through his autobiography details a Christian life struggling with depression. Richard Steele wrote Religious traders a book describing how a Christian can glorify God through being a shop keeper. Ralf Venning wrote a book Learning in Christ's School which details four stages of learning babes, children, youth, and man. Edward Lawrence wrote Parent's Concern for Unsaved Children. John Lightfoot wrote Commentary on the New Testament from Talmud Hebraic which details the New Testament from the Rabbinic tradition: Matthew through 1 Corinthians. Cotton Mather wrote about detecting witches ( he was part of Salem Witch trials). The authors call this book highly speculative. The book recommends several other books by Cotton Mather. George Gillespie wrote A Dispute of English Popery which detailed how Charles I impose his rule on the Scottish church. I hope these comments gives you a taste of the type of works written by the Puritans and the breathe of topics one can find.