Puritan Hope [Paperback]

Iain H. Murray (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1971

Must prospects for succeeding generations be darker than those of today? Can we even expect any period of history to intervene before the Advent of Christ? How can readiness for Christ's coming be consistent with the belief that revivals are yet to be given to the Church? Such questons are brought to the fore in this book and the author, employing both exposition of Scripture and much historical and biographical material, sets out the case for believing that it is not 'orthodox' to indulge in gloom over the prospect for Christianity in the world. Perhaps the most important practical aspect of this study is its demonstration of the influence which the 'Puritan Hope' had on the beginnings of the modern missionary movement. Carey and others, who attempted great things for God because they expected great things from God, were far from giving any place in their thoughts to that pessimism over the future of the Church's work in the world which here and there, in more recent generations, has acquired the status of a new orthodoxy .... Mr. Murray has written a book of high importance, which deserves to be studied and pondered by evangelical Christians.
F.F. Bruce in The Life of Faith

Tracing this 'Puritan Hope' from Calvin to Spurgeon, Iain Murray raises visions to which Calvinists may once again aspire. His book could be a landmark, if it is studied and its inspiration caught widely among those who are seeking a Power which promises, yea, who promises - to effect more changes in human history than too many of us have even dared dream of.'
Lester DeKoster in The Banner

Product Details

• Paperback: 326 pages
• Publisher: Banner of Truth (June 1, 1971)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 085151247X
• ISBN-13: 978-0851512471
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.8 x 7.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #272,356 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 47 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Thoughtful defense of Puritan eschatology December 29, 1998

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

Murray's thoughtful book challenges evangelicals to re-examine their thinking about the return of Christ. He carefully develops the basis for the sense of conviction and purpose that motivated Carey, Wilberforce and many others to do great works for Christ. Arguing that the "fullness of the Gentiles" must precede the conversion of Israel as prophecied in Romans 11, and that both of these events have not yet occurred, and that they portend far greater influence and triumph for the Church on the Earth, Murray lovingly challenges those who are of a "sit at home and wait for the rapture" mentality. He explains how and why the Puritans came to their eschatological beliefs; how these were perverted, primarily in modern times, by men like Edward Irving and J.N. Darby; why we've stopped thinking critically about these theories; and how we must recapture the confident expectation of Christ's triumphant end-time revival of Gentiles, then all Israel, before his return in glory. Excellent and thought-provoking.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Landmark Work April 16, 2005

By Will Riddle TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

I read this book as part of an extensive research project in eschatology, and it had a definite and important impact on my thinking, not just in "end times" events, but in understanding the Puritan theological heritage of modern Christianity and it implications for today. Released in the early 70's when dispensationalism was at it's height, this book resurrects the old Puritan view and gives it a new hearing.

This book is not a text on eschatology in the proper sense of the word. Murray does not delineate various views and weigh them against different kinds of evidence. Instead what he does is demonstrate that the theology of the Reformation, and especially the Puritans was a victorious-minded postmillennialism which looked forward to Christ's conquest of the nations, and the conversion of the Jews. He then demonstrates convincingly that many good fruits sprang from this hope especially world missions, and many cancers appeared when it was progressively replaced with a dispensational hope of Christ's 'imminent' return. For those from a strong dispensational perspective this may be too much to digest in one session, although the work is not abraisive, however for the rest of us who have been affected by dispensational thought indirectly the ideas in this book are a powerful antidote.

This book would be an excellent tool in any study of Church History, World Missions, or Eschatology.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding summary of Puritan's motivation for missions. July 22, 1998

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

From a historical survey, Murray details the relationship of Puritan postmillennialism to their motivation for world missions. Missionaries went boldly into various parts of the earth knowing that Christ has already won the victory over Satan's kingdom at the cross and had promised the victory of the church in history. "All authority has been given unto me in heaven and on earth, go therefore and teach...make disciples of all nations...I am with you even unto the end of the age." "I will build my church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it."