Jonathan Edwards: A New Biography

Five Must Read Biographies #3: Jonathan Edwards: A New Biography

Jonathan Edwards: A New Biography By Iain H. Murray / Banner Of Truth CBD Says "This book gives us Murray's view of both the first and second great awakenings. Edwards was a mighty theologian and a great evangelist at the same time. No thinking person who loves theology and experience, revival and evangelism should pass over this masterful work

As I said on another occasion I love just about anything written by Iain Murray, he's a master at bringing the past to life and then bringing it to bear theologically and practically on the present. This book is especially well written, instructive and very edifying. Edwards devotional love for Christ, burning evangelistic zeal and his love for truth and doctrinal purity as brought forth in this book are both convicting and very contagious. This is definitely a must read biography!

Contents of the Book:

Preface

Introduction: On Understanding Edwards

1. The Son of East Windsor
2. 'That New Sense of Things'
3. New York: The Pursuit of Holiness
4. Tutor at Yale
5. Stoddard and Northampton
6. The Green Valley of Humiliation
7. The Breaking of the Spirit of Slumber
8. 'Thirteen Hours, Every Day'
9. The Great Awakening
10. Personal Portraits
11. Division and Disorder
12. The Defense of Experimental Religion
13. ' The Religious Affections'
14. Changes at Northampton and Beyond
15. The International Union and Missionary Vision
16. The Communion Controversy
17. Behind the Controversy
18. Removal
19. Strife in a Frontier Village
20. Missionary to the Indians
21. Through Esther’s Eyes
22. 'My God Lives
23. The Continuing Ministry

APPENDICES

1. Edwards' Published Writings

·During his Lifetime

·Major Posthumous Publications

·Collected Works

2. The Edwards' Manuscripts

3. A Letter of Sarah Edwards, 1750

4. An Anecdote on Whitefield and 'the Witness of the Holy Spirit'

ILLUSTRATIONS:

Arch Street, Philadelphia, with the Second Presbyterian

Church on the left End-paper

Reinterpretations of the 1751 portrait xviii

Thomas Hooker's house at Hartford i

Building the College House at New Haven 23

A Yale undergraduate of 1720 39

The first Yale College House 57

Solomon Stoddard's family (Genealogical Chart) 74

Simeon Stoddard, Boston councillor and brother of

Edwards' grandfather, Solomon Stoddard 75

Edwards' parsonage at Northampton 97

Title page of A Faithful Narrative 112

The Tennent Church at Neshaminy Creek 113

Northampton Church, opened 1737 135
A nineteenth-century drawing of The Old South

Church, Boston 153

Elm planted by Edwards 177

The President's House, Yale 201
Title page of Some Thoughts Concerning the Present Revival 231

An artist's impression of the centre of Northampton

below Meetinghouse Hill 249

Training-Day 269

A note from Brainerd to John Sergeant 288

Brainerd's grave at Northampton 289

The Ramage Press 311

Memorial plaque to Edwards 331

The Mission House, Stockbridge 351

Edwards' home in Stockbridge 371

Some good quotes from the book:

Concerning Sin:

“My wickedness, as I am in myself, has long appeared to me perfectly ineffable, and swallowing up all thought and imagination; like an infinite deluge or mountains over my head. I know not how to express better what my sins appear to me to be than by heaping infinite upon infinite, and multiplying infinite by infinite. Very often, for these many years, these expressions are in my mind, and in my mouth, 'Infinite upon infinite . . . Infinite upon infinite!" When I look into my heart, and take a view of my wickedness, it looks like an abyss infinitely deeper than hell.

"I have greatly longed of late for a broken heart, and to lie Low before God; and, when I ask for humility, I cannot bear the thoughts of being no more humble than other Christians. It seems to me, that though their degrees of humility may be suitable for them, yet it would be a vile self-exaltation in me, not to be the lowest in humility of all mankind. Others speak of their longing to be 'humbled to the dust'; that may be a proper expression for them, but I always think of myself, that I ought, and it is an expression that has long been natural for me to use in prayer, 'to lie infinitely low before God.' And it is affecting to think, how ignorant I was, when a young Christian, of the bottomless, infinite depths of wickedness, pride, hypocrisy and deceit, left in my heart.”

Concerning the Doctrines of Grace and Arminianism:

“So it was also with Edwards, and of the benefits which came to him in this condition none was greater than his deepening awareness that only sovereign, divine grace can achieve and guarantee salvation. He learned by experience, as others had done before him, that while those who have little awareness of the real nature of sin may assert man's ability to repent and believe, to hate sin and love God, those who know the true condition of human nature can find comfort only in the knowledge that God saves by his sovereign good pleasure and for the praise of the glory of his grace. Spiritual experience and sound theology go together. Accordingly, the Reformers, and the Puritans after them, had attributed opposition to the doctrines of grace as evidence of spiritual ignorance. 'The Papist', wrote William Perkins, 'ascribes his conversion not wholly to grace, but partly to grace, and partly to nature, or the strength of man's will helped by grace." He did so because he lacked a true knowledge of sin.”

“It appears to me that were it not for free grace, exalted and raised up to the infinite height of all the fullness and glory of the great Jehovah, and the arm of his power and grace stretched forth in all the majesty of his power, and in all the glory of his sovereignty, I should appear sunk down in my sins below hell itself- far beyond the sight of every thing but the eye of sovereign grace that can pierce even down to such a depth. And yet it seems to me, that my conviction of sin is exceeding small, and faint; it is enough to amaze me, that I have no more sense of my sin....I have a much greater sense of my universal, exceeding dependence on God's grace and strength, and mere good pleasure, of late, than I used formerly to have; and have experienced more of an abhorrence of my own righteousness. The very thought of any joy arising in me, on any consideration of my own amiableness, performances, or experien­ces, or any goodness of heart or life, is nauseous and detestable to me. And yet I am greatly afflicted with a proud and self-righteous spirit, much more sensibly than I used to be formerly. I see that serpent rising and putting forth its head continually, everywhere, all around me.”

“The danger from Arminianism lay not simply in a few particular errors but in its whole tendency. While it claimed to be based upon Scripture the popular strength of its arguments depended on the contention that Calvinistic belief is not reconcilable with human reason: How, its exponents asked, can a sovereign election be reconciled with God's universal com­passion? or the unchangeable purpose of God in salvation with man's free agency? This mode of argument by-passed two facts; first, that reason is 'impaired, depraved and corrupted', and second, that 'the gospel requires men to believe things above reason merely on the authority of divine revelation.' If all the doctrines 'which have anything of spiritual mystery in them and so not absolutely reconcilable unto reason as corrupt and carnal' were judged as Arminianism judges the doctrine of sovereign grace, how much Christianity would remain?”

Concerning Preaching:

“I know it has long been fashionable to despise a very earnest and pathetical way of preaching, and they only have been valued as preachers who have shown the greatest extent of learning, strength of reason, and correctness of method and language.1 But I humbly conceive it has been for want of understanding or duly considering human nature that such preaching has been thought to have the greatest tendency to answer the ends of preaching, and the experience of the present and past ages abundantly confirms the same. An increase in speculative knowledge in divinity is not what is so much needed by our people as something else. Men may abound in this sort of light, and have no heat. How much has there been of this sort of knowledge, in the Christian world, in this age! Was there ever an age wherein strength and penetration of reason, extent of learning, exactness of distinction, correctness of style, and clearness pi expression, did so abound? And yet, was there ever an age, wherein there has been so little sense of the evil of sin, so little love to God, heavenly-mindedness, and holiness of life, among the professors of the true religion? Our people do not so much need to have their heads stored as to have their hearts touched, and they stand in the greatest need of that sort of preaching which has the greatest tendency to do this.

Those texts, Isaiah 58:1 'Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins', and Ezekiel 6.11, "Thus saith the Lord God, Smite with thine hand, and stamp with thy foot, and say, Alas, for all the evil abominations of the house of Israel!' I say, these texts (however the use that some have made of them has been laughed at) will fully justify a great degree of pathos, and manifestation of zeal and fervency in preaching the word of God.”

“Edwards wrote in Some Thoughts concerning the Present Revival:

‘They ought indeed to be thorough in preaching the word of God, without mincing- the matter at all; in handling- the sword of the Spirit, as the ministers of the Lord of hosts, they ought not to be mild and gentle; they are not to be gentle and moderate in searching and awakening the conscience, hut should be sons of thunder. The word of God, which is in itself sharper than any two-edged sword, ought not to he sheathed by its ministers, but so used that its sharp edges may have their full effect, even to the dividing asunder soul and spirit, joints and marrow.”

“The habit of the preachers was to address their people as though they were all pious, and only needed instruction and confirmation. . . . Under such a state of things, it is easy to conceive that in a short time vital piety may have almost deserted the church. And nothing is more certain, than that when people have sunk into this deplorable state they will be disposed to manifest strong opposition to faithful, pointed preaching; and will be apt to view every appearance of revival with an unfavourable eye. Accordingly, when God raised up preachers, animated with a burning zeal, who laboured faithfully to convince their hearers of their ruined condition, and of the necessity of a thorough conversion from sin, the opposition to them was violent. The gospel, among people in such a condition, is sure to produce strife and division between those who fall under its influence and those whose carnal minds urge them to oppose it.”