A Puritan Theology, Doctrine for Life, by Joel Beeke and Mark Jones, published by Reformation Heritage Publications, hardback, 1071 pages, £49.99.
The Puritans of the sixteenth century were so called because they desired to see the Church of England much more thoroughly reformed. Though their desire was unfulfilled, then and in the following century – though there was a decided improvement in the time of Oliver Cromwell – yet their sermons and other writings provide a valuable spiritual resource for later generations.
This massive book (in terms of page size as well as the number of pages) is an attempt to summarise the teachings of that great cloud of witnesses, the leading Puritan writers. There are 59 chapters, some of them co-written by men other than the two named authors. Most provide a wide survey of Puritan thought on a particular doctrine: for example, providence, angels, the sinfulness of sin, and the covenant of works, to quote a few of the early chapter headings. Other chapters consider an individual writer and his thought on a particular topic: for example, John Owen on communion with the triune God and William Perkins on predestination.
The reviewer has only been able as yet to read parts of this volume, but his impression is that each of these chapters gives a clear, readable view of the subject under consideration. Not the least valuable feature of the work is the large number of quotations from a wide variety of Puritan writers.
Here is a very small selection: Christ is the “sum of the whole Bible, prophesied, typified, prefigured, exhibited, demonstrated, to be found in every leaf, almost in every line” (Thomas Adams); God’s “duration is as endless as His essence is boundless” (Stephen Charnock); “If a godly man’s prayer availeth much, it is because Christ’s prayer availeth much. He is the altar upon which all the oblations are sanctified, and from hence it is that the incense of their prayers are perfumed, so that God finds a sweet savour in them” (Anthony Burgess); “The more any man is now under the blessed pouring out of the Spirit of Christ, the more that man gives himself up to secret communion with Christ” (Thomas Brooks); “That prayer which we are to believe will be accepted is the work of the Holy Ghost; it is His voice, motion, operation, and so His prayer” (David Clarkson); “One of the greatest privileges and advacements of believers, both in this world and unto eternity, consists in the beholding the glory of Christ” (John Owen); “Ministers knock at the door of men’s hearts; the Spirit comes with a key and opens the door” (Thomas Watson).
One would have been glad of a chapter giving a general overview of the Puritans’ optimistic outlook, anticipating a future period of blessing for the whole world, before the second coming of Christ (there are two chapters in this area, but they are restricted in their scope). This volume is to be welcomed; it gives a very helpful summary of many areas of Scripture teaching as expounded by the Puritans, but such books should not be allowed to take the place of reading their actual works. On the other hand, we find here references to important writers whose books have not been republished since the seventeenth century.