published by the Banner of Truth Trust, paperback, 296 pages, £6.50.
What to say when we visit the sick and sorrowing, and what portions of God’s Word to direct them to, has often been a problem for pastors and Christians generally. The Visitor’s Book of Texts, or, The Word Brought Near to the Sick and Sorrowful, as it is subtitled, was compiled to meet this problem.
Andrew Bonar (1810-1892), begins his introduction: “What we say to the sick should be brief; and when we pray with the sick we should be short”.
After a couple of examples, the writer explains that this book “is formed upon this principle”, and that this applies to the sorrowing as well as to the sick. Before concluding the introduction he gives a helpful list of works that may be consulted by those who deal with the sick and sorrowful.
The book contains three parts. Part 1, entitled, “The Word Brought Near the Sick”, contains 10 chapters which deal with various conditions of sick people. The first three are: “The Believer Is Sick”, “The Sick Believer Troubled”, “The Believer Is Dying”. Then follow several chapters on unbelieving sick people in several different conditions, as well as backsliders.
Part 2 is entitled, “The Word Brought Near to Seven Classes who May Be Found in the Sickroom”. This deals with the recovery from sickness of the believer and the unbeliever, the aged, young men and women, children etc. There is also a chapter, “For Those Attending on the Sick”, and another, “For the Friends of the Sick”. Part 3, “The Word Brought Near to the Sorrowful”, again covers several different types of people and conditions.
Various texts are suggested for all of those conditions, and many helpful comments are also provided. For example, one verse suggested for dealing with the believer dying is Psalm 48:14: “This God is our God for ever and ever; He will be our guide even unto death”. Bonar suggests the comment: “unto death; and over death; ‘not one object of His care / ever suffered shipwreck there’”.
While this is not the sort of book one might want to sit down and read from cover to cover, it is one that pastors and elders might profitably dip into before visits that, in many cases, are not easy. (Rev) W A Weale
Voices from the Past, Puritan Devotional Readings, edited by Richard Rushing
published by the Banner of Truth Trust, hardback, 418 pages, £16.50. This is a volume of daily readings for a year drawn from the writings of the Puritans. The compiler has been personally thrilled “to read the Puritans on the glory and attributes of God, divine providence, fellowship with God, holiness of life and the mortification of indwelling sin, heavenly mindedness, prayer, evangelistic zeal, and trust in times of affliction”. In producing this book he was motivated by the desire that readers would be stimulated to explore further the writings of these “spiritual giants”.
Thirty-three authors are represented. A bibliography lists the most recent editions of their published works, most of which have been made available by the Banner of Truth Trust or Soli Deo Gloria. There are extensive useful indices of authors, topics and Scripture texts quoted.
The compiler explains that the readings are “sometimes almost exact word-for-word copies of the original”, sometimes the original has been paraphrased “with up-to-date phrases” and sometimes several pages have been condensed into one. He has endeavoured to be faithful to the sense and intent of the author. Personally one prefers to have the exact words of the author whose name a piece bears. One recognises that there is currently an endeavour to interest readers in old writers by presenting their material in more modern literary forms and the compiler is to be credited with acknowledging his method and providing on each page exact references to the originals on which he has drawn. We trust that those introduced to the Puritans by these pages will be encouraged to search out some of the sources for themselves, for on the whole they could not find better guides.
It is to be regretted that the Scripture texts prefacing each excerpt are taken from the English Standard Version. In addition to the inferiority of modern versions to the Authorised Version it strikes one as remarkable that publishers should have to say concerning any version of the Holy Bible that it is “used by permission”.
(Rev) H M Cartwright