The Essential Jonathan Edwards

Old Christian classic stuff in updatedcformat, very nice. Should be read by more.

[Note:  This book was provided free of charge by Moody Publishers/Net Gallery.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.]

When I was in high school, a classmate who happened to be not only a friend of mine but also a fellow member of my congregation gave a very realistic reading of part of Jonathan Edwards' famous sermon "Sinners In The Hand Of An Angry God" in English class as an assignment for "The Scarlet Letter" which required us to adopt the style of a Puritan divine in condemning the sins of our fellow classmates.  Somewhat unfairly, Jonathan Edwards has come to be known as a dour and humorous and somewhat ferocious minister.  Despite many areas of disagreement with the authors of this book [1] concerning different aspects of Edwards' thought, this book does an excellent job at presenting Edwards in a very balanced sense.  If you disagree with Edwards' thoughts and ideas and eisegetical views of scripture in his flights of imagination and in his mistaken hermeneutics about various matters, at least you will disagree with what Edwards actually thought and practiced, rather than a mistaken image of what he said.

This book is an ample one at over 400 pages, quite large enough for the authors to sample a goodly amount of Edwards' voluminous writing for readers here.  This book is a best of compilation with both large amounts of excerpts from Edwards' writings as well as thoughtful commentary on them from the point of view of generally favorable but mildly critical evaluators.  This book's materials are divided into five parts.  The first part of the book gives a biography of Edwards that shows him as a lover of God (I) from his early childhood (1) to his conversion (2) and struggles as a young man to find a wife and a good place in the world (3) to his experience of seeing God's grace in action (4), his work as a minister in Northampton (5), his preaching against Satan and his demons (6), his firing from that position and his work in the wilderness (7), and his death from a vaccination gone wrong before he was to fulfill the job as the president of Princeton University (8).  After this the authors discuss Edwards' view of beauty (II), specifically the beauty of God (9), creation (10), Christ (11), the Church (12), and a reputed Trinitarian afterlife (13).  Next, the authors discuss Edwards' view of the good life (III) including its nearness (14), distance as a result of human depravity (15), taste (16), pleasures (17), and shape (18).  Edwards' views of true Christianity (IV) are then explored, with a look at the problem of nominal Christianity in his day (19), Edwards' answer to this problem (20), some powerful examples of true Christianity (21), and the simultaneous dismissal of Edwards and his call to genuine holiness on the part of believers (22).  The final part of the book discusses the issue of heaven and hell (V) in the disappearance of the afterlife in later generations of believers (23), the frightening prospect of hell (24), the glorious prospect of heaven (25), and the transformative power of a heaven-focused mindset (26).  The book then ends with works cited and recommended further reading along with some acknowledgments by the authors.

Despite my disagreements with the authors, especially about the extent to which Edwards' views of the nature of God and the afterlife were exegetical as opposed to traditional but nonbiblical, this book was certainly a worthwhile one.  In particular, I was relieved to hear that Edwards was a human being and that the authors were not trying to portray him as otherwise.  In particular, the authors do a good job at pointing out that the author was a man of his times when it came to casual racism despite his hostility to the Atlantic slave trade.  Likewise, the authors demonstrate that while Edwards did have some very strong views on the need for holiness on the part of believers that he also had some very strong views on the fact that living a godly life should lead to joy and an appreciation of the beauty of God's creation, however marred it is by sin.  If this book helps people see Edwards as a human being with a concern for both the joys of believers in this life and in the kingdom of heaven as well as a concern for helping to encourage souls away from judgment, it will have done a great deal.

[1] See, for example:

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011/03/21/book-review-fallen-founder-the-life-of-aaron-burr/

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017/01/29/book-review-60-days-of-happiness/

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015/12/12/book-review-papa-tell-us-about-the-bible/

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015/11/05/book-review-happiness/

This is a weird review, but nonetheless, this is what I took away from the book. There are two things that I love to do greatly: 1. Be outdoors. 2. Be in the Word. I try to do each one deeply each day and as I read this book on Edwards, both of these thoughts were brought for me and I was greatly encouraged and inspired to keep doing them and going deeper. Edwards is such a deep person to read and understand and I really thought that these two men did an exceptional job of presenting Edwards to us in a way that we could connect and understand. I really do appreciate this work and I think if anyone is interested in understanding more about Jonathan edwards, this is your book to read.

There are better works on Edwards available. This might be one to consider if you're wanting an easier entry into Edwards and his theology. If you're looking to go deeper, recent scholarship will provide what you're after. See Marsden.

The Essential Jonathan Edwards by Owen Strachan and Douglas Sweeney is an excellent first book to read about Jonathan Edwards. It has a very unique structure that resulted from the fact that it was apparently written and published in parts, then put together. The first hundred pages are a brief biography of Edwards: I found this section helpful, if not particularly detailed. The remaining 300 pages systematically explain and engage Edward's thinking and writing on four separate subjects: beauty, the good life, true Christianity, and the afterlife. The authors quote liberally from Edwards' writings while doing their best to weave together a structured outline of his thinking in these areas. While I would certainly have some theological differences with Jonathan Edwards, I found this book very helpful both as a short biography and as an explanation of many of Edwards' teachings. In all, I think that it would be hard to find a better single-volume introduction to the life and thought of Jonathan Edwards than this book.

I received a digital copy of this book for free from the publisher and was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I express in this review are entirely my own.

This book is a must-have if you are already a Jonathan Edwards fan. I have read and loved some of his works, so I was excited to receive a free advanced copy of it in exchange for an honest review via netgalley. Jonathan Edwards epitomized the pastor/theologian title. His knowledge of God had a direct effect in his heart and life. And it is to our spiritual benefit to learn from his example.

It truly is a comprehensive book that summarizes Edwards’ biography and writings. The authors didn’t shy away from including even his shameful stance on slavery. I thoroughly enjoyed the first third that covers his life story. I breezed through this part.

I didn’t get as engrossed in the last two-thirds that covers Edwards’ published works. The authors quote him extensively and add their explanation to Edwards’ points. This is especially helpful for many of us who are not used to reading colloquial English. I have tried many times to read Puritan works, but end up giving up part of the way. I love the wisdom I can glean from them, but they are not easy reads.

There were some questionable things that Edwards believed that I have to research further. For example, as mentioned earlier, Edwards believed that slavery was not incompatible with his faith. He also made a distinction between the OT church being Christ’s mother and the NT church as His wife.

I would not recommend reading this book cover to cover, but it is excellent to have in your library as a reference book if you want to know Edwards’ beliefs in certain topics. The book is written for the purpose of introducing its readers not just to the scholarly approach to Scripture, “not to shoot over people’s heads with lofty academic discussion, but to fire the heart and mind to embrace the thrilling experience of a God-centered existence.” I believe the author succeeded in doing what they set out to do.

A wonderful blend of theological insight and biographical narrative, this work by Owen Strachan and Doug Sweeney is more readable than many doctrinally-oriented pieces on Edwards, but still shows his depth to their readers. It will ignite a love for Edwards both as a person as Christian thinker. Highly recommended.