Jonathan Edwards
October 5, 1703 – March 22, 1758
America's greatest theologian. Pastor in Northampton, MA. Author of 'Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God' — the most famous sermon in American history.
Tradition
Reformed Congregationalist
Era
First Great Awakening
Preserved Sermons
1,200+
Biography
Jonathan Edwards was born in East Windsor, Connecticut, entered Yale at age thirteen, and at age twenty-three became co-pastor (with his grandfather Solomon Stoddard) of Northampton, Massachusetts — at the time the largest church in colonial New England. In 1734 a revival broke out in his congregation that he documented in 'A Faithful Narrative of the Surprising Work of God,' a book that helped trigger the broader First Great Awakening of 1740–1742. Edwards preached his most famous sermon, 'Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,' on July 8, 1741, in Enfield, Connecticut — by all accounts in a calm, monotone voice that nonetheless reduced the congregation to weeping and gripping the pews. He was eventually dismissed from Northampton in 1750 over a sacramental dispute, became a missionary to the Stockbridge Mohican tribe, and in 1758 accepted the presidency of the College of New Jersey (Princeton) — only to die of a smallpox inoculation five weeks into the job.
Legacy
Edwards is considered the greatest theological mind America has produced. His 'Religious Affections' (1746) remains the definitive Protestant treatment of true vs counterfeit religious experience. His 'Freedom of the Will' (1754) is one of the most rigorous philosophical defenses of Calvinism ever written. The Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale houses his complete works in 73 volumes (a project that took 50+ years).
Notable Sermons
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God
July 8, 1741Deuteronomy 32:35
The most famous sermon in American history. Preached extemporaneously in Enfield, CT, it became the defining text of the Great Awakening and of American Calvinism.
Read full sermonA Divine and Supernatural Light
1734Matthew 16:17
On regeneration — Edwards's most theologically dense and emotionally rich sermon on what conversion actually is.
Read full sermonHeaven, a World of Love
17381 Corinthians 13:8-10
The final sermon in 'Charity and Its Fruits.' One of the most beautiful descriptions of heaven in English literature.
Read full sermonThe Excellency of Christ
1738Revelation 5:5-6
On the union of incompatible excellencies in Christ — lion and lamb, majesty and meekness. A favorite of John Piper's.
Read full sermonThe Reality of Conversion
1740Acts 16:30-31
Edwards's diagnostic sermon for distinguishing true from false conversion in revival contexts.
Read full sermonPublic Domain Note
All of Jonathan Edwards's sermons are in the public domain. The Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale University hosts the definitive 73-volume Works of Jonathan Edwards online, free to read. Christian Classics Ethereal Library and Bible Bulletin Board also host modernized versions.
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