Matthew Henry: The Bible, Prayer, and Piety: A Tercentenary Celebration

Three hundred years after his death, Matthew Henry (1662–1714) remains arguably the best known expositor of the Bible in English, due largely to his massive six-volume Exposition of the Old and New Testaments. However, Henry’s famous commentary is by no means the only expression of his engagement with the Scriptures. His many sermons and works on Christian piety — including the still popular Method for Prayer — are saturated with his peculiarly practical approach to the Bible. To mark the tercentenary of Henry’s death, Matthew A. Collins and Paul Middleton have brought together notable historians, theologians, and biblical scholars to celebrate his life and legacy. Representing the first serious examination of Henry’s body of work and approach to the Bible, Matthew Henry: The Bible, Prayer, and Piety opens a scholarly conversation about the place of Matthew Henry in the eighteenth-century nonconformist movement, his contribution to the interpretation of the Bible, and his continued legacy in evangelical piety.

Table of Contents:
List of Figures List of Contributors List of Abbreviations 1. Introduction - Matthew A. Collins and Paul Middleton, University of Chester, United Kingdom PART I. CONTEXT AND BIOGRAPHY 2. The Church and Nonconformity in Later Stuart England: The Wider World of Matthew Henry - Jeremy Gregory, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom 3. Matthew Henry: Minister and Preacher - David L. Wykes, Dr Williams’s Library, United Kingdom 4. From Educated Underworld to the Queen’s First Knight: The Henrys in Context - Clyde Binfield, University of Sheffield, United Kingdom 5. ‘For the Church or the Stable’: A Chester Consistory Court Case of 1693–94 - Peter Bamford, Chester Cathedral Library, United Kingdom PART II. THE BIBLE 6. Matthew Henry’s Commentary in Context: Reading Ecclesiastes - Stuart Weeks, Durham University, United Kingdom 7. Professors of Religion and their Strange Wives: Diluvian Discord in the Eyes of Matthew Henry - Matthew A. Collins, University of Chester, United Kingdom 8. ‘Filling up the Full Measure of their Sins’: Matthew Henry on the Destruction of the Jerusalem Temple - Paul Middleton, University of Chester, United Kingdom 9. Matthew Henry’s Exposition of Joshua 7 in Socio-Legal and Sociological Perspective - David J. Chalcraft, Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom 10. Soul Prosperity: Reading Psalm 1 with Matthew Henry - George J. Brooke, University of Manchester, United Kingdom 11. The Making of Ministry: Matthew Henry on the Parable of the Faithful Steward (Matt 24:45–51) - Loveday Alexander, University of Sheffield, United Kingdom PART III. PRAYER AND PIETY 12. Prayer and Providence: Matthew Henry and the Theology of the Everyday - Christine Helmer, Northwestern University, United States 13. ‘The Expressing of Devout Affections of the Heart’: Piety and the Affections in the Works of Matthew Henry - Michael A.L. Smith, University of Manchester, United Kingdom 14. Matthew Henry’s Legacy in Prayer and Piety - Ligon Duncan, Reformed Theological Seminary, United States PART IV. CATALOGUING THE WORKS OF MATTHEW HENRY 15. Matthew Henry: An Annotated Bibliography - Philip Alexander, University of Manchester, United Kingdom Index of References Index of Names

About the Author :
Matthew A. Collins is Senior Lecturer in Hebrew Bible and Second Temple Judaism at the University of Chester, UK. Paul Middleton is Senior Lecturer in New Testament and Early Christianity at the University of Chester, UK

Review :
These excellent essays provide a more full-orbed picture of Henry than we have had to date. Henry’s interpretation of the Bible, his theological discussions of prayer and prayer’s practical implications, along with his prescriptions for a vital Protestant piety in the Puritan tradition make Henry a very important figure in Protestant life. His enduring legacy continues as these pieces convey. This is an important work for understanding Henry and the implications and ongoing significance of his life and labors. Finally, very valuable is Philip Alexander’s annotated bibliography of Henry’s work. This is a fitting conclusion to this excellent volume on Henry. Although Matthew Henry’s six-volume commentary on the Bible is one of the most comprehensive and influential works of its kind, much less is known of the life, ministry and other writings of its author. But here in this collection of scholarly essays we have a concerted effort by a multi-disciplinary team to assess Henry in his historical context. Impressive in its range and depth, this volume provides a unique set of perspectives on Henry’s work. Matthew Henry is one of the most influential and yet least studied figures from the Puritan tradition and Early Modern period. Despite his significant worldwide impact on the evangelical church over the centuries, mainly through his Exposition, there has been very little scholarly analysis of his theology and piety, and especially the connections between them and his historical and cultural context. This welcome volume begins to fill that vacuum and I hope it will entice further scholars to take Henry more seriously, leading to a better understanding of both him and his times.