The Wicket Gate to the Puritans
Commentary
One of the most iconic allegories in Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress is that of the Wicket Gate. The word “wicket” being an old term for a small door or gate. In Pilgrim’s Progress, this gate symbolizes the exclusivity of Christ as the only way for salvation: “I am the door; if anyone enters by Me, he will be saved” (John 10:9).
Read the Puritans argues that when it comes to learning about the Puritans, there is no better “wicket gate” than the one Beeke and Reeves constructed in Following God Fully: An Introduction to the Puritans.
What’s truly remarkable about this book is just how much is packed into only 151 pages. William Strunk Jr. wrote that “when a sentence is made stronger, it usually becomes shorter. Thus brevity is a by-product of vigor.” If that’s true, this book is swimming in vim and vigor. Look no further than the Table of Contents and you will find a vigorous array of topics broken into Seven Parts consisting of 44 chapters! It’s worth noting that the average book length for that many chapters falls somewhere between 350-450 pages!
Like a Puritan espresso tamper, Beeke and Reeves compress a lot here; from the story of puritanism, the Puritans on communion with the Triune God, regeneration & assurance of Salvation, lessons from the Puritans for today along with their faults, the list goes on and on (it’s worth scrolling down below to our provided structure of the book to see just how much you can expect to extract from this short read).
I personally liked Part 2 where they briefly cover the following 9x “Puritan Stalwarts”: William Perkins, Richard Sibbes, Thomas Goodwin, John Eliot, John Owen, John Bunyan, John Flavel, Matthew Henry, and Jonathan Edwards. In just 2 pages per Puritan, they cover their early years, most prominent years, and final years of obscurity while concluding with some recommended books (WARNING: If you’re anything like me, read these chapters away from your credit card or device as you will be tempted to add many of these books to your library).
The Final chapter “How Should We Begin Reading the Puritans” is also worth the purchase of the book. It mirrors a lot of the advice Beeke has given online and at various Puritan Conferences about how to start reading the Puritans. This chapter also influenced our decision to pick Watson’s Heaven Taken by Storm for our first translation project.
I’ll leave you with a Beeke and Reeves quote before your click below to purchase this book: “The most important trait of the Puritans … their passionate love for the Bible as the written Word of God … this was the foundation of their faith, their thought, their teaching, their worship, and their daily lives.” May it also be the most important trait of our lives as we seek tofollow God fully.
Structure of the Book
The book is divided into 7 parts (each containing multiple chapters):
Who Were the Puritans?
Puritan Stalwarts
The Triune God and His Saving Work
A Saved and Holy People
Christ’s Bride
Puritans in Daily Life
The Puritans for Today
Five Key Quotes
“the united goal of all Puritans: a continuation of the work of reforming the visible church, the lives of church members, and the society in which they lived.”
“In the written Word of God they found the living Word of God, Jesus Christ.”
“What is most remarkable, however, is not that Puritanism gradually dissipated but that it lasted as long as it did. When else in church history did a movement of such intense, comprehensive pursuit of holiness last for 150 years?”
“Puritanism grew out of three needs: 1. The need for biblical preaching and the teaching of sound Reformed doctrine; 2. The need for biblical, personal piety that stresses the work of the Holy Spirit in the faith and life of the believer; and 3. The need to restore biblical simplicity in liturgy, vestments, and church government, so that a well-ordered church life would promote the worship of the triune God as prescribed in His Word.”
“We train preachers to expound the context in the chapter from which they are preaching, but the Puritans, for better or worse, viewed the entire Bible as the context!”
Recommended Complementary Reading
Meet the Puritans by Beeke, Pederson, and Jones
The Glory of Grace: An Introduction to the Puritans by Lewis Allen and Time Chester
A Quest for Godliness: The Puritan Vision of the Christian Life by JI Packer
Where to Buy the Book
If you purchase the book through the following link, RTP gets a small percentage back which we will use to fund our operations. It’s costs nothing extra to you and you’ll be helping us connect the Puritans with Christ’s church worldwide.
