Timeline of His Life:

• October 5, 1703: Jonathan Edwards is born in East Windsor, Connecticut.
• 1716-20: Undergraduate at Yale.
• 1720-22: M.A. student at Yale.
• 1721: Conversion.
• 1722 -23: Pastor of church in New York City/”Resolutions”
• 1723-24: Pastor of church in Bolton, Conn.
• 1724-26: Tutor at Yale (near death illness, 1725).
• 1726: Called to assist his grandfather Solomon Stoddard in Northampton.
• 1727: (July) Marries Sarah Pierpont.
• 1729: Death of Solomon Stoddard; Edwards becomes full pastor at 26.
• 1734-35: Northampton and Connecticut Valley Awakening.
• 1737: A Faithful Narrative of the Surprising Work of God brings revival national attention.
• 1740: George Whitefield tour of New England/Great Awakening.
• 1741: Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God preached in Enfield, Connecticut.
• 1741: Distinguishing Marks of the Work of the Spirit of God.
• 1742: Some Thoughts Concerning the Present Revival of Religion in New England.
• 1744: “The Bad Book Case”
• 1746: Religious Affections.
• 1747: An Humble Attempt. Visit and death of David Brainerd.
• 1748: Death of daughter Jerusha.
• 1749: Life of David Brainerd.
• 1750: Dismissed from Northampton pastorate.
• 1751: Settles in Stockbridge, Mass. as pastor and missionary to Indians.
• 1754: Freedom of the Will.
• 1755: Drafted God’s Chief End in Creation and The Nature of True Virtue (pub. 1765)
• 1758: Original Sin.
• 1758: Installed as president of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University).
• 1758: Dies from smallpox inoculation

Want to Learn More about Jonathan Edwards?

• The Works of Jonathan Edwards Vol. I and Vol. II (Banner of Truth)
• The Voice of Faith: Jonathan Edwards Theology of Prayer, by Peter Beck. 2010
• Jonathan Edwards: A Life, by George M. Marsden (2003)
• Joanthan Edwards: A New Biogrpahy, by Iain H. Murray. (1987)
• A Short Life of Jonathan Edwards, by Geroge M. Marsden (2008)

Revival

“True revival is a sovereign, swift, extraordinary work of God whereby he saves sinners and breathes new life into his people.”

• True revival is a sovereign (dependent on God’s timing, God’s doing, granted according to God’s pleasure)
• swift (conversions, growth, and change happen relatively quickly)
• extraordinary (uncommon, surprising)
• work of God (not ours)
• whereby he saves sinners (regeneration leading to faith and repentance)
• and breathes new life into his people (with renewed affections, commitment, and obedience).

Books on revival written by Edwards: A Faithful Narrative of the Surprising Work of God; Distinguishing Marks of a Work of the Spirit of God; Some Thoughts Concerning the Present Revival of Religion in New England; The Religious Affections.

What Can We Learn About From Edwards?

1. Being deceived by our emotions when engaged in worship of God.

   1. It is no sign that affections have the nature of true religion, or that they have not, that they have great effects on the body
   2. It is no sign that affections are truly gracious, or that they are not, that they cause those who have them to be fluent, fervent and abundant in talking about religious things.
   3. It is no evidence of that religious affections are saving, or that they are otherwise, that there is an appearance of love in them.
   4. Nothing can certainly be determined concerning the nature of the affections that comforts and joys seem to follow in a certain order.
   5. Nothing can be certainly known of the nature of religious affections, that they much dispose persons with their mouths to praise and glorify God.
   6. It is no sign that affections are right, or that they are wrong, that they make persons exceeding confident.
   7. It is no sign, one way or another, that religious affections are very great, or raised very high.

2. The Sweetness of God “Once, as I rode out into the woods for my health, in 1737 (age 34) having alighted from my horse in a retired place, as my manner commonly has been, to walk for divine contemplation and prayer, I had a view, that for me was extraordinary, of the glory of the Son of God, as Mediator between God and man, and his wonderful, great, full, pure and sweet grace and love, and meek and gentle condescension. This grace that appeared so calm and sweet, appeared also great above the heavens. The person of Christ appeared ineffably excellent, with an excellency great enough to swallow up all thought and conception -which continued, as near as I can judge, about an hour; which kept me the greater part of the time in a flood of tears, and weeping aloud. I felt an ardency of soul to be, what I know not otherwise how to express, emptied and annihilated; to lie in the dust; and to be full of Christ alone; to love him with a holy and pure love; to trust in him; to live upon him; to serve and follow him; and to be perfectly sanctified and made pure, with a divine and heavenly purity. I have several other times had views very much of the same nature, and which have had the same effects.

   I have, many times, had a sense of the glory of the Third Person in the Trinity, and his office as Sanctifier; in his holy operations, communicating divine light and life to the soul. God in the communications of his Holy Spirit, has appeared as an infinite fountain of divine glory and sweetness; being full, and sufficient to fill and satisfy the soul; pouring forth itself in secret communications; like the sun in its glory, sweetly and pleasantly diffusing light and life. And I have sometimes an affecting sense of the excellency of the word of God as a word of life; as the light of life; a sweet, excellent, life-giving word; accompanied with a thirsting after that word, that it might dwell richly in my heart' (Vol.1,47).

3. How to Die Well (via Brainerd) On his death bed Brainerd said the following (and there were multiple occasions over the three months that Brainerd and the Edwards family was SURE he was going to die): “I am almost in eternity. I long to be there. My work is done. I have done with all my friends: all the world is nothing to me. I long to be in heaven, praising and glorifying God with the holy angels. All my desire is to glorify God.” Edwards remarked that on Sept 17th, Brainerd was taken with “something of diarrhea which he looked upon as a sign of approaching death; whereupon he expressed himself thus: “Oh, the glorious time is now coming. I have longed to serve God perfectly; now God will gratify those desires!” . . .and from that time on, at the several steps and new symptoms of the sensible approach of his dissolution, he was so far from being sunk or damped, that he seemed to be animated, and made more cheerful; as being glad at the appearance of death’s approach. He often used the epithet GLORIOUS, when speaking of the day of his death, calling it “that glorious day.” Brainerd would call Edwards’ children to his death bed and advised them when they saw his grave to remember how he had warned them to prepare for death. When he thought himself dying, and he could only speak in broken whispers, because of his illness, Brainerd would often repeat the word “Eternity”.