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

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.

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.