Today we continue our interview with Joel Beeke and Stephen Yuille. Volume 1 of their landmark republication of The Works of William Perkins, and they are here to talk about their project. If you missed Part 1 of their interview yesterday, you can catch up here.
Books At a Glance (Fred Zaspel):
Talk to us about Perkins’s popularity both as a preacher and as an author. I think many will be surprised to learn that Perkins’s writings became more popular than Calvin! What accounts for this? Perhaps you could also mention something about those with whom he was popular – did he write for fellow theologians only?
Yuille & Beeke:
In seeking to account for Perkins’s popularity, one scholar identifies two unique features in his writings: first, “an ability to clarify and expound complex theological issues which aroused the respect of fellow scholars”; and, second, “a gift for relating seemingly abstruse theological teaching to the spiritual aspirations of ordinary Christians.” To state it simply, Perkins was able to merge intricate theology with practical piety – a rare gift indeed. This made his writings very appealing to a large audience and, as a result, the name of no preacher recurs more often in later Puritan literature. For example, in New England, close to one hundred Cambridge men, including William Brewster of Plymouth, Thomas Hooker of Connecticut, John Winthrop of Massachusetts Bay, and Roger Williams of Rhode Island, lived in Perkins’s shadow. It has been said that “a typical Plymouth Colony library comprised a large and small Bible, Henry Ainsworth’s translation of the Psalms, and the works of William Perkins.”
Books At a Glance:
Okay, what about Perkins’s Works? Just how extensive was his literary output? Do the 10 volumes projected in this series comprise all that he published? Were these volumes originally published in Perkins’s own lifetime? And tell us how your republication of these works is significant.
Yuille & Beeke:
While living, Perkins published twenty-one books. After his death, friends and students published twenty-seven new books in his name. These were edited from his many manuscripts. John Legate gathered Perkins’s works into three volumes in 1608–9, and these were reprinted more than a dozen times. They were also translated into Latin and published eight times by 1668. At least fifty editions of Perkins’s works were printed in Germany and Switzerland. There were 185 seventeenth-century printings of his individual or collected works in Dutch. Furthermore, his writings were translated into Spanish, Welsh, Irish, French, Italian, Hungarian, and Czech. The international popularity of Perkins’s works led one biographer to declare that “his books spoke more tongues than the author ever knew.”
One of the great puzzles of church history is that Perkins’s works have not been published in English since the seventeenth century. The goal of the “Perkins Project” is to fill this major gap in Puritan/Reformed literature by publishing his complete works in a 10-volume set.
Books At a Glance:
Tell us about volume 1, which is now available. What kind of things await the reader? And what, in particular, do you find especially valuable as a contribution to biblical studies today?
Yuille & Beeke:
Volume 1 contains three of Perkins’s books. The first is A Digest or Harmony of the Books of the Old and New Testament. It made a significant contribution in his day to the long standing debate surrounding biblical chronology. The second book is The Combat between Christ and the Devil Displayed. Here, Perkins expounds Matthew 4:1–11. It’s a great resource for understanding the devil’s stratagems and appreciating the believer’s calling to look to his “merciful and faithful high priest” in the midst of temptation. The third book is A Godly and Learned Exposition upon Christ’s Sermon in the Mount. This is the most significant treatise in volume 1. Perkins did not view Christ’s sermon as a legalistic system of morality, a paradigm for the establishment of new society, or a standard of ethics for a future millennial kingdom, but as the definitive word on the nature of true godliness.
As for his contribution to biblical studies, Perkins believed the “canonical” Scriptures constitute the “wisdom of God concerning the truth.” For this reason, he championed what he called Scripture’s “infallible certainty,” meaning “the testimony of Scripture is the testimony of God Himself.” Owing to this conviction, he adopted Scripture as the axiom of all his thinking and the focus of all his teaching.
Books At a Glance:
Can you give us a glimpse of the kind of material awaiting us in future volumes?
Yuille & Beeke:
Perkins’s books include expositions of Galatians 1–5, Matthew 5–7, Hebrews 11, Jude, and Revelation 1–3; discourses on various cases of conscience; treatises on worship, preaching, assurance, predestination, the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer; and the errors of the Roman Catholic Church. We’ve organized these according to three major sections. Volumes 1–4 include his expositional works. Volumes 5–7 include his doctrinal and polemical works. Volumes 8–10 include his practical works.
Books At a Glance:
When do you expect this project to be complete? Do you have a projected date for the final volume?
Yuille & Beeke:
The plan is to publish the remaining volumes at six to nine month intervals. Ideally, we are hoping that the set will be complete by 2019, D.V.
Editor’s Note: To learn more about the significance of this new publication, see the publisher’s promo video below.
