Unfortunately for many years hardback sets of Knox’s Works have been virtually unobtainable by, and inaccessible to, the general public. Now, to mark the 500th anniversary of his birth (probably in 1514) and the 150th anniversary of the completion of the first definitive edition of the Scottish reformer’s Works (1846-64), these rare volumes have been reprinted. The present republication of the reformer’s writings provides a unique and remarkably affordable opportunity for a new generation of students to rediscover and get to know the real John Knox.

While these volumes will be invaluable for students, their message deserves a much wider readership. At a time when many are concerned how Christian influence is to be revived in the ‘post-Christian’ West, Knox tells the story of events set in what were, in many ways, days darker than our own. He both records and illustrates what he saw as the ultimate key: ‘God gave his Holy Spirit to simple men in great abundance.’

The production of this six-volume set has been designed to last into the next century. It represents an important contribution to both a more accurate view of Knox and at the same time carries its own message for those who may be perplexed about both the contemporary condition and the future prospects of the church today.

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Review

• Review by Terry Delaney

The post The Works of John Knox appeared first on Banner of Truth UK.

Few figures have dominated the character of a nation’s life as John Knox has influenced the history of Scotland. In this remarkable work, originally dictated to his secretaries between 1559 and 1571, John Knox tells the story of his times and the progress of the Reformation in Scotland. These pages breathe the sense of excitement and expectation possible only to an eye-witness and participant in the unfolding drama of the Reformation in 16th century Scotland.

John Knox was incapable of writing history in a detached fashion, merely as a catalogue of events, or even as a tracking down of causes and effects. The days through which he lived were full of the signs of the work of God. So, he said: ‘We write that the posterity to come may understand how patiently God wrought in preserving and delivering those that had but a small knowledge of the truth, and for the love of the same hazarded all’.

This edition of Knox’s history of the Reformation was edited, abridged, and modernised for 19th-century readers by C.J. Guthrie.

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The post The History of The Reformation In Scotland appeared first on Banner of Truth UK.

You are holding in your hands a rare and precious book. It contains the choicest practical writings of a man whom God used to transform his native country and bring it into the light and under the blessing of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and that in spite of constant opposition and grave personal danger.

The Works of John Knox, preserved in six large volumes, are virtually closed to all but the most scholarly students of history. However, thanks to the endeavours of the Rev. Thomas Thomson and the Free Church of Scotland Board of Publications, this book was compiled so that Knox might be put back into the hands of the people. Unabridged and unaltered, except for the updating of the ‘antiquated orthography’, one can read some of the most enduring of Knox’s practical writings. These include such works as his treatise on prayer, his ‘Fort for the Afflicted’ — an exposition of the Sixth Psalm, his sermon on Christ’s temptation in the wilderness, and his notorious sermon on Isaiah 26:13-20. Fifteen of Knox’s letters are also included at the end of the volume, twelve of which were addressed to his mother-in-law, Mrs. Elizabeth Bowes. In them the temper and character of Knox the pastor are clearly exhibited.

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Review

• Review by Ben Ramsbottom
• Review by Matthew Vogan
• Review by Alan Hill

The post The Select Practical Writings of John Knox appeared first on Banner of Truth UK.