Edward Fisher (

fl. ''Floruit'' (; abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for "they flourished") denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indicatin ...

1627–1655) was an English theological writer. He is generally considered the author of ''The Marrow of Modern Divinity'' (1645) by E. F., a work which influentially stated the doctrine of unconditional grace, and was at the centre of the later Marrow Controversy. This is a view held since Thomas Tanner's attribution of 1721, but it is contested by Alexander Gordon in the ''

Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'' who considers it unlikely on internal evidence.

Life

He was the eldest son of Sir Edward Fisher, knight, of

Mickleton, Gloucestershire Mickleton, with a population of 1,677 (UK Census 2011), an increase of 125 since the census of 1991, is the northernmost village in Gloucestershire, England. Location Mickleton lies close to the county border with Worcestershire and Warwickshi ...

. In 1627 he entered as a gentleman commoner at

Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the mi ...

, and graduated B.A. on 10 April 1630. He was noted for his knowledge of ecclesiastical history and classical languages. He was a royalist, and an upholder of the festivals of the church against the Puritans. He based the obligation of the Lord's day purely on ecclesiastical authority, declining to consider it

Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as G ...

. He succeeded to his father's estate in 1654, but finding it much encumbered he sold it in 1656 to Richard Graves. Getting into debt he retired to Carmarthen and taught a school, but his creditors found him, and he left for Ireland. Here he died, at what date is not known. His body was brought to London for burial. He was married, but his wife died before he did.

Works by Fisher and E. F.

The publications uncontroversially identified as his are: *'The Scriptures Harmony ... by E. F., Esq.,' &c., 1643. *'' &c., without place, 'printed in the 19th yeare of our gracious lord King Charles,' &c. (anonymous). *'The Feast of Feasts, or the Celebration of the Sacred Nativity,' &c., Oxf. 1644, (anonymous, identified as Fisher's by the Bodleian Catalogue). *'' &c., 1649 (i.e. 1650 N.S.),; 4th edit. 1652, 'By Edward Fisher, Esq.,' has appended 'An Answer to Sixteen Queries touching the . . . observation of Christmass, propounded by Joseph Hemming of Uttoxeter' (reprinted Somers ''Tracts'', 1748, vol. iv.); 5th edit. 1653; another edit. 1655, has appended 'Questions preparatory to the more Christian Administration of the Lord's Supper ... by E. F., Esq.' The ''Caveat'', which reckons Christmas Day and Good Friday as of equal authority with the Lord's day, was attacked by

John Collinges John Collinges (1623–1690) was an English Presbyterian theologian, and prolific writer. He lived and worked in Norwich for more than forty years where he played a major role in reviving and administering the City Library. He was one of the repr ...

and

Giles Collier Giles Collier (1622–1678), was an English divine. Collier was the son of Giles Collier of Pershore, Worcestershire, in which county he was born in 1622. In Lent term 1637 he became either a battler or a servitor at New Inn Hall, Oxford, taking ...

. Parts of the 'Caveat' were reprinted by the Seventh Day Baptists of America, in 'Tracts on the

,' New York, 1853. In Tanner's edition of Anthony Wood's ''Athenae Oxonienses'' (1721), Fisher is identified with E. F., the author of the ''Marrow of Modern Divinity''; and the identification has been accepted by Philip Bliss, John Hill Burton, and others. It is doubted by

George Grub George Grub (1812–1892) was a Scottish law professor and church historian. Life Grub was born at Old Aberdeen on 4 April 1812, the only child of George Grub, a respectable citizen and convener of the trades at Old Aberdeen, and his wife, Chris ...

. The author of the ''Marrow'' has been described as 'an illiterate barber,' but nothing seems known of him except that in his dedication to John Warner, the lord mayor, he speaks of himself as a 'poore inhabitant' of London. The following publications, all cast into the form of dialogue, and bearing the imprimatur of puritan licensers, are ascribed to the same hand: *''The Marrow of Modern Divinity . . by E. F.,'' &c., 1645; 4th edit. 1646, has recommendatory letters by

Jeremiah Burroughes Jeremiah Burroughs (sometimes Burroughes; 1599 – London, 13 November, 1646) was an English Congregationalist and a well-known Puritan preacher. Biography Burroughs studied at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and was graduated M.A. in 1624, bu ...

, William Strong,

Joshua Sprigge Joshua Sprigg or Sprigge (Banbury, 1618–1684) was an English Independent theologian and preacher. He acted as chaplain to Sir Thomas Fairfax, general for the Parliamentarians, and wrote or co-wrote the 1647 book ''Anglia Rediviva'', a history of ...

, and

Samuel Prittie Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bibl ...

. *'A Touchstone for a Communicant ... by E. F.,' c., 1647, ( Joseph Caryl's imprimatur). *'The Marrow of Modern Divinity: the Second Part ... by E. F.,' &c., 1649.The 19th edition of the ''Marrow'' was published at Montrose, 1803. It was translated into Welsh by John Edwards, a sequestered clergyman; his dedication is dated 20 July 1650; later editions are Trefecca, 1782; Carmarthen, 1810. *'London's Gate to the Lord's Table,' &c., 1647; the title-page is anonymous, but the signature 'E. F.' appears at the end of the dedication to Judge Henry Rolle of the pleas, and Margaret his wife. *' . . . by E. F., a Seeker of the Truth,' &c., 1650.

Notes

References

External links

''Who were the Marrowmen?''
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fisher, Edward English Calvinist and Reformed theologians 17th-century English writers 17th-century English male writers Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford 17th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians People from Mickleton, Gloucestershire