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John Gill (23 November 1697 – 14 October 1771) was an
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
pastor,
biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
scholar, and theologian who held to a firm Calvinistic soteriology. Born in
Kettering Kettering is a market and industrial town in North Northamptonshire, England. It is located north of London and north-east of Northampton, west of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene. The name means "the place (or territory) of Ket ...
,
Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
, he attended Kettering Grammar School where he mastered the
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
and learned
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
by age 11. He continued self-study in everything from
logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premises ...
to
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
, his love for the latter remaining throughout his life.


Early life and education

At the age of about 12, Gill heard a sermon from his pastor, William Wallis, on the text, "And the God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?" (). The message stayed with Gill and eventually led to his conversion. It was not until seven years later that he made a public profession of faith.


Pastoral work

His first pastoral work was as an intern assisting John Davis at
Higham Ferrers Higham Ferrers is a market town and civil parish in the Nene Valley in North Northamptonshire, England, close to the Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire borders. It forms a single built-up area with Rushden to the south and has an estimated popula ...
in 1718 at age 21. He became pastor at the
Strict Baptist Reformed Baptists (sometimes known as Particular Baptists or Calvinistic Baptists) are Baptists that hold to a Calvinist soteriology (salvation). The first Calvinist Baptist church was formed in the 1630s. The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith w ...
church at Goat Yard Chapel,
Horsleydown Southwark St John Horsleydown was a small parish on the south bank of the River Thames in London, opposite the Tower of London. The name Horsleydown, apparently derived from the "horse lie-down" next to the river, is no longer used. The pari ...
,
Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...
in 1719. His pastorate lasted 51 years. In 1757 his congregation needed larger premises and moved to a Carter Lane, St. Olave's Street, Southwark. This
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
church was once pastored by
Benjamin Keach Benjamin Keach (29 February 1640 – 18 July 1704) was a Particular Baptist preacher and author in London whose name was given to Keach's Catechism. Biography Originally from Buckinghamshire, Keach worked as a tailor during his early years ...
and would later become the
New Park Street Chapel The New Park Street Chapel was a Reformed Baptist church in Southwark in London built in 1833. The fellowship began worshipping together in 1650. Its first pastor was William Rider, and many notable others have filled the position since, includin ...
and then the
Metropolitan Tabernacle The Metropolitan Tabernacle is a large independent Reformed Baptist church in the Elephant and Castle in London. It was the largest non-conformist church of its day in 1861. The Tabernacle Fellowship have been worshipping together since 1650. ...
pastored by
Charles Spurgeon Charles Haddon Spurgeon (19 June 1834 – 31 January 1892) was an English Particular Baptist preacher. Spurgeon remains highly influential among Christians of various denominations, among whom he is known as the "Prince of Preachers". He wa ...
. During Gill's ministry, the church strongly supported the preaching of
George Whitefield George Whitefield (; 30 September 1770), also known as George Whitfield, was an Anglican cleric and evangelist who was one of the founders of Methodism and the evangelical movement. Born in Gloucester, he matriculated at Pembroke College at th ...
at nearby
Kennington Common Kennington Common was a swathe of common land mainly within the London Borough of Lambeth. It was one of the earliest venues for cricket around London, with matches played between 1724 and 1785.G B Buckley, ''Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket'' ...
.


Various works

In 1748, Gill was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity by the
University of Aberdeen The University of Aberdeen ( sco, University o' 'Aiberdeen; abbreviated as ''Aberd.'' in List of post-nominal letters (United Kingdom), post-nominals; gd, Oilthigh Obar Dheathain) is a public university, public research university in Aberdeen, Sc ...
. He was a profound scholar and a prolific author. His most important works are: * ''The Doctrine of the
Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...
Stated and Vindicated'' (
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, 1731)
''The Cause of God and Truth''
(4 parts, 1735–38), a retort to
Daniel Whitby Daniel Whitby (1638–1726) was a controversial English theologian and biblical commentator. An Arminian priest in the Church of England, Whitby was known as strongly anti-Calvinistic and later gave evidence of Unitarian tendencies. Life The s ...
's ''Five Points'' * ''An Exposition of the
New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
'' (3 vols., 1746–48), which with his ''Exposition of the
Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...
'' (6 vols., 1748–63) forms his ''magnum opus''
''A Collection of Sermons and Tracts''
* ''A Dissertation Concerning the Antiquity of the Hebrew Language, Letters, Vowel-Points, and Accents'' (1767)



Gill also edited and re-published the works of the antinomian theologian
Tobias Crisp Tobias Crisp D.D. (1600–1643) was an English clergyman and reputed antinomian. In the end he proved a divisive figure for English Calvinists, with a serious controversy arising from the republication of his works in the 1690s. Life In 1600, Tob ...
.


Significance

John Gill was the first major writing Baptist theologian, his work retaining influence into the 21st century. Gill's relationship with hyper-Calvinism in English Baptist life is a matter of debate.
Peter Toon Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...
has argued that Gill was himself a hyper-Calvinist, which would make Gill the father of Baptist hyper-Calvinism. However, Tom Nettles and
Timothy George Timothy George (born 9 January 1950) is an American theologian and journalist. He became the founding dean of Beeson Divinity School at the school's inception in 1988 and was the dean from 1989–2019, now serving as Research Professor of Divinity ...
have argued that Gill was not a hyper-Calvinist. Gill's works are still highly regarded by
Primitive Baptist Primitive Baptists – also known as Hard Shell Baptists, Foot Washing Baptists or Old School Baptists – are conservative Baptists adhering to a degree of Calvinist beliefs who coalesced out of the controversy among Baptists in the early 19th ...
s and related groups.


See also

* Hyper-Calvinism *
Primitive Baptist Primitive Baptists – also known as Hard Shell Baptists, Foot Washing Baptists or Old School Baptists – are conservative Baptists adhering to a degree of Calvinist beliefs who coalesced out of the controversy among Baptists in the early 19th ...


References


Sources

* Daniel, Curt. ''Hyper-Calvinism and John Gill''. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Edinburgh, 1983. * Ella, George (1995). ''John Gill and the Cause of God and Truth''. Eggleston, England: Go-Publications. * First published by Baptist Quarterly, October, 1995. * * Murray, Iain H. ''Spurgeon v. Hyper-Calvinism: The Battle for Gospel Preaching''. Banner of Truth, 2000. * * Oliver, Robert W. ''History of the English Calvinistic Baptists: 1771–1892''. Banner of Truth, 2006. * Peter Toon,
The Emergence of Hyper-Calvinism in English Nonconformity, 1689-1765
'. London: The Olive Tree, 1967. * Rippon, John (1838). ''Brief Memoir of the Life and Writings of the Reverend John Gill''. Reprint: Hess Publications, 1998.


External links


The Cause of God and Truth
by John Gill (1738)
''The Emergence of Hyper-Calvinism in English Nonconformity, 1689–1765''
by Peter Toon. *

by Peter Toon (1967) *
John Gill's Exposition of the Old and New Testaments
€”his magnum opus *

€”containing most of Gill's published works, including many sermons and tracts, ''The Cause of God and Truth'', ''A Body of Doctrinal Divinity'', and ''A Body of Practical Divinity'', and ''Solomon's Song''. *
''Christ alone exalted, in the perfection and encouragement of the saints, notwithstanding sins and trials : being the complete works of Tobias Crisp ... containing fifty-two sermons, on several select texts of Scripture ...'' Volume 1 of 2
(1832, 7th ed.) John Gill edition. Downloadable PDF which may be read online. *
''Christ alone exalted, in the perfection and encouragement of the saints, notwithstanding sins and trials : being the complete works of Tobias Crisp ... containing fifty-two sermons, on several select texts of Scripture ...'' Volume 2 of 2
(1832, 7th ed.) John Gill edition. Downloadable PDF which may be read online. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gill, John 1697 births 1771 deaths 18th-century English Baptist ministers 18th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 18th-century Christian biblical scholars Baptist biblical scholars English Baptist theologians Bible commentators British biblical scholars Burials at Bunhill Fields Calvinist and Reformed biblical scholars Christian Hebraists English Calvinist and Reformed theologians English male non-fiction writers Hyper-Calvinism People from Kettering