Volume 4: Commentary on James

‘The matter herein delivered will, I conceive, be found holy and useful’, wrote Thomas Manton in the ‘Advertisement to the Reader’ which prefaces his commentary on James. His concern to explain the meaning of the Epistle of James in order to exhort the people of God to faith and good works is evident: ‘If any expression should be found that savoureth not of true piety, or suiteth not with reverence to God, charity to men, or zeal of good works, I do, from my soul, wish it expunged, and shall upon conviction take the next occasion to retract it.’

Such pronouncements are not commonplace in many modern commentaries, but they summarise Manton’s attitude to his own work. Previously published by the Trust in the Geneva series, this commentary brings Manton’s expository gifts to bear on the Epistle of James as he seeks not only to inform, but also to form his hearers to be ‘doers of the word’.

Book Description

This product consists of Volume 4 of The Works of Thomas Manton  (1620-1677). Manton’s Works present us with an outstanding example of what was most characteristic in the ministry of the English Puritans: careful, solid, warm-hearted applicatory exposition of the Scriptures.

The set is a facsimile of the James Nisbet & Co. edition of 1870.

The Set

Endorsements

‘I have come to know him so well that I could choose him out from among a thousand divines if he were again to put on his portly form, and display among modern men that countenance wherein was a ‘great mixture of majesty and meekness.’ His works occupy twenty-two volumes in the Victorian reprint: a mighty mountain of sound theology. They mostly consist of sermons; but what sermons! They are not so sparkling as those of Henry Smith, nor so profound as those of Owen, nor so rhetorical as those of Howe, or so pithy as those of Watson, nor so fascinating as those of Brooks; and yet they are second to none of these. For solid, sensible instruction forcibly delivered they cannot be surpassed. Manton is not brilliant, but he is always clear; he is not oratorical, but he is powerful; he is not striking, but he is deep. There is not a poor discourse in the whole collection: he is evenly good, constantly excellent. Ministers who do not know Manton need not wonder if they are themselves unknown.’ — CHARLES SPURGEON

‘If ever there was an English divine who must be classed as a Puritan, that man is Manton…his works, like [Bunyan’s] Pilgrim’s Progress, deserve the attention of all true Christians…As an expositor of Scripture I regard Manton with unmingled admiration. Here, at any rate, he is facile princeps [easily first] among the divines of the Puritan school…In days like these, I am thankful that the publishers of Manton’s Works have boldly come forward to offer real literary gold to the reading public.’ — J. C. RYLE