The Works of Richard Sibbes (7 vols.)

by Richard Sibbes; Alexander Balloch Grosart

Publishers:

James Nichol; J. Nisbet & Co.; W. Robertson

, 1862–1864

Overview

Richard Sibbes articulated a covenant theology and a Reformed and biblical understanding of God which shaped Puritan thought in the seventeenth century and has influenced Reformed theology ever since. The Works of Richard Sibbes contains the theological treatises, sermons, and commentaries of one of Puritan England’s most influential theologians. As an inspiring preacher, Sibbes connected theology to experience and biblical reflection to firm piety. The Works of Richard Sibbes is provocative, but not polemical, and instructive, but not dogmatic. Sibbes’ careful connection between theology and experience spoke to a generation of persecuted Christians in England and set the tone for Reformed theological reflection in Reformation England and beyond.

Logos is pleased to offer The Works of Richard Sibbes—the seven volume academic standard published by James Nichol. Works such as The Bruised Reed, The Soul’s Conflict, and The Saint’s Safety are included in this collection, as well as Sibbes’ commentaries on 2 Corinthians and lengthy expositions on the Pauline epistles.

With Logos Bible Software, The Works of Richard Sibbes is completely searchable and more accessible than ever! Key theological terms are linked to dictionaries and encyclopedias, and Scripture references are linked to your Greek New Testament or your favorite English translations.

The Works of Richard Sibbes will benefit pastors, theologians, laypersons, and anyone interested in Reformed theology in general and Puritan thought in particular.

Key Features

• Complete bibliography of Sibbes’ works
• Memoirs of Richard Sibbes, written by Rev. Alexander Balloch Grosart
• Comprehensive index

Praise for the Print Edition

Sibbes never wastes…time. He scatters pearls and diamonds with both hands.

—C. H. Spurgeon

I shall never cease to be grateful to Richard Sibbes, who was balm to my soul at a period in my life when I was overworked and badly overtired, and therefore subject in an unusual manner to the onslaughts of the devil.... I found at that time that Richard Sibbes... was an unfailing remedy. His books The Bruised Reed and The Soul's Conflict quieted, soothed, comforted, encouraged, and healed me.

—Martyn Lloyd-Jones

The most brilliant and popular of all the utterances of the Puritan church…

—William Haller

A ‘soul of goodness’ informs every fiber and filament of his thinking… there is not a page without food for the spiritually hungry.

—Rev. Alexander Balloch Grosart

Product Details

• Title: The Works of Richard Sibbes
• Author: Richard Sibbes
• Publisher: James Nichol
• Volumes: 7
• Pages: 3,714

The Works of Richard Sibbes, vol. 1

• Publisher: James Nichol
• Publication Date: 1862
• Pages: 425

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

Richard Sibbes wrote extensively about the relationship between suffering and sin, as well as the suffering of Christ. Volume One contains numerous works on these topics, including The Bruised Reed, the work for which Sibbes is best known. He also writes about the place of saints and the nature of those whom God loves and has called. Sibbes is well-positioned to speak of suffering and of those in the church’s history who have suffered, given his history of writing from within a shifting and often-dangerous political climate.

Volume One includes a lengthy biography of Richard Sibbes, written by Alexander Balloch Grosart.

The Works of Richard Sibbes, Vol. 2

• Publisher: James Nichol
• Publication Date: 1862
• Pages: 518

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

 

Volume Two contains Sibbes’ writings which explore the relationship between Christ and the church, beginning with the life of Christ and the Holy Spirit’s ongoing role in the ministry of the Church. The church, Sibbes shows, rests on God’s faithfulness and Christ’s work, but is also obligated to fulfill Christ’s commission. He writes extensively on the metaphor of the church as Christ’s bride.

Volume Two also includes a lengthy treatise on those who leave the church and later return—whom Sibbes artfully labels “returning backsliders.” He reminds readers—then and now—of the twin commands of love and punishment, as well as the scope of God’s grace and the nature of both public and private repentance with regard to those who have returned to the church. Sibbes’ treatise on the church concludes with a rich account of the feast—biblical notions of the feast, the feast at the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, and the feast of Christ’s Second Coming.

The Works of Richard Sibbes, Vol. 3

• Publisher: James Nichol
• Publication Date: 1862
• Pages: 543

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

Volume Three contains Sibbes’ lengthy and detailed commentary on 2 Corinthians 1. Since Sibbes never separated biblical exposition from thoughtful and engaging preaching, much of this commentary draws from material in Sibbes’ sermons, and thus remains eminently accessible and entirely void of technical elitism. Like the commentaries written by other Puritan writers such as John Owen and Thomas Goodwin, Sibbes approaches 2 Corinthians from a position of piety and posture of prayer.

The Works of Richard Sibbes, Vol. 4

• Publisher: James Nichol
• Publication Date: 1863
• Pages: 527

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

As a fitting sequel to Volume Three, Volume Four brings together all of Richard Sibbes’ works on 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians. Numerous sermons, treatises, and discourses make up this comprehensive commentary on Paul’s two epistles to the church in Corinth. Sibbes explores at length the key themes of Pauline theology, such as the relationship between the Gospel and the Law, judgment, and the resurrection.

The Works of Richard Sibbes, Vol. 5

• Publisher: James Nichol
• Publication Date: 1863
• Pages: 540

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 56 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

Volume Five continues Sibbes’ expositions and treatises on Pauline epistles. This volume includes a lengthy exposition of Philippians 2, as well as Sibbes’ exploration of the redemption of bodies and the relationship between the physical and the spiritual realm.

The Works of Richard Sibbes, Vol. 6

• Publisher: James Nichol
• Publication Date: 1863
• Pages: 560

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Although Sibbes devotes much of his theological exploration and biblical exposition to New Testament themes, Volume Six is devoted to the Old Testament. His treatises in this volume on the covenant in the Old Testament brought covenant theology—central to Reformed theology—to the fore. Sibbes also writes at length about Josiah and implications of the life of Josiah for theological reflection. The volume concludes with lengthy treatises on the relationship between wealth and poverty, as well as appropriate uses of violence in Christianity.

The Works of Richard Sibbes, Vol. 7

• Publisher: James Nichol
• Publication Date: 1864
• Pages: 601

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

Volume Seven contains more than thirty of Richard Sibbes’ sermons not found elsewhere in other volumes. As a prolific theologian and biblical scholar, Sibbes remained best known for his preaching and his lengthy preaching career at Gray’s Inn. He preached on stories in Scripture—such as the story of Balaam—as well as Jesus’ miracles, the life of Mary, and on theological topics such as grace, salvation, prayer, and the resurrection. Volume Seven concludes with two sermons on Christ’s Second Coming.

Volume Seven also includes a complete bibliography of Sibbes’ works, a glossary, a list of key names, and a general index to The Works of Richard Sibbes.

About Richard Sibbes

Richard Sibbes was born in 1577. He entered St. John’s College at Cambridge in 1595, and was ordained in the Church of England in 1607. He received his B.D. in 1610.

Sibbes lectured at Holy Trinity Church in Cambridge beginning in 1611 and became a preacher at Gray’s Inn in 1617—London’s most famous pulpit at the time. He returned to Catherine Hall in 1626, and returned to Holy Trinity Church in Cambridge in 1623, although never gave up his preaching at Gray’s Inn. Influence of Sibbes’ thought can be found in the writings of John Cotton, Hugh Peters, Thomas Goodwin, and John Preston, among countless others.

Richard Sibbes died in 1635. Among his last words: "I commend and bequeath my soul into the hands of my gracious Savior, who hath redeemed it with his most precious blood, and appears now in heaven to receive it."