The writings of Jeremiah Burroughs are some of the most readable and engaging Puritan works available. Like his Puritan colleagues, Burroughs sought to explain biblical teaching in a heart-searching manner. In this biography, Phillip L. Simpson opens a window into the life and times of Burroughs, providing the context for his memorable sermons and writings. What becomes apparent is Burroughs’s consistent application of the principles he preached to the conduct of his life. An ardent call for a gospel-driven life and a peaceable character is reflected in both his books and life, which stand out remarkably in an era of turmoil and revolution. This is the first book-length biography of Jeremiah Burroughs.

Table of Contents

1. Early Influences: Birth through the Cambridge Years

2. Stisted, Chelmsford, and Bury St. Edmunds

3. Tivetshall, Norwich, and Mendlesham

4. Under Warwick’s Hospitable Roof

5. Rotterdam

6. Return to England: Burroughs and Politics

7. Burroughs the Preacher

8. Stepney, Cripplegate, and Cornhill

9. Burroughs the Westminster Divine

10. Burroughs the Independent

11. Gangraena and Irenicum

12. Burroughs’s Death and Legacy

About the Author

Phillip L. Simpson and his wife Sara live in Huntington, WV, along with their two children, Zack and Molly. Phillip developed and maintains the Jeremiah Burroughs Homepage website, a site dedicated to collecting resources by and about Jeremiah Burroughs. He is a lay teacher and member of Crew Church in Huntington. Simpson graduated from Marshall University and Eastern Kentucky University, and is employed as an occupational therapist, helping people with dizziness and balance disorders. He also serves on the West Virginia Board of Occupational Therapy.

Endorsements

“A man whose books are known and treasured almost four centuries after his death is a man worth getting to know. Phillip Simpson has done the church a great service in penning this long-overdue account of the life and impact of Jeremiah Burroughs. I am glad to commend it to you.” — Tim Challies

“Jeremiah Burroughs is (rightly) one of the most beloved Puritans of his day and ours. His precise biblical doctrine and spot-on application have given him a well-deserved place in the first rank of Puritan preachers. And while we have been blessed to have many of his works made available to us of late, we were largely ignorant of anything about Burroughs the man, other than short excerpts from reference works such as the Dictionary of National Biography or Benjamin Brook’s Lives of the Puritans.
Now, thanks to Philip Simpson, that has changed. He has meticulously researched Burroughs’s life and has shown us what made the man who and what he was. I am convinced that until we know the life of a man, we cannot fully understand his theology or his passions. We can now become informed admirers of this great man and can thank God even more for giving him to the church.” — Don Kistler

“Jeremiah Burroughs was a remarkable man of God. In him we find a persecuted Christian, a wise pastor, a gracious peacemaker, a Bible commentator, a Reformed theologian, a Christ-exalting preacher, and an author of over forty publications—all in one person. He pastored two of the largest churches in London and participated in the Westminster Assembly. Sixteen of his books have been recently reprinted andminister grace and peace to many people today. His most famous book, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment, has been translated into eight different languages. Yet for all this over 360 years passed after his death without anyone writing a full-length biography of him.
Therefore it gives me great joy to commend Phillip Simpson’s biography of Burroughs, A Life of Gospel Peace. At last we have a satisfying treatment of the life of this man whose words have nourished so many! Readers of the Puritans will enjoy discovering the man behind the books. Students of history will benefit from Simpson’s careful research in the sources. Christians longing for unity in Christ’s church will learn from Burroughs’s irenic example. Best of all, people of all kinds will be moved by the profound spirituality of this godly man, who could say with Paul, ‘to live is Christ, and to die is gain’ (Phil. 1:21).” — Joel R. Beeke