On May 9, 1687 the well known Puritan Matthew Henry was ordained to gospel ministry in a private house by six Presbyterian ministers. Henry is most notable for his magnum opus– a commentary on both the Old and New Testament- which he was unable to complete due to a premature death. Others finished the work using Henry’s own notes, and this commentary has become perhaps the most well-known and most used commentary published since the Reformation due to its non-technical comments, devotional feel, and simple language.
But Henry was no theological slouch. Originally studying for law, one person who knew him said that had he stayed in the practice of law as a profession that he would have been highly successful. Three features of his life and ministry reveal God’s sovereignty in using this non-conformist minister in a profound way.
Rich Christian Heritage
Matthew Henry was the son of Philip Henry, a non-conformist Presbyterian minister in the Church of England. Prematurely born, Henry’s parents kept a close watch on young Matthew. At the age of 10 he contracted a fever that nearly killed him. But his parents cared not only for his physical health, but also his spiritual nurturing. God had a plan for this sickly child, which is why you’re reading about him over 300 years after his death.
Philip Henry took a hands-on approach in cultivating a spiritual atmosphere within his home for his wife and children. By the age of 3, historians say Matthew Henry was already reading the Bible. He attributed his own conversion to a sermon his father preached from Psalm 51:17, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” In 1685, he entered Gray’s Inn to study law, but he could not separate himself from the Lord’s call on his life to follow his father’s footsteps in the ministry.
His father was a faithful minister, refusing to submit to The Act of Uniformity enacted by King Charles II requiring all ministers to use the Book of Common Prayer. This was problematic for Matthew’s father, Philip, since he was a strong dissenter, a Presbyterian, ministering in a Church of England pulpit. His bold refusal to submit to the edict resulted in his dismissal from the Worthenbury Church in 1661.
Matthew Henry was not born until 1662, but he was well aware of his father’s past. His father’s orthodoxy and biblical convictions stayed with Matthew throughout his own ministry. He was thoroughly biblical and noted for his gift at expository preaching, which became the basis for his commentary on the Old and New Testaments. But his mother’s influence should not go without notice either. Writing to Matthew who was attending law school, Katharine Henry encouraged her son to stay close to the Lord:
“Dear Child,
It is much my comfort and rejoicing to hear so often from you, and, although I have little to send you but love, and my blessing...I write a line or two to you to mind you to keep in with God, as I hope you do, by solemn, secret, daily prayer; watching therein with perseverance; not forgetting what you have been taught, and the covenant engagements, renewed again and again, that you lie under, to walk circumspectly, in your whole conversation; watching against youthful lusts, evil company, sins, and snares from the world, and the devil.”
There is no doubt that Matthew Henry’s rich Christian heritage contributed greatly to both his faithfulness in his Christian walk, as well as his effectiveness in preaching and writing.
Pastoral Commitment
The second feature of Henry’s life was his pastoral commitment. Once again, we meet a man who exceeded others in terms of theological aptitude, yet he chose (as other great theologians throughout history have) to be a pastor, not a professor in the academy. He chose to preach weekly, sometimes up to 7 times a week. He was committed to the people he pastored at Chester where he began pastoring in 1687 while still in his twenties. He stayed with them for 25 years. After a few years, an official meetinghouse had to be constructed because his congregation grew to 250. Through the years he was offered various opportunities to pastor elsewhere including overtures from various London congregations such as Hackney (1699), Salters’ Hall (1702) and then one from Manchester in 1705, and then Silver Street and Old Jewry in 1708. Two years prior to his death he received another request to pastor at Hackney in London of which he received the call, serving from 1712-1714.
Henry was a man who saw the pastorate as the primary place to have influence. His weekly sermons were the result of hours of intense study. He delivered his sermons each Sunday, including mid-week lectures and other sermons during the week, with full confidence that God’s Word would not return void.
Hard Work of Disciplined Bible Study
A third feature of his life, after his rich Christian heritage and commitment to the pastorate, was his hard work and disciplined study of the Bible. It has been noted by some historians that the average Puritan pastor studied upwards to 12 hours a day. Henry was truly a scholar of this ilk. This is seen in his massive commentary on the entire Bible. The commentary notes were the result of Henry’s sermon preparation. This explains the verse-by-verse style of his commentary, reflecting Henry’s strong commitment to expository preaching and the whole counel of God’s Word. Writing a commentary on the whole Bible was an audacious undertaking to say the least. Unfortunately, Henry died during the period he was drafting his comments for the book of Acts. But other men finished his commentary for him by utilizing Henry’s personal notes after his death.
Henry began preaching in private homes before requesting the services of six ministers he knew well who were located in London to ordain him to gospel ministry. They agreed to do so, laying hands on him accompanied with prayer and fasting at the private residence of Richard Steel.
During his ordination he quoted from memory question and answer number 11 from the Westminster Shorter Catechism.
Q: What are God's works of providence?
A: God's works of providence are, his most holy, wise, and powerful preserving, and governing all his creatures and all their actions.
Conclusion
The lesson to learn from the ordination of Matthew Henry, including his faithfulness in preaching God’s Word in an expository fashion was his confidence in God’s providence. God had ordained Him to gospel ministry before he was actually ordained. God ordained him to salvation before his conversion as a teenager. God ordained his place in the home of faithful and responsible Christian parents. Henry saw God’s providential hand on his life. He knew the power of God’s Word, and believed in God’s Word. This was because he was told from a child that the Bible was God’s Word. As he studied Scripture throughout his life it only reinforced his faith in God’s truth. It reinforced his belief in the God of heaven and earth. Studying Scripture so intensely only did good for his soul, the parishioners he served, and even those throughout history who have reaped the benefits of his commentary.
Remembering history is important because remembering history helps us see what God has done...and what God can do. He can use a truth loving, dissenting, defrocked minister to faithfully pass the gospel down to his son, another minister, who would in turn also faithfully preach the Bible unashamedly in the midst of intense pressure from both political and religious authorities.
May we not take for granted our Christian heritage if we have one. And if we don’t, may we work hard to establish one for our own families. May we be resolutely committed to reading and studying the Scriptures, for that is the only place we have to turn in a world full of competing philosophies, theologies, and sin. And as we read the Bible may we be convinced of God’s most holy, wise, and powerful providence, which preserves and governs all His creatures and all their actions. This providence includes God’s gracious provision of His Word in your own life. So steward His Word well. Make full use of it.
Main Sources Consulted:
1. Westminster Shorter Catechism
2. Sir John Bickerton Williams, Memoirs of the Life, Character, and Writings of the Rev. Matthew Henry
3. Encyclopedia Britannica
4.https://www.presbyteriansofthepast.com/2019/04/01/matthew-henry-1662-1714/