The Art of Prophesying
Perkins's compact manual on preaching distills Reformed hermeneutics into a practical method: read the text, interpret it by Scripture, draw sound doctrine from it, and apply that doctrine to the spiritual state of the hearer. It remains a foundational statement of the Puritan 'plain style,' insisting that a preacher's learning be thoroughly digested but never paraded.
Based on The Arte of Prophecying (1592/1607), by William Perkins
Puritan quotes
Quotes by William Perkins
“The Word of God alone is to be preached, in its perfection and inner consistency. Scripture is the exclusive subject of preaching, the only field in which the preacher is to labour.”
“Preach one Christ, by Christ, to the praise of Christ.”
“Preaching is the allurer of the soul, by which our self-willed minds are subdued and changed from an ungodly and pagan life-style to a life of Christian faith and repentance.”
“Preach one Christ by Christ to the praise of Christ.”
“He who would be a faithful minister of the gospel must deny the pride of his heart, be emptied of ambition, and set himself wholly to seek the glory of God in his calling.”
“Those families wherein this service of God is performed, are (as it were) little churches, yea, even a kind of Paradise upon earth.”
“The lesser we discern pride in ourselves, the more it reigns in our hearts.”
“Wicked thoughts are deadly evils.”
“Whatever afflictions, curses, and punishments are in the world, they are ordained by God for the sin of man.”
“Predestination is the decree of God, by which he has ordained all men to a certain and everlasting estate.”