Journal: Southern Baptist Journal of Theology
Volume: SBJT 28:3 (Fall 2024)
Article: The Revival Of The English Particular Baptists In The Long Eighteenth Century
Author: Michael A. G. Azad Haykin

The Revival Of The English Particular Baptists In The Long Eighteenth Century1

Michael A. G. Azad Haykin

Michael A. G. Azad Haykin is Professor and Chair of Church History at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky, and Director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies, located at Southern Seminary. He is also Professor of Church History at Heritage Theological Seminary, Cambridge, Ontario, Canada. Dr. Haykin is the author of many books, including “At the Pure Fountain of Thy Word”: Andrew Fuller As an Apologist (Paternoster Press, 2004), Jonathan Edwards: The Holy Spirit in Revival (Evangelical Press, 2005), The God Who Draws Near: An Introduction to Biblical Spirituality (Evangelical Press, 2007), Rediscovering the Church Fathers: Who They Were and How They Shaped the Church (Crossway, 2011), Patrick of Ireland: His Life and Impact (Christian Focus, 2014), Kiffen, Knollys, and Keach: Rediscovering our English Baptist Heritage (H&E, 2019), Reading Andrew Fuller (H&E, 2020), Iron Sharpens Iron: Friendship and the Grace of God (Union Publishing, 2022), and Amidst Us Our Beloved Saints: Recovering Sacrament in the Baptist Tradition (Lexham, 2022).

It was during the early 1640s that the Particular Baptists appeared on the English church scene. Reformed in their soteriology, congregationalist in church government, and espousing believer’s baptism, they grew from seven congregations in London in 1644 to roughly 130 in 1660 to around 300 by 1689. The growth from 1660 to 1689 is particularly striking since it was during this period that a series of laws were passed, known as the Clarendon Code, which made it illegal to worship in any other setting but that of the Established Church and which basically reduced any but Church of England members to second-class citizens. From 1660 to 1688 the Baptists, along with other groups outside of the Church of England, were thus hurled into the fierce fire of persecution. Baptists who refused to go along with these laws often ended up experiencing state harassment, paying substantial fines or experiencing life-threatening imprisonment.

SBJT 28:3 (Fall 2024) 101

Religious toleration came in 1689, and the Baptists were now free to plant and build congregations, though it was still illegal for them to evangelize outside of their church buildings. Yet, despite the advent of toleration, the denomination as a whole began to plateau in its growth and, in some parts of England, it actually went into decline. In 1715 there were around 220 Particular Baptist churches in England and Wales. Some of these were very sizeable congregations. For example, in Bristol there were two Particular Baptist works: the Pithay and Br...