"For many years, I have hoped that someone would reissue a fresh edition of this valued compendium of the callings and opportunities of family living. In a day when many Christians are confused about the callings of Christian living in the home, Baxter gives clear job descriptions for husbands, wives, and even children. It is my prayer that Baxter's robust biblical vision for the family will inspire and encourage many, just as it did in the seventeenth century."
—Tedd Tripp, pastor; international conference speaker; author, Shepherding a Child's Heart
"Baxter's The Godly Home is a treasure of godly information and advice desperately needed in today's world. Few areas are more in need of reformation than the home and family, and this updating of Baxter's prose is very welcome indeed. For too long, this excellent piece has been buried in the massive Directory, and its resurrection under the skillful hand of Randall Pederson is both timely and welcome. Let us hope that a new reformation begins in the home and that this publication will aid to that end."
—Derek W. H. Thomas, Senior Minister, First Presbyterian Church, Columbia, South Carolina; Robert Strong Professor of Systematic and Pastoral Theology, Reformed Theological Seminary, Atlanta, Georgia
"The Puritans elevated the concept that our homes and families should be like little churches and godly enclaves more than anyone else in church history. They preached scores of sermons and wrote numerous books on how to live as Christian husbands, wives, and children. One of the most important among these books was written by Richard Baxter and has long been buried in miniscule print in his A Christian Directory. In The Godly Home, Randall Pederson has masterfully edited Baxter's tour de force on the duties of husbands, wives, children, and teenagers in building God-glorifying homes. Though a few items in this book may seem outdated, the vast majority of it provides solid, convicting, and instructive biblical advice. If every Christian family, by the Spirit's grace, conscientiously practiced the godly piety Baxter commends in this book, homes, churches, and nations would be truly transformed for good and we would see better days ahead."
—Joel R. Beeke, President, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary
"Richard Baxter's Christian Directory was one of the most compendious books of spiritual advice to be published in the seventeenth century. Its massive size, however, has hindered its usefulness in engaging a wide, evangelical audience. In The Godly Home, Randall J. Pederson has sought to remedy this by producing a volume that, with fresh urgency, presents Baxter's wisdom on family life and worship. Pederson's sensitive editorial care is to be commended. This is a work to be read and reread. I hope it reaches a wide audience and serves to awaken Christians to the need of an enduring godly legacy."
—Crawford Gribben, Professor of Early Modern British History, Queen’s University
RICHARD BAXTER (1615-1691) was a leading English Puritan churchman, theologian, and writer. He authored nearly 170 works, including the 1,143-page Christian Directory, Methodus Theologiae Christianae, and Catholic Theology.
RANDALL J. PEDERSON (PhD, Westminster Theological Seminary) is editor of Day by Day with the English Puritans and co-author of Meet the Puritans: With a Guide to Modern Reprints.
J. I. Packer (DPhil, Oxford University) serves as the Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology at Regent College. He is the author of numerous books, including the classic best-seller Knowing God. Packer served as general editor for the English Standard Version Bible and as theological editor for the ESV Study Bible.
