The Confession was first published in London in 1677 under the title "A confession of Faith put forth by the Elders and Brethren of many Congregations of Christians, Baptized upon Profession of their Faith in London and the Country.[5] With an Appendix concerning Baptism."[3] It was a revision of the Savoy Declaration (1658) with modifications to reflect Baptist theology.[3]Savoy is itself a revision of the Westminster Confession (1646) from presbyterian to congregational church polity. The Confession was published again, under the same title, in 1688 and 1689.[3][6]
The Act of Toleration passed by the Parliament of England in 1689 enabled religious freedom and plurality to co-exist alongside the established churches in England and Scotland. In response to the Act, representatives from over 100 Particular Baptist churches gathered in London from 3–12 September of 1689 to discuss and endorse the 1677 document. Thus, despite the fact that the document was written in 1677, the official preface to the Confession has ensured that it would be known as the "1689 Baptist Confession of Faith."[6]
Contents
The Confession consists of 32 chapters, as well as an introduction and a list of signatories.
Of the Holy Scriptures
Of God and the Holy Trinity
Of God's Decree
Of Creation
Of Divine Providence
Of the Fall of Man, of Sin, and of the Punishment Thereof
Of God's Covenant
Of Christ the Mediator
Of Free Will
Of Effectual Calling
Of Justification
Of Adoption
Of Sanctification
Of Saving Faith
Of Repentance Unto Life and Salvation
Of Good Works
Of the Perseverance of the Saints
Of the Assurance of Grace and Salvation
Of the Law of God
Of the Gospel and the Extent of Grace
Of Christian Liberty and Liberty of Conscience
Of Religious Worship and the Sabbath Day
Of Lawful Oaths and Vows
Of the Civil Magistrate
Of Marriage
Of the Church
Of the Communion of Saints
Of Baptism and the Lord's Supper
Of Baptism
Of the Lord's Supper
Of the State of Man After Death, and of the Resurrection of the Dead
Of the Last Judgment
Distinctives
The law's continued value for Christians - while Christ "abrogated" the Leviticalceremonial laws, the Confession cites Christ to have "strengthened this obligation" to obey the "moral" law expressed in the Ten Commandments, which "for ever binds all."[7]
Sabbatarianism - A weekly Sabbath day is prescribed and believed "to be continued to the end of the world" but a 7th year annual sabbath is ignored (cf. Lev. 25ff.)[9]
Marriage is a monogamous heterosexual ordinance.[10]
Intermarriage - Christians ought not intermarry with other religions, nor with any who believe "damnable heresies," but are to marry "in the Lord," and thereby not be "unequally yoked."[11]
Two church offices - (1) elders (also called "bishops" or "pastors") and (2) deacons.[12]
An open view on the millennium. The Confession does not espouse a particular view on the millennium (cf. chapter 32).[13]
Influences
Particular Baptists were quick to develop churches in colonial America, and in 1707 the Philadelphia Baptist Association was formed.[14] This association formally adopted the 1689 Confession in 1742[14] after years of tacit endorsement by individual churches and congregational members. With the addition of two chapters (on the singing of psalms and the laying on of hands), it was retitled The Philadelphia Confession of Faith.[15] Further Calvinistic Baptist church associations formed in the mid-late 18th century adopted the Confession as "The Baptist Confession."[16]
Current usage
Baptist churches around the world continue to subscribe to the 1689 Baptist Confession as the fullest statement of their beliefs. Many 1689 churches are listed in directories like the Reformed Wiki, the Farese Church Directory and the 1689 Church Directory.
Efforts have been made in recent years to modernize the language of the 1689 Baptist Confession to make it more accessible to contemporary readers. Some approaches are rather free, such as SM Houghton's A Faith to Confess, while others, such as Jeremy Walker's Rooted and Grounded, are more conservative. Still others, like Stan Reeve's The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith In Modern English lie somewhere between. A comparison from the first paragraph demonstrates this:
". . . which maketh the Holy Scriptures to be most necessary, those former ways of God's revealing His will unto His people being now ceased." (Banner of Truth, 1689)[17]
"And as the manner in which God formerly revealed His will has long ceased, the Holy Scripture becomes absolutely essential to men." (A Faith to Confess, 1975)[18]
"This means that the Holy Scriptures are most necessary, because God’s former ways of revealing his will to his people have now ended." (Rooted and Grounded, 2021)[19]
"Therefore, the Holy Scriptures are absolutely necessary, because God's former ways of revealing His will to His people have now ceased." (The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith in Modern English, 2017)[20]
Modern expositions
Several expositions of the 2LBCF have been published in recent years.
A Modern Exposition of the 1689 Baptist Confession, by Samuel Waldron, first published in 1989, was one of the first influential expositions of the confession in recent years.[21] It has remained an influential work ever since, going through several editions, revisions, and corrections. Since it was first published, reformed Baptist scholarship has matured in several respects, particularly regarding covenant theology.[22] Nevertheless, it remains a respected source for understanding the theology of the 2LBCF.
A New Exposition of the London Baptist Confession of Faith, edited by Rob Ventura, is a collection of essays written by various reformed Baptist pastors and scholars expounding upon the theology of the 2LBCF.[23]
To the Judicious and Impartial Reader, by James Renihan is part of a multi-volume series covering 17th century reformed Baptist documents.[24] Renihan's work is much larger than that of Waldron or Ventura.
^ abcdSchaff, Philip (1877). "The Baptist Confession of 1688 (The Philadelphia Confession)". The Creeds of Christendom (entry). Vol. 3 - The Creeds of the Evangelical Protestant Churches. New York: Harper & Bros. pp. 651–. ISBN978-1-61025-039-9.
^Reeves, Stan (2017). The 1689 Baptist Confession in Modern English. Cape Coral, FL: Founder's PRess. ISBN978-1-943539-04-8.
^Waldron, Samuel (2016). A modern Exposition of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith (5th ed.). Welwyn Garden City, UK, AL7 1TS: EP Books. pp. cover page. ISBN978-1-78397-187-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
^Waldron, Samuel (2016). A Modern Exposition of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith (5th ed.). Welwyn Garden City, UK, AL7 1TS: EP Books. p. 128. ISBN978-1-78397-187-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
^Ventura, Rob (2022). A New Exposition of London Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689. Geanies House, Fearn, Ross-shire, IV20 1TW, Scotland, UK: Mentor. ISBN978-1-5271-0890-5.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
^Renihan, James (2022). To the Judicious and Impartial Reader. Cape Coral, FL: Founders Press. ISBN978-1-943539-34-5.
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