A Joint Online Exhibit
Presented by
The Stockbridge Library Association and The Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale
The Copy of Copies of Jonathan Edwards'
Discourses upon Various Important Subjects
On a visit to The Stockbridge (Mass.) Library Association this summer, Barbara Allen, curator of the Library's Historical Collection showed members of the Jonathan Edwards Center what is perhaps the most desirable and unique copy of Jonathan Edwards' Discourses upon Various Important Subjects of 1738 to be found. Bound with the third Boston edition of A Faithful Narrative, published the same year, the collection commemorates the Connecticut Valley revival of 1734-35, which made Edwards and Northampton internationally known.
This particular copy, missing only the title page to the Discourses, was Edwards' personal working copy. In it he made a number of handwritten corrections to errata (including ones not listed in the printed errata sheets for both of the imprints) as well as supplementary references. He signed the book in 1751, when he moved to Stockbridge, as seen on the back of the flyleaf (see illus. 1).
[1] 
What is more, he gave this marked-up copy to his daughter Esther, probably when she married Rev. Aaron Burr in June 1752 and moved to New Jersey. She signed the book on the front of the flyleaf (see illus. 2).
[2] 
Though there is little difference to be seen in the inks among the autograph emendations and additions, they seem to fall into two categories. First, there is a series of corrections made to printer's errata entered by Edward when he received the volume or shortly thereafter, mostly likely in 1738 or 1739. Most of these instances occur in "Justification by Faith Alone," the treatise-length discourse that commenced the sample of sermons. There are no less than nine such corrections in Edwards' hand in the text of this piece, while "The Excellency of Christ" has three, "The Justice of God in the Damnation of Sinners" has two, and "Ruth's Resolution" has one. An example of his corrections in Discourses occurs on p. 115 of the original, where he fills out an item listed in the errata sheet (see illus. 3). Another is in A Faithful Narrative's description of Eleazar Mather's pastorate and dates (see illus. 4).
[3] 
[4]
The second, later layer of marginalia are references made over the next few years, coinciding with the Great Awakening. Two instances given here occur in the "Justification" discourse. On p. 96, following a discussion of God's promises to Abraham (WJE 19:216), he adds in the margin, "See note on Deut. 6:3. See also II Sam. 12:13-14 compared with I Chron. 22:8-13, and I Kgs. 6:11-13 and ch. 2:4 and ch. 9:4-6, and Ps. 89:28, etc., I Chron. 28:6-7, 9." This refers to Edwards' "Interleaved Bible" entry on Deut. 6:3 (WJE 24:285), which in turn refers back to pp. 95-96 of "Justification" (see illus. 5).
[5] 
[5, detail p. 96]
Furthermore, on p. 114, beside "Objection 6" (WJE 19:230), which deals with James 2 on being justified by works, Edwards adds in the margin, "See Mr. Dickinson's Five Discourses, p. 222" (see illus. 6). This refers to Jonathan Dickinson's The true Scripture-doctrine concerning some important points of Christian faith, particularly eternal election, original sin, grace in conversion, justification by faith, and the saints perseverance. Represented and apply'd in five discourses, published in Boston in 1741 (for a reprint click here). In the page Edwards cites, Dickinson asserts that sinners are said to be "Justified by Works," yet it "is by Grace." These examples show that Edwards was thinking further about the nature of justification, gathering further scripture proofs and reaching out to other authors, especially in the midst of a new wave of revivals. In his "Miscellanies" of the very early 1740s, from entry nos. 855-893 (WJE 20:82-153), Edwards wrote eleven entries specifically on Justification, and other entries on related topics; no. 884, dated 1741 (WJE 20:139-45), even interacts with Dickinson's True Scripture-doctrine, giving us a probable parallel for this addition to the Discourses.
[6]
Ms. Allen notes that a previous appraiser had identified the book as inauthentic, which is why information about it has not been made known until now. There is, however, no doubt of its authenticity. While there is no record to indicate when the volume became part of the Library's collection, the stamp on the flyleaf indicates that it once belonged to a Frederic Bates of Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
The Stockbridge Library's Historical Collection, which features other books, documents, and objects by or about Edwards and his tenure as a missionary at Stockbridge, is usually open Tuesdays through Saturdays. See www.stockbridgdelibrary.org for more information.
The Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale University maintains an online archive of Edwards' writings at edwards.yale.edu, including the texts of Discourses upon Various Important Subjects (WJE 143-242) and A Faithful Narrative, emended and annotated with the information gleaned from this valuable rediscovered source.
See more of Jonathan Edwards' Discourses Slideshow
