An English Bible expositor best known for his commentary on the entire Bible, first begun in 1704, but remains a popular work still.
Matthew Henry was the son of an evangelical minister of the Church of England, who had lost his parish in the Great Ejection. He studied law at Gray's Inn, London. Privately ordained as a Presbyterian minister, he served in pastorates in Chester and Hackney. With a deep admiration of the love of the Word he witnessed in the Puritans, Henry began in 1704 a work that would engage him for the rest of his life: the biblical commentary on every book of the Bible for which he is famous. Beginning work at four or five in the morning, he managed only as far the book of Acts by the time of his death. Friends and colleagues, using notes he had left behind, finished the work. Though verbose and highly spiritualized—as A. M. Derham quips, "Suffice to say that he could write 190 words of comment, including a three-part sermon outline, on Genesis 26:34"—the commentary has been a source of encouragement to thousands and a source of inspiration for countless preachers.
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