Jonathan Edwards

“Magisterial.”—Wall Street Journal

“It may not stretch the evidence to call Jonathan Edwards the most important religious figure in American history. . . . [Edwards’] arguments [are] analyzed with great skill and sensitivity in Jonathan Edwards: A Life. . . . Marsden, himself an evangelical believer, puts Edwards back where he belongs, firmly in the theological world of the Reformation. . . . Marsden makes a convincing case for his greatness.”—Garry Wills, New York Times Book Review

“In his superb and engrossing new biography of Jonathan Edwards, George Marsden has given us the most comprehensive account we have of the man who, as much as Benjamin Franklin—in some ways more than Franklin—is the spiritual godfather of our nation. . . . What sets Marsden’s work apart, what makes it so accessible, is that he has committed the entire enterprise to narrative, to telling a story—the saga of Jonathan Edwards.”—Robert D. Richardson, Washington Post Book World

“A triumph of scholarship, but also of readability. Marsden successfully straddles the diverse fields in which Edwards was formed and to which he contributed, to give a richly satisfying and interesting portrait of the man and his time, including insights from American studies, theology, philosophy and even the history of natural science.”—Robert E. Brown, Times Literary Supplement

“Magnificent. . . . This is a book that tells us as much about the intellectual foundations of America as it does about Jonathan Edwards.”—Damian Thompson, Daily Telegraph

“[A] learned, lucid biography.”—Michael Kazin, The Nation

“[An] excellent, fascinating biography. . . . Absorbing.”—Adam Kirsch, New York Sun

“Marsden’s thorough, dispassionate and enlightening book is the first to weave into a smooth, continuous narrative the events of Edward’s life and the development and content of his philosophy. . . . Outstanding.”—Paul Johnson, Sunday Telegraph

“Marsden’s elegant prose and vivid, vivacious storytelling brings Edwards to life. This magisterial and definitive biography reveals the complexities of Edwards’s life and provides new appreciation for his commitment to fostering religious sensibilities in the increasingly secular world of his time. This is a beautifully written book about one of America’s most important thinkers.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Whether the reader is an academic . . . or a nonprofessional, this imaginative, . . . sympathetic reading of Edwards’s life is informative and enjoyable.”—John P. Fitzgibbons, America

“[A] mighty biography, . . . a humble product of years of devoted labor and scholarship. . . . Edwards . . . would appreciate Mr. Marsden’s dedication.”—Evan Haefeli, Washington Times

“It will endure as the standard account.”—E. Brooks Holifield, American Historical Review

“This universally lauded biography portrays America’s greatest theologian, 300 years after his birth.”—Richard N. Ostling, Associated Press

“In this conscientious and eloquent biography, pious Jonathan Edwards comes to unruly life with all his unresolved complexity intact.”—Thomas D’Evelyn, Christian Science Monitor

“Not only the definitive biography but also a narrative that reads like a novel. . . . [Marsden] lets Edwards' magnificence shine through.”—Edward T. Oakes, Commonweal

“This biography of one of the founding fathers of American religion is the first to appear in 60 years. The fact that it is an emotionally complex, almost novelistic account by one of the country’s foremost evangelical thinkers makes it an extraordinary read.”—Paul Elie, Belief.net (A Best Spiritual Book of the Year Finalist)

“Better than anyone else before, Marsden enters Edwards’ world—physically, mentally, and spiritually—and helps us understand his significance as an 18th-century leader. . . . Marsden tells a wonderful story, enriching his narrative with a wealth of little-known gems from Edwards’ world.”—Douglas Sweeney, Books & Culture

“Marsden has succeeded in the daunting task of exploring the fullness of Edwards’s life and work while avoiding hagiography or demonization. . . . A volume that will stand for generations.”—Choice

“Marsden has written a life of Edwards the way Edwards would have liked such a life to be written.”—Allen C. Guelzo, Christian Century

“It is one of the great merits of Marsden’s biography that he shows us the decidedly unheroic aspect of Edwards’ life (which is, of course, the stuff of every human life) while at the same time doing justice both to his towering intellectual achievements and to his incandescent faith, animated by a palpable sense of the sheer beauty and majesty of God. Neither debunking nor hagiographic, it is an almost supernaturally fair-minded portrait.”—John Wilson, Christianity Today

“What non-specialists have needed for some time is an accessible biography that integrates his tumultuous ministerial career with his serenely logical mind. That need has at last been met, thanks to the magisterial synthesis of Edwards’s life and thought presented in George Marsden’s Jonathan Edwards.”—Christopher D. Levenick, Claremont Review of Books

“One of the grand features of this latest biography of Edwards is Marsden’s success in demonstrating that Edwards was far more than a mere intellect.”—Scott A. Wenig, Denver Post

“Marsden provides a less tidy, which is to say, much more complete, account of Edwards’ life and work, bringing in a wealth of detail that forces us to qualify practically everything we had ever heard about Edwards. . . . By showing the complexity of the man and correcting many of the misunderstandings about him, Marsden has prepared the way for serious conversation with him.”—George McKenna, First Things

“George M. Marsden is truly a Christian scholar who respects both the Faith and the canons of historical research. . . . In this finely presented biography, Edwards stands forth both as an historical being and a Christian. If one wants to understand him and his world, this biography is the starting point.”—H-Net Book Review 

“Magisterial. . . . Definitive, and it will remain so for decades to come.”—Avihu Zakai, Journal of American History

Finalist for the 2003 National Book Critics Circle Award in the biography category

Winner of the 2001–2003 Annibel Jenkins Biography Prize sponsored by the Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies

Winner of the Philip Schaff Prize sponsored by the American Society of Church History

Winner of the 2004 Bancroft Prize in American History

“At last! A highly readable biography of Jonathan Edwards that takes account of the mountain of recent Edwards scholarship and is willing to acknowledge the agonies and ambiguities as well as the triumphs of Edwards’ life. A great companion to the Jonathan Edwards Reader and The Jonathan Edwards Sermons.”—Amy Plantinga Pauw, Louisville Presbyterian Seminary

“Marsden has brought together in a magisterial synthesis the details of the man’s daily life and the range of ideas that challenged the assumptions of his time and ours.”—Edmund S. Morgan

“In this biography, Marsden has produced a masterpiece. It is eloquent, reliable, and comprehensive. I found it insightful and inspiring throughout.”—George S. Claghorn, West Chester University, editor of Letters and Personal Writings of Jonathan Edwards

“This is the finest biography of Edwards that I have read. It will be the standard benchmark for Edwards scholarship for generations to come.”—Harry S. Stout, Yale University

“There is no question that Marsden’s biography is the best book ever written about America’s (and perhaps the world’s) greatest theologian.”—Sam T. Logan, Jr., Westminster Theological Seminary