John Owen
the Prince of the Puritans
The towering intellect of English Puritanism — a Reformed theologian of vast learning and deep devotion, who wrote on the cross, the Spirit, and the daily war against sin with unmatched depth.
John Owen has been called both 'the Prince of the Puritans' and 'the Calvin of England,' and the titles are deserved. He rose to lead Oxford as its vice-chancellor during the Commonwealth, advised Oliver Cromwell, and after the Restoration ministered to a nonconformist congregation under the constant threat of arrest. Through it all he produced a body of theology so dense and rich that it has never gone out of print among those willing to mine it.
His mind ran to the heart of things. The Death of Death in the Death of Christ argued that the cross did not merely make salvation possible but actually secured it for Christ's people — the classic defense of definite atonement. Communion with God opened up the believer's distinct fellowship with the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. And his vast work on the Holy Spirit remains one of the most thorough treatments ever written.
Yet Owen was no dry scholastic. His most-read book is a small, searching treatise, Of the Mortification of Sin, built on a single line of Romans 8: 'if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.' Its most famous sentence — 'Be killing sin or it will be killing you' — captures the whole man: a giant intellect bent entirely toward holiness. A Congregationalist who suffered for his convictions, Owen also pleaded for liberty of conscience in an age that granted little.
Key Works
- The Death of Death in the Death of Christ (1647)
- Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers (1656)
- Communion with God (1657)
- A Discourse Concerning the Holy Spirit (1674)
Further Reading
- Particular redemption — the definite, effective atonement of Christ
- The believer's communion with each person of the Trinity
- The lifelong mortification of sin by the Spirit
- Congregational church order and liberty of conscience
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was John Owen?
The towering intellect of English Puritanism — a Reformed theologian of vast learning and deep devotion, who wrote on the cross, the Spirit, and the daily war against sin with unmatched depth.
When did John Owen live?
John Owen lived 1616 – 1683 in England (Oxford / London).
What tradition is John Owen part of?
John Owen is associated with the Reformed tradition.
What did John Owen write?
Key works include The Death of Death in the Death of Christ (1647), Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers (1656), Communion with God (1657), and A Discourse Concerning the Holy Spirit (1674).