Come and Welcome, to Jesus Christ. Or, a plain and profitable discourse on John VI. verse xxxvij. Shewing The Cause, Truth, and Manner of the Coming of a Sinner to Jesus Christ: With his Happy Reception, and Blessed Entertainment. The Tenth Edition.

BUNYAN, John.

Published by London: printed for R. Ware, C. Hitch, and J. Hodges, 1750

About this Item

Nominally the tenth edition, first published in 1678, of Bunyan's exposition of John 6:37, Christ's welcome to sinners. Widely reprinted (with edition statements soon losing any real meaning), but small and read to destruction, copies of the early editions of Bunyan's religious tracts are uncommon. ESTC locates six copies of this edition in British and American institutions. "Bunyan's most popular sermon, Come, & Welcome, to Jesus Christ (1678), six editions of which were published in his lifetime, was composed between the summer of 1677 and March 1678. An exposition of John 6:37, it dynamically reflected his refusal to let the logical ramifications of the Calvinist doctrine of predestination dim his enthusiastic appeal to his audience, urging them to respond to the offer of divine grace. The personification of Shall-come in this sermon is similar to the allegorical personages of Help, Good-Will, and Great-Grace in The Pilgrim's Progress, possibly reflecting Bunyan's decision to publish his allegory at this time. Both works beckon the unconverted to embrace the gospel, implying the sufficiency of divine grace for those who accept. Not surprisingly, Come, & Welcome echoes many of the themes and some of the imagery in The Pilgrim's Progress" (ODNB). ESTC T58468. Duodecimo (143 x 86 mm), pp. 178, [2], including integral woodcut portrait (recto) and illustrated title (verso) frontispiece, and a terminal woodcut leaf (ESTC does not call for, but notes it has been reported). Modern calf to style, red morocco label. Somewhat browned, minor fraying to some leaves, but still an unusually well-preserved copy.

Seller Inventory # 182008

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Come and Welcome, to Jesus Christ. Or, a plain and profitable discourse on John VI. verse xxxvij. Shewing The Cause, Truth, and Manner of the Coming of a Sinner to Jesus Christ: With his Happy Reception, and Blessed Entertainment. The Tenth Edition.
• Publisher: London: printed for R. Ware, C. Hitch, and J. Hodges, 1750