The British Particular, or Calvinistic, Baptist community of the long eighteenth century (1680s-1830s) was a remarkable community in many ways. In addition to spearheading the modern missionary movement through men like William Carey, they also produced a wealth of biblical commentary, robust works of apologetics and spiritual biography, powerful sermons and rich hymns of worship. In this small volume, we look at three key figures from this world: John Gill, the remarkable autodidact who produce the first critical commentary of the whole Bible in English; Robert Robinson, who penned one of the most powerful hymns in the canon of hymnody, but who did not finish well; and John Fawcett, also a hymn writer and a man renowned in his day for his leadership of the Baptist cause in the North of England. All three men have much to teach us, if only we have ears to listen.
