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John Goodwin (1593–1665), the eminent English pastor and Puritan divine, was a man ahead of his time.

Educated at Cambridge University, he was raised and indoctrinated in Calvinistic absolute predestination, the dominant Christian perspective of his day. In the 1640s he began preparing for a series of lectures to refute the doctrines of Arminianism, and entered a thorough investigation of the controversy and its many aspects. The ultimate result was his rejection of Calvinism and adoption of Arminian theology.

He completed Redemption Redeemed in 1650 and published it the following year. The original version was a multi-issue polemic against Calvinism. This edition, replacing a shorter 2001 version, offers the fuller text of the chapters devoted to a comprehensive refutation of the limited atonement doctrine. Goodwin’s writing remains to this day a superb and eloquent defense of the Biblical position of unlimited atonement that Jesus Christ “by the grace of God tasted death for every man.” Considering the heavy writing style so typical of Puritans, I have included some moderate editing to enhance clarity and readability, correct typographical errors in some scriptural references, and translate Greek words into the English-alphabet equivalent.

Goodwin represented an Arminian strand of Puritanism and was a major figure in the decline of Calvinist influence in England. In the contemporary period as Christians enter the 21st Century and Calvinism with its disturbing implications is making a resurgence, Goodwin’s master work is a welcome and much needed contribution to those seeking to understand the truths of God’s word.

John D. Wagner

Editor