Living in a Godly Marriage

The Puritans believed that godly marriages were foundational for the future life of families, churches, and nations. Therefore, they wrote prolifically on the subject of marriage, seeking to bring biblical reformation to this subject in a comprehensive way. Martin Luther, John Calvin, and other previous Reformers had begun this task, but the Puritans took it much further, writing a number of detailed treatises on how to live as godly spouses. Out of the wealth of material available to us from the seventeenth century, Joel R. Beeke and James A. La Belle have gathered together insights from the past and summarized them in a contemporary form in order to encourage modern day coupled to glorify God in marriage.

1. Opening Credits
2. Dedication
3. Foreword
4. Introduction
5. Chapter 1: The Institution and Honor of Marriage
6. Chapter 2: The Purposes and Benefits of Marriage
7. Chapter 3: Securing a Good Entrance into Marriage
8. Chapter 4: Preserving the Honor of Marriage
9. Chapter 5: The Mutual Duties of Love and Chastity
10. Chapter 6: The Mutual Duties of Help and Peace
11. Chapter 7: The Wife's Duties in Marriage
12. Chapter 8: The Husband's Duty of Love
13. Chapter 9: The Husband's Duty of Authority
14. Chapter 10: Concluding Counsel
15. Appendix
16. Closing Credits

Joel R. Beeke

Dr. Joel R. Beeke serves as a minister at the Heritage Reformed Congregation located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He also holds the positions of editor for the Puritan Reformed Journal and the Banner of Sovereign Grace Truth. In addition, Dr. Beeke is the editorial director for Reformation Heritage Books, the president of Inheritance Publishers, and the vice-president of the Dutch Reformed Translation Society.

Perhaps best-known of Dr. Beeke’s esteemed academic positions, however, is with Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, where he served the Body of Christ from the school’s founding in 1995 through 2023, when he then moved to the position of Chancellor, as well as teaching Systematic Theology and Homiletics as a beloved professor.

An expert on the Puritans, Joel Beeke was honored with a Fetschrift entitled Puritan Piety: Writings in Honor of Joel R. Beeke.