John Murray (14 October 1898 – 8 May 1975) was born in

Bonar Bridge Bonar Bridge ( gd, Drochaid a' Bhanna, ) is a village on the north bank of the Kyle of Sutherland to the west and the Dornoch Firth to the east in the Parish of Creich in the Highland council area of Scotland. The Kyle of Sutherland ("the Kyl ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. He was a Scottish-born

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John C ...

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

who taught at

Princeton Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a private school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1812 under the auspices of Archibald Alexander, the General Assembly of t ...

and then left to help found

Westminster Theological Seminary Westminster Theological Seminary is a Protestant theological seminary in the Reformed theological tradition in Glenside, Pennsylvania. It was founded by members of the faculty of Princeton Theological Seminary in 1929 after Princeton chose to ...

, where he taught for many years. He was ordained in the

Orthodox Presbyterian Church The Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) is a confessional Presbyterian denomination located primarily in the United States, with additional congregations in Canada, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico. It was founded by conservative members of the Presbyter ...

in 1937.

Life

Murray was born in the croft of Badbea, near

, in

Sutherland Sutherland ( gd, Cataibh) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in the Highlands of Scotland. Its county town is Dornoch. Sutherland borders Caithness and Moray Firth to the east, Ross-shire and Cromartyshire (later c ...

county,

. Following service in the British Army in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

(during which he lost an eye, serving in the famous

Black Watch The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The regiment was created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881, when the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regime ...

regiment) he studied at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

. Following his acceptance as a theological student of the

Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland The Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland ( gd, An Eaglais Shaor Chlèireach, ) was formed in 1893. The Church identifies itself as the spiritual descendant of the Scottish Reformation. The Church web-site states that it is 'the constitutional he ...

he pursued further studies at

Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a private school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1812 under the auspices of Archibald Alexander, the General Assembly of t ...

under

J. Gresham Machen John Gresham Machen (; 1881–1937) was an American Presbyterian New Testament scholar and educator in the early 20th century. He was the Professor of New Testament at Princeton Seminary between 1906 and 1929, and led a revolt against modernist ...

and

Geerhardus Vos Geerhardus Johannes Vos (March 14, 1862 – August 13, 1949) was a Dutch-American Calvinist theologian and one of the most distinguished representatives of the Princeton Theology. He is sometimes called the father of Reformed Biblical Theolog ...

, but broke with the Free Presbyterian Church in 1930 over that Church's handling of a discipline case in the Chesley, Ontario congregation concerning the

Lord's Day The Lord's Day in Christianity is generally Sunday, the principal day of communal worship. It is observed by most Christians as the weekly memorial of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is said in the canonical Gospels to have been witnessed ...

. He taught at Princeton for a year and then lectured in

systematic theology Systematic theology, or systematics, is a discipline of Christian theology that formulates an orderly, rational, and coherent account of the doctrines of the Christian faith. It addresses issues such as what the Bible teaches about certain topic ...

at Westminster Theological Seminary to generations of students from 1930 to 1966, and was an early trustee of the

Banner of Truth Trust The Banner of Truth Trust is an Evangelical and Reformed non-profit"The Story ...

. Besides the material in the four-volume ''Collected Writings'', his primary published works are a commentary on the

Epistle to the Romans The Epistle to the Romans is the sixth book in the New Testament, and the longest of the thirteen Pauline epistles. Biblical scholars agree that it was composed by Paul the Apostle to explain that salvation is offered through the gospel of Jes ...

(previously included in the ''New International Commentary on the New Testament'' series but now superseded by

Douglas J. Moo Douglas J. Moo (born March 15, 1950) is a Reformed New Testament scholar who, after teaching for more than twenty years at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Illinois, has served as Blanchard Professor of New Testament at the Wheaton Colle ...

's commentary), ''Redemption Accomplished and Applied'', ''Principles of Conduct'', ''The Imputation of Adam's Sin'', ''Baptism'', and ''Divorce''. Murray preached at Chesley and Lochalsh from time to time until his retirement from Westminster Theological Seminary in 1966. He returned to Scotland, where he was connected with the Free Church of Scotland, and at the age of 69, married Valerie Knowlton 7 December 1967. Writing after a communion season at Lochalsh, Murray said, "I think I feel most at home here and at Chesley of all the places I visit." There had been some consideration that upon leaving the seminary, Murray might take a pastorate in the newly formed Presbyterian Reformed Church, but the infirmity of his aged sisters at the home place necessitated his return to Ross-shire, Scotland.

Works

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References

* *

External links

Free audio lectures and sermons in mp3 format
from ThirdMill.org

*"The Reformed Faith and Arminianism
"The Mode of Baptism" (PDF)"Preaching: at Chesley Canada"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, John 1898 births 1975 deaths Orthodox Presbyterian Church members Orthodox Presbyterian Church ministers Scottish Presbyterians Scottish Calvinist and Reformed theologians Westminster Theological Seminary faculty Princeton Theological Seminary alumni Princeton Theological Seminary faculty People from Sutherland 20th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 20th-century American clergy