Joseph Hart
Encyclopedia
Joseph Hart was an 18th-century Calvinist
minister in London
. His works include "Hart's Hymns", a much-loved hymn book amongst evangelical Christians throughout its lifetime of over 200 years, which includes the well-known hymn, "Come ye sinners, poor and needy".
One of Joseph Hart's early publications was a tract denouncing Christianity (prior to his conversion) called The Unreasonableness of Religion, Being Remarks and Animadversions on the Rev. John Wesley’s Sermon on Romans 8:32. His other works include a short autobiography and a few poetical translations of ancient classics.
Joseph Hart preached at Jewin Street chapel in London, a building with multiple galleries, to a congregation of significant size.
Only one of Hart's sermons remains discovered to us: that of Christmas 1767. Several of his hymns appear in the Sacred Harp
.
Hart died on May 24, 1768, with a congregation estimated at tens of thousands around his graveside at Bunhill Fields
.
Joseph Hart had a good educational upbringing, learning the classic languages (Latin
, Hebrew, and Greek
) to perfection, which afterwards he taught for a living. Hart spent a lot of his early life translating and writing poetry.
It was in this period of his life that Hart translated Herodian
and Phycolides.
Hart writes about his early life in his own autobiography:
"As I had the hapiness of being born of believing parents, I imbibed the sound doctrine of the Gospel
from my infancy; nor was I without touches of the heart, checks of the conscience, and meltings of affections, by the secret strivings of God's Spirit within me while very young; but the impressions were not deep, nor the influences lasting, being frequently defaced and quenched by the vanities and vices of childhood and youth.
Hart was brought up to be a good Christian
and to praise
God, but soon fell into temptation
and sinned.
It is about this time of turmoil in Hart's life, that he meets a girl (14 years younger than himself) called Mary, falls in love with her, and they get married.
, believing that there is no need to be righteous, all you need is to believe in God, then salvation
is certain. It was then that he wrote The Unreasonableness Of Religion, in an effort to convince John Wesley
that he should not be doing good works only believing in God. Evidently the pamphlet had no effect upon Wesley, being accounted mere blasphemy
. Later Hart repented of writing the pamphlet, giving his universal apology to John Wesley.
During this period, Hart also translated Phycolides from the original Greek in 1744, and Herodian from its original Latin in 1749.
granted him, or perhaps just a little sign. This tormented Hart for more than a year.
Then, the week before Easter of the year 1757 Hart "had such an amazing view of the agony of Christ in the garden [of gethsemane
]" showing to Hart that all Christ's sufferings were for him (along with the rest of the church).
But soon after this, Hart again began to be afraid of the life to come- eternity
, and feared exceedingly when reading about the condemned in passages in the Bible
.
But It was on Whitsunday
that Hart's true conversion came. Hart was converted under the ministry
of George Whitefield
, and felt blessed in his soul
.
After these times Hart still had sufferings and uncertainties as to his conversion, but he could always look back to his conversion, and believe that God saved his soul.
Hart's motto after this time was: "Pharasaic zeel and Antinomian security are the two engines of Satan
, with which he grinds the church in all ages, as betwixt [between] the upper and the nether [lower] millstone. The space between them is much narrower and harder to find than most men imagine. It is a path which the vulture's eye hath not seen; and none can show it us but the Holy Ghost."
Calvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
minister in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. His works include "Hart's Hymns", a much-loved hymn book amongst evangelical Christians throughout its lifetime of over 200 years, which includes the well-known hymn, "Come ye sinners, poor and needy".
One of Joseph Hart's early publications was a tract denouncing Christianity (prior to his conversion) called The Unreasonableness of Religion, Being Remarks and Animadversions on the Rev. John Wesley’s Sermon on Romans 8:32. His other works include a short autobiography and a few poetical translations of ancient classics.
Joseph Hart preached at Jewin Street chapel in London, a building with multiple galleries, to a congregation of significant size.
Only one of Hart's sermons remains discovered to us: that of Christmas 1767. Several of his hymns appear in the Sacred Harp
Sacred Harp
Sacred Harp singing is a tradition of sacred choral music that took root in the Southern region of the United States. It is part of the larger tradition of shape note music.- The music and its notation :...
.
Hart died on May 24, 1768, with a congregation estimated at tens of thousands around his graveside at Bunhill Fields
Bunhill Fields
Bunhill Fields is a cemetery in the London Borough of Islington, north of the City of London, and managed by the City of London Corporation. It is about 4 hectares in extent, although historically was much larger....
.
Early life (1712 to about 1732)
Not much is known about Hart's early life due to scanty documentation.Joseph Hart had a good educational upbringing, learning the classic languages (Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
, Hebrew, and Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
) to perfection, which afterwards he taught for a living. Hart spent a lot of his early life translating and writing poetry.
It was in this period of his life that Hart translated Herodian
Herodian
Herodian or Herodianus of Syria was a minor Roman civil servant who wrote a colourful history in Greek titled History of the Empire from the Death of Marcus in eight books covering the years 180 to 238. His work is not entirely reliable although his relatively unbiased account of Elagabalus is...
and Phycolides.
Hart writes about his early life in his own autobiography:
"As I had the hapiness of being born of believing parents, I imbibed the sound doctrine of the Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
from my infancy; nor was I without touches of the heart, checks of the conscience, and meltings of affections, by the secret strivings of God's Spirit within me while very young; but the impressions were not deep, nor the influences lasting, being frequently defaced and quenched by the vanities and vices of childhood and youth.
Hart was brought up to be a good Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
and to praise
Praise
Praise is the act of making positive statements about a person, object or idea, either in public or privately. Praise is typically, but not exclusively, earned relative to achievement and accomplishment...
God, but soon fell into temptation
Temptation
A temptation is an act that looks appealing to an individual. It is usually used to describe acts with negative connotations and as such, tends to lead a person to regret such actions, for various reasons: legal, social, psychological , health, economic, etc...
and sinned.
Good works (about 1732 to about 1740)
Joseph Hart begins to see that his youthful sins are wrong, and decides he must learn to be a better person. It all seems to be going well, but there is one sin yet; Hart is proud of his new status as a religious man. Later Hart repents of this sin of pride and denounces it.It is about this time of turmoil in Hart's life, that he meets a girl (14 years younger than himself) called Mary, falls in love with her, and they get married.
A libertine and an author (from about 1740 to about 1751/52)
It was during this period of Hart's life that he left off doing his good works, and became a libertineLibertine
A libertine is one devoid of most moral restraints, which are seen as unnecessary or undesirable, especially one who ignores or even spurns accepted morals and forms of behavior sanctified by the larger society. Libertines, also known as rakes, placed value on physical pleasures, meaning those...
, believing that there is no need to be righteous, all you need is to believe in God, then salvation
Salvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
is certain. It was then that he wrote The Unreasonableness Of Religion, in an effort to convince John Wesley
John Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
that he should not be doing good works only believing in God. Evidently the pamphlet had no effect upon Wesley, being accounted mere blasphemy
Blasphemy
Blasphemy is irreverence towards religious or holy persons or things. Some countries have laws to punish blasphemy, while others have laws to give recourse to those who are offended by blasphemy...
. Later Hart repented of writing the pamphlet, giving his universal apology to John Wesley.
During this period, Hart also translated Phycolides from the original Greek in 1744, and Herodian from its original Latin in 1749.
A true conversion
Hart later considered that there was a need both to do good works and to believe in God. But then came the uncertainty: Was he really and truly saved? He had no indication from God, no elaborate vision, telling him that he had been saved. This was a great worry to Joseph Hart. He began to pray to God that there would be some revelationRevelation
In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing, through active or passive communication with a supernatural or a divine entity...
granted him, or perhaps just a little sign. This tormented Hart for more than a year.
Then, the week before Easter of the year 1757 Hart "had such an amazing view of the agony of Christ in the garden [of gethsemane
Gethsemane
Gethsemane is a garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem most famous as the place where, according to Biblical texts, Jesus and his disciples are said to have prayed the night before Jesus' crucifixion.- Etymology :...
]" showing to Hart that all Christ's sufferings were for him (along with the rest of the church).
But soon after this, Hart again began to be afraid of the life to come- eternity
Eternity
While in the popular mind, eternity often simply means existence for a limitless amount of time, many have used it to refer to a timeless existence altogether outside time. By contrast, infinite temporal existence is then called sempiternity. Something eternal exists outside time; by contrast,...
, and feared exceedingly when reading about the condemned in passages in the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
.
But It was on Whitsunday
Whitsunday
Whitsunday may be:Days:* The Sunday of the feast of Whitsun or Pentecost in the Christian liturgical year, observed 7 weeks after Easter* One of the Scottish quarter days, always falling on 15 MayPlaces:* The Electoral district of Whitsunday...
that Hart's true conversion came. Hart was converted under the ministry
Christian ministry
In Christianity, ministry is an activity carried out by Christians to express or spread their faith. 2003's Encyclopedia of Christianity defines it as "carrying forth Christ's mission in the world", indicating that it is "conferred on each Christian in baptism." It is performed by all Christians...
of George Whitefield
George Whitefield
George Whitefield , also known as George Whitfield, was an English Anglican priest who helped spread the Great Awakening in Britain, and especially in the British North American colonies. He was one of the founders of Methodism and of the evangelical movement generally...
, and felt blessed in his soul
Soul
A soul in certain spiritual, philosophical, and psychological traditions is the incorporeal essence of a person or living thing or object. Many philosophical and spiritual systems teach that humans have souls, and others teach that all living things and even inanimate objects have souls. The...
.
After these times Hart still had sufferings and uncertainties as to his conversion, but he could always look back to his conversion, and believe that God saved his soul.
Hart's motto after this time was: "Pharasaic zeel and Antinomian security are the two engines of Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
, with which he grinds the church in all ages, as betwixt [between] the upper and the nether [lower] millstone. The space between them is much narrower and harder to find than most men imagine. It is a path which the vulture's eye hath not seen; and none can show it us but the Holy Ghost."
Publications
- The Unreasonableness of Religion (1741)
- HerodianHerodianHerodian or Herodianus of Syria was a minor Roman civil servant who wrote a colourful history in Greek titled History of the Empire from the Death of Marcus in eight books covering the years 180 to 238. His work is not entirely reliable although his relatively unbiased account of Elagabalus is...
, a translated work of poetry (1749) - Phycolides, a poem translated from GreekGreek languageGreek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
(1744) - A sermon from the Gospel of LukeGospel of LukeThe Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...
preached at Christmas in the year 1767 - And Hart's Hymns, collection of his own poetical hymns