Today’s Leader of Faith
SAMUEL RUTHERFORD
Home Call : 29 March 1661
Covenanter Leader, Theologian, Author, Scholar, Preacher, Professor.
Samuel Rutherford (c. 1600–1661) was a Scottish Presbyterian minister known for his strong defense of Reformed theology and Presbyterian church governance. He served as a minister in Anwoth, where he was renowned for his passionate preaching and pastoral care. He was a highly influential preacher in the Church of Scotland. Due to his opposition to episcopacy (rule by bishops), he was banished to Aberdeen in 1636, where he wrote many of his famous letters. He later became a commissioner to the Westminster Assembly (1643–1649), contributing to the formation of the Westminster Confession of Faith. His most famous work, Lex, Rex (The Law and the Prince), published in 1644, argued that kings are subject to the law rather than above it. Rutherford is best remembered for his Letters, which continue to inspire Christians with their deep spirituality and love for Christ. His final words, “Glory shines in Immanuel’s Land,” inspired the hymn “The Sands of Time Are Sinking”.
Rutherford was born around 1600 in Nisbet, Roxburghshire. He studied at Jedburgh Grammar School and the University of Edinburgh, earning an M.A. in 1621. He became regent of Humanity at Edinburgh in 1623 but resigned in 1626 due to immoral conduct with Euphame Hamilton, whom he later married.
Rutherford became minister at Anwoth, Galloway, in 1627, known for his devotion to preaching, visiting the sick, and writing. He was accused of nonconformity in 1630 and again in 1636 for opposing Arminianism, leading to his exile in Aberdeen, where he wrote many of his famous letters. In 1638, he returned to Anwoth and later became Professor of Divinity at St. Andrews. A strong supporter of the Covenanting Party, he served as a Commissioner to the Westminster Assembly (1643–1647) and declined several prestigious academic positions.
Rutherford’s Lex, Rex (The Law and the Prince), published in 1644, is one of the most influential works on political theology in the 17th century. In Lex, Rex, he argued that the king is under both God and the law. He rejected the idea of the divine right of kings, which claimed that monarchs ruled with absolute authority given directly by God. King Charles II summoned him to stand trial for his writings which was condemned as treasonous. However, he was already gravely ill and near death. When informed of the charges against him, he reportedly said, “I have a summons from a higher court” (God’s Court). He passed away at the age of 61 peacefully before he could be tried, avoiding the likely punishment of execution or imprisonment. A monument in his honor, a granite obelisk, was erected in 1842 overlooking his former parish at Anwoth.