The first edition of John Flavel’s devotional masterpiece on the person and work of Christ, written during his Restoration exile from Dartmouth. 1673

FLAVELL, John.  The Fountain of Life Opened: Or, A Display of Christ in His Essential and Mediatorial Glory. Wherein the Impetration of Our Redemption by Jesus Christ Is Orderly Unfolded, as It Was Begun, Carryed On, and Finished by His Covenant-Transaction, Mysterious Incarnation, Solemn Call and Dedication, Blessed Offices, Deep Abasement, and Super-Eminent Advancement.

London: Robert White, 1673. First edition. 4to (193 × 140 mm).

A major devotional and Christological work by one of the most beloved Puritan preachers of the later 17th century, presenting a sustained meditation on the person and redemptive work of Christ, structured as a sequence of forty-two sermons. The Fountain of Life Opened is widely regarded as Flavel’s masterpiece and one of the supreme expressions of experiential Puritan theology.

Written while Flavel was living under restriction and effective exile from his Dartmouth ministry, the work unfolds Christ’s redemptive mission from eternal covenant to incarnation, humiliation, atonement, and exaltation. It combines dense doctrinal exposition with intense pastoral warmth and practical application, exemplifying the best of Restoration-era Nonconformist spirituality.

First edition. 4to. Collation: [32], 69, 60–630, [14] pp. (col. A4 a–c4 B4–Nnnn4 Ooo3, lacking final blank). Title page within double ruled frame, with tear repaired and whole leaf reinforced; small tears near gutter. Woodcut initials and ornamental chapter headers; ruled tables, including one full-page diagram. Ink annotations and textual corrections throughout (some trimmed), and small tears to gutter on the dedicatory letter. Modern quarter calf on brown-tinted buckram boards, blind-ornamented, spine with four raised bands and morocco label gilt. A complete and textually substantial copy of a scarce and important Flavel first edition.

John Flavel (c.1630-1691) was one of the most influential and widely read English Presbyterian ministers and devotional writers of the later 17th century. Educated at University College, Oxford, he became minister at Dartmouth, Devon, where he exercised a powerful pastoral ministry marked by deep affection between preacher and congregation.

Ejected in 1662 under the Act of Uniformity, Flavel continued preaching illegally in and around Dartmouth until the Five Mile Act of 1665 forced him into itinerancy and concealment. He endured repeated harassment, narrow escapes from arrest, and long periods of exile, yet maintained contact with his flock through clandestine meetings and correspondence.

Flavel’s writings — including The Fountain of Life Opened, The Method of Grace, and Navigation Spiritualized — became classics of Puritan devotional literature. They are distinguished by theological clarity, emotional intensity, vivid metaphor, and pastoral tenderness. Few Puritan authors remained as continuously popular in both Britain and America well into the 18th and 19th centuries.