Born in England during the Elizabethan Era, Richard Sibbes (1577–1635) eventually became one of the most prominent theological writers of that time. A Puritan and a graduate of St. John’s College in 1595, he served as lecturer, preacher, and teacher over his lifetime. His excellent aptitude for exegeting and expositing the Word of God was acknowledged by Charles Spurgeon’s commendation: “Sibbes never wastes the student’s time; he scatters pearls and diamonds with both hands.”

Sibbes was widely praised for his devotional work, The Bruised Reed and Smoking Flax, which Martyn Lloyd-Jones referred to as “a balm” for the soul. Richard lived a Christ-centered life, dedicated to Gospel truths and the precious joys therein. He penned this final statement the day before he died: “I commend and bequeath my soul into the hands of my gracious Savior, who hath redeemed it with his most precious blood, and appears now in heaven to receive it.”