THE PILGRIM’S PROGRESS
FROM THIS WORLD, TO THAT WHICH IS TO COME
Bible Reading: Heb. 13
Read and pray: "Remember the prisoners, as if chained with them;
those who are mistreated—since you yourselves are in the body also." (Heb. 13:3)
John Bunyan, the author of The Pilgrim’s Progress, was born in Elstow, Bedford, England, in the year 1628. He was the son of humble parents and was raised in ignorance, as is generally the case with people of his class. In his youth, he learned the trade of tinker, by which he lived for some years. Before his first marriage, Bunyan led a wild and scandalous life, which was later moderated by the beneficial influence of his wife; yet it was only several years later that the true conversion of his soul put an end to this disorderly way of life.
The deep experiences he went through after his conversion, along with the natural gifts he possessed, specially prepared him to convey his impressions to others. Thus, he soon began his ministry, which he then devoted himself to exclusively, with an effectiveness unequaled by any other minister of his time.
His preaching of the Gospel and his absence from the public worship of the established Church brought him to the attention of the local ecclesiastical authorities, by whose order he was thrown into prison. He remained there for twelve years, supporting his wife and blind daughter by making shoelaces. And it was there, in Bedford prison, that he conceived and shaped the great allegory that would immortalize his name.
Once his sentence was served, Bunyan was released and began preaching in Bedford, London, and other towns. He wrote several highly beneficial works and continued his ministry until the age of sixty. His final journey was taken to reconcile a father and son who had quarreled. During that trip, he caught a severe cold that cost him his life.
In these summarized facts, especially his imprisonment, some writers see the discipline and preparation of Bunyan for writing The Pilgrim’s Progress. But Bunyan’s great work is not explained in that way. In studying the circumstances of his earlier life, no one would say he would one day produce such a work. Bunyan is a great creation of divine providence, which can only be explained as one explains the creation of a world. He is a phenomenon that can only be understood by the fact that God, by means we cannot explain and through instruments that seem inadequate, brings forth great men for great purposes. He not only chooses the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and the weak to shame the strong, but He also reveals wisdom and strength where one least expects to find them.
The fact that Christian England — which should have honored Bunyan among her most worthy sons — instead rewarded his efforts with persecution and imprisonment, shows the spirit that prevailed at that time. His only crime was to absent himself from public services of the established Church, to promote meetings where he preached the Gospel, and to worship in a manner he considered more in line with the principles of the New Testament. And this, in the eyes of ecclesiastical authorities, was a great offense.
Thus, Bunyan was arrested during a meeting in Sansell, and, unable to provide bail, was confined to prison until his trial, which took place seven weeks later. The accusation read: “John Bunyan, of Bedford, laborer, has devilishly and perniciously abstained from attending Church, has held unlawful meetings and gatherings, disturbing and upsetting the good subjects of this kingdom.” On this accusation, without a single witness being heard, he was condemned. Judge Keeling, in a harsh tone unworthy of a judge, said: “This is your sentence: you will return to prison and remain there for three months. At the end of those three months, if you do not attend Church and if you continue to preach, you will be banished from the kingdom, and if you return without special permission from the King, you will be hanged. Mind what I say.” And turning to the jailer, he added: “Take him away.”
Bunyan’s reply was as worthy of his Christian character as the sentence was unworthy of the judge who pronounced it. “If I were out of prison today,” he said, “I would preach again tomorrow, God willing!” And walking with the jailer, he was locked up again.
But neither the horrors of prison nor the separation from his wife and four children could shake the spirit of this great servant of God. He particularly grieved over the separation from his blind daughter. “Poor child,” he said, “what a sorrowful life you will have in this world! You will be mistreated, you will beg, you will suffer hunger, cold, nakedness, and other hardships! Oh, the grief for my blind child would break my heart into a thousand pieces!” Yet Bunyan did not waver, for he entrusted all things to the hands of God. “Indeed,” he said, “when I left my home, I had the peace of God in my heart. Blessed be the Lord, I went to prison with the peace of God in my poor heart.”
The judges did not know what to do with him. They kept summoning him, and as Bunyan refused to promise to change his conduct, they kept sending him back to prison, fearing to exile him from England as Judge Keeling had sentenced. Friends interceded for him. His wife, who shared his convictions, went to London with a petition which she presented to the House of Lords. Though a young and reserved woman, she stood before the judges and defended her husband so well that no lawyer could have done better. But all was in vain. The only condition for his release was one that the prisoner could not accept under any circumstance. “Will your husband stop preaching?” Judge Twisten asked Bunyan’s wife. “My lord,” she replied, “he will not stop preaching as long as he has a voice to speak.”
Bunyan was a man of the highest conscience. Convinced that he was called by God to preach the Gospel, he defied men who tried to turn him from the path he had taken. And to keep peace with his conscience, he was willing to endure whatever was laid upon him.
He spent over twelve years in prison. Twelve years! It is easy to write the words, but hard to grasp their weight. Twelve years is a fifth of a lifetime, in the prime of life. Though his body was confined to the narrow limits of a prison, his soul was free. For it was there, in a damp cell in Bedford, that Bunyan had glorious visions, and it was there that he masterfully shaped them into his immortal work. It was enough for him to close his eyes and he ceased to be a prisoner, becoming instead the pilgrim whose journey he so vividly described.
The prison of Bedford disappeared, and his freed soul ascended the mountain of vision, from which he saw the pilgrim’s path. From there he saw the City of Destruction and remembered how he fled from it, a heavy burden on his back. He saw the Slough of Despond and the high hill near the house of Mr. Legality, with its cliffs and blazing flames. He recalled entering through the Wicket Gate, visiting the house of the Interpreter, and his rapture at the foot of the Cross, when, fixing his eyes on the Crucified One, the burden fell from his shoulders. And further ahead, he saw the Beautiful Palace, where he found food and rest, and awoke singing in the Chamber of Peace. Then he walked through the Delectable Mountains with the shepherds, where, from the Hill of Light, with the telescope of faith, he saw in the distance the pearl gates, golden towers, and jasper walls of the Blessed City. Or he lingered in the land of Beulah. Or crossing the river, he climbed the hill to the gates of the City, where immortals took him by the hand, and the burden of his weary shoulders fell into the river. The gates opened at his arrival; trumpets sounded at his approach. The bells of the City “rang out for joy.” Angels met him with harp and crown, giving him the harp to sing praise and the crown “in token of honor.” And the multitude of the redeemed surrounded him with acclamations, saying: “Enter into the joy of your Lord.”
And all these visions were real to him — more real than the bare walls of his prison; for the walls were passing shadows, while the visions were the eternal reality. And waking from his dream, his face shining with heavenly joy, he painted these magnificent scenes that, after the death of his persecutors, after the prison walls turned to dust and the days of suffering were past, have brought light and joy to every land, to every generation, to solitude and cities alike, to palaces and cottages, to young and old, rich and poor, learned and simple.
Undeniably, Bunyan’s imprisonment contributed to the progress of the Gospel. Providence, which knows how to restrain the wrath of men and use it for His glory, caused the malice of his persecutors to serve the cause they tried to destroy. Thus, we see God’s hand using Bunyan’s captivity to prompt him to write, and we see God making use of circumstances to facilitate his work.
The cruelties practiced in other prisons might have ended his life or rendered him unable to write; but the jailer of Bedford treated Bunyan with such humanity that even the judges were annoyed. Thus, Bunyan occasionally gained the liberty to visit his family. Once, a clergyman, having learned of these visits, reported the jailer. It happened that on that very day, Bunyan was at home. However, he felt unwell and returned to prison earlier than usual. He had barely entered his cell when the prison inspector arrived and questioned the jailer: “Are all the prisoners here?” “Yes,” he replied. “Is John Bunyan here?” the inspector pressed. “Yes,” repeated the jailer. And since the inspector wanted to see for himself, the prisoner was immediately brought forward. After this incident, the jailer used to say to John Bunyan: “You may go out whenever you like, for you know better than I when to return.”
Thus were preserved the life and health of that man who, forbidden to preach to small groups in poor homes, today, through his books, preaches to millions of souls in all lands and generations, while those who tried to silence him lie forgotten in the dust. And so it is with the enemies of the Gospel: they undo their own plans, and good triumphs, crowned with glory and splendor.
The popularity of John Bunyan’s book, The Pilgrim’s Progress, is without parallel. During the author’s lifetime, many volumes were sold in England — at a time when books were scarce in the kingdom — and several editions were published in North America. It was translated into French, Flemish, German, Welsh, Irish, and many other languages, and only the Bible surpasses it in popularity.
The Pilgrim’s Progress is recognized as a classic wherever English is spoken. It is sold in every format and read by all classes; richly illustrated, elegantly bound, it adorns the rich man’s library. Or simple and worn by use, it is found on the poor man’s shelf. Children find deep delight in its tales of danger and struggle, despair and victory. Men so uneducated that they can barely read are captivated by it. And educated men, though indifferent to its religious purpose, feel the power of its genius and come to admire its beauties, vivid depictions, and deep insight into human nature. Young believers, beginning their journey, read it for comfort and encouragement in trials; veterans of the faith, still on this side of the river, see in it a faithful account of the pains and tribulations they have already endured.
The Pilgrim’s Progress is a universal book — it speaks to all peoples, all classes, all religions, of all times. And what inspires our admiration is knowing that it was written by an uneducated man, descended from a wandering tribe, who wrote it spontaneously, unconsciously, effortlessly, as if he were simply relieving himself of the turmoil of images carried in his soul. But we would run out of time, and space would not permit us to mention all the beauties of this book. The more we study it, the more we discover the secret of its popularity, which, apart from the Bible, is unmatched among books.
We therefore gladly recommend it to all lovers of good literature, and sincerely wish that some readers may be led to begin this pilgrimage for themselves, and that those who have already begun it may persevere with courage and dignity until they complete the journey so masterfully portrayed by Bunyan.
THE PUBLISHERS
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¹ The Pilgrim’s Progress (1678), by John Bunyan, also known as The Pilgrim’s Progress from This World to That Which Is to Come, is a classic of universal Christian literature. This text was transcribed from the 12th edition (1969) of Imprensa Metodista.
² To face with courage, boldness, or defiance; to endure, resist, or challenge.
³ Courage, noble bearing, or grace with dignity.
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