The Duties of Parents by J. C. Ryle

This book was first printed in 1888, but contains truths that are relevant today. The reason? Because, it is based upon scripture! J.C. Ryle opens the book with these observations about training children.

It cannot be said that the subject is a new one. The world is old, and we have the experience of nearly six thousand years to help us. We live in days when there is a mighty zeal for education in every quarter. We hear of new schools rising on all sides. We are told of new systems, and new books for the young, of every sort and description. And still for all this, the vast majority of children are manifestly not trained in the way they should go, for when they grow up to man’s estate, they do not walk with God.

The book is only 34 pages long, but is filled with wisdom that is direct and to the point. It is divided into seventeen short sections. This lends itself for use as a Bible study between husband and wife. Each point stands alone, helping you to meditate on them.

Based on Proverbs 22:6, the reader is taken through a complete list of areas in which to train their children. Each section of the book starts with a topic like this. First, then, if you would train your children rightly, train them in the way they should go, and not in the way they would. Here is another one. Train with this thought continually before your eyes that the soul of your child is the first thing to be considered.

I heartily recommend this book. It is not filled with the latest trends in raising children, but rather it is filled with God’s instruction and wisdom. May God bless your home through the reading and study of this book.

Republished in 2002 by Grace & Truth Books, this book can be ordered through Cumberland Valley Bible Book Service. The cost is $2.25 plus postage.

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. — Proverbs 22:6 (KJV)

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