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William Kelly
William Kelly (May 1821 – March 27, 1906) was an Irish preacher, biblical scholar, and writer whose prolific ministry within the Plymouth Brethren movement made him a leading figure in 19th-century evangelicalism. Born in Millisle, County Down, Ireland, to a family of landed gentry, Kelly was left fatherless young, prompting him to support himself by tutoring the family of Mr. Cachemaille, Rector of Sark. He graduated with first-class honours in classics from Trinity College, Dublin, intending Anglican ministry, but at 19 in 1840, he converted on Sark through reading Revelation 20:11-12 and soon joined the Brethren, drawn by their emphasis on Scripture and simplicity. Married in Guernsey to a woman whose name remains unrecorded, he lived there for 30 years before moving to Blackheath, London, in the 1870s. Kelly’s preaching career unfolded as an itinerant minister, delivering lectures across Britain that emphasized biblical authority and dispensational theology, often in Brethren assemblies like Bennett Park Hall in Blackheath. A close ally of John Nelson Darby, he edited Darby’s 34-volume Collected Writings and served as editor of The Bible Treasury from 1857 until his death, engaging scholars like Henry Alford and countering German higher criticism with works like his 1860 critical edition of Revelation, praised by Heinrich Ewald. His books—over 100, including Lectures on the Pentateuch and The Inspiration of the Scriptures—covered every Bible book, earning Charles Spurgeon’s quip that Kelly’s mind, “born for the universe,” was “narrowed by Darbyism.” In 1884, he split from Darby’s Exclusive Brethren over assembly governance, forming the “Kelly Brethren.”
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Willam Kelly preaches about the testing of faith in the path of Christ, emphasizing the challenge of standing firm when faced with opposition and desertion even from fellow believers. He highlights the struggle of losing valued associations, enduring taunts, and persecutions for the sake of Christ, drawing parallels to the experiences of Timothy and faithful Christians throughout history. Kelly reflects on the recent years as a frightful illustration of the trials faced by believers in Christendom.
Faith Tested
In the path of Christ the time surely comes when faith is put to the proof. It is one thing in the confidence of grace and at the summons of the truth to turn one’s back on the fairest pretension opposed to His name; it is quite another to stand firm and unabashed when not only the world turns from us, but desertion sets in among those who confess Him. How few can stand the loss of valued associations, not to speak of their taunts and persecutions! This abnormal state was dawning on the sensitive and distresses spirit of Timothy. It has long been the ordinary experience for the faithful in Christendom. What a frightful illustration of it even recent years have furnished.
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William Kelly (May 1821 – March 27, 1906) was an Irish preacher, biblical scholar, and writer whose prolific ministry within the Plymouth Brethren movement made him a leading figure in 19th-century evangelicalism. Born in Millisle, County Down, Ireland, to a family of landed gentry, Kelly was left fatherless young, prompting him to support himself by tutoring the family of Mr. Cachemaille, Rector of Sark. He graduated with first-class honours in classics from Trinity College, Dublin, intending Anglican ministry, but at 19 in 1840, he converted on Sark through reading Revelation 20:11-12 and soon joined the Brethren, drawn by their emphasis on Scripture and simplicity. Married in Guernsey to a woman whose name remains unrecorded, he lived there for 30 years before moving to Blackheath, London, in the 1870s. Kelly’s preaching career unfolded as an itinerant minister, delivering lectures across Britain that emphasized biblical authority and dispensational theology, often in Brethren assemblies like Bennett Park Hall in Blackheath. A close ally of John Nelson Darby, he edited Darby’s 34-volume Collected Writings and served as editor of The Bible Treasury from 1857 until his death, engaging scholars like Henry Alford and countering German higher criticism with works like his 1860 critical edition of Revelation, praised by Heinrich Ewald. His books—over 100, including Lectures on the Pentateuch and The Inspiration of the Scriptures—covered every Bible book, earning Charles Spurgeon’s quip that Kelly’s mind, “born for the universe,” was “narrowed by Darbyism.” In 1884, he split from Darby’s Exclusive Brethren over assembly governance, forming the “Kelly Brethren.”