Best Christian Books on Providence: 12 Classics to Read Free
The best book on providence is John Flavel's The Mystery of Providence, published in this edition as Divine Conduct. It is a Puritan classic, but it isn't hard. Flavel takes David's words in the cave, "God that performeth all things for me," and teaches you to look back over your own life and see God's hand in it: where you were born, the family you grew up in, how you heard the gospel, the work you do, the people you married and befriended. If you'd rather start with a story, read F. B. Meyer's Joseph.
"Providence" is the old word for God's care and government of everything He made. The classic writers taught it plainly. God didn't wind up the world and walk away. He holds it up and steers it, down to the sparrow that falls and the hairs of your head. Nothing comes by luck. That includes the hard things, which God means for good even when men mean them for evil. And they all said the same thing about how to live with it: watch for God's hand, trust Him when you can't see it, and don't judge Him by one dark chapter.
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:28
Here are twelve of the best books on providence in TheWay Library, all free to read.
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1. The Mystery of Providence, by John Flavel
Flavel argues that God shows Himself in two ways, His word and His works, and that Christians neglect the second. He traces ten "performances" of providence in a believer's life, then shows how to think about them with profit: how to remember them, how to read the hard ones, and how to give thanks.
Grace makes the promise, and providence the payment.
Divine Conduct; or, The Mystery of Providence, Introduction
It is certainly a highway of walking with God in this world, and as sweet communion may a soul enjoy with him in his providences as in any of his ordinances.
Divine Conduct; or, The Mystery of Providence, Introduction
See Who Was John Flavel? and our guide to his books. Read The Mystery of Providence.
2. Joseph: Beloved, Hated, Exalted, by F. B. Meyer
Joseph's life is the Bible's great story of providence. Sold by his brothers, slandered by Potiphar's wife, forgotten in prison, then raised to the throne at exactly the right time to save his family. Meyer follows it in sixteen warm chapters, and he shows how every bitter turn was a link in God's plan.
Little did he think then that hereafter he should look back on that day as one of the most gracious links in a chain of loving providences.
Joseph: Beloved, Hated, Exalted, The Pit
3. Discourses on Common Topics, by James W. Alexander
Twenty sermons by a Princeton pastor. Read the fourth, "The Providence of God in Particulars." Alexander argues that if God made every creature, He cares for every creature, small things as well as great ones. It is one of the best single sermons on providence you'll find.
The reason of creation thus becomes the reason of providence, and we exult in the truth, as sublime as it is consolatory, that the hairs of our head are all numbered.
Discourses on Common Topics of Christian Faith and Practice, The Providence of God in Particulars
See Who Was James W. Alexander? Read the Discourses.
4. Stirring the Eagle's Nest, by Theodore L. Cuyler
The title sermon, on Deuteronomy 32:11, is about the providences we like least. The mother eagle breaks up the cozy nest so her young will learn to fly. Cuyler says God does the same with us when we settle down too comfortably in this world.
Not in revenge does He do it; not in cruelty, but in love to their souls.
Stirring the Eagle's Nest, chapter 1
Read Stirring the Eagle's Nest.
Providence in Bible lives
5. Israel, a Prince with God, by F. B. Meyer
Meyer's study of Jacob, the schemer God patiently turned into Israel. Bethel, Laban's household, the night at Peniel and the long years of sorrow are all God's school. Chapter 8, on how God stirs up the nest in midlife, pairs well with Cuyler.
We can never forget what we might be, were it not for the restraining grace of God.
Israel, a Prince with God, chapter 13
Read Israel, a Prince with God.
6. Expositions of Holy Scripture: Esther, Job, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, by Alexander Maclaren
The book of Esther never names God, and that is the point of it. Maclaren's four sermons on Esther show God quietly at work behind Haman's plot and a queen's brave choice. His seven sermons on Job come next, and they are just as good. Both are good company for anyone in a season when God seems silent.
These three are the visible persons, but behind them is an unseen and unnamed Presence, the God of Israel, who still protects His exiled people.
Expositions of Holy Scripture: Esther, Job, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, The Net Spread
See Who Was Alexander Maclaren? Read Maclaren on Esther and Job.
7. Moses, the Man of God, by James Hamilton
Twenty-five lectures from the ark of bulrushes to the death on Pisgah. A baby saved in a basket and raised in Pharaoh's palace is as clear a picture of providence as there is, and Hamilton tells the whole life with color.
That is to say, in their way to the better country, God sometimes sends His people trials where they looked for blessings.
Moses, the Man of God, Marah
8. Israel's Wanderings in the Wilderness, by G. D. Krummacher
Sermons that follow Israel station by station from Egypt: the Red Sea, the bitter waters of Marah, the wells of Elim, the manna, the water from the rock. Krummacher reads each stop as a picture of how God leads a believer, one day's provision at a time. Read Israel's Wanderings.
Providence in real lives
9. A Narrative of the Lord's Dealings with George Müller, Part 1
Müller wrote his Narrative to show that God still hears and provides. Part 1 tells his wild youth, his conversion at Halle, his decision to give up a salary, and the founding of the first orphan house in Bristol by prayer alone. It reads like Flavel's book lived out.
I desire many things concerning myself; but I desire nothing so much, as to have a heart filled with love to the Lord.
A Narrative of Some of the Lord's Dealings with George Müller, Part 1, July 1837
See Who Was George Müller? and George Müller's books. Read the Narrative, Part 1.
10. Ten Years of My Life in the Service of the Book Fund, by Susannah Spurgeon
Charles Spurgeon's wife, often ill and kept at home, began sending free books to poor pastors. Her yearly diaries record gifts that came just when needed and letters from grateful ministers, along with her own trust in God through long suffering. A quiet, lovely record of providence in small things.
If thou dost honestly trust Him, thou shouldest certainly not be afraid; for thy faith should deal a death-blow to all thy fears.
Ten Years of My Life in the Service of the Book Fund, The Book Fund Diary for 1885
11. Twelve New Year Sermons, by C. H. Spurgeon
Sermons Spurgeon preached as each year turned, about God's care through the unknown months ahead. Read "Good Cheer for the New Year," on Deuteronomy 11:12, where the eyes of the Lord are on the land "from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year." Good reading for January or any new start. Read Twelve New Year Sermons.
Go deeper
12. The City of God, Volume I, by Augustine
When the Goths sacked Rome in 410, pagans blamed the Christians. Augustine answered with this great book on God's rule over history. Book I explains why good and bad things fall on good and bad people alike in this life, and Books IV and V argue that even Rome's empire came from God's providence, not from fate or fortune.
For if every sin were now visited with manifest punishment, nothing would seem to be reserved for the final judgment; on the other hand, if no sin received now a plainly divine punishment, it would be concluded that there is no divine providence at all.
The City of God, Volume I, Book First
See Who Was Augustine of Hippo? Read The City of God.
How to read these books
Start with Flavel, and read it with a notebook. When he writes about the place of your birth or the means of your conversion, stop and write down your own. Then read Joseph, or Esther, and watch the same hand in Scripture. Save Augustine for later.
When providence hurts, other books help more: Thomas Brooks's The Mute Christian under the Smarting Rod and Bonar's The Night of Weeping are in our guide to the best books on suffering and comfort. For God's rule over salvation and history as a doctrine, see the best books on the sovereignty of God. More of these authors are on their pages: John Flavel, F. B. Meyer and George Müller.