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William Arnot Books: A Guide to All 8 and Where to Start

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William Arnot (1808–1875) was a Scottish Free Church minister who preached for twenty-five years in Glasgow and then twelve in Edinburgh. He'd worked as a gardener before he studied for the ministry, and his books are full of pictures from fields, ships, shops and homes. TheWay Library has eight of his books, all free to read: three Bible commentaries, a set of lectures on money, two books of sermons and two biographies of friends. For his life story, see who was William Arnot.

Where to start

Start with The Parables of Our Lord. It's his best-known book, and each parable stands on its own, so you can read one at a sitting.

Then choose by what you want:

Bible commentaries

The Parables of Our Lord

Arnot's exposition of about thirty of Jesus' parables, in Gospel order. He begins with the seven parables of Matthew 13 as one group: the sower, the tares, the mustard seed, the leaven, the hidden treasure, the pearl and the draw-net. Then come the unmerciful servant, the laborers in the vineyard, the two sons, the wicked husbandmen, the wedding feast and the wedding garment, the ten virgins and the talents. From Mark and Luke he adds the seed growing secretly, the good Samaritan, the friend at midnight, the rich fool, the lost sheep, the lost coin, the prodigal son, the rich man and Lazarus, the importunate widow, the Pharisee and the publican, and the pounds.

He explains each story plainly and then speaks to the conscience on almost every page.

Nor does the freeness of his grace prove that the prodigal's sins are small; it proves only that the forgiving love of Christ is great.

The Parables of Our Lord, The Two Sons

It's one of the best older books on the parables for preachers, teachers and anyone who reads the Gospels. It's also on our list of the best classic Bible commentaries. Read The Parables of Our Lord.

Laws from Heaven for Life on Earth

About 130 short chapters on the book of Proverbs, taking a verse or two at a time. Arnot treats Proverbs as God-given wisdom for ordinary life in a busy commercial age, and he applies it to work, trade, debt, honesty, speech, family discipline, the choice of friends and strong drink. His chapter titles give the flavor: "Filthy Lucre," "Capital and Profit," "Mother's Law," "Mirth a Medicine," "The Sluggard's Garden." But he keeps showing that the wisdom of Proverbs points to Christ, the wisdom of God.

It is not a clearer head that is needed, but a softer heart.

Laws from Heaven for Life on Earth, chapter 73

The chapters are only a few pages each, so it works well as a book to read a little every day. It's especially good for young people starting out in work, and for parents; see also our guide to the best Christian books on marriage and family. Read Laws from Heaven for Life on Earth.

The Church in the House: Lessons on the Acts of the Apostles

Arnot's 105 short lessons that walk through the whole Book of Acts in order, from the ascension and Pentecost to Paul's shipwreck and arrival in Rome. He reads Acts as the sequel to the Gospels: the Gospels show what the Lord did in person, and Acts shows what He went on doing through His witnesses after He ascended. Each lesson takes a passage, explains it plainly and draws one lesson for Christians and churches today, on witness, missions, prayer, courage or church life. Titles like "Add to Your Faith, Courage" show the method.

Those who trust in Christ for the greatest things, have the right to lean on him for the least.

The Church in the House, Lesson XII

The lessons are short enough for family worship, which is what the title means. Try The Prayer of the Primitive Church first. Read The Church in the House.

Money and business

The Race for Riches

Six lectures Arnot gave in Glasgow after the business scandals of 1850, when trade frauds had shaken public trust and men were saying the Bible couldn't govern business. He opens with Boaz greeting his reapers as a picture of how employers and workers ought to meet. Then he defines covetousness as a thirst that grows the more it's fed, follows it into dishonest dealing and the oppression of the poor, and ends with counsel on what parents should leave their children. This American edition adds a long preface by Stephen Colwell of Philadelphia on the social teaching of Christ.

The more that you throw into this raging appetite, the more it craves.

The Race for Riches, Lecture II

It's short, sharp and still very practical for anyone in business. Read The Race for Riches.

Sermons

The Anchor of the Soul and Other Sermons

Twenty-four sermons. The title sermon, on Hebrews 6, pictures a ship holding at anchor near a dangerous shore in a storm, as the soul is held by a hope fixed within the veil, where Christ has gone. Others take Christ's cry at the feast, "He shall glorify me," "He shall be satisfied," the first promise in Genesis 3:15, why Jesus was glad that Lazarus died, prayer with thanksgiving, the cleansing blood, Christ knocking at the door, and the nine lepers who never came back to give thanks.

I do not need any ministry to make Jesus more lovely; but I do need a ministry to make me love Jesus.

The Anchor of the Soul and Other Sermons, He Shall Glorify Me

If you want to hear Arnot preach, start here. Read The Anchor of the Soul.

Roots and Fruits of the Christian Life

Twenty-eight sermons that trace the Christian life from its roots to its fruits. The roots are faith, hope and love, and Christ the one Mediator. Sermons on the lamentations and the tears of Jesus show the Saviour's tenderness toward the lost. The fruits include true love for others, a right use of the world, godly sorrow, faith that works, and the peace of God ruling in the heart. One of the best known is "The Strait Gate Not a Shut Gate."

Hope is the tenant, not of a heart that was never broken, but of a heart that has been broken and healed again.

Roots and Fruits of the Christian Life, Faith, Hope, Love

Read Roots and Fruits of the Christian Life.

Biographies

Life of James Hamilton

Arnot and James Hamilton were classmates at the University of Glasgow and friends for life. Hamilton became minister of the National Scotch Church in Regent Square, London, and wrote Life in Earnest and other well-loved books. After his death Arnot wrote his life, drawing largely on Hamilton's own journals and letters. It follows him from childhood through his first ministry at Abernyte, his long London pastorate, the Disruption of 1843, his writing and home life, and his last illness. Arnot opens by calling his book "a trap to catch a sunbeam."

Great and good lives … are like rays of sunlight which gladden the world while they shine, but leave it dark and chilly when they depart.

Life of James Hamilton, chapter 1

It's a long book, and much of it is Hamilton in his own words. For a shorter account, see who was James Hamilton. Read Life of James Hamilton.

Memoir of the Late James Halley

An early book, about a friend from his student days. James Halley was a brilliant Glasgow student of Greek and divinity who caught fire for missions and died young of lung disease. Arnot tells the story mostly through Halley's own letters and journals: his studies, the College Missionary Society, a winter in Madeira when he knew the illness would likely kill him, and his long search for assurance before his death. Arnot closes with a portrait of Halley's character, his habit of praying for friends by name and his close watch over his own heart. Appendices print some of Halley's own writing, including a defense of prayer meetings.

With regard to himself, the struggle was over; he was not only still under God’s hand, but satisfied with his judgments.

Memoir of the Late James Halley, chapter IV

It's a moving book for students and for anyone who has watched a young believer die. Read Memoir of the Late James Halley.

Why read Arnot today

Arnot is vivid, practical and full of the grace of God. He writes about money and work as plainly as he writes about the cross, and he never lets a reader stay comfortable in sin. Begin with The Parables of Our Lord, then keep Laws from Heaven by your chair for daily reading. For his best lines, see our collection of William Arnot quotes. All eight books are on the William Arnot author page.

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