I wrote the following article on the eschatology of Charles Haddon Spurgeon for the Dictionary of Premillennial Theology . There are things I would add and/or say differently if writing it today, but I believe it still to be accurate and helpful.
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Charles Haddon Spurgeon, The Eschatology of :
C. H. Spurgeon (1834-1892), famous London pastor known as the “Prince of Preachers,” believed that the personal return of Christ should be proclaimed dogmatically, from the pulpit of the preacher and the lectern of the teacher. He was convinced that failure to preach the Second Advent would inevitably result in preaching and teaching which he described as “lame.” His own sermons abound with the theme of hope, and central to this hope is the Great Hope of His soon coming. A confession statement signed by Spurgeon and published in the Sword and Trowel explicitly states; “Our hope is the Personal Pre-Millennial Return of the Lord Jesus in Glory.”
When preaching upon eschatological matters, Spurgeon thought it proper to deal primarily with those things he perceived to be “clearly revealed.” Thus, his eschatological preaching tended to focus upon imminency and the believer’s response to the Great Hope. Some have taken Spurgeon’s declination to meticulously systematize his eschatology as an opportunity to impose their own eschatological grid upon his teachings. Recently, there have been attempts to redefine Spurgeon as a midtribulationist. However, Spurgeon’s sermons, as well as his commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, clearly demonstrate a posttribulational premillennial eschatology that is generally referred to as historic premillennialism. (Kevin Stilley)
BIBLIOGRAPHY: C. H. Spurgeon, “The Ascension and the Second Advent Practically Considered,” Spurgeon’s Expository Encyclopedia, vol. 4, (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1951), pp. 437-448; ______. The Gospel of Matthew, (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1987). ______. “He Cometh With Clouds,” The Treasury of the New Testament, vol. 4, (London: Marshall, Morgan & Scott, n.d.), pp. 663-669; “Mr. Spurgeon’s Confession of Faith,” The Sword & The Trowel, August 1891, pp. 446-448;
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