Exodus: Commentary

by Jeanne Guyon

She came from an unsettled childhood and loveless marriage to her controversial years of ministry in France, Switzerland and Savoy. What was it that motivated this noblewoman, keeping her faithful to her unpopular beliefs and causing her to rest joyfully in God's will even in the shadow of dungeon walls? Jeanne Guyon was a woman who understood the cost of the For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. The influence of Jeanne Guyon has never wavered with the passing of centuries. Her writings have influenced movements such as the Moravians, the Quakers, the Methodists and the Little Flock. Three hundred years later she is still one of the most influential people in the lives of those who seek a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. In reading this book, you will notice that Jeanne Guyon presents a more inward, Christ-centered perspective than is usually found in our present-day concept of Christian commentaries. Here is her commentary on the book of Exodus as seen from the principles and dynamics of the deeper Christian life.

Paperback

First published April 1, 2002

About the author

Jeanne Marie Bouvières de la Mothe Guyon (commonly known as Madame Guyon) was the leader of the Quietist movement in France. The foundation of her Quietism was laid in her study of St. Francis de Sales, Madame de Chantal, and Thomas a Kempis. At age 16, she married Jacques Guyon, a wealthy man of weak health, 22 years her senior. Until his death in 1676, her life was an unhappy one, partly due to the difference in their ages, and partly due to a tyrannical mother-in-law. Her public career as an evangelist of Quietism began soon after her widowhood.

Her first labors were spent in the diocese of Geneva, at Anecy, Gex, and Thonon, and in Grenoble. In 1686 she went to Paris, where she was at first imprisoned for her opinions, in the Convent of St. Marie in the Faubourg St. Antoine; she was released after eight months at the insistence of Madame de Maintenon. She then rose to the zenith of her fame. Her life at all times greatly fascinated those around her; the court, Madame de Maintenon, and Madame de Maintenon’s College of Ladies at Cyr, came under the spell of her enthusiasm. But the affinity of her doctrines with those of Michael Molinos, who was condemned in 1685, soon worked against her.

Her opinions were condemned by a commission, of which Bossuet was president. She then incurred Bossuet’s displeasure by breaking the promises she had made to him to maintain a quiet attitude and not return to Paris. She was imprisoned at Vincennes in December 1695, and the next year moved to Vaugirard, under a promise to avoid all receptions and correspondence, except by special permission. In 1698, she was imprisoned in the Bastille for four years. She spent the remainder of her life in retirement with her daughter, the Marquise de Bois, at Blois. She had numerous visitors of all ranks, some from foreign countries, and had a considerable correspondence. Her works fill some 40 volumes. (less)