4 volumes
1622 · Marriage & family
Of Domestical Duties
William Gouge was preaching through Paul's letter to the Ephesians when he came to its words about husbands and wives, children and parents, servants and masters. He took them one relationship at a time and asked: what does each owe the other, day to day?
The result is one of the fullest books ever written on Christian family life, covering choosing a spouse, love in marriage, raising and educating children, and the duties of servants and masters to one another. It is long, so this edition comes in four volumes; each one stands on its own.
It is also a window into everyday life in 1620s London, with its households, apprentices and servants.
- About 20 hours to read (290,000 words)
- A substantial, demanding read
- Couples, parents, and readers curious about family life four hundred years ago.
Read it your way
Free to read and download. Paperbacks are coming soon. They will be printed on demand and sold at cost: we make nothing on them.
Volume I
Volume II
Volume III
Volume IV
For churches, schools and local printers: the print-ready files are exactly what we send to Lulu, with the cover's spine sized to the page count. Print as many as you like.
Then & Now
What did 1622 look like?
Here is a paragraph from “Husbands and the Love of Christ,” as it was first printed and as you'll read it in this edition.
As printed in 1622
A motiue it is to loue Chriſt, becauſe loue deſerueth loue: eſpecially ſuch a loue, of ſuch a perſon as the loue of Chriſt is. Yea, our loue of Chriſt is an euidence that we are loued of Chriſt, as ſmoake is a ſigne of fire. Wherefore both in thankfulneſſe to Chriſt, for his loue to vs, and for aſſurance to our owne ſoules of Chriſts loue to vs, we ought in all things that we can to teſtifie our loue to Chriſt.
Today
A motive it is to love Christ, because love deserveth love: especially such a love, of such a person as the love of Christ is. Yea, our love of Christ is an evidence that we are loved of Christ, as smoke is a sign of fire. Wherefore both in thankfulness to Christ, for his love to us, and for assurance to our own souls of Christ’s love to us, we ought in all things that we can to testify our love to Christ.
About this edition
Faithful, and easier to read
Gouge's Of Domesticall Duties (1622), all eight treatises in four volumes, in modern spelling with his wording kept; the transcription corrected against the 1622 page images, its Greek and Hebrew restored, six missing pages supplied from a second 1622 copy, and the printer's errata applied.
74.2% of the words are exactly as printed. Most of the rest are spelling and punctuation; only 0.5% changed in grammar or wording. Every change is recorded, and you can see each one in Then & Now.
Open Then & Now- First published
- 1622
- Made from
- The first edition (London, 1622; EEBO-TCP A68107)
How this edition was made
Sources
- EEBO-TCP A68107: Of Domesticall Duties, Eight Treatises (London, John Haviland for William Bladen, 1622)
- Pages 191-196 of the 1622 edition, missing from the copy the TCP transcribed, transcribed from a second 1622 copy (archive.org, n220-n225); and the places where the TCP misreads the print, corrected from the page images
Checked against
- The 1622 page images of the copy the TCP was made from (archive.org), for the Greek and Hebrew, illegible letters and the proofread
- The second edition (1626, in The Workes of William Gouge), consulted for single readings
- The third edition (1634), consulted for single readings and the errata
- The earlier Freely Given Books edition (made with the converter before the TEI)
- Source files
- This edition on GitHub
- Licence
- Public domain (CC0): copy and share freely
- Found a mistake?
- Tell us
About the authorWilliam Gouge 1575–1653A Blackfriars pastor for forty-five years who wrote the book on family life.