The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan
THE PILGRIM’S PROGRESS
John Bunyan’s encounter with God transformed a poorly-educated, blaspheming tinker into a bold preacher of the gospel. As a Christian, Bunyan would also display a genius for writing, authoring more than sixty books including the classic The Pilgrim’s Progress.
Born at Elstow, Bedfordshire, England in 1628, Bunyan attended school briefly, followed his father’s vocation of repairing household utensils, and served in the Parliamentary army during the English Civil War. He then married a woman (whose name has been lost to history) who encouraged him to attend church, where he heard the Gospel. After a long internal struggle, Bunyan surrendered himself to Christ.
He soon began to preach, and the obvious change in his life brought many people out to hear him. Bunyan’s messages, however, also drew the attention of government officials, who arrested him in 1660 for preaching without permission of the state church. Bunyan would spend the next twelve years in jail for his “non-conformist” ways.
During his imprisonment, Bunyan wrote some of his best works, including his spiritual autobiography Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners (1666). Bunyan’s masterwork, The Pilgrim’s Progress, was published in 1678, six years after his release from the “County Gaol.”
In the final decade of his life, Bunyan continued to write and serve churches throughout his region. In 1688, on a forty-mile horseback ride to preach in London, Bunyan was caught in a heavy rainstorm and contracted a violent fever which led to his death. He was buried in Bunhill Fields, London.
A man clothed in rags and weighed down by a great burden on his back stood facing away from his own house. He opened the Bible he held in his hand, and as he read, he wept and trembled. Finally, no longer able to contain himself, he cried, “What shall I do?”
In this plight he entered his home and spoke his mind. “Oh, dear wife and children, I am distressed by this burden upon my back. Moreover, I am certain our city will be burned by fire from heaven. We shall all perish unless I find a way for us to escape.”
His family was amazed—not because they thought what he said was true, but because they thought he was out of his head. They thought sleep might calm him down, so they got him to bed. But nighttime was as troubling to him as the day, and he spent the night in sighs and tears.
In the morning he declared he was worse than the night before. He spoke to them again, but they didn’t want to hear him. Since sleep hadn’t helped, they decided to treat his craziness by mocking, scolding, and ignoring him.
He withdrew, often alone in the fields, to pray for them and read his Bible. For some days he spent his time this way.
One day he stood in the fields and cried, “What must I do to be saved?” He looked this way and that way as if he would run, but knew not where.
A man approached. “I am Evangelist. Why are you crying so?”
The man answered, “Sir, I read in this Bible that I am condemned to die, and after that to come to judgment. I find that I am not willing to do the first, nor able to do the second.”
Evangelist asked, “Why are you not willing to die, since this life is so full of evil?”
The man answered, “I fear that this burden on my back will sink me to hell. I am not ready to go to judgment. And my thoughts make me despair.”
“Why then are you standing still?”
“I don’t know where to go!”
“Read this.” Evangelist gave him a roll of parchment that said, “Fly from the wrath to come.”
The man asked, “Where should I fly?”
Evangelist pointed beyond a wide plain. “Do you see the distant wicket gate?”
“No.”
“Do you see the distant shining light?”
“I think I do.”
Then Evangelist said, “Follow the light and it will bring you to the gate. When you knock, the gatekeeper will tell you what to do from there.”
So the man began to run. Seeing him, his wife and children cried after him to return. But the man put his fingers in his ears and ran on, crying, “Life! Life! Eternal life!”
The neighbors also came out to see him run, and some mocked, others threatened, and some cried after him to return. Two neighbors, Obstinate and Pliable, followed him and overtook him, attempting to persuade him to return with them.
He answered, “You dwell in the City of Destruction. And dying there, you will sink into a place that burns with fire and brimstone. Come along with me.”
“What!” said Obstinate. “And leave friends and comforts behind?”
“Yes,” answered Christian, for that was now the man’s name. “Those are not worthy to be compared with what I seek. I seek an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, that never fades away. It awaits in heaven, to be bestowed on those who diligently seek it. Read about it in my Bible.”
“Phooey on your Bible,” said Obstinate. “Will you go back with us or not?”
“No, because I have ‘put my hand to the plow.’”
“Come, neighbor Pliable,” said Obstinate, “he is a fool and wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can render a reason. Let us go home without him.”
Pliable hesitated. “If what good Christian says is true, the things he looks for are better than ours. My heart longs to go with him.”
“What? You are a fool, too. I will be no companion of such misled fantasies,” said Obstinate and turned back. “Be wise and come back with me.”
When Obstinate was gone, Christian and Pliable walked on across the plain.
“Are you certain the words of your book are true?” Pliable asked Christian.
“Yes, the Bible was made by He who cannot lie. There is an endless kingdom to inhabit, and everlasting life. We will be given crowns of glory and garments that will make us shine like the sun.”
“These are pleasant thoughts,” said Pliable. “What else does your Bible say?”
“There will be no more crying, no more sorrow. We shall be with seraphim, and cherubim, and creatures that will dazzle our eyes. We shall meet with tens of thousands who have gone before us, loving and holy, everyone walking in the sight of God—all well again, and clothed in the garment of immortality.”
“But how can we share in that?”
“The Lord has recorded in this Bible,” answered Christian, “that if we are willing to have it, He will bestow it on us freely.”
“The hearing of this is enough to delight one’s heart. Come, let us quicken our pace.”
But Christian answered, “I cannot go as fast as I would like because of the burden that is on my back.”
Because they were careless, however, they became mired in a bog in the midst of the plain called the Slough of Despond.
Pliable, angry now, cried out to Christian, “Is this the happiness and pleasure you told me about? If the journey starts out this way, what will the rest be like? If I get out of here alive, you can take your journey without me.”
He pulled himself out on the side nearest his home, and he lost no time putting Christian behind him.
Christian struggled across the Slough of Despond toward the wicket gate, but he could not get out because of the burden on his back. A man approached from the other side.
“What are you doing here?” the man asked.
“I’m on my way to the gate that I may escape the wrath to come. But I fell into this slough instead.”
“Why didn’t you look for the steps?” asked the man.
“Fear followed me so hard, I fell in the Slough.”
“I am Help.” And Help plucked Christian out and bid him on his way, explaining, “The Slough of Despond cannot be mended so that travelers pass safely. It is the accumulation of scum and filth that continually runs from the conviction for sin. Because even though the sinner is awakened to his lost condition, fears and doubts and discouraging apprehensions still run from his soul and settle in the Slough. It is not the pleasure of the King that the Slough remain so bad. There are, by direction of the Lawgiver, certain good and substantial steps, placed evenly through the very midst of the Slough. Yet because of the filth the steps are hardly seen, or if they are, dizzy men fall by the side anyway.”
Now Christian, walking across the plain by himself, met Mr. Worldly Wiseman, who dwelt in Carnal Policy, a very great town close to the City of Destruction. Worldly Wiseman had some inkling of Christian, because Christian’s departure was already gossip in other places.
Worldly Wiseman greeted Christian and asked where he was going.
“To the wicket gate across the plain,” Christian replied. “I’ve been told that is the entrance to the way to get rid of this heavy burden.”
“Will you heed my counsel?” asked Worldly Wiseman.
“If it is good, I will.”
“There is no more dangerous and troublesome way in the world than that which Evangelist has directed you. Hear me; you will meet weariness, pain, hunger, peril, sword, lions, dragons, darkness, and, in a word, death.”
“But this burden on my back is more terrible to me. I don’t care what I meet if I also meet deliverance from my burden.”
“How did you get that burden?”
“By reading this Bible.”
“I thought so. It has happened to other weak men, too. Remedy is at hand. But instead of the dangers, you will meet with safety, friendship, and content.”
“Show me this secret of yours.”
“In the next village of Morality, there is a gentleman whose name is Legality. He has the skill to help you rid yourself of your burden. His house is less than a mile away. If he is not at home, his son, Civility, can take care of you as well as his father would. Once you are healed, you can send for your wife and children to join you there, as there are houses standing empty and the cost of living is very reasonable.”
Christian, eager to be rid of his burden, thought the advice was sound. “Sir, which is the way to this honest man’s house?”
“You must go to that mountain over there. The first house is his.”
So Christian went out of his way to go to Legality’s house. The burden seemed even heavier, and the mountain soon loomed over the path and burst flashes of fire. Christian quaked with fear and began to be sorry he’d taken Worldly Wiseman’s counsel. At that moment he saw Evangelist walking toward him and he blushed for shame.
“What are you doing here, Christian?” asked Evangelist.
Christian stood speechless before him.
“Are you not the man I spoke to outside the walls of the City of Destruction?”
“Yes, sir.”
“How do you come to be here? This is out of the way I showed you.”
“A gentleman showed me a better way, short and not so rife with difficulties as the one you sent me on. But when I came to this place and saw the danger of going forward, I stopped for fear. Now I don’t know what to do.”
Evangelist then spoke. “God said, ‘My righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.’ You have begun to reject the counsel of the Most High. You drew back your foot from the way of peace.”
Christian fell down. “Woe is me, for I am undone!”
Evangelist took his right hand. “The Lord says, ‘Every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven.’ So be not faithless, but believing.”
Christian stood up, revived a little.
Evangelist went on, “Worldly Wiseman, who savors only the doctrine of this world, did three terrible things. First, he turned you from the way. Secondly, Worldly Wiseman disparaged the Cross to you. Thirdly, he sent you on the way to death.”
Evangelist went on to explain how Worldly Wiseman almost beguiled Christian out of his salvation. The mountain looming over them was Mount Sinai. Then Evangelist called out to the heavens for confirmation.
In bursts of fire, words rumbled from the mountain: “All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.’”
“And no one is able to obey every law,” explained Evangelist.
Christian now called himself a thousand fools for listening to Worldly Wiseman’s advice. Thinking there was no hope for him now but death, he asked Evangelist, “Is it possible for me to go back to the wicket gate? Or am I abandoned and sent back in shame? Is my sin too great to be forgiven?”
“Your sin, indeed, is great,” Evangelist said. “But it is forgiven. The man at the gate will receive you, for he has goodwill for men. But take heed that you do not turn aside from the way again, or you might perish.”
When Evangelist had bid him Godspeed, Christian hurried back, refusing to speak to anyone, and found the way again. In time he found the wicket gate. Over the small narrow gate was written: KNOCK, AND THE DOOR WILL BE OPENED TO YOU.
He knocked, saying: “May I now enter here? Will he within open to sorry me, though I have been an undeserving rebel? Then shall I not fail to sing his lasting praise on high.”
At last a serious man came to the gate. “I am Goodwill. Who knocks? From where have you come? What do you want?”
“I am a poor, burdened sinner. I come from the City of Destruction, but I am going to Celestial City, so that I might be delivered from the wrath to come. I am told this gate is the way. Are you willing to let me in?”
“With all my heart.” Goodwill opened the narrow gate and yanked Christian inside.
“Why did you do that?” sputtered Christian.
“There is a strong castle near here where the devil Beelzebub is the captain. He and his army shoot arrows at those who come to this gate, in the hope they die before they enter.”
“Thank you for your quick action,” Christian praised Goodwill.
“Who directed you here?”
“Evangelist. He told me you would tell me what to do.”
“Why do you come alone? Did no one know of your coming?”
“Yes, my wife and children saw me first and called after me to return. Then some of my neighbors joined their cry. But I refused to listen and came on my way. Still I allowed myself to stray from the path. It amazes me that I am allowed to enter now.”
“We turn no one away, no matter what they have done before they come to us,” Goodwill assured him. Then Goodwill beckoned Christian to follow him. “I will teach you about the way you must go. Look before you. Do you see the narrow way? That is the way you must go. It was laid out by the patriarchs, prophets, Christ, and His apostles. It is as straight as a rule can make it.”
“But are there no turnings and windings by which a stranger might lose his way?”
“There are many ways that are crooked and wide, but only the right way is straight and narrow.”
Then Christian asked, “Would you help me remove the burden upon my back? I have tried to do it myself, but I cannot do it without help.”
“Be content to bear it until you come to the place of deliverance. There it will fall from your back of itself.”
As Christian prepared to continue his journey, Goodwill told him, “When you have gone some distance, you will come to Interpreter’s home. He will show you many things that will help you on your journey.”
Christian went on until he came to a house. He knocked and called out, “I am going to the Celestial City. I was told at the gate that if I called here, the Interpreter would show me excellent things.”
The door opened. A man said, “I am the Interpreter. Come in.”
His servant lit a candle and Christian followed the Interpreter through the house to a private room where a portrait hung on the wall. The very somber man in the picture had his eyes lifted to heaven, the Best of Books in his hand, and the Law of Truth written on his lips. The world was behind his back and a crown of gold hung over his head. The man seemed to plead with men.
“What does this mean?” asked Christian.
“This man’s work is to know and unfold the darkness to sinners. He has put the world behind him for the love he has for his Master’s service. I have shown you this picture first because this man is the only guide authorized by the Lord of the place where you are going. Take good heed. In your journey you will meet with some who pretend to lead you the right way, but their way leads to death.”
Then Interpreter took Christian by the hand and led him into a very large parlor that was full of dust. He called for a man to sweep, who went about his job so vigorously Christian began to choke on the dust. Then Interpreter called a girl to bring water and sprinkle the room. When she finished, the room was swept and cleaned with pleasure.
“And what is the meaning of this?” asked Christian.
“This parlor is the heart of a man never sanctified by the grace of the Gospel. The dust is original sin and a lifetime of corruptions that pollute the man. The man who swept is the Law. The maiden who sprinkled water is the Gospel. Instead of cleansing the heart by its working, the Law increased sin in the heart, for it does not give power to subdue it. The Gospel vanquished sin, and the heart is made clean, fit for the King of Glory to enter.”
The Interpreter took Christian into another room where two children sat in chairs. The older child, Passion, was restless. The younger child, Patience, sat quietly.
Christian asked, “What is the reason for Passion’s discontent?”
The Interpreter said they had been told to wait one year for their reward. But Passion wanted it all now, while Patience was willing to wait. Then someone brought Passion a bag of treasure, which caused him to rejoice and scorn Patience. But he squandered the treasure, and it became rags.
“Explain this to me,” said Christian.
“Passion is a figure for the men of this world who want everything now. Patience is a figure for the men who await that world which is yet to come. For men like Passion, they believe in the proverb ‘A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.’”
“I see that Patience has the better wisdom because he waits for the best things, and in the world to come he will have much when Passion will only have rags.”
“And there is one more benefit,” Interpreter added. “The rewards of the next world never wear out, while the joys of this world don’t last. For first must give place to last, but last gives place to nothing, for there is not another to follow.”