The Prince: Jonathan Order Printed Copy

Author: Francine Rivers
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About the Book

"The Prince: Jonathan" tells the story of Jonathan, a young man who finds himself caught between duty to his father, King Saul, and loyalty to his best friend, David. As he navigates the political turmoil and family conflicts of ancient Israel, Jonathan must decide where his true allegiance lies and what he is willing to sacrifice for the ones he loves.

Henry Martyn

Martyn was born in Truro, England, where his father worked as head clerk of a merchant house. After attending Truro Grammar School, he proceeded to Cambridge to read mathematics. Influenced by his younger sister, and by Charles Simeon, he soon professed evangelical faith. He graduated (as Senior Wrangler) in 1801, also earning the Smith’s Prize. In 1802 he became a fellow of St. John’s. Admiration for David Brainerd persuaded him to abandon legal ambitions for missionary service. A curacy with Simeon at Holy Trinity Church, Cambridge, followed. Changed personal circumstances made missionary service impossible for him, so instead, he accepted a chaplain’s commission with the East India Company. During the 305-day voyage to Calcutta, he studied Urdu and Bengali. Until he was posted inland, he assisted the Serampore Baptists in Bible translation work. He was chaplain from 1806 to 1809 at Dinapore and from 1809 to 1810 at Cawnpore. In both places, his refusal to regard Indians as inferior and his respect for India culture annoyed and alienated many of his peers. Encouraged by fellow evangelicals, he took as his main task Bible translation. With the assistance of munshis (translators), he produced Urdu, Arabic, and Persian versions of Scripture, thus focusing on Muslim languages. Confessing that ignorance of Islam handicapped his ability to communicate the gospel, he also “read everything [he] could pick up about Mohammadans.” Late in 1810, suffering from consumption, Martyn took a leave of absence to travel through Iran, to test his Persian translation, and to benefit from a drier climate. He hoped eventually to return to England to persuade a childhood sweetheart, who had refused an earlier request, to marry him. In Iran, he thoroughly revised his Persian translation of the New Testament, which, with the help of Sir Gore Ouseley (1779-1844), was presented to the shah. Reluctantly, Martyn also agreed to exchange tracts with the Muslim ulema (religious scholars), later published as his Controversial Tracts on Christianity and Mohammedanism (1824). Martyn died at Tocat at age 31, cared for and buried by Armenians, whose ancient church he had long admired. Martyn’s ecumenical openness, his desire to implant the gospel in Indian culture, and his concern for spiritual exchange with Muslims have often been obscured by his reluctant use of polemic. Nevertheless, his legacy inspired later missionaries, such as Thomas Valpy French and Temple Gairdner toward a more irenic approach to Muslims and to Islam. Clinton Bennett, “Martyn, Henry,” in Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions, ed. Gerald H. Anderson (New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 1998), 438-39. This article is reprinted from Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions, Macmillan Reference USA, copyright © 1998 Gerald H. Anderson, by permission of Macmillan Reference USA, New York, NY. All rights reserved.

I Have Found the Real God

I praise and thank God because since coming to here to Saudi Arabia I have found the real God. I accepted Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior and was baptized. After I explained the plan of salvation to my wife, she could understand why I wanted to be born again, and in 2013 she accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior. (Now, I am not afraid for my wife to know that I am a Christian…) I had once bought a house for my mom, but sadly, and without informing me, she had left the house after only three months and gone back to our old house. About that time, a woman we knew had a friend who was expecting a baby but was planning to give it away as soon as it was born, and I asked to talk to her. I asked her, what has happened that you would give your baby away? She answered that she could not provide for the needs of the baby; then she said, I will give this Baby to you. I said I must first talk to my wife, and then I will come back. I stopped on the way home to visit my uncle. When he learned that I wanted to adopt the baby, he did not approve. I said, “Uncle I will accept what God has given to me. I didn't plan to find a baby, but for almost ten years my wife and I have waited, and my wife is so tired, and now we have this offer, so maybe this is the answer from God.” My Uncle replied, but you know that girl is a prostitute. I said, “Yes, but the mistake of the mother is not the mistake of the baby. If the baby died because she couldn’t provide it would be on my conscience; besides, if God has answered my prayer, I promise to God that I will teach her how to follow Jesus…” When I arrived home, my wife was at work at the office, so I paid her a surprise visit, and she was very happy. After a while, I told her that I would come back after her workday was finished. When I went back to my wife’s office, I talked to her about the baby. My wife said, “She has two more months before she delivers the baby; we must first talk to her.” That night my wife and I went to the woman’s little house. My wife told her that if she had anyone else who wanted to adopt the baby, to give it to them, but if she could not find anyone it would mean that God had planned it for us, and we would accept. After a month had gone by I visited the woman again, and she said that she had not given the baby to anyone. When she said that, I closed my eyes and said to God, “Thank you Lord for this opportunity you have given to my wife and me.” Even though I did not yet know if it was a boy or a girl, I was happy. I arranged for all the food and everything she might need and then left for Saudi Arabia. I returned a month later just in time for a precious baby girl to be delivered. The baby was born in the house I had bought for my parents, so I said to the birth mother, “I want you to stay in this house.” My daughter is growing and will be two years old on November 16, 2015. She is beautiful and very loveable, and we are so blessed. As soon as my daughter is a little older, my wife and I will teach her how important God is in our lives. We know that our precious daughter is from God, because ever since we had been married, almost ten years, I would often lose hope in having a baby because my wife has some problems with her ovaries. She does not yet know how to talk, but already knows to pray before meals. I am making plans for my vacation this coming November 02, 2015 in the Philippines, to prepare a party for my beautiful two-year-old daughter... Thanks be to God, all my prayers have been answered in His perfect time. I thank Him every day and will never forget this wonderful gift. Please help me pray that I can also share the Gospel with my relatives, friends, and visitors, and tell them about accepting Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. It is my desire for them to hear about God, even if it is only a short message. I know God loves me, and my family. Though I have encountered many trials, with the help of God, I have overcome them all. Thank you, and God bless