Guyse, John

, an eminent dissenting divine, of the independent persuasion, was a native of Hertford, where he was born in 1680, and having shewn a pious disposition from his youth, was admitted a member of the dissenting congregation of that place. He afterwards pursued his studies, with a view to the ministry, under Mr. Payne of Saffron Walden, and being admitted to preach at the age of twenty, became assistant to the rev. Mr. Haworth of Hertford, whom he afterwards succeeded in that congregation. Here he continued some years, and was very successful in opposing the Arian doctrines which had crept in among his Hock; and to strengthen his efforts he published in 1719, a small volume on the divinity of Christ, and in 1721, another on the divinity of the Holy Ghost. In 1727 he was invited to London, and became minister to a congregation in New Broad-street. In 1732 he received the degree of D. D. from one of the universities of Scotland. Besides his regular duty at New Broad-street, he was for niany years a preacher of the Tuesday’s lecture at Pinners* Hall, and of that at St. Helen’s on a Friday. In his avowal of his religious principles (those called Calvinistic) he was open, steady, and consistent, and his character and conduct were, in every point of view, uniform, and amiable. The goodness of his natural disposition, heightened by a spirit of real religion, exerted him to an activity which rendered his life very important. He was a kind and useful friend to the young, and extremely liberal to the poor, always devoting a tenth part of his annual income to charitable uses. After enjoying a considerable share of health for many years, he became lame and blind, but was enabled to continue his public services almost to the time of his death, which took place Nov. 22, 1761. Jle published a | great variety of occasional sermons, and of pious tracts, and had a short controversy with Dr. Chandler, in which the latter is said to have appeared to very little advantage. But his great work was his “Paraphrase on the New Testament,” 1739 1752, 3 vols. 4to, and reprinted in 6 vols. 8vo, which is said to display a sound judgment, intimate acquaintance with the original, and considerable critical powers. ¹