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Confession

Second London Baptist Confession

Particular Baptist · 1677/1689

Open reference

A major Baptist confession adapted from the Westminster and Savoy traditions, preserving Reformed theology while giving distinct Baptist accounts of church membership and baptism.

Why it matters

The Second London Baptist Confession is one of the defining texts of the Reformed Baptist tradition. It shares much language with Westminster documents while differing on covenant administration, baptism, and the constitution of the visible church.

It shows that Protestant diversity did not always mean abandoning confessional rigor; sometimes it meant preserving a shared theological framework while revising specific ecclesial claims.

  • - Close to Westminster in many doctrinal areas
  • - Distinctly Baptist on baptism and church membership
  • - Important for mapping confessional Protestant diversity

Study structure

Read it comparatively with the Westminster standards. The shared language makes the Baptist distinctives easier to see.

Special attention should go to the chapters on Scripture, covenant, church, baptism, and the Lord's Supper.