The Preciousness Of Time And The Importance Of Redeeming It

By Jonathan Edwards ; minimally edited from Works [BOT], 2.233-36

"Redeeming the time" (Ephesians 5:16)

Christians should not only study to improve the opportunities theyenjoy, for their own advantage, as those who would make agood bargain; but also labor to reclaim others from their evil courses; that so Godmight defer his anger, and time might be redeemed from that terribledestruction, which, when it should come, would put an end to the time of divinepatience. And it may be upon this account, that this reason is added, Because the days are evil. As if the apostle had said, thecorruption of the times tends to hasten threatened judgments; but your holy andcircumspect walk will tend to redeem time from the devouring jaws of thosecalamities. — However, thus much is certainly held forth to us in the words; viz. that upon time we should set a highvalue, and be exceeding careful that it be not lost; and we are thereforeexhorted to exercise wisdom and circumspection, in order that we may redeem it.And hence it appears, that time is exceedingly precious.

Why Time is Precious?

Time is precious for the following reasons:

First, becausea happy or miserable eternity depends on the good or ill improvement of it.Things are precious in proportion to their importance, or to the degree whereinthey concern our welfare. Men are wont to set the highest value on those thingsupon which they are sensible their interest chiefly depends. And this renderstime so exceedingly precious, because our eternal welfare depends on theimprovement of it.—Indeed our welfare in this world depends upon its improvement. Ifwe improve it not, we shall be in danger of coming to poverty and disgrace; butby a good improvement of it, we may obtain those things which will be usefuland comfortable. But it is above all things precious, as our state througheternity depends upon it. The importance of the improvement of time upon otheraccounts, is in subordination to this.

Gold and silver are esteemed precious by men; but they are of noworth to any man, only as thereby he has an opportunity of avoiding or removingsome evil, or of possessing himself of some good. And the greater the evil iswhich any man hath advantage to escape, or the good which he hath advantage toobtain, by anything that he possesses, by so much the greater is the value ofthat thing to him, whatever it be. Thus if a man, by anything which he hath,may save his life, which he must lose without it, he will look upon that bywhich he hath the opportunity of escaping so great an evil as death, to be veryprecious.—Hence it is that time is so exceedingly precious, because by it wehave opportunity of escaping everlasting misery, and of obtaining everlastingblessedness and glory. On this depends our escape from an infinite evil, andour attainment of an infinite good.

Secondly, timeis very short, which is another thing that renders it very precious. Thescarcity of any commodity occasions men to set a higher value upon it,especially if it be necessary and they cannot do without it. Thus when Samariawas besieged by the Syrians, and provisions were exceedingly scarce, "anass’s head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of acab of dove’s dung for five pieces of silver" (2 Kgs 6:25). — So time isthe more to be prized by men, because a whole eternity depends upon it; and yetwe have but a little of time. "When a few years are come, then I shall gothe way whence I shall not return" (Job 16:22). "My days are swifterthan a post. They are passed away as the swift ships; as the eagle that hastethto the prey" (Job 9:25, 26). "For what is your life? It is even avapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away" (Jas 4:14).It is but as a moment to eternity. Time is so short, and the work which we haveto do in it is so great, that we have none of it to spare. The work which wehave to do to prepare for eternity, must be done in time, or it never can bedone; and it is found to be a work of great difficulty and labor, and thereforethat for which time is the more requisite.

Thirdly, timeought to be esteemed by us very precious, because we are uncertain of itscontinuance. We know that it is very short, but we know not how short. We know nothow little of it remains, whether a year, or several years, or only a month, aweek, or a day. We are every day uncertain whether that day will not be thelast, or whether we are to have the whole day. There is nothing that experiencedoth more verify than this.—If a man had but little provision laid up for ajourney or a voyage, and at the same time knew that if his provision shouldfail, he must perish by the way, he would be the more choice of it.—How muchmore would many men prize their time, if they knew that they had but a fewmonths, or a few days, more to live! And certainly a wise man will prize histime the more, as he knows not but that it will be so as to himself. This isthe case with multitudes now in the world, who at present enjoy health, and seeno signs of approaching death. Many such, no doubt, are to die the next month,many the next week, yea, many probably tomorrow, and some this night. Yet thesesame persons know nothing of it, and perhaps think nothing of it, and neitherthey nor their neighbors can say that they are more likely soon to be taken outof the world than others. This teaches us how we ought to prize our time, andhow careful we ought to be, that we lose none of it.

Fourthly, timeis very precious, because when it is past, it cannot be recovered. There aremany things which men possess, which if they part with, they can obtain themagain. If a man have parted with something which he had, not knowing the worthof it, or the need he should have of it; he often can regain it, at least withpains and cost. If a man have been overseen in a bargain, and have barteredaway or sold something, and afterwards repents of it, he may often obtain arelease, and recover what he had parted with.—But it is not so with respect totime. When once that is gone, it is gone forever; no pains, no cost willrecover it. Though we repent ever so much that we let it pass, and did notimprove it while we had it, it will be to no purpose. Every part of it issuccessively offered to us, that we may choose whether we will make it our own,or not. But there is no delay. It will not wait upon us to see whether or no wewill comply with the offer. But if we refuse, it is immediately taken away, andnever offered more. As to that part of time which is gone, however we haveneglected to improve it, it is out of our possession and out of our reach.

If we have lived fifty, or sixty, or seventy years, and have notimproved our time, now it cannot be helped. It is eternally gone from us. Allthat we can do, is to improve the little that remains. Yea, if a man have spentall his life but a few moments unimproved, all that is gone is lost, and onlythose few remaining moments can possibly be made his own. And if the whole of aman’s time be gone, and it be all lost, it is irrecoverable. — Eternity dependson the improvement of time. But when once the time of life is gone, when oncedeath is come, we have no more to do with time; there is no possibility ofobtaining the restoration of it, or another space in which to prepare foreternity. If a man should lose the whole of his worldly substance, and become abankrupt, it is possible that his loss may be made up. He may have anotherestate as good. But when the time of life is gone, it is impossible that weshould ever obtain another such time. All opportunity of obtaining eternalwelfare is utterly and everlastingly gone.

Reflections on Time Past

You have now heard of the preciousness of time; and you are thepersons concerned, to whom God hath committed that precious talent. You have aneternity before you. When God created you, and gave you reasonable souls, hemade you for an endless duration. He gave you time here in order to apreparation for eternity, and your future eternity depends on the improvementof time.—Consider, therefore, what you have done with your past time. You are not now beginning yourtime, but a great deal is past and gone; and all the wit, and power, andtreasure of the universe, cannot recover it. Many of you may well conclude,that more than half of your time is gone. Though you should live to theordinary age of man, your glass is more than half run; and it may be there arebut few sands remaining. Your sun is past the meridian, and perhaps justsetting, or going into an everlasting eclipse. Consider, therefore, whataccount you can give of your improvements of past time. How have you let theprecious golden sands of your glass run?

Every day that you have enjoyed has beenprecious; yea, yourmoments havebeen precious. But have you not wasted your precious moments, your preciousdays, yea, your precious years? If you should reckon up how many days you havelived, what a sum would there be! And how precious hath every one of those daysbeen! Consider, therefore, what have you done with them? What is become of themall? What can you show of any improvement made, or good done, or benefitobtained, answerable to all this time which you have lived? When you look back,and search, do you not find this past time of your lives in a great measureempty, having not been filled up with any good improvement? And if God, thathath given you your time, should now call you to an account, what account couldyou give to him?

How much may be done in a year? How much good is there opportunityto do in such a space of time! How much service may persons do for God, and howmuch for their own souls, if to their utmost they improve it! How much may bedone in a day! But what have you done in so many days and years that you havelived? What have you done with the whole time of your youth, you that are pastyour youth? What is become of all that precious season of life? Hath it not allbeen in vain to you? Would it not have been as well or better for you, if allthat time you had been asleep, or in a state of nonexistence?

You have had much time of leisure and freedom from worldlybusiness. Consider to what purpose you have spent it. You have not only hadordinary time, but you have had a great deal of holy time. What have you donewith all the Sabbath-days, which you have enjoyed? Consider those thingsseriously, and let your own consciences make answer.

Who are Chiefly Deservingof Reproof 
on this Matter?

How little is the preciousness of time considered, and how littlesense of it do the greater part of mankind seem to have! And to how little goodpurpose do many spend their time! There is nothing more precious, and yetnothing of which men are more prodigal. Time is with many, as silver was in thedays of Solomon, as the stonesof the street, and nothing accounted of. Theyact as if time were as plenty as silver was then, and as if they had a greatdeal more than they needed, and knew not what to do with it. If men were aslavish of their money as they are of their time, if it were as common a thingfor them to throw away their money, as it is for them to throw away their time,we should think them beside themselves, and not in the possession of theirright minds. Yet time is a thousand times more precious than money; and when itis gone, cannot be purchasedfor money, cannot be redeemedby silver or gold. — There are several sorts of persons who are reproved bythis doctrine, whom I shall particularly mention.

First, thosewho spend a great part of their time in idleness, or in doing nothing that turns toany account, either for the good of their souls or bodies; nothing either fortheir own benefit, or for the benefit of their neighbor, either of the familyor of the body-politic to which they belong. There are some persons upon whosehands time seems to lie heavy, who, instead of being concerned to improve it asit passes, and taking care that it pass not without making it their own, act asif it were rather their concern to contrive ways how to waste and consume it;as though time, instead of being precious, were rather a mere encumbrance tothem. Their hands refuse to labor, and rather than put themselves to it, theywill let their families suffer, and will suffer themselves. Proverbs19:15b,—"An idle soul shall suffer hunger." Proverbs23:21b,—"Drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags."

Some spend much of their time at the tavern, over their cups, andin wandering from house to house, wasting away their hours in idle andunprofitable talk which will turn to no good account. Proverbs 14:23,—"Inall labour there is profit; but the talk of the lips tendeth only topenury." The direction of the apostle, in Ephesians, 4:28 is, that weshould "labour, working with our hands the thing that is good, that we mayhave to give to him that needeth." But indolent men, instead of gaininganything to give to him that needeth, do but waste what they have already.Proverbs 18:9, "He also that is slothful in his work is brother to himthat is a great waster."

Secondly, theyare reproved by this doctrine who spend their time inwickedness, who do not merely spend their time indoing nothing to any good purpose, but spend it to ill purposes. Such do notonly lose their time, but they do worse; with it they hurt both themselves andothers.—Time is precious, as we have heard, because eternity depends upon it.By the improvement of time, we have opportunity of escaping eternal misery, andobtaining eternal blessedness. But those who spend their time in wicked works,not only neglect to improve their time to obtain eternal happiness, or toescape damnation, but they spend it to a quite contrary purpose, viz. to increase their eternal misery,or to render their damnation the more heavy and intolerable.

Some spend much time in reveling, and in unclean talk andpractices, in vicious company-keeping, in corrupting and ensnaring the minds ofothers, setting bad examples, and leading others into sin, undoing not onlytheir own souls, but the souls of others. Some spend much of their precioustime in detraction and backbiting; in talking against others; in contention,not only quarreling themselves, but fomenting and stirring up strife andcontention. It would have been well for some men, and well for their neighbors,if they had never done anything at all. For then they would have done neithergood nor hurt. But now they have done a great deal more hurt than they havedone or ever will do good. There are some persons whom it would have beenbetter for the towns where they live, to have at the charge of maintaining themin doing nothing, if that would have kept them in a state of inactivity.

Those who have spent much of their time in wickedness, if everthey shall reform, and enter upon a different mode of living, will find, notonly that they have wasted the past, but that they have made work for theirremaining time, to undo what they have done. How will many men, when they shallhave done with time, and shall look back upon their past lives, wish that theyhad no time! The time which they spend on earth will be worse to them than ifthey had spent so much time in hell. For an eternity of more dreadful misery inhell will be the fruit of their time on earth, as they employ it.

Thirdly, thoseare reproved by this doctrine, who spend their time only in worldly pursuits, neglecting their souls.Such men lose their time, let them be ever so diligent in their worldlybusiness. And though they may be careful not to let any of it pass so, but thatit shall some way or other turn to their worldly profit. They that improve timeonly for their benefit in time, lose it; because time was not given for itself,but for that everlasting duration which succeeds it. — They, therefore, whosetime is taken up in caring and laboring for the world only, in inquiring whatthey shall eat, and what they shall drink, and wherewithal they shall beclothed; in contriving to lay up for themselves treasure upon earth, how toenrich themselves, how to make themselves great in the world, or how to live incomfortable and pleasant circumstances, while here; who busy their minds andemploy their strength in these things only, and the stream of whose affectionsis directed towards these things; they lose their precious time.

Let such, therefore, as have been guilty of thus spending theirtime, consider it. You have spent a great part of your time, and a great partof your strength, in getting a little of the world; and how little good doth itafford you, now you have gotten it! What happiness or satisfaction can you reapfrom it? Will it give you peace of conscience, or any rational quietness orcomfort? What is your poor, needy, perishing soul the better for it? And whatbetter prospects doth it afford you of your approaching eternity? And what willall that you have acquired avail you when time shall be no longer?

An Exhortation to ImproveTime

Consider what hath been said of the preciousness of time, how muchdepends upon it, how short and uncertain it is, how irrecoverable it will bewhen gone. If you have a right conception of these things, you will be morechoice of your time than of the most fine gold. Every hour and moment will seemprecious to you.—But besides those considerations which have been already setbefore you, consider also the following:

First, thatyou are accountable to God for your time. Time is a talent given us by God; hehath set us our day; and it is not for nothing. Our day was appointed for somework; therefore he will, at the day’s end, call us to an account. We must giveaccount to him of the improvement of all our time. We are God’s servants; as aservant is accountable to his master, how he spends his time when he is sentforth to work, so are we accountable to God. If men would aright consider this,and keep it in mind, would they not improve their time otherwise than they do?Would you not behave otherwise than you do, if you considered with yourselvesevery morning, that you must give an account to God, how you shall have spentthat day? And if you considered with yourselves, at the beginning of everyevening, that you must give an account to God, how you shall have spent thatevening? Christ hath told us, that "for every idle word which men speakthey shall give account in the day of judgment" (Mt 12:36). How well,therefore, may we conclude, that we must give an account of all our idlemisspent time!

Second, considerhow much time you have lost already. For your having lost so much, you have thegreater need of diligently improving what yet remains. You ought to mourn andlament over your lost time. But that is not all, you must apply yourselves themore diligently to improve the remaining part, that you may redeem losttime.—You who are considerably advanced in life, and have hitherto spent yourtime in vanities and worldly cares, and have lived in a great measure negligentof the interests of your souls, may well be terrified and amazed, when youthink how much time you have lost and wasted away.—In that you have lost somuch time, you have the more need of diligence, on three accounts.

(1) As your opportunity is so much the shorter.—Your time at itswhole length is short. But set aside all that you have already lost, and thenhow much shorter is it! As to that part of your time which you have alreadylost, it is not to be reckoned into your opportunity; for that will never beany more; and it is no better, but worse to you, than if it never had been.

(2) You have the same work to do that you had at first, and thatunder great difficulties. Hitherto you have done nothing at all of your work,all remains to be done, and that with vastly greater difficulties andopposition in your way than would have been if you had set about it seasonably.So that the time in which to do your work is not only grown shorter, but yourwork is grown greater. You not only have the sameworkto do, but you have more work. For while you have lost yourtime, you have not only shortened it, but you have been making work foryourselves. How well may this consideration awaken you to a thorough care, notto let things run on in this manner any longer, and rouse you up immediately toapply yourselves to your work with all your might!

(3) That is the best of your time which you have lost. The firstof a man’s time, after he comes to the exercise of his reason, and to becapable of performing his work, is the best. You who have lived in sin tillpast your youth, have lost the best part. So that here all these things to beconsidered together, viz. that your time in the whole is butshort, there is none to spare. A great part of that is gone, so that it isbecome much shorter. That which is gone is the best; yet all your work remains,and not only so, but with greater difficulties than ever before attended it.And the shorter your time is, the more work you have to do.

What will make you sensible of the necessity of a diligentimprovement of remaining time, if these things will not? Sometimes suchconsiderations as these have another effect, viz. to discourage persons, and to makethem think, that seeing they have lost so much time, it is not worth theirwhile to attempt to do anything now. The devil makes fools of them; for whenthey are young, he tells them, there is time enough hereafter, there is no needof being in haste, it will be better seeking salvation hereafter; and then theybelieve him. Afterwards, when their youth is past, he tells them, that now theyhave lost so much, and the best of their time, that it is not worth their whileto attempt to do anything; and now they believe him too. So that with them notime is good. The season of youth is not a good time; for that is most fit forpleasure and mirth, and there will be enough afterwards. And what comesafterwards is not a good time, because the best of it is gone. Thus are meninfatuated and ruined.

But what madness is it for persons to give way to discouragement,so as to neglect their work, because their time is short! What need have theyrather to awake out of sleep, thoroughly to rouse up themselves, and to be ingood earnest, that if possible they may yet obtain eternal life! PeradventureGod may yet give them repentance to the acknowledgment of the truth, that theymay be saved. Though it be late in the day, yet God calls upon you to rouse,and to apply yourselves to your work. And will you not hearken to his counsel in this great affair, ratherthan to the counsel of your mortal enemy?

Thirdly, considerhow time is sometimes valued by those who are come near to the end of it. Whata sense of its preciousness have poor sinners sometimes, when they are on theirdeathbeds! Such have cried out, O,a thousand worlds for an inch of time! Thentime appears to them indeed precious. An inch of time could do them no moregood than before, when they were in health, supposing a like disposition toimprove it, nor indeed so much. For a man’s time upon a deathbed is attendedwith far greater disadvantage for such an improvement as will be for the goodof his soul, than when he is in health.—But the near approach of death makesmen sensible of the inestimable worth of time. Perhaps, when they were inhealth, they were as insensible of its value as you are, and were as negligentof it. But how are their thoughts altered now! It is not because they aredeceived, that they think time to be of such value, but because their eyes areopened. And it is because you are deceived and blind that you do not think asthey do.

Fourthly, considerwhat a value we may conclude is set upon time by those who are past the end ofit. What thoughts do you think they have of its preciousness, who have lost alltheir opportunity for obtaining eternal life, and are gone to hell? Though theywere very lavish of their time while they lived, and set no great value uponit; yet how have they changed their judgments! How would they value theopportunity whichyou have,if they might but have it granted to them! What would they not give for one ofyour days, under the means of grace! — So will you, first or last, beconvinced. But if you be not convinced except in the manner in which they are,it will be too late.

There are two ways of making men sensible of the preciousness oftime. One is, by showing them the reason why it must be precious, by tellingthem how much depends on it, how short it is, how uncertain, etc. The other isexperience, wherein men are convinced how much depends on the improvement oftime. The latter is the most effectual way; for that always convinces, ifnothing else doth.—But if persons be not convinced by the former means, thelatter will do them no good. If the former be ineffectual, the latter, thoughit be certain, yet is always too late. Experience never fails to open the eyesof men, though they were never opened before. But if they be first opened bythat, it is no way to their benefit. Let all therefore be persuaded to improvetheir time to their utmost.

Advice Respecting the 
Improvement of Time

I shall conclude with advising to three things in particular.

First, improvethe present time without any delay. If you delayand put off its improvement, still more time will be lost; and it will be anevidence that you are not sensible of its preciousness. Talk not of more convenientseasons hereafter; but improve your time while you have it, after the exampleof the psalmist. Psalm 119:60,—"I made haste, and delayed not to keep thycommandments."

Secondly, beespecially careful to improve thoseparts of time which are mostprecious. Though all time is very precious, yet some parts are more preciousthan others; as, particularly, holy time is more precious than common time.Such time is of great advantage for our everlasting welfare. Therefore, aboveall, improve your Sabbaths, and especially the time of public worship, which isthe most precious part. Lose it not either in sleep, or in carelessness,inattention, and wandering imaginations. How sottish are they who waste away,not only their common, but holy time, yea the very season of attendance on theholy ordinances of God! — The time of youth is precious, on many accounts.Therefore, if you be in the enjoyment of this time, take heed that you improveit. Let not the precious days and years of youth slip away without improvement.A time of the strivings of God’s Spirit is more precious than other time. ThenGod is near; and we are directed, in Isaiah 55:6, "To seek the Lord whilehe may be found, and to call upon him while he is near." Such especiallyis an accepted time, and a day of salvation: 2 Corinthians 6:2,—"I haveheard thee in a time accepted, and in a day of salvation have I succoured thee:behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation."

Thirdly, improvewell your time of leisure from worldly business. Many personshave a great deal of such time, and all have some. If men be but disposed toit, such time may be improved to great advantage. When we are most free fromcares for the body, and business of an outward nature, a happy opportunity forthe soul is afforded. Therefore spend not such opportunities unprofitably, norin such a manner that you will not be able to give a good account thereof toGod. Waste them not away wholly in unprofitable visits, or useless diversionsor amusements. Diversion should be used only in subserviency to business. Somuch, and no more, should be used, as doth most fit the mind and body for thework of our general and particular callings.

You have need to improve every talent, advantage, and opportunity,to your utmost, while time lasts; for it will soon be said concerning you,according to the oath of the angel, in Revelation 10:5, 6,—"And the angelwhich I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,and sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and thethings that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, andthe sea, and the things which are therein,that there should be time nolonger."