John Witherspoon illustrates the unexpectedness one often finds on his path through life. He was born in Scotland and died in the newly formed United States of America. He studied to be a minister, but also became an educator and a politician. He would die physically blind, but his spiritual eyesight was utterly whole.

John Witherspoon was born in Gifford, Scotland on February 5, 1723 to James Witherspoon and Anna Walker Witherspoon. Mrs. Witherspoon educated the young boy, teaching him to read. He was able to read the Bible by age four and in time, he was able to recite most of the New Testament. For the next nine years or so, he was educated in the classics, mathematics, Latin, Greek, and French. At 13 years of age, he was enrolled at the University of Edinburgh. He completed the four-year program in three years. Just after his 16th birthday, he received his master of arts degree. Four years later, he earned his doctor of theology degree and received his license to preach. The first parish where he ministered was in Beith. After Beith, he ministered to a sizable congregation in Paisley. 

After the death of Dr. Samuel Finley in 1766, the trustees of the College of New Jersey (Princeton University) contacted John Witherspoon about becoming the next president. There were protestations from the female members of the Witherspoon family, especially Mrs. Witherspoon. Hence, Dr. Witherspoon did not accept the offer to become president. The trustees did not give up and at a later time, Richard Stockton was sent to Scotland to speak with him again about the opportunity along with Benjamin Rush who was already in the country studying medicine. Mr. Stockton was especially persuasive in recruiting him. Eventually, he accepted the offer and became president of the college in 1768.

Dr. Witherspoon’s move to America to lead a fledging institution of higher learning was a dramatic move for him. He left Scotland where he enjoyed a fine reputation and the love of the congregants he ministered to. The College of New Jersey was a struggling school at the time. The financial state was unstable and declining. Its curriculum was “too superficial: and its metaphysics and philosophy were too much tinctured with the dry and uninstructive forms of the schools,” according to one writer. 

Even though Dr. Witherspoon was from Scotland, he enjoyed being well-known in the colonies due to the popularity of his writings. He traveled throughout the colonies preaching sermons, conducting student recruitment, and soliciting funds. He persuaded the Madisons of Montpelier to send their son, James Jr., to the school. He graduated in 1771 and was the United States’ fourth president. George Washington, an ardent supporter of the school, donated 50 gold guineas to the college. In light of Dr. Witherspoon’s efforts, the school’s financial stability was ensured, enrollment increased, and its academics became of excellent quality.

During John Witherspoon’s presidential tenure, the student body became vocally supportive of colonists’ rights. Dr. Witherspoon also did not shy away from engaging in advocacy for the patriot cause. In 1770, in a commencement address, he encouraged defying King George III. Then, four years later, he entered politics by becoming a representative in the General Assembly. He and his fellow assemblymen successfully pushed out of office and had imprisoned the royal governor of New Jersey. He was also appointed a delegate to the Second Continental Congress.  

Before the pivotal day in July of 1776, Dr. Witherspoon preached a sermon on May 17 entitled, "The Dominion of Providence over the Passions of Men.” It was the first time he had spoken about the conflict between the colonies and the crown during a sermon. He believed the nature of the conflict had arrived to a point where the intrinsic provisions given to man by his creator were in danger:

The knowledge of God and his truths have from the beginning of the world been chiefly, if not entirely confined to those parts of the earth where some degree of liberty and political justice were to be seen … There is not a single instance in history, in which civil liberty was lost, and religious liberty preserved entire. If therefore we yield up our temporal property, we at the same time deliver the conscience into bondage.

On July 2nd, as debate about the resolution for independence was taking place, one delegate opposed separating from England and said, “we are not ripe for revolution.” John Witherspoon replied, “Not ripe sir, we are not only ripe for the measure but in danger of rotting for the want of it.” After the signing of the Declaration of Independence in August, the British forces invaded New Jersey in the fall. Dr. Witherspoon closed the campus and had it evacuated. The British took over the campus, burned the library, and ransacked the college. After the war, he would spend the rest of his days rebuilding the school. 

During his time in Congress, which lasted until 1782, he helped reorganize the Board of Treasury and he also designed the seals for the U.S. Treasury and the Navy. He continued impacting the newly formed United States of America. He helped usher ratification of the Constitution of the United States by New Jersey. He also was significantly influential in assisting the formation of a new, independent organization for Presbyterians, the Presbyterian Church in America. 

Personally, Dr. Witherspoon lost two people very close to him. His son, James, was killed at the Battle of Germantown in Pennsylvania on October 4, 1777. He lost his wife, Elizabeth, suddenly in October of 1789. He married again in 1791 to 24-year-old Anne Marshall Dill. He also suffered physically losing sight in both eyes over a period of time. The blindness was caused by injury. 

Eventually, the totality of his infirmities overcame him and he died on November 15, 1794. An excerpt from the inscription on his tombstone provides a glimpse into his greatness: “Excelling; in every mental gift, he was a man of pre-eminent piety and virtue… He was, for a long time, conspicuous Among the most brilliant luminaries of learning and of the Church. … A grave and solemn preacher, his sermons abounded in the most excellent doctrines and precepts, …”

John Witherspoon lived to be 71 years of age.