The life and writings of Hercules Collins provide a window into understanding how seventeenth-century Baptists viewed themselves in relationship to historic Christianity and Puritan orthodoxy: Collins was not only a respected member of the Particular Baptist community, but was also a faithful representative of that community. G. Stephen Weaver Jr.'s examination of Collins' commitment to historic Christianity and Protestant orthodoxy serves as an opportunity to understand better the doctrinal commitments of seventeenth-century English Particular Baptists.