The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith (formally the Second London Baptist Confession, 1677/1689) states the Reformed Baptist faith. It follows the Westminster Confession chapter by chapter — same doctrine of Scripture, decree, covenant, and justification — while differing on baptism (believers only, by immersion), church membership (regenerate only), and church-state relations.
“Water is absolutely necessary to baptism, as an appropriate symbol of the purifying and regenerating energy of the Holy Spirit; but whether the water be in large quantity or small, cold or warm, fresh or salt, from river, cistern, or spring, is relatively immaterial, and cannot affect the validity o...”
“Cyprian, bishop of Carthage from AD. 248 to 258, together with an entire synod over which he presided, decided that baptism should be administered to infants before the eighth day. St. Augustine, born AD. 358, declared that this "doctrines is held by the whole church, not instituted by councils, but...”
“Q. 624. Why, then, are we the heirs of Christ? A. We are the heirs of Christ because at His death we came into the possession of God's friendship, of grace, and of the right to enter heaven, provided we comply with the conditions Our Lord has laid down for the gaining of this inheritance.
Q. 625. W...”
“It is not my purpose to enter upon a full discussion of infant baptism, or an exposition of the grounds on which the views of paedo-baptists can, as I believe, be successfully established and vindicated. I shall merely make a few observations on what it is that paedo-baptists really maintain, —on th...”
“Let it be a settled principle in our religion that the baptism of which John the Baptist speaks here, is the baptism which is absolutely necessary to salvation.
It is well to be baptized into the visible Church; but it is far better to be baptized into that Church which is made up of true believers...”
How does the 1689 Baptist Confession differ from Westminster?
The doctrine of God, salvation, and Scripture is essentially identical. The differences are baptism (1689: believers only by immersion, not infants), church membership (professing believers only), and the civil magistrate (no state church).
Why is it called the 1689 confession if written in 1677?
Particular Baptist pastors first published it in London in 1677; it was formally adopted by over a hundred congregations at a general assembly in 1689, after the Act of Toleration made open subscription safe.