Jean Raymond Merlin was born at
Romans-sur-Isère, France, about 1510. He was a professor of
Hebrew at
Lausanne, probably from 1537 to 1558, when he resigned his position in order the better to protest against the removal from office of two of his colleagues,
Pierre Viret and Jacob Valier, by act of the Bernese government. He afterwards retired to
Geneva, where he was
pastor for three years. Called to
Paris in 1561, at the instance of
Coligny, he was intrusted with a mission to
La Rochelle, and attended the
Colloquy of Poissy, where he took, however, only a secondary part.
Jeanne d'Albret then invited him to visit the
Béarn, and engaged him to propagate the doctrines of the Reformation. He returned to Geneva about the middle of 1564. Shortly thereafter he came in conflict with the civil authorities, and, because of his decided opposition to civil interference in ecclesiastical affairs, was removed. Merlin then went into the
Dauphiné, from which the
massacre of St. Bartholomew drove him away. He sought refuge in Geneva. He died about 1578. == Works ==