He was born in Llanddewi-Brefi, and attended school in Lampeter, before moving to study at Queens' College, Cambridge, in 1820.
Following his ordination into the Church of England in Norwich, he became rector of St. Pancras, Chichester.
His daughter, Sarah Emily Davies (1830-1921), born while the family was resident in Southampton, was a pioneer of women's education and co-founder of Girton College, Cambridge.
[1] His son John Llewelyn Davies was a prominent theologian and Christian socialist.
The best-known of his written works include; 'The Estimate of the Human Mind' (1828) (2nd ed., 1847), 'Essay on the Old and New Testaments' (1843), and 'The Ordinances of Religion'.