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"Whoever despises the word brings destruction on himself, but he who reveres the commandment will be rewarded" (Proverbs 13:13). What is the Bible? The word bible comes from the Latin "Biblia" and the Greek "Biblion" which mean book. This book was written over 1600 years by about 40 human authors beginning with Moses some 3500 years ago. The Bible contains 66 books that exhibit a wide variety of literary styles – stories, dialogues, proverbs, parables, psalms, allegories, history and prophecy. The stories in the Bible were not generally written as they occurred but were verbally handed down through the years before being committed to writing later. To our western minds, such a method of transmission would be inaccurate, but it’s amazing that the Bible integrates many stories into one main story in spite of the diversity of language, culture and time of the writers. There can only be one reason for this: God is the primary author, and the 40 male and female writers are secondary authors, a topic to which we now turn. Is the Bible inspired? The testimony of the Bible is that men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21). Or, in its own words again, All Scripture is breathed out by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness (ESV) (2 Timothy 3:16). The expressions ‘carried along by the Holy Spirit’ and ‘breathed out by God’ describes what is meant by inspiration. But how did this work in practice? There are differing views about this. Firstly, some believe that God dictated His message word for word in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, and that the writers were simply secretaries. However, the writing styles and personalities of the human authors are evident in their writings. For example, Paul wrote in long, complicated sentences, but Mark wrote his Gospel in short, action-packed sentences. Further, some of the Wisdom literature (e.g. Psalms) echo the pain of suffering people, articulating their complaints or praises to God. God facilitated their inclusion in the Bible so we could identify with these people who are just like us. That is, there is not total mechanical, word-for-word dictation in this literature. An alternative view of inspiration is that God provided precise thoughts to the human authors, who then wrote them in their vocabulary, culture, education, and writing style. Thus, God’s message is made in terms of their personalities and historical circumstances, but transmitted fully and exactly as God intended. The end result is a multi-colored, many-faceted, dynamic book. In sum, we can say that the Bible is the words of God in the words of men. But how do we know that some of God’s word is not missing from the Bible? Alternatively, how can we be assured that some of the Bible is just man’s word and not God’s at all? These are important questions that we must now address. Why only 66 books in the Bible? This list of books in the Bible is known as the canon. The word ‘canon’ goes back to the Greek word kanon, meaning a ‘reed’ or ‘rod’. It then acquired two secondary meanings: (1) a ‘standard, and (2) a ‘list’. The Canon of Scripture is the list of divinely inspired writings delivered to us as God’s self-revelation to men and the standard by which we are to live. The writings are not authoritative because they are included in the list; they are in the list because their authority has been recognized. For example, the oracles of the prophet Amos were stamped with divine authority as he uttered them in the name of Israel’s God. They were written down some time after they were spoken, and it was some time after that that they were included in the canon or list of prophetic writings. Divine authority comes first: canonicity follows authority and is dependent upon it. It was not until 367 AD that the church father Athanasius first provided the complete listing of the 66 books belonging to the canon. He distinguished these from other books that were widely circulated on the basis that the 66 were those that were universally accepted by believers everywhere as inspired by God. Inspired by God maybe, but does this mean that the Bible is true? How can I know the Bible is true? The best-selling book in history remains one of the most controversial. 300 years ago, the French philosopher Voltaire said that in a hundred years from his day the Bible would have passed into the mists of history as people became more liberated and enlightened. Today a group of people known as the Jesus Seminar tells us that sections of the New Testament are not genuine but were fabricated. Some who accept human evolution from the primordial soup ridicule the very idea of divine creation as a throwback to an age of barbarians and illiterates. Such attacks on the Bible can be very persuasive. However, asking if the Bible is true, begs the question, what is truth? Truth is what corresponds to reality; what is real is true, what is unreal is false. Evidence for the truth of the Bible can take many forms. The first is the reliability of the original documents, and here the evidence is irrefutable. Wonderful support comes from the Dead Sea Scrolls that were discovered in the Qumran caves in 1947, containing thousands of pieces from the Old Testament, some nearly 1000 years older than anything seen before. Amazingly, these scrolls are almost identical to the texts that are in common use today. Both Christians and Jews were confirmed in their faith in the trustworthiness of the text handed down through the centuries. We can be sure that God's revelation has come down to us intact. Further, the Bible is the best-documented text of any in human history. Indeed, its accuracy is far superior to the written records of Egypt, Assyria, and other early nations. No other volume in the world has even a small percentage of ancient manuscripts, parchments, papyri, and other fragments that antedate the printing press. However, for the Bible they exceed 5000. In the terrible days of persecution by the Roman emperors, many of the precious copies of the Scriptures were destroyed by imperial edict. Yet several were kept in secret and so God's Word was preserved throughout the centuries. It is also remarkable that the thousands of underlying documents agree to such a surprising extent. Despite common skeptical claims that the Bible has often been changed through the centuries, the physical evidence tells otherwise. There are minor differences in manuscripts, called variants, but none of these changes key beliefs or claims. We may be sure that even today we have the authentic Bible. Secondly, there is physical evidence from archeology. The Archaeological Study Bible presents many notes and articles documenting how archeology has repeatedly shown that the Bible corresponds to historical reality. Indeed, archeological confirmations of the Biblical record have been almost innumerable in the 20th century. Dr. Nelson Glueck, probably the greatest modern authority on Israeli archeology, said: "No archeological discovery has ever controverted a Biblical reference. Scores of archeological findings have been made which confirm in clear outline or in exact detail historical statements in the Bible. And, by the same token, proper evaluation of Biblical descriptions has often led to amazing discoveries." Thirdly, the Bible presents a coherent theology and a consistent worldview that is robust, reasonable and grounded in history despite being written over many centuries by different writers, in different places, times and cultures. Fourth, and perhaps most convincing of all, the Bible is accurate in its predictions, because God knows the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10). We would expect, therefore, that all of the Bible’s predictions would be accurate and come to pass exactly as prophesied. Further, many of the predictions can be confirmed by historical evidence external to the Bible. Here are just a few examples: 1) The Lord Himself predicted that the temple in Jerusalem would be totally destroyed (Matthew 24:2). About 40 years later this was fulfilled as the Romans under the emperor Titus destroyed the temple. 2) Abraham was told that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign land for 400 years (Genesis 15:13). Some 500 years later, following the death of Joseph, this was literally fulfilled (Exodus 1). 3) Daniel, by means of visions from God, predicted the coming world empires of Persia, Greece and Rome (Daniel 2, 7). So accurate were his predictions that disbelieving scholars have insisted that the book of Daniel must have been written at a much later time because no one living in Daniel’s day could have known about these future kingdoms. 4) 1 Kings 13:2 predicted that a man would be born in the line of David by the name of Josiah; some 300 years later Josiah appeared and became Judah’s king. 5) Isaiah predicted that a future Persian king named Cyrus would appear and fulfill God’s purpose (Isaiah 44:28, 45:1). The amazing thing here is that Isaiah made this prediction more than 100 years before Cyrus was born. 6) Micah, writing 700 years before the birth of Christ predicted that God’s King would be born in an insignificant town called Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). How true that was! Now many more examples could be cited – hundreds even because between 20-30% of the Bible is predictive. However, these may be enough to convey the reliability of the Bible and to accept its claims as true. God takes truth seriously; He had an exacting standard for it. The test of a person claiming to speak for God was very simple. The fulfillment must correspond to the prediction in time, place, person, and detail; if the prediction did not come to pass then the person who made it did not speak for God and he was to be put to death (Deuteronomy 18:20-22). No other writing can boast a higher standard of accuracy because no other writing - secular or religious - compares with the biblical books in prediction of the future. History too has vindicated many Bible predictions and, more importantly, contradicted none. The explanation that chance can account for biblical prediction and subsequent fulfillment has no credibility. Thus, if the reality is that the Bible has made many predictions that have been fulfilled, then the Bible has validity, reliability, credibility, and is true. We can then investigate its message with confidence. What is the main message of the Bible? God created the perfect universe including mankind. However, a rebellious and fallen angelic creature named Satan opposed God and undermined His purpose everywhere. This conflict between the kingdom of darkness and God reached a decisive point in the advent of Jesus Christ (1 John 3:8). In Christ's death, Satan thought he had victory over God, but the resurrection turned apparent victory into defeat (Romans 16:20). Satan still prowls the world (1 Peter 5:8), and enslaves humanity (Ephesians 2:2, 1 John 5:19). However, the climactic end of history will see Christ return to earth as the victor, God's kingdom will be established, God dwells with His people, men and women from all nations and from all times, made His people by the death of Christ for them (Revelation 21:3). Satan is incarcerated forever (Revelation 20:10); God's purpose in creation is thus fully achieved. This is the big picture view of the Bible’s message but some have difficulty with the details. For example, in the Old Testament God seems to countenance war and violence (Deuteronomy 20: 13-16; Joshua 6:21, 11:20). This is true, but nevertheless, there is another side to God. He is a God of grace (Ezekiel 18:21, 23, 32) taking no pleasure in the death of anyone, but rather accepts those whose hearts are fully committed to him (2 Chronicles 16:9). In brief, God is unwavering in retribution on evil, and also in love and encouragement toward those who turn to Him. It is important to understand these terrible retributions in their context. Idolatry, immorality, degradation, and barbarity invaded every facet of life. Children were sacrificed to pagan gods, male and female prostitution took place in temples as part of religious services. Idolatry was rife; wickedness was so pervasive that society was fully contaminated. This evil was contagious and God's people were infected too. God's awesome judgment was finally unleashed. The entire Bible never deviates from this standard of justice as well as grace. Jesus is clear about the punishment of evildoers (Matthew 25:41). The God of the New Testament is the changeless God of the ages. Our society does not care to hear about punishment. We have lost that black and white distinction between good and evil. Tolerance, the virtue of accepting all behavior, seems to lead to moral relativism, and children grow up with fewer and fewer absolutes to guide them. We don’t talk about sin anymore. Clearly we have all missed God’s standard. Each of us stumbles, and sins. However, God's enduring justice does not blink casually at sin, but thankfully, as humanity spirals deeper into sin, God intervenes. Indeed, in the Old Testament God intervened with a promise of hope. That hope is realized in the New Testament as God undertook a rescue operation of humanity. There was no compulsion placed on God to do so, but His grace and His justice, and our guilt met in Jesus Christ. He took on himself the punishment worthy of humanity lost in sin and so the grisly sentence demanded by God’s justice has been exhausted by God’s grace. And, therein lies our only hope. God now accepts those whose hearts are fully committed to him (2 Chronicles 16:9). That’s why the Bible is still relevant today. Is the message of the Bible relevant to me? Sure, the Bible was relevant once upon a time, in that long-ago era of shepherds and scribes, but does it have any connection to my world of e-mails, jet travel, microscopes and satellites? It sure does because it speaks to ageless questions asked by all generations such as: How did the universe get there? Why am I here? Is there any hope for me? How do I get in touch with God? Is there life after death? It is only the Bible that has the answers to these timeless questions. Its diversity touches every age, every situation. There are stories that appeal to children, and for the mature there are emotional psalms and confessions, discourses to engage the deepest philosophical questions, and the sayings of Jesus confronting the issues of life, death and beyond. Is the English Bible we have the same as the original? And where is the original? The "original Bible" refers to the revelation that came from God to the human authors over about 1600 years and concluding around 100 AD. None of these original manuscripts exists today but thousands of copies have been made down through the centuries and they agree with each other to an amazing extent. No other book from ancient times has this much underlying documentary support. So we are sure we have the original text as it came from God. The Bible text most often used by scholars and translators is a composite made from the oldest and most reliable of the ancient manuscripts. These are housed in several museums and other places all over the world. But what about the translation of these original manuscripts into English which, after all, were first written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek? The translation task is not simple. To find the exact meaning in modern English of those ancient Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek terms, phrases, and sentences is very challenging. Sometimes the original words have no exact counterpart in English, and English is constantly changing, as some of our words take on new meanings. This explains why there is so much variation in the English translations. Ten trained translators looking at the same Greek text would likely come up with ten slightly different renditions, and each would have reasons for his or her choice of particular words and phrases. Translators continue to study the ancient texts to find just the right shade of meaning in today's English to express exactly what God intended. However, the most important question about the location of God's Word is personal; it does not matter in which museum it is housed, but does it find a residence in your heart? Indeed, are you translating its message into the drama of your life every day? Is the Bible at odds with science? The question implies that science is a superior source of knowledge to the Bible. Of course, some scientists firmly believe that arrogant proposition, but the Bible is a theology book, not a science textbook. So, these two fall into different categories of knowledge. The Bible focuses on God and what He has been pleased to reveal to us about Himself and His purposes concerning our origin and destiny, and science can have nothing to say about this. It’s not that the Bible is at odds with science, but rather that science is often pitted against the Bible. While Christians should respect the scientific method, some scientists have a worldview in which there is no place for God and they dismiss the Bible and its adherents as people trapped in outdated faith systems. A more appropriate question might be ‘Is the church at odds with science?’ It certainly has been at times. For example, when Copernicus declared that the Earth was not the center of the universe, he was declared a heretic. Later, Galileo was put on trial for declaring that the sun was the center of our solar system. Church authorities demanded that they recant. Clearly science has made astonishing discoveries and exposed entrenched beliefs as false, and we should support science in its quest to uncover the mysteries of the universe. Our sense of wonder at the complexity and size of our world can only be deepened and enriched. On the other hand, some scientists fall into the trap of calling theories facts which violates the scientific method. Among these unproved assumptions are those concerning the origin of life and the denial of the supernatural. For such scientists the conclusion is that we got here by chance and will end up in nothingness. Of course such scientists operate as much by faith as the Christian does; faith in the inexplicable and wholly random origin of something out of nothing. Unquestionably, this is a leap of faith, an astounding assumption not based on any observable facts. For Christians, faith in intelligent design as an explanation for the origin of life is far more reasonable than faith in randomness and blind chance. That is, the Bible provides a totally reasonable alternative that involves faith in the timeless existence of the being the Bible calls God. In brief, the Bible is unique in its effect on individual men, women and children and on the history of nations. It is the all-time best seller, appealing both to hearts and minds, beloved by at least some in every race or nation or tribe to which it has gone, rich or poor, scholar or simple, king or commoner, men of literally every background and walk of life. No other book has ever held such universal appeal nor produced such lasting effects. Multitudes of people, past and present, have experienced its promises to be true, its counsel sound, its commands and restrictions wise, and its wonderful message of salvation meets every need for both time and eternity. |