It has been said that the Bible is merely an ancient set of writings which may contain noble ideas, but that it is not inspired by God in any special sense. This type of statement has been made so confidently and so often that many people have come to believe it without ever studying the issue or reading the book itself.
The fact is, the Bible makes specific claims to be inspired by God. Let’s see if there is any evidence to support its claim.
Here are just a couple of examples from the Old Testament. Referring to the Law of Moses (Genesis through Deuteronomy), Psalm 19:7-11 consistently calls it, not the words of Moses, but God’s word. Jeremiah 1:1-2 claims that this book is the result of the word of the Lord coming to Jeremiah. This is typical of the prophetic writings and is found throughout both major and minor prophets.
In the New Testament, 2 Timothy 3:15-17 tells us that all scripture is inspired by God (literally “God-breathed”). Even more specifically, 2 Peter 1:19-21 tells us that the inspired words of the prophets have been confirmed (made more certain) in the New Testament. This short passage goes on to say that scripture did not originate in the mind of any man, but originated with the Holy Spirit who moved men to speak (or write).
Perhaps the greatest evidence of the inspired nature of the Bible comes from Jesus Christ himself in Matthew 5:18: “For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.(NKJV)”. In this verse, Jesus most solemnly affirms not only the general inspiration of the message of Scripture (speaking here of the Old Testament) but explicitly of the words and letters, down to the smallest strokes of the pen which distinguish letter from letter (the tittle is the little overhang which makes the difference between the Hebrew “he” ה and the “chet” ח). In other words, Jesus is saying that the scriptures are inspired and unfailing in their divine purpose.
In addition to its own claims, consider some of the following facts which show the Bible to be absolutely unique:
It consists of 66 books, some of which are further divided into sub-books and sections. It was composed over a period of some 1,500 years. The Bible’s human writers number at least 40. They came from all walks of life and lived under widely differing circumstances. Some where highly educated; others came from a relatively humble background. Some were people of great influence, while others were oppressed by the powerful. These writers had highly diverse personalities and backgrounds.
The Bible contains several distinct types of literature, including poetry, proverbial wisdom, philosophy, love songs, genealogical lists, creation accounts, historical sagas, apocalypse (vivid prophetic imagery), as well as straight narrative prose.
The original text of the Bible was written in three different languages: Hebrew Aramaic and Koine Greek. Its subject matter includes dozens of highly controversial topics that people throughout history have struggled with. Yet despite these huge obstacles to its cohesion, the Bible flows as a single work, retaining amazing unity of purpose, consistency of ideas, and continuity of theme.
Here are some other facts worth considering: The Bible is the most published book ever. It is the most translated book of all time. In fact, the Old Testament was the first major book ever to be translated (around 200 BC from its original languages into Greek).
The Bible has had an amazing ability to survive the rigors of history. For example:
It has survived the tendency of time to corrupt its text. The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls has shown that the copying process of the Old Testament has remained accurate in the extreme over many hundreds of years. Likewise the reliability of the New Testament’s manuscripts is shown through exacting comparison of hundreds of ancient copies.
The Bible has survived repeated attempts to destroy it by various enemies. Roman emperors, pagan rulers and communist governments have done their best to burn, confiscate and limit its availability—all to no avail. It has also survived more than 2,000 years of attacks aimed at discrediting and disproving it. The dozens of theories “disproving the Bible” can be read about in history books, but the Bible still remains a living and relevant book today. If anything, as a result of the probing of its critics, it has shown itself to be more reliable not less.
So, there is plenty of evidence that the Bible is truly what it claims to be: God’s inspired word. Such a book deserves our study, our respect and our willing cooperation with its teachings and discipline.
Michael Bogart
