Through the Word
Basic to the claims of Christianity is that it is a revealed religion, the record of which we find in Scripture. During the first few millennia of humankind’s existence, God revealed Himself to individuals through dreams, visions, or epiphanies (appearances). From the time of Moses (fifteenth century B.C.) and onward, many of these revelations were written down. As a result, we have today 66 books in the Bible, containing all the knowledge necessary for salvation.
What do the following texts tell us about the Bible itself?
There are a number of important characteristics of the Bible that should hold our attention. 1) Its unity: The Bible at first sight appears to be merely a collection of ancient literature. However, considering that it was written by approximately 40 authors over a period of nearly 1,600 years, its unity is amazing. The plan of salvation is revealed progressively from Genesis to Revelation. There is unity in its theme: The Messiah is promised throughout the Old Testament, and declared in every New Testament book to have come in the person of Jesus Christ. And there is complete harmony of teaching: The doctrines of the Old and New Testament are the same. 2) The history it portrays: The Old Testament embodies the oldest history of any people in the world. William F. Albright, the greatest archaeologist of the twentieth century, wrote, “Hebrew national tradition excels all other in its clear picture of tribal and family origins. In Egypt and Babylonia, in Assyria and Phoenicia, in Greece and Rome, we look in vain for anything comparable. There is nothing like it in the tradition of the Germanic peoples. Neither India nor China can produce anything similar.”—The Biblical Period From Abraham to Ezra, p. 27. 3) Its survival: The Bible, compared with other ancient writings, has more manuscript evidence than any other piece of classical literature–in spite of early attempts by Roman emperors to destroy it. For example, there are more than 5,000 known Greek manuscripts of the New Testament in existence. Homer’s Iliad is second with only 643 manuscripts that have survived.
The reason for this phenomenon is the Holy Spirit, the real author of God’s Word, Who inspired all the human authors. He ensured that the biblical historians presented an accurate picture, and He watched over the history and preservation of the Bible.
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