The Bible
2 Peter 1:21
for prophesy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.”
It is the Holy Spirit who inspired men to write the Bible, and the cohesiveness of that inspiration is seen throughout its pages.
2 Timothy 3:16
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,”
All scripture is inspired by God, and all scripture can be used to establish beliefs and doctrines, to point out and correct error, and to teach others what God is like and how to live like Him.
Psalms 119:160
The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.
All of God’s word is true, and none of it can be discarded. His judgements do not change, because He does not change.
Psalms 12:6,7
The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. You shall keep them, O Lord, You shall preserve them from this generation forever.
God has preserved His word intact through the centuries.
Matthew 24:35
Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.
God’s word is eternal.
Romans 15:4
For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
One of the purposes of God’s word is to give us hope.
2 Timothy 3:15
and that from childhood you have known the holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
The scriptures reveal to us how to gain salvation through a saving faith in Jesus.
John 5:39
You search the scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of me.
The central theme of the Bible is Jesus. The scriptures point to Him as our Savior, our only Hope.
2 Timothy 2:15
Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
As we study God’s word, we must do so under the influence of the Holy Spirit. We must compare each text that deals with a subject with all other texts that deal with that subject in order to gain a correct and balanced understanding of that subject.
John 16:13
However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.
Jesus sent to us the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth, because we are incapable of discovering or discerning the truth on our own.
1 Corinthians 2:13
These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
As our hearts are open to the influence of the Holy Spirit, He will enable us to compare spiritual things or subjects.
Isaiah 28:9,10
Whom will he teach knowledge? And whom will he make to understand the message? Those just weaned from milk? Those just drawn from the breasts? For precept must be upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little.
It is imperative that we compare scripture with scripture. One may come to a completely erroneous conclusion by taking an isolated text out of context. Again, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, we must compare texts upon a certain subject (for example, baptism) with all other texts dealing with that subject. We also need to understand the context (cultural, temporal, and textual) of each reference and pray for the Spirit to reveal to us what He intended by the text that He inspired.
John 17:17
Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.
Truth is contained in God’s word, and that word can make us holy (sanctified).
John 7:17
If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is of God or whether I speak on My own authority.
As we approach God’s word with an open mind, He will guide us.
Facts about the Bible and evidence of its inspiration
The Bible contains 66 books written by 44 authors and is written over a 1500-year period of time.
Prophecy
Isaiah 13:19-22 - According to this prophesy, Babylon, after its destruction, would never be rebuilt. Indeed, the ruins of ancient Babylon are exactly as described they would be.
Ezekiel 26:3-5 - As described in this prophesy, Tyre was eventually conquered and then destroyed. Its destruction was so complete, that its entire ruins were removed and thrown into the sea to make a land bridge to the later-constructed city in order to lay siege to the new city.
Currently, the place where Tyre was built is a place where fishermen spread out their fishing nets. Isaiah 44:28, 45:1 - A fascinating prophesy made over 100 years before Cyrus’ birth that names him by name and also predicts how he would eventually overtake Babylon. In a time of drunken revelry, the gates about the river running into Babylon were left unlocked and open. Cyrus managed to re-rout the river, and he and his army marched down the empty river bed, under the wall and through the unlocked gates into Babylon.
Daniel 7 & 8 - The visions of Daniel 7 & 8 predict the rise and fall of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome, and the European nations. This prophesy was given in the time of Babylon, and the exact fulfillment of the following facts gives confidence to the predictions of the events of the end of time.
Micah 5:2 - Jesus’ Birthplace, Nazareth, was predicted about 700 years before his birth.
Archaeology
Moabite Stone - Discovered in 1868 at Dibon, Jordan, confirming Moabite attacks on Israel asrecoded in 2 Kings 1 & 3.
The Lachish Letters - Discovered 1932-1938, 24 miles north of Beersheba, describing the attack of Nebuchadnezzar on Jerusalem in 586 B.C.
The Dead Sea Scrolls - discovered in 1948. They date back to 150-170 B.C. and contain all or parts of the Old Testament books except the book of Esther. They confirm the Bible’s accuracy.
Cyrus’ Cylinder - Records Cyrus’ overthrow of Babylon and his subsequent deliverance of the Jewish captives.
The Rosetta Stone - Discovered in 1799, in Egypt, by Napoleon’s scientists, was written in three languages--heiroglyphics, demotic, and Greek. It unlocked the mystery of understanding hieroglyphics. Understanding hieroglyphics helps to confirm the authenticity of the Bible.
Cohesive Unity
Evidence of the Bible’s inspiration also includes its cohesive unity. In more than 3000 places the Bible declares itself inspired (2 Peter 1:21). It does not contradict itself. It is either inspired of God or a fraud.
Accuracy
Certainly it is inconceivable that a Book so accurate through the centuries could be considered anything less than inspired by God.
Christ revealed
The greatest evidence of the Bible’s inspiration is evidenced in the Christ it reveals and the changes in those who study it (see John 5:39, Acts 4:12, Matthew 11:26-28).
