However, inerrancy only pertains to the original manuscript
of the books, not necessarily the copies of the originals that were passed down
through the years. The copies of the manuscript are only inspired as much as
they faithfully and accurately represent the original. (Chapter 2 explores the
reliability of the New Testament manuscript copies that modern-day translations
are based upon.)
Critics often charge that the Bible has numerous errors,
inconsistencies, and contradictions, but the fact is that not a shred of
evidence indicates a single error in the original text of the biblical
writings.
You will certainly come across stumbling blocks if you read
through the Bible cover to cover. But, as Augustine (see Chapter 18) once said,
when you run into a passage you believe to be in error, you either have to
assume that the original manuscript wasn’t copied accurately or that you’ve
misunderstood the passage. Therefore, when you encounter an apparent stumbling
block, keep in mind the following issues:
Researchers are continually discovering historical evidence.
Critics often claim the Bible is suspect when it discusses a historical event
that has no evidence outside the Bible to support the claim. However, time and
time again, archaeological discoveries have confirmed biblical accounts rather
than dismissed them.
Rare errors in copying did happen. Although the manuscript
copies that exist today are very close to the originals (see Chapter 2), they
aren’t 100 percent accurate. For example, one well-known snafu is found in 2
Chronicles 22:2. This verse indicates that king Ahaziah was 42 years old when
he became king, which would have been an astounding feat, because his father
wasn’t even that old! In contrast, 2 Kings 8:26 lists the correct age of king
Ahaziah at 22. Any copy errors discovered like this one, however, have been
associated with issues such as dates or names and have never been critical to
actual doctrine.
Different accounts don’t mean one is wrong. On certain
occasions, the Bible appears to contradict itself when describing certain
events. For example, the Gospel of Matthew says that the two criminals
crucified by Jesus hurled insults at him, although Luke memorably says that one
of them was repentant (see Chapter 3). Matthew and Luke also disagree on the
number of angels at Jesus’ tomb after his resurrection. Matthew says one, but
Luke says two. However, the important fact to keep in mind is that in these
situations, the two accounts aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive. In each
case, Matthew seems to be offering a partial account, while Luke provides a
fuller account.
Interpretation isn’t always easy. Even though some Christians
believe the Bible is inerrant, they don’t believe that interpreting the meaning
of a passage is easy. In fact, the idea that many people interpret certain
passages differently causes many stumbling blocks and apparent inconsistencies.
Sometimes the exact meaning of a passage is hard to figure out due to its
particular context or because the exact word choice the author used is hard to
define.
Many of the theological splits in Christianity that have
occurred throughout history happened as a result of different interpretations
of specific passages. For example, Catholics and Protestants differ in lots of
ways due to scriptural interpretation, most notably in how they observe
sacraments and ordinances (see Chapter 8 for the specifics).
A common adage that Christians use when interpreting the
Bible is “The plain things are the main things, and the main things are the
plain things.” In other words, the important themes if the Christian faith are
clear and are usually repeated multiple times in scripture, but the lesser
important or questionable details aren’t. Therefore, Christians should use
restraint when placing great emphasis on debatable passages.
Confronting contextual issues
Imagine you asked spy novelist Tom Clancy, a suddenly
revived William Shakespeare, and me to each contribute a chapter for a book you
were compiling. Your instructions to the three of us were simple: Write about
the assigned topic, but use your own individual writing style. When you got
each manuscript back, you’d see that each of us had unique ways of expressing
ourselves on the printed page. (My chapter would be the most riveting, of
course, but I’m sure the other two authors would have their own cute, though
amateurish way of talking about the given subject.)
I don’t wanna read Shakespearean English!
The King James Version of the Bible served many good
purposes since its introduction in the 17th century and remains
popular in some churches even today. But one of the side effects of the King
James Version is that some Christians associate scripture only with
Shakespearean English and its ever-present these, thous, and shalts. When this happens,
the Bible is often treated as old school, outdated, obsolete, ancient, or – to use
a most dreaded label – uncool. Because the Bible was originally written in
Hebrew and Greek, it has as much to do with Shakespearean English as it does
with the “wicked cool” expressions of teenage slang today.
Fortunately, many English translations of the Bible are
available that make for much easier reading than in days gone by. Some of the
most popular versions include the New International Version (NIV), New Revised
Standard Version (NRSV), New King James Version (NKJV), New English Translation
(NET), and the New Living Translation (NLT). The NRSV is noteworthy because it’s
the one translation that has a broad base of support among Protestants, Catholics,
and Orthodox Christians.
Paraphrases are perhaps the most readable of all Bibles. A paraphrase
is a version of the Bible that not only translates the words into English, but
also rewords or explains concepts so that they’re easier to understand. The advantage
to paraphrase versions is that they are quite easy to read. The disadvantage is
that the person who translated the text also interpreted its meaning for you –
and people interpret scripture in many different ways, as you see throughout
this book. Many Christians find paraphrases useful for devotional reading, but
turn to a pure translation when they seriously study the Bible.
Perhaps the most popular paraphrase today is The Message, a
contemporary rendering of the Bible that can seem like a breath of fresh air. I
find it a nice change of pace, although I have to admit that I get weirded out
when Jesus and the apostles use modern day slang. The Phillips Bible is a
harder to find paraphrase of the New Testament, but I recommend checking it out
if you can find a copy. It’s my personal favourite of the paraphrased versions.
In a similar manner, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit,
the biblical authors were able to use their unique writing styles and human
personalities as they wrote scripture. That’s why you see so many different
literary styles – analogy, metaphor, poetry, prose, historical narrative, and
so on – used throughout the pages of the Bible.
For those of you who read through the Bible, you have to
keep this variety of textures in mind. You can’t simply open up your Bible to a
random page, read a verse or two, and expect to fully understand God’s truth. When
people do this, they often come up with some wacky beliefs. Instead, you need
to consider not just the words of the Bible, but also the overall situation and
historical backdrop in which it was written. Therefore, keep the following in
mind:
Interpret each verse only within the context of its chapter,
and each chapter within the entire book. Never take a passage by itself.
Familiarize yourself with the author and original purpose of
the writing. Many modern Bibles have an introduction at the beginning of each
book that provides an overview of the chapter and the major themes to watch out
for.
Understand the literary style of the book you’re reading. Is
it historical narrative, instructional teaching, or an obvious metaphor (such
as the parables of Jesus)?
Get to know the culture in which the book was written. For example,
as I mention in Chapter 4, the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15 takes on
a far deeper significance with a thorough understanding of the Middle Eastern
culture of Jesus’ day.
Finally, and most importantly, start off by
asking the Holy Spirit to guide you as you read the Bible.
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