No other book which the world has ever known has such a history as the Bible. Its origin and authorship, its antiquity, its wonderful preservation in the midst of the unparalleled and continuous opposition which sought to destroy it, as well as its diversity and teaching, make the Bible the most wonderful book in existence. It is a collection composed of sixty-six separate books, written by about forty different writers, living centuries apart, speaking different languages, brought up under different civilizations and subject to different governments. Over 1500 years elapsed between the writings of Moses and of John the Revelator. As no other reliable history dates so far back as the Bible, we are obliged to look mainly to its own internal evidence as to its origin, authorship, and the reason for its existence, and indeed for its credibility in every respect; and further, we should look for such corroboration of its statements as reason, its own harmony with itself, and with other known facts, and subsequent developments furnish.

He who would cast away Bible history as unworthy of credence, must on the same ground reject all history; and to be entirely consistent, must believe nothing which does not come under his own personal observation. If its statements, thoroughly understood, are contradictory, or are colored by prejudice, or are proven untrue by a positive scientific knowledge, or if subsequent developments prove its predictions untrue, and thereby show the ignorance or dishonesty of the authors of the Bible, then we may reasonably conclude that the entire book is unworthy of confidence, and should reject it. But if, on the contrary, we find that a thorough understanding of the Bible, according to its own rules of interpretation, shows its statements to be in harmony with each other; if it bears no evidence of prejudicial coloring; if many of its prophecies have actually come true, and others admit of future fulfillment; if the integrity of its writers is manifested by unvarnished records, then we have reason to believe the book. Its entire testimony, historic, prophetic, and doctrinal, stands or falls together. Science is still in its infancy, yet in so far as positive scientific knowledge has been attained, it should and does corroborate the Bible testimony.

Internal Evidences

Our first definite information with reference to the Sacred Writings is afforded by the direction given to Moses to write the Law and history in a book, and put it in the side of the ark of the Tabernacle for preservation. (Exodus 17:14; 34:27; Deuteronomy 31:9-26) This book was left for the guidance of the people. Additions were made to it from time to time by subsequent writers, and in the days of the kings, scribes appear to have been appointed whose business it was to keep a careful record of the important events occurring in Jewish history, which records—Samuel, Kings, Chronicles—were preserved and subsequently incorporated with the Law. The prophets also did not confine themselves to oral teaching, but wrote and in some cases had scribes to record their teachings. (Joshua 1:8; 24:26; 1 Samuel 10:25; 1 Chronicles 27:32; 29:29,30; 2 Chronicles 33:18,19; Isaiah 30:8; Jeremiah 30:2; 36:2; 45:1; 51:60.) As a result we have the Old Testament Scriptures, composed of history, prophecy and Law, written by divine direction, as these citations and also Paul’s testimony prove. (2 Timothy 3:15,16) These writings collectively were termed The Law and The Prophets, and the Hebrews were taught of God to esteem them of Divine authority and authorship, the writers being merely the agents through whom they received them. Exodus 14:30,31; 19:9; 1 Kings 18:21,27,30,36,39

The political interests and the religious veneration of the Israelites, under God’s immediate overruling and protection, combined to preserve and protect these writings from contamination. Religiously, they were rightfully regarded with the deepest veneration, while politically they were the only guarantee which the people possessed against despotism. A very slight error in copying often led them to destroy it and begin anew. Josephus says that through all the ages that had passed none had ventured to add to, take away from, or transpose, aught of the Sacred Writings.

In the degeneracy of the Jewish nation, under the idolatrous administration of the successors of Rehoboam, these Sacred Writings fell into disuse and were almost forgotten, though they seem never to have been taken from their place. In the reformation conducted by Josiah, they were again brought to light. Once more, in the Babylonish captivity, this book was lost sight of by the Israelites, though it appears that they were accustomed to meet together in little companies in Babylon to be instructed by the scribes, who either taught the Law from memory or from copies in their possession. On the restoration of the Jews to Jerusalem, the Scriptures were again brought out, and Ezra and his companions read the Law to the people, commenting upon and explaining it. (Nehemiah 8:1-8) This public reading of the Scriptures was the only means of keeping them before the people, as printing was yet unknown and the cost of a manuscript copy was beyond the reach of the people, very few of whom could read.

At the time of our Lord’s first advent, these Old Testament Scriptures existed substantially as we have them today, as to matter and arrangement. One of the strongest evidences of the authenticity of the Old Testament Scriptures is found in the fact that the law and the prophets were continually referred to by our Lord and the apostles as authority, and that while the Lord denounced the corruptions of the Jewish Church, and their traditions, by which they made void the Word of God, he did not even intimate any corruption in these Sacred Writings, but commends them, and refers to and quotes them in proof of his claims. In fact, the various parts of the entire book are bound together by the mutual endorsement of the various writers, so that to reject one is to mar the completeness of the whole. Each book bears its own witness and stands on its own evidence of credibility, and yet each book is linked with all the rest, both by their common spirit and harmony and by their mutual endorsement. Mark, for instance, the endorsement of the account of creation in the commandment of the Law concerning the Sabbath day found in Exodus 20:11. Compare Deuteronomy 23:4,5; Joshua 24:9; Micah 6:5; 2 Peter 2:15; Jude 11-13; Isaiah 28:21; Habakkuk 3:11; Matthew 12:40.

The New Testament

The earliest copy of the New Testament known was written in the Syriac language. Its date is estimated to be about the year A.D. 100. And even at that early date it contained the same books as at present with the exception of the Second Epistle of Peter, the Third Epistle of John, Jude and the Book of Revelation. And these omitted books we know were written about the close of the first century, and probably had not been widely circulated among the Christian congregations at that time. All the books of both the Old and New Testaments, as we now have them, appear, however, in the Greek, Sinaitic Manuscript, the oldest known Greek MS., whose date is about A.D. 350.

The first five books of the New Testament are historical, and present a clear and connected account of the life, character, circumstances, teachings and doings of Jesus of Nazareth, who claimed to be the Messiah promised in the Old Testament Scriptures, and who fully substantiated his claim. The four accounts of the Evangelists, though they differ in phraseology, are in harmony in their statements, some important items being recorded by each which seem to have been overlooked by the others. These Evangelists testified to that of which they had positive knowledge. The Apostle John says: “That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you—that which was from the beginning [the beginning of the Lord’s ministry], which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled of the Word of life; for the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness.” (1 John 1:1- 3) They also testify that they saw Christ after his resurrection. The fifth book presents a valuable account of the doings of the Apostles after their anointing with the Holy Spirit, of the establishment of the Christian Church, and of the first preaching of the good news to the Gentiles.

The Apostolic Epistles were written to the various local congregations or churches, and were directed to be publicly read, and to be exchanged among the churches; and the same authority was claimed for them by their writers as that which was accorded to the Old Testament Scriptures. (1 Thessalonians 5:27; Colossians 4:16; 2 Peter 3:2,15,16; Hebrews 1:1,2 and 2:1-4) These letters and the five historical books claiming, as they did, Divine authority equal to that of the Old Testament Scriptures, were treasured and guarded with special care by the various congregations of the early church, and were appealed to as authority in matters of doctrine.

The New Testament was completed by the Revelation of Jesus to the Apostle John about the close of the first century A.D., after which, the holy writings began to be collected for more permanent preservation. The original copies of both the Old and New Testaments have, of course, long since disappeared, and the oldest manuscript (the Sinaitic) is reckoned to have been written about three centuries after the death of Christ. Those of earlier date were either destroyed in the persecutions under which the church suffered, or were worn out by use. These oldest manuscripts are preserved with great care in the Museums and Libraries of Europe.

During the Middle Ages, when ignorance and corruption prevailed and the Bible was hidden in monasteries away from the people, God was still carrying on His work, preserving the Scriptures from destruction even in the midst of Satan’s stronghold, the apostate Church of Rome. A favorite occupation of the monks during the Middle Ages was the copying of the manuscripts of the New Testament, which were esteemed as relics more than as God’s living authoritative Word. Of these manuscripts there are said to be now more than two thousand, of various dates from the fourth to the fifteenth centuries. The quiet seclusion of those monks gave them special opportunities for careful copying, and years were sometimes spent in the copying of a single manuscript.

Reliability of Present Translations

The idea exists in some minds that during the lapse of centuries the Scriptures have become largely corrupted, and therefore a very uncertain foundation for faith. Those, however, who are acquainted with the manner in which the ancient manuscripts of the Scriptures have been preserved for centuries, carefully copied, diligently compared and translated by pious and learned linguists, are prepared to see that such an idea is by no means a correct or reasonable one. Ample means, both internal and external, are now furnished so that the careful student may detect any error which might have crept in either by fraud or accident. While there are some errors in translation and a few interpolations (uninspired inserted words) in our common English translation, on the whole it is acknowledged by scholars to be a remarkably good transcript of the Sacred Word.

Before the invention of printing, the copying of the Scriptures, being very slow and tedious, involved considerable liability to error in transcribing, such as the accidental omission of a word or paragraph, the substitution of one word for another, or the misunderstanding of a word where the copyist wrote from the dictation of another person. And again, sometimes a marginal note might be mistaken for a part of the text and copied in as such. But while a very few errors have crept in, in such ways, and a few others seem to have been designedly inserted, various circumstances have been at work, both to preserve the integrity of the Sacred Writings, and also to make manifest any errors which have crept into them.

Very early in the Christian Era translations of the New Testament Scriptures were made into several languages, and the different factions that early developed and continued to exist, though they might have been desirous of adding to or taking from the original text in order to give their claims a show of Scriptural support, were watched by each other to see that they did not do so, and had they succeeded in corrupting the text in one language, another translation would make it manifest.

During the dark ages the Scriptures were practically cast aside, being supplanted by the decrees of popes and councils. Scriptural teachings had no influence upon the masses of the people who did not have copies in their possession—nor could they have read them if they had them. Doubtless, this made unnecessary the serious alteration of the text, at a time when bold, bad men had abundant power to do so. Thus the depth of ignorance in the dark ages served to protect and keep pure God’s Word, so that its clear light has shone specially at the two ends of the Gospel age. (1 Corinthians 10:11) The few interpolations which were dared, in support of the false claims of papacy, were made just as the gloom of the dark ages was closing in upon mankind, and are now made glaringly manifest, from their lack of harmony with the context, their antagonism with other scriptures and from their absence in the oldest and most complete and reliable manuscripts.

The Inspiration of the Bible

The Bible claims to be a book written under Divine inspiration. The word inspire signifies to breathe in, to infuse, to fill, to inhale—as to inspire the lungs with air. (See Webster’s Dictionary) Hence, when it is said that certain scriptures, or writings of godly men, were given by inspiration of God (2 Timothy 3:16), it signifies that those men were in some way, whether through miraculous or natural means, inspired by, or brought under the influence of God; so as to be used by Him in speaking or writing such words as He wished to have expressed. The prophets and apostles all claimed such inspiration. Peter says, “The prophecy came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:21) Through Moses we have the Law of God and the only existing credible history of mankind from the creation of Adam down to his own time, covering a period of about 2500 years. While Moses and the other Bible writers were holy men, inspired with pure motives and holy zeal, and while personal pride, ambition, etc., were no part of their spirit, we learn that Moses was inspired with the knowledge of God’s Law, both in its great principles and also in the minutiae of its typical ceremonials, by direct revelation from God at Mount Sinai, and of some points of duty at the burning bush at Horeb, etc. As for his historical writings, Moses was evidently guided of God in the collation and presentation in its present complete and connected form of the history of the world down to his day, which was really in great part the history of his own family back to Adam with an account of the creation doubtless given by God to Adam while he was yet in fellowship in Eden. Nor does a correct handing down of family information, covering a period of over 2300 years, seem impossible, or liable, as it would now be, to have become polluted; for, aside from the fact that it was handed down through the God-fearing family line of Seth, it should be remembered that at that time the bodies, brains and memories of men were not so weak as they are now, and as they have been since the flood; and finally, because the long lives of two men link Adam with the family of Abraham, the family of covenant favor,—with Isaac, the typical seed of promise.

These two men were Methuselah and Shem. Methuselah was over 200 years old when Adam died, and had abundant opportunity, therefore, for first- hand information; and Shem, the son of Noah, lived contemporaneously with Methuselah for 98 years, and with Isaac for 50 years. Thus, these two living, God-fearing men acted as God’s historians to communicate His revelations and dealings to the family in whom centered the promises, of which Moses was one of the prospective heirs. In addition to these facts, we have the statement of Josephus that Methuselah, Noah and Shem, the year before the flood, inscribed the history and discoveries of the world on two monuments of stone and brick which were still standing in Moses’ time. As for the writings of the prophets, their devoted, godly lives attest their sincerity. Their lives were spent for God and in the defense of righteousness, and not for gain and worldly honor. And, as for proofs that God acted through them and that they merely expressed His messages, as Peter declares, it is to be found in the fulfillment of their predictions.

This brings us to the examination of the inspiration of the New Testament. Of the four gospel narratives and the book of the Acts of the apostles, which are merely historic narratives, it might with considerable force be argued that no inspiration was necessary. But we must remember that since it was God’s will that the important doings and teachings of Jesus and his disciples should be handed down, for the information and guidance of his Church throughout the age, it was necessary that God, even while leaving the writers free to record those truths in their own several styles of expression and arrangement, should nevertheless exercise a supervision of His work. To this end it would appear reasonable that He would cause circumstances, etc., to call to the memory of one or another of these men items and details which, otherwise, in so condensed an account of matters so important, would have been overlooked. And this was no less the work of God’s spirit, power, or influence than the more noticeable and peculiar manifestations through the prophets.

The Apostle Peter tells us that the prophets of old time often did not understand their own utterances, as they themselves also acknowledge (1 Peter 1:12; Daniel 12:4,8-10); and we should remember that the twelve apostles (Paul taking the place of Judas—Galatians 1:17; 1 Timothy 2:7) not only filled the office of apostles—or specially appointed teachers and expounders of the Gospel of the New Covenant—but they also, especially Peter and Paul and John, filled the office of prophets, and were not only given the spirit of wisdom and understanding by which they were enabled to understand and explain the previously dark prophecies, but in addition to this we believe that they were under the guidance and supervision of the Lord to such an extent that their references to things future from their day, things therefore not then due to be fully understood, were guided, so as to be true to an extent far beyond their comprehension, and such consequently were as really prophetic as the utterances of the old-time prophets. Illustrations of this are to be found in the Revelations of the Apostle John, in Peter’s symbolic description of the Day of the Lord (2 Peter 3:10-13), and in numerous references to the same period by Paul also, among which were some things hard to be understood even by Peter (2 Pet. 3:16) and only partially then by Paul himself. The latter, however, was permitted to see future things more clearly than others of his time, and to that end he was given special visions and revelations which he was not allowed to make known to others (2 Corinthians 12:1-4), but which, nevertheless, influenced and colored his subsequent teachings and his epistles. And these very items which Peter thought strange, and called “hard to be understood,” are the very items which now, in God’s due time, for which they were intended, so grandly illuminate not only Peter’s prophecies and John’s Revelation, but the entire word and plan of God, “that the man of God may be thoroughly furnished.” 2 Timothy 3:16,17.

That the early church considered the writings and teachings of the apostles different from all others in authority, is manifest from the early arrangement of these writings together and the keeping separate from these other good writings of other good men, as they were apocryphal (not inspired). And yet there were, even in the days of the apostles, ambitious men who taught another gospel and claimed for themselves the honors of special authority as teachers of no less authority than the twelve apostles. And ambitious men of the same sort have from time to time since arisen. These would-be apostles—boastful, heady, high-minded—have “another gospel,” a perversion of the gospel of Christ; and above all they despise and seek to cast discredit upon the words of the Apostle Paul who so clearly, forcibly and logically lifts up the standard of faith and points to the cross—the ransom—as the sure foundation, and who so clearly showed that false apostles would arise and deceive many. 1 Timothy 2:3-6; Matthew 24:11.

It not only required an inspiration to write God’s plan, but it also requires an inspiration of the Almighty to give an understanding of that revelation; yet this inspiration is of a different sort. When any one has realized himself a sinner, weak, imperfect and condemned, and has accepted of Christ as his Redeemer, and full of love and appreciation has consecrated his heart (his mind, his will) to the Lord, God has arranged that such a consecration of the natural mind brings a new mind. It opens the way for the holy mind or will of God, expressed through His written word, to be received. And as it is received into such a good, honest, consecrated heart, it informs that heart and opens the eyes of the understanding, so that from the new standpoint (God’s standpoint) many things wear a very different aspect, and among other things the Scripture teachings, which gradually open up as item after item of the Divine plan is fulfilled, and new features of the unfolding plan become due to be understood, and from the new standpoint appreciated and accepted. Just as with astronomers, the close observation of facts and influences already recognized often leads them to look in certain directions for hitherto undiscovered planets, and they find them, so with the seekers after spiritual truths; the clear appreciation and close study of the known plan lead gradually, step by step, to the discovery of other particulars, hitherto unnoticed, each of which only adds to the beauty and harmony of the truths previously seen. Thus it is that “The path of the just is a shining light which shineth more and more unto the perfect day.” Proverbs 4:18.

Yet such an inspiration, common to all the consecrated children of God, in proportion to their development, should be critically distinguished from the special guidance and guarded inspiration of the twelve apostles, whom God specially appointed to be the teachers of the church, and who have no successors in this office. Only twelve were “chosen” and with the death of the Apostles the canon of Scripture closed, because God had there given a full and complete revelation of His plan for man’s salvation. Paul expresses this thought clearly when he declares that the Holy Scriptures are able to make wise unto salvation, and that they are sufficient. As we consider, then, the completeness, harmony, purity and grandeur of the Bible, its age and wonderful preservation through the wreck and storms of over six thousand years, it must be admitted to be a most wonderful book; and those who have learned to read it with understanding, who see in it the great plan of the ages, cannot doubt that God was its inspiring Author, as well as its Preserver. Its only parallel is the book of nature by the same great Author.