Is the Bible of human or divine origin?

The Bible presents a great problem to mankind. Shall we believe this Book, or belittle it? Shall we endorse it, or ignore it? Shall we follow it, or fight it? It is either a light that guides, or a lie that beguiles. Which is it? It is either a great force, or a great farce; it either contains directions or deceptions, depending upon the validity of its claims.

Is the Bible the product of God, or the product of man? Since man has never been able to write a better one, it sounds as if it came from God. Since it is in a class all by itself, it sounds as though it could not have come from man. Since men have never been able to destroy it, though they have desperately tried to do so, it must be the product of God. Since there has never been known to be a principle for better living which the Bible does not incorporate, surely God inspired the writing of it!

Consider the accuracy of the Bible. Time was when the Bible was the only information men had on certain historical data. The Bible contained names of some kings that historians had no other record of. Some therefore doubted that such kings existed. I refer particularly to King Arioch, mentioned in the fourteenth Chapter of Genesis, and King Sargon mentioned in the twentieth Chapter of Isaiah. While men once denied that these kings existed, historians now say that they did exist. Through archaeological discoveries, the very foundation of one of their palaces has been unearthed, giving some information and dates about his deeds, all of which confirms the Bible account. Does this sound as though man thought up the idea of the Bible?

In the tenth Chapter of Joshua, we are told that on one occasion, "the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day." This was such an unusual occurrence that man laughed at such an idea, thus ridiculing the Bible. Many thought that this was just too fantastic to accept, but in later years men have changed their views. Now, the three great record-keeping countries of the world, Greece, Egypt, and China all have records of twenty-three and three-fourths hours of time, unaccounted for. This is "about a whole day", as Joshua said.

The Bible could not be the product of man, for only a Supreme Being could be its author. When textbooks were teaching error about Kings Arioch and Sargon, the Bible was teaching truth. When textbooks were teaching error about the science of astronomy, the Bible was teaching truth. This great accuracy is one of the strong evidences in favor of an Almighty Being.

Examine the Bible, and notice the scientific truths that are there found. Long before men knew anything at all about the "paths of the sea", Isaiah referred to them in the forty-third chapter of his writing, verse sixteen. Did Isaiah have scientific knowledge that the greatest scientists of the earth did not have until years later? No, but he did speak as he was "moved by the Holy Spirit". What about his mention of "the circles of the earth", in chapter forty, verse twenty-two? Did Isaiah know in 750 B.C. that the earth was round, or was he speaking by the inspiration of God?

How did Paul know that God made of "one blood" all nations of men to dwell upon the face of the earth? He declared this scientific truth in the seventeenth chapter of Acts, verse twenty-six. Only in recent years have cytologists proved this to be a scientific fact, yet Paul declared it in the long, long ago. How do you account for it? Only on the ground that he spoke as God directed him. Many such truths as these are found in the Bible, and these have baffled the minds of scientists. In fact, there is not a known fact of science that contradicts the Bible. Many theories of science contradict the Bible, but no known fact of science does. How can this be accounted for? There is one answer, and that is, God is the author of both science and the Bible.

By contrast, what does the system of atheism have to offer the world? What does it have to offer by way of comfort, enlightenment, reason, and the elevation of human life? Then compare with that what the Bible has to offer. Think of the tremendous impact the Bible has made in the lives of men. It has gripped hearts as no other writing has done. Without doubt this Book came from God! Your reaction, both to the Bible and to God are, therefore, very important.

Reliability of Scripture Fact Sheet

Key Quotes
Key Sources

Key Quotes

"The earliest preachers of the gospel knew the value of . . . first-hand testimony, and appealed to it time and again. 'We are witnesses of these things,' was their constant and confident assertion. And it can have been by no means so easy as some writers think to invent words and deeds of Jesus in those early years, when so many of His disciples were about, who could remember what had and had not happened. . . .
"And it was not only friendly eyewitnesses that the early preachers had to reckon with; there were others less well disposed who were also conversant with the main facts of the ministry and death of Jesus. The disciples could not afford to risk inaccuracies (not to speak of willful manipulation of the facts), which would at once be exposed by those who would be only too glad to do so. On the contrary, one of the strong points in the original apostolic preaching is the confident appeal to the knowledge of the hearers; they not only said, 'We are witnesses of these things,' but also, 'As you yourselves also know' [Acts 2:22]. Had there been any tendency to depart from the facts in any material respect, the possible presence of hostile witnesses in the audience would have served as a further corrective."
"There is no body of ancient literature in the world which enjoys such a wealth of good textual attestation as the New Testament."
"There is, I imagine, no body of literature in the world that has been exposed to the stringent analytical study that the four gospels have sustained for the past 200 years. This is not something to be regretted: it is something to be accepted with satisfaction. Scholars today who treat the gospels as credible historical documents do so in the full light of this analytical study, not by closing their minds to it."
"Skepticism toward the reliability of Scripture seems to survive in many academic circles despite the repeated collapse of critical theories. One still finds a disposition to trust secular writers whose credentials in providing historical testimony are often less adequate than those of the biblical writers. Not long ago many scholars rejected the historicity of the patriarchal accounts, denied that writing existed in Moses' day, and ascribed the Gospels and Epistles to second-century writers. But higher criticism has sustained some spectacular and even stunning reverses, mainly through the findings of archaeology. No longer is it held that the glories of King Solomon's era are literary fabrication, that 'Yahweh,' the redemptive God of the Hebrews, was unknown before the eighth-century prophets, or that Ezra's representations about the Babylonian captivity are fictional. Archaeologists have located the long-lost copper mines of Solomon's time. Tablets discovered at Ebla near Aleppo confirm that names similar to those of the patriarchs were common among people who lived in Ebla shortly before the events recorded in the later chapters of Genesis took place."

Key Sources

Archer, Gleason L. Survey of Old Testament Introduction. Rev. ed. Chicago, IL: Moody, 1994.
Blomberg, Craig. The Reliability of the Gospels. Downers Grove, IL: Inter Varsity Press, 1987.
Bruce, F. F. Are the New Testament Documents Reliable? 5th ed. Downers Grove, IL: Inter Varsity Press, 1960.
Inter Varsity Press, 1988.
Carson, D. A., and John D. Woodbridge, eds. Scripture and Truth. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1983.
MI: Zondervan, 1986.
Comfort, Philip Wesley, ed. The Origin of the Bible. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1992.
Free, Joseph P. Archaeology and Bible History. Rev. ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1992.
Geisler, Norman L., ed. Inerrancy. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1980.
Geisler, Norman L., and William E. Nix. A General Introduction to the Bible. Rev. ed. Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1968, 1986.
McDowell, Josh. Evidence That Demands A Verdict. 2 vols. San Bernardino, CA: Here's Life, (1972) 1979, (1975) 1981.
Thompson, J. A. The Bible and Archaeology. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1989.
Warfield, Benjamin B. The Inspiration and Authority of the Bible. Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing, 1948. (This is the classic on the inspiration, authority and inerrancy of the Bible.)

Brian Chew aka GrandMaster B's House/ Comments? Email me
last revised Wed, 11 Oct 1997 12:27am