Theological Term on the Week: Inerrancy of Scripture

inerrancy of scripture

The principle that since the Bible is breathed out by God, who always speaks the truth, it is completely true and without error in the original autographs.  

• In scripture: 

God is not man, that he should lie,
or a son of man, that he should change his mind. (Numbers 23:19 ESV)

The words of the Lord are pure words,
like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times. (Psalm 12:6 ESV)

• From The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy:

1. God, who is Himself Truth and speaks truth only, has inspired Holy Scripture in order thereby to reveal Himself to lost mankind through Jesus Christ as Creator and Lord, Redeemer and Judge. Holy Scripture is God’s witness to Himself.

2. Holy Scripture, being God’s own Word, written by men prepared and superintended by His Spirit, is of infallible divine authority in all matters upon which it touches: it is to be believed, as God’s instruction, in all that it affirms, obeyed, as God’s command, in all that it requires; embraced, as God’s pledge, in all that it promises.

3. The Holy Spirit, Scripture’s divine Author, both authenticates it to us by His inward witness and opens our minds to understand its meaning.

4. Being wholly and verbally God-given, Scripture is without error or fault in all its teaching, no less in what it states about God’s acts in creation, about the events of world history, and about its own literary origins under God, than in its witness to God’s saving grace in individual lives.

5. The authority of Scripture is inescapably impaired if this total divine inerrancy is in any way limited or disregarded, or made relative to a view of truth contrary to the Bible’s own; and such lapses bring serious loss to both the individual and the Church.

• From Taking God at His Word by Kevin DeYoung, page 39: 

There are many text we could use to show that the Bible is without error, but here’s the simplest argument: Scripture did not come from the will of man; it came from God. And if it is God’s word then it must all be true, for in him there can be no error or deceit. 

Inerrancy means the word of God always stands over us and we never stand over the word of God. When we reject inerrancy we put ourselves in judgment over God’s word. We claim the right to determine which parts of God’s revelation can be trusted and which cannot. When we deny the complete trustworthiness of the Scriptures—in its claims with regard to history; its teaching on the material world; its miracles; in the tiniest “jots and tittles” of all the it affirms—then we are forced to accept one of two conclusions: either Scripture is not all from God, or God is not always dependable. To make either statement is to affirm a sub-Christian point of view. These conclusions do not express a proper submission to the Father, do not work for our joy in Christ, and do not bring honor to the Spirit, who carried along the men to speak the prophetic word and to author God’s holy book.

Learn more:

1. Simply Put: Inerrancy
2. John H. Gerstner: A Biblical Inerrancy Primer
3. Ligonier Ministries: Biblical Innerancy
4. Matthew Barrett: The Authority and Inerrancy of Scripture
5. John M. Frame: Is the Bible Inerrant?
6. Don Carson: Contemporary Challenges to Inerrancy
7. Michael Kruger: Inerrancy: Why It’s Essential

Related terms:

• authority of scripture
• autographs
• infallibility of scripture
• inspiration of scripture

Filed under Scripture

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Sunday Hymn: Rejoice, the Lord Is King

Rejoice, the Lord is king!
Your Lord and king adore;
Mortals give thanks and sing,
And tri­umph ev­er­more;
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, re­joice!

Jesus, the Sav­ior, reigns,
The God of truth and love;
When He had purged our stains
He took His seat above;
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, re­joice!

His king­dom can­not fail,
He rules o’er earth and Heav’n,
The keys of death and hell
Are to our Je­sus giv’n;
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, re­joice!

He sits at God’s right hand
Till all His foes sub­mit,
And bow to His com­mand,
And fall be­neath His feet:
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, re­joice!

He all His foes shall quell,
Shall all our sins de­stroy,
And ev­ery bos­om swell
With pure se­ra­phic joy;
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice,
Rejoice, again I say, re­joice!

Rejoice in glo­ri­ous hope!
Jesus the Judge shall come,
And take His ser­vants up
To their eter­nal home.
We soon shall hear th’arch­an­gel’s voice;
The trump of God shall sound, re­joice!

—Charles Wesley

Theological Term of the Week: Inclusio

inclusio

A phrase, line, or concept used to mark the beginning and ending of a literary unit of biblical text, and forming a frame or bracket around what lies between; also known as bookending or bracketing. 

• In scripture:

“Your glory, O Israel, is slain on your high places!

How the mighty have fallen!

Tell it not in Gath,

publish it not in the streets of Ashkelon,

lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice,

lest the daughters of the uncircumcised exult.

“You mountains of Gilboa,

let there be no dew or rain upon you,

nor fields of offerings!

For there the shield of the mighty was defiled,

the shield of Saul, not anointed with oil.

“From the blood of the slain,

from the fat of the mighty,

the bow of Jonathan turned not back,

and the sword of Saul returned not empty.

“Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely!

In life and in death they were not divided;

they were swifter than eagles;

they were stronger than lions.

“You daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,

who clothed you luxuriously in scarlet,

who put ornaments of gold on your apparel.

“How the mighty have fallen

in the midst of the battle!

“Jonathan lies slain on your high places.” (2 Samuel 1:19-25 ESV)

• From Inductive Bible Study by Richard Allen Fuhr, Jr. and Andreas Kostenberger, pages 162-163:

Inclusio provides the means of marking the beginning and the ending of a literary unit, often through parallel phraseology or subject matter. A classic example of this technique is seen in Ecclesiastes 1:2 and 12:28 with the proclamation, “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity” (NKJV; Heb hevel in the superlative). Between these two “bookend” statements, the idea of life lived in a hevel (“vain,” “absurd,” or “fleeting”) world is examined inside and out. …

The Prophets often use inclusio as a means of reinforcing the declaration of judgment or the proclamation of salvation. Compare Hosea 1:10-2:1 to 2:21-23 and notice the bracketing language and content that embraces the subject matter between these prophetic statements. 

Learn more:

1. Peter Krol: Know Your Literary Devices
2. Chris Brauns: The Gospel of Matthew’s Use of Inclusio or Bracketing

Related terms:

• biblical hermeunutics
• literary genres of the Bible

Filed under Scripture

Do you have a a theological term you’d like to see featured as a Theological Term of the Week? Email your suggestion using the contact button in the navigation bar above. 

Clicking on the Theological Terms button above the header will take you to an alphabetical list of all the theological terms.