The BIBLE is TRUSTWORTHY

Next week is marked on the calendar as national Bible week. Since our GodQuest small groups have focused upon the reliability of the Bible, I wanted to write something that  relates to that. This is particularly the case since this year also marks the 400^th anniversary of the King James Bible. It has been the most influential book in modern history and has had a profound impact upon our nation. Recently, I read the following words of author Paul Gutjahr regarding George Washington taking the oath of office on a copy of the King James Bible. “Chancellor Livingston read the form of oath prescribed by the Constitution; Washington repeated it, resting his hand upon the Bible. Mr. Otis, secretary of the Senate, then took the Bible to raise it to the lips of Washington who stooped to kiss the book.” (Gutjahr in An American Bible: A History of the Good Book in the United States, 1777-1880)

On Sunday evening, in our small group, we discussed the complete trustworthiness of the Bible. It is fascinating to realize that the Bible stands up to the most careful scrutiny. Because of the 25,000 ancient manuscripts, it passes the bibliographical test. This means that there are so many more manuscripts that are much closer to the time originally written than any other ancient writing. Not only is that true but we also know that archaeology only confirms the reliability and accuracy of the words we read in the Bible. Through the centuries, scribes who copied the words of Scripture were careful and even destroyed all they wrote if they made even one mistake in copying.

One of the greatest Biblical scholars was Robert Dick Wilson. Notice the following statement that he made in his book, A Scientific Investigation of the Old Testament. “In 144 cases of transliteration from Egyptian, Assyrian, Babylonian and Moabite into Hebrew and in 40 cases of the opposite, or184 in all, the evidence shows that for 2300 to 3900 years the text of the proper names in the Hebrew Bible has been transmitted with the most minute accuracy…. There are about forty of these kings living from 2000 B.C. to 400 B.C. Each appears in chronological order…with reference to the kings of the same country and with respect to the kings of other countries…no stronger evidence for the substantial accuracy of the Old Testament records could possibly be imagined that this collection of kings. Mathematically, it is one chance in 750,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 that this accuracy is mere circumstance…. The proof that the copies of the original documents have been handed down with substantial correctness for more than 2,000 years cannot be denied.”

The Bible is accurate and it is the truth for us today just as much as for those living when the words were written. I think the reason that humans do not believe the Bible is more of a heart problem than a head problem. With the head, we must admit it is absolutely reliable according to all the standards set by historians and linguists. However, our problem is that we would rather not believe it. We prefer to go our way and do our thing. We rebel against the authority and righteousness of God.

Perhaps Mark Twain in his own unique style best summarized the reason that so many have chosen not to believe the Bible.

“It ain’t those parts of the Bible that I can’t understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.”

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