Examining the doctrine of Scripture—its inspiration, inerrancy, authority, canon, and interpretation.
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 01183 The name Esdras is the Greek and Latin form of Ezra, and two books bear this title in various versions of the Old Testament: 1 Esdras and 2 Esdras. Neither belongs to the Protestant canon, but the question of whether they are worth reading at all deserves a considered answer rather than a…
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 60087 The claim that Constantine created the Bible appears regularly in popular sceptical discussions, was given wide circulation by Dan Brown’s novel The Da Vinci Code, and resurfaces periodically in online conversations as though it were settled historical fact. It is not. The claim is historically wrong in virtually every detail, and Christians should…
Reading Time: 5 minutesQuestion 60094 The account of Noah and the flood in Genesis 6–9 is one of the most contested passages in all of Scripture. At stake is not merely a point of ancient geography but the character of the biblical text itself, the integrity of Jesus’ teaching, the theological significance of the event, and the coherence…
Reading Time: 5 minutesQuestion 60095 The word “firmament” appears in the King James Version of Genesis 1 and has generated considerable discussion ever since, particularly as critics of the biblical account have claimed it reveals a primitive, pre-scientific cosmology in which the ancient Israelites believed the sky was a solid dome. That claim is worth examining on its…
Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 01200 Scripture is frequently quoted and frequently misunderstood, sometimes because a quotation has been removed from its context, sometimes because a popular rendering has hardened into assumed meaning that the original never carried, and sometimes because the verse is genuinely addressing a different situation from the one it is being applied to. The consequences…
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 01197 The letter to the Hebrews is anonymous. That is simply a fact. Unlike Paul’s letters, which consistently identify their author in the opening verse, Hebrews begins without naming anyone. The question of authorship has been debated since the earliest centuries of the church, and the honest answer is that no one can state…
Reading Time: 6 minutesQuestion 01205 Anyone who reads John’s Gospel and then turns to Revelation notices something immediately. The Gospel and the epistles flow in relatively polished, elegant Greek. Revelation does not. Sentences break grammatical rules. Case endings that should follow standard Greek convention do not. Scholars have catalogued dozens of what are technically called solecisms — violations…
Reading Time: 9 minutesQuestion 1005 This is one of the most honest questions believers ask, especially when they’re genuinely trying to understand God’s Word but find themselves surrounded by conflicting interpretations. If the Bible is God’s Word and clear enough for us to understand, why do sincere Christians who love the Lord and study their Bibles come to…
Reading Time: 6 minutesQuestion 1009 General revelation is God’s disclosure of Himself through the created order and human conscience—knowledge available to all people, everywhere, at all times. It’s what Paul describes when he writes that God’s “invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, ever since the creation of the world, in the…
Reading Time: 14 minutesQuestion 1008 The question of dreams, visions, and prophecy today generates considerable confusion and division in the church. Does God still speak through these means? Should Christians expect or seek these experiences? The answer requires careful biblical thinking that avoids two dangerous extremes: rigidly denying God can work beyond our categories, or elevating subjective experiences…