Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 1129 This question gets at something important: when we say we take the Bible literally, does that commit us to a particular view of science? And when scientists speak of observing the “literal” facts of nature, are they using the word the same way? The relationship between biblical literalism and scientific investigation is more…
Reading Time: 5 minutesQuestion 1120 This is a question that comes up regularly, and it’s worth thinking through carefully. If we say we believe in a literal interpretation of Scripture, does that commit us to believing the earth is young, perhaps six to ten thousand years old? Or can someone hold to a literal hermeneutic and still accept…
Reading Time: 5 minutesQuestion 1001 Few debates within evangelical Christianity generate as much heat as the question of Bible translations. Some believers insist that the King James Version represents the only reliable English translation, while others embrace modern versions like the ESV, NASB, or NIV. Understanding this controversy requires examining both the historical development of the KJV and…
Reading Time: 5 minutesQuestion 1002 When comparing different Bible translations, readers sometimes discover that verses present in one translation appear in footnotes or brackets in another—or are absent entirely. These differences can unsettle believers who wonder whether something has been “removed” from Scripture. Understanding how textual variations arise and how scholars handle them actually strengthens confidence in the…
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 1016 The Bible was written across roughly fifteen centuries, in three languages, by more than forty human authors in widely different circumstances — kings, shepherds, fishermen, priests, prisoners, and prime ministers. It encompasses poetry, history, law, prophecy, wisdom literature, personal correspondence, and apocalyptic vision. No human editor assembled these sixty-six books according to a…
Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 1019 Higher criticism has generated strong reactions in the church for more than two centuries, and those reactions are largely warranted. It is worth understanding precisely what the discipline is, where it came from, what conclusions it has reached, and why those conclusions deserve the scrutiny they have received, since the issues it raises…
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 1018 The phrase “textual criticism” can sound alarming, as though it describes scholars sitting in judgement on the Bible and finding it wanting. The reality is almost the opposite. Textual criticism is the scholarly discipline by which ancient manuscripts are compared in order to establish, as closely as possible, the original wording of the…
Reading Time: 5 minutesQuestion 01203 These two terms describe two distinct works of the Holy Spirit in relation to Scripture, and confusing them leads to serious theological error. Getting this right matters because it protects the uniqueness and authority of God’s Word. Inspiration Defined Inspiration refers to the unique work of the Holy Spirit by which He moved…
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 10024 Nobody alive has ever seen the original manuscripts of the Bible — the actual papyrus or parchment on which Moses wrote, or Paul dictated his letters, or John recorded his vision on Patmos. Those originals, which scholars call the autographs, no longer exist. For some people that is a troubling realisation; they assumed…
Reading Time: 5 minutesQuestion 60088 The assumption that science and the Bible are locked in fundamental conflict is one of the most widely held in contemporary culture. It surfaces in popular journalism, in university lecture theatres, and in the private doubts of many Christians who feel caught between the faith they hold and the world the sciences appear…