The Authority of the Bible

Article by:

Blake Hudson

Introduction

When we discuss the authority of the Bible the most basic question is this: does the Bible claim absolute truth and authority? If the Bible does not claim this, then those who promote Biblical inerrancy are forcing something on the Bible that it does not claim for itself. When we read the Bible and allow it to speak for itself we find that it clearly claims absolute truth and authority on every subject it touches on. This is a very large topic and this article will barely scratch the surface. For further study there are some recommended books and articles at the bottom of the page.

This Article’s Intended Audience

This article is not intended to offer reasons why a non-Christian should accept the authority of the Bible, rather it is aimed at those who accept Jesus as Lord. It’s an unfortunate fact that there are some today who are advocating for a separation between accepting the Lordship of Jesus and the authority of the Bible. Sometimes this separation is explicit, but most often this separation is implicit in a person’s statements and attitude toward the Bible. When a Christian says that the Flood did not happen, that the walls of Jericho did not fall, or that homosexuality is not sinful they are implying that the Bible is wrong at certain points, yet they still say that Jesus is their Lord. As we will see the only way to be consistent with one’s faith in Jesus is to accept the absolute truth and authority of the Bible.

What Do We Mean By Authority?

Wayne Grudem provides a helpful definition of the authority of the Bible: “The authority of Scripture means that all the words in Scripture are God’s words in such a way that to disbelieve or disobey any word of Scripture is to disbelieve or disobey God.”¹That seems like a pretty good definition, so we will use it as the definition of authority throughout this article. Note that this definition implies inerrancy: everything that the Bible affirms is true.

Facts, Poetry, and Truth

Before looking at the Bible’s claim of authority, we need to bring up the fact that there are different types of literature contained within the Bible. There is historical narrative, poetry, parables, apocalyptic and more. When we say that the Bible is authoritative on every subject it touches on we obviously cannot mean that every sentence in the Bible must be read absolutely literally and taken as such. Every sentence has a context and genre that must be taken into account. Poetry should be read as poetry. Historical narrative should be read as historical narrative. There is truth in every type of literature, and the truth being expressed anywhere in the Bible through any genre is authoritative. Sometimes things are stated as simple facts, other times truth is contained in a metaphor, but everything that the Bible affirms is true and authoritative.

The Old Testament

The Old Testament and the Words of God

First off, the Old Testament claims over and over to be recording the words of God. We see this in Genesis 1 during the creation account where we find the repeated phrase “God said”. The words of the Mosaic Law are recorded as being given directly to Moses by God.² Prophets over and over throughout the Bible preface their statements with some variation of the phrase “thus says the Lord”.³

The words of God are absolutely true and authoritative, so when the Old Testament claims to provide God’s words it is implicitly claiming the truth and authority that those words have.

Of course a person can say that just because the Old Testament claims to record God’s words does not mean it does. This is true, but as we will discuss below this is not an option for the Christian. As soon as a person doubts any claim of the Old Testament they are setting themselves in opposition to the teachings of Jesus and the entire New Testament. And to set oneself in opposition to Jesus is to be anti-Christ.

The New Testament and the Old Testament’s Authority

Secondly, the writings of the New Testament repeatedly affirm both explicitly and implicitly that the Old Testament is true and authoritative. We see the implicit affirmation of the Old Testament’s authority through the allusions and references to the Old Testament on practically every page of the New Testament. Creation, Adam and Eve, the Flood, Abraham, King David, and so on are assumed by the New Testament as actual people and events. It cannot be stressed enough that nowhere in the Bible is the historicity of a person or event in the Old Testament called into question.

The God-Inspired Scripture

We also have explicit claims to the authority of the Old Testament when the New Testament claims that the Old Testament was given by God. Paul tells Timothy that “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2 Timothy 3:16). Peter states that “no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation,for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:20-21). The Scripture referred to in both passages includes all of the Old Testament writings. Both Paul and Peter affirm that the Old Testament is given by the Holy Spirit, and, as previously mentioned, the words of God are necessarily true and authoritative.

God Says, Scripture Says⁴

Another indication that the New Testament considers the Old Testament to be the authoritative words of God is that the New Testament in several places interchanges “God says” and “Scripture says”. In other words the authority of Scripture and of God is considered equal.

An example of “God says” being replaced with “Scripture says” can be seen in Galatians 3:8 which reads, “And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, “In you all the nations shall be blessed.”” In this verse Paul writes that Scripture spoke to Abraham, but in Genesis 12:3 from which Paul is quoting it is not Scripture speaking to Abraham, but God. Another example is from Romans 9:17, “For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.”” Again, Paul writes that Scripture speaks to Pharaoh, but in Exodus 9:16 it is God who is speaking to Pharaoh through Moses, not Scripture.

There are also examples of the words of Scripture being cited as the words God. Without going into detail, some of these passages include the following:

Matthew 19:4-5, quoting Genesis 2:24
Hebrews 3:7, quoting Psalm 95:7
Acts 4:24-25, quoting Psalm 2:1
Acts 13:34-35, quoting Isaiah 55:3
Hebrews 1:6, quoting Deuteronomy 32:43, Psalm 104:4; 45:7; 102:26

What we see from these examples is that the New Testament equates Scripture’s words with God’s words. Since God’s words are absolutely true and authoritative, then Scripture’s words are also absolutely true and authoritative. Just as we cannot question the authority of God’s words, so we cannot question the authority of Scripture’s words.

Where Jesus Goes, We Follow

Finally, as a Christian we are obligated to accept the truth and authority of the Old Testament because Jesus accepted it. Jesus cites the Old Testament as proof of his mission. Arguments with the Pharisees are ended by a simple appeal to the Old Testament. Adam, Abraham, Jonah, all of the Old Testament people and events are accepted as actual people and actual events. Jesus tells people to search the Scripture and he never once questioned the truthfulness of the Old Testament. When a person becomes a Christian they declare that Jesus is Lord. If Jesus is truly our Lord then we are obligated to listen to him and follow his example.

This is not to say that the Mosaic Law is still in affect, rather it is to say that when the Old Testament makes a truth claim we are to accept that truth claim. For example, we can say that the Mosaic Law is fulfilled because of the work of Jesus, but we cannot say that the Mosaic Law was not actually given to Moses on Mount Sinai by God. When a Christian looks at the Old Testament they must look at it through Jesus and accept the truth claims of the Old Testament just as Jesus did.

The New Testament

Next we will look at the New Testament and its claims of truth and authority. Does the New Testament claim authority? Yes, of course it does. The Gospels claim to be trustworthy and authoritative accounts of Jesus’ ministry: Luke claims to be writing an orderly account, John claims in his gospel that he writes so that we may know and believe.⁵ Paul claims authority in his epistles: he passes judgment, commands that his letters be read to the assembled congregation, and states that his teachings are commands of Christ.⁶ Peter, Paul, and John all claim to be providing eyewitness testimony.⁷ James speaks with authority and writes commands.⁸ The book of Revelation claims to be a vision given by Christ and ends with a warning not to add or to take away from the book.⁹ There is absolutely no question that the New Testament writers claim authority.

Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit

Very importantly we find that Jesus grants the Apostles authority through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Jesus says that the Apostles will be led into all truth and that their memories will be guided by the Holy Spirit so that they can teach authoritatively after Jesus’ resurrection.¹⁰ Because the Apostles would be led by the Holy Spirit, what they taught is authoritative for the church.

Cross-Reference Authority

There are also several places where one New Testament writer acknowledges the authority of the writings of another New Testament writer. Most explicitly perhaps is 2 Peter 3:15-16 where Peter classifies Paul’s writings as Scripture. A less explicit example is found in 1 Timothy 5:18 which reads “For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer is worthy of his wages.”” Paul is presenting two statements from Scripture. The first is a quote from Deuteronomy 25:4 and the second is a quote from Luke 10:7. The implication of this is that Luke’s gospel is being considered as Scripture and is quoted alongside Deuteronomy with equal billing. So Peter considers Paul’s writing to be Scripture and Paul considers Luke’s writings to be Scripture – that is about half of the New Testament acknowledging itself as authoritative Scripture.

To Accept Jesus is to Accept the Bible

A final point for Christians to consider is that the Bible is our sole source for our knowledge of Jesus as the Messiah. If a person claims that Jesus is Lord, then they must accept Jesus as he is presented in the New Testament. And if we accept Jesus as presented in the New Testament, then we must accept the Old Testament, just as Jesus did. It is impossible to separate our knowledge of Jesus from the New Testament account. There is no “historical Jesus” separate from the Biblical Jesus. Our knowledge of Jesus comes from the New Testament and we can either accept it or reject it; anything else is unfounded opinion.

All or Nothing

The idea that we must accept or reject the Bible as a whole is a challenge to those who say that Jesus is their Lord while at the same time calling Biblical claims into question. It’s all or nothing. The same writings that give us the information with which we can say “Jesus is Lord” are the same writings that say that the Holy Spirit would guide the Apostles. They are the same writings that present Jesus as fully accepting the truth and authority of the Old Testament. There is no reason to reject one claim while accepting the other. To accept Jesus as Lord while rejecting the truthfulness of any part of the Bible is inconsistent and based completely on personal preference, not fact.

To set our opinions and preferences over the claims of the Bible is ultimately to say that Jesus is Lord only when we agree with him. But if we have the authority to disagree with Jesus then he is not really Lord at all; we are our own lords and we will decide what is true and what is not.

Conclusion

For a Christian to be consistent with their claim that Jesus is Lord they must accept the truth and authority of the entire Bible. The Bible claims this authority for itself both explicitly and implicitly, from beginning to end. Even when we wished that the Bible said something different, or find a teaching challenging, part of living in faith is trusting and obeying God’s words. A non-Christian can reject the truth and authority of the Bible, but the Christian is bound by their submission to Jesus to accept all of the Bible’s words as true, authoritative, and ultimately from God.

Notes

Grudem, Wayne. Systematice Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, Grand Rapids, MI: InterVarsity Press, 2004, pp. 73.
Exodus 20-31
Some examples of “Thus says the Lord” are Exodus 4:22, Joshua 7:13, Judges 6:8, 1 Samuel 10:18, 2 Samuel 7:5, 1 Kings 2:30, 2 Kings 1:4, 1 Chronicles 17:4, 2 Chronicles 11:4, Isaiah 7:7, Jeremiah 2:5, Ezekiel 2:4, Amos 1:3, Obadiah 1:1, Micah 2:3, Nahum 1:12, Haggai 1:2, Zechariah 1:3, Malachi 1:4, and dozens of other places
The information in this section comes from The Inspiration and Authority of the Bible by B.B. Warfield, Chapter 7 titled “It Says:” “Scripture Says:” “God Says”
Luke 1:1-4, John 21:24-25
1 Corinthians 5:3, Colossians 4:16, 1 Corinthians 14:37
2 Peter 1:16, 1 Corinthians 15:8, 1 John 1:1-4
James 1:2 and throughout the letter
Revelation 1:1; 22:18-19
John 14:26; 16:12-15