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Lesson 3: The Bible Is Unique In Its Inerrancy

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What exactly does it mean to say, “the Bible is inerrant”? It simply means that the Bible is without error in its original autographs and therefore the copies can be trusted. There are two prevailing views in Christianity regarding inerrancy. One view is called limited inerrancy. This view limits the scope of inerrancy to such things as matters of faith and practice, or to the message of salvation. For example, one might say: “The Bible is infallible, as I define that term, but not inerrant. That is, there are historical and scientific errors in the Bible, but I have found none on matters of faith and practice.”1 Christians from liberal backgrounds often take this view.

The other view is absolute inerrancy. It teaches that “Scripture in the original manuscripts does not affirm anything that is contrary to fact.”2 In general, a simple definition might be “that the Bible tells the truth.”3 Christians from conservative backgrounds take this view. When there is an apparent error in the Bible, they claim that it is an error of the manuscript, its translation, or our understanding. Absolute inerrancy is more consistent with what the Bible teaches about itself—that the Bible is perfect and without fault.

Why is believing in absolute inerrancy so important? Simply, if the Bible is in error at even just one point, it can be presumed to be erroneous in any place. This then begs the question, “How can we trust anything the Bible says?” As soon as the foundational belief of Scripture’s inerrancy is lost, every other doctrine comes under scrutiny. First one doubts the accuracy of miraculous stories, like Moses parting the Red Sea, Jonah being swallowed by a big fish, or the flood story. Then, they doubt doctrines with greater consequences, like the creation story, Christ’s resurrection, his second coming, hell, and salvation itself. It is a very slippery slope.

Why should we believe in the Bible’s inerrancy? Essentially, for four reasons:

1. Evidence for Scripture’s inerrancy is found in God’s character.

Titus 1:1-2 says: “to further the faith of God’s chosen ones and the knowledge of the truth that is in keeping with godliness, in hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the ages began.” Paul encouraged Titus with the fact that eternal life is promised by God, who cannot lie. That is why we can trust all of Scripture. Scripture is God’s Word, and God cannot tell a lie. Numbers 23:19 says this: “God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a human being, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not make it happen?”

In fact, Christ called himself “the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6). Jesus is the truth because there is nothing false in him. Everything he says and does is true because he is God and that is his character.

2. Evidence for Scripture’s inerrancy is substantiated by what the Bible teaches about itself—that every word is true, not just the ideas of Scripture.

In Matthew 4:4, Christ said this, as he quoted Deuteronomy 8:3: “It is written, ‘Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Jesus said that man lives on “every word” that comes from the mouth of God, not SOME words or SOME ideas. Likewise, 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “Every scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” In agreement, the Psalms say:

The law of the Lord is perfect and preserves one’s life.

Psalm 19:7

All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal.

Psalm 119:160 (NIV)

The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times.

Psalm 12:6 (ESV)

Scripture teaches that every part of it is true, not just some parts or the main ideas of Scripture.

3. Evidence for Scripture’s inerrancy is proven by Scripture’s preservation.

Jesus said this, “I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth pass away not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter will pass from the law until everything takes place” (Matt 5:18). As we have already examined, God has indeed preserved his Word, as seen in its historical reliability. It is more reliable than any ten ancient manuscripts combined.

4. Evidence for Scripture’s inerrancy is demonstrated by how the authors of Scripture use Scripture in such a way that supports its inerrancy.

In the Bible, at times, an entire argument rests on a single word (e.g., “God” in John 10:34–35 and Psalm 82:6), the tense of a verb (e.g., the present tense in Matt 22:32), and the difference between a singular and a plural noun (e.g., “descendant” in Gal 3:16). Let’s consider an example: In Matthew 22:30–32, the entire argument rests on a single word. The Sadducees were the liberal believers in Christ’s day—they did not believe in miracles, the resurrection, or even an afterlife. One day, they tested Christ on his belief in the resurrection. They concocted a scenario wherein a woman’s husband died and so she married his brother. The brother died and she married another brother. He died and she married another and so on until the seventh brother died. Then she died. Then, the Sadducees asked Christ, “At the resurrection, whose wife will she be?” “Basically, they argued that the idea of resurrection posed insuperable difficulties, hence it was not reasonable, therefore it was not true.”4 Consider Christ’s response:

Jesus answered them, “You are deceived, because you don’t know the scriptures or the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. Now as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living!”

Matthew 22:29-32

Here, Christ’s argument rests on the tense of the word “am.” Essentially, Christ said, “Didn’t you notice that ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’ was written in the present tense?” Christ was saying that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are all still alive, and therefore, would one day be resurrected. This logic confronted the Sadducee’s lack of belief in the afterlife and the resurrection. Every word has been chosen by God, even down to the tense.

We also see this in how Paul handled Scripture. In Galatians 3:16, he said:

Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his descendant. Scripture does not say, “and to the descendants,” referring to many, but “and to your descendant,” referring to one, who is Christ.

Galatians 3:16

When looking at God’s promises to Abraham and his descendant, Paul argues that the promises were not to the nation of Israel specifically, but to one descendant, Christ, and therefore, everybody in Christ (cf. Gal 3:29). He clarifies that the promises were to Abraham’s “descendant,” singular, and not “descendants,” plural. The argument rests on the singularity of a specific word God chose to use in Scripture.

The Bible is inspired and inerrant even down to the tense and plurality of the words. Every word is inspired by God and not just the ideas of Scripture. This gives credence to studying and meditating on each word of the Bible since we believe God chose them for a purpose. This is one of the reasons many Bible students study the original languages of Scripture. They do this because they are convinced of the validity of each word. Jesus said, “Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matt 4:4).

Questions About Inerrancy?

1. Some Might Ask, “How Can The Bible Be Without Error If Mere Humans Wrote It? I Know God Made It But So Did Humans, And Humans Are Fallible.”

This statement is true; therefore, Scriptural inerrancy must be clearly recognized as a miracle. People are sinful and prone to error. However, God is perfect and cannot err. The Holy Spirit inspired the authors in such a way that he kept them from error in the writing of Scripture.

2. Some Might Ask, “What About Apparent Errors In Scripture Such As Scientific, Historical Or Grammatical Errors?” Here Are Some General Principles To Consider:

  • The Bible can be inerrant and still speak in ordinary, everyday language.

For example, today people commonly use jargon like the sun rose (sunrise) or the sun went down (sunset). However, the sun technically never moves—the earth does. Though these are not scientifically accurate statements, they are culturally acceptable statements which are deemed truthful. Scripture uses similar statements. In Joshua 10:13-14, Scripture describes how the sun and moon stood still, as God enabled Israel to defeat an army. What really happened is God miraculously made the earth stand still. However, the narrator describes the event by how it appeared visually, just as people do today. Though not written in scientific language, it is still truthful language.

Likewise, the Bible also uses approximations. In today’s language, if one says his or her house is 5 miles away, but it is actually 4.5 miles away, the statement is not considered deceptive. The distance is understood and accepted as an approximation. If the person really lived 100 miles away, then the statement would be an exaggeration and thus considered a lie. Sometimes, approximations are used on the news when accounting for death and injury tolls after a major accident. Likewise, when we share with others about these tragedies, we, too, often use approximations. Our intent is to share the truth and the seriousness of a situation but not necessarily the precise numbers. The authors of Scripture frequently did that in their writings when counting people or deaths. For them, the focus was truthfulness and not necessarily exact precision.

  • The Bible can be inerrant and still include loose or free quotations.

Ancient Greek did not have quotation marks. When quoting someone in the ancient world, it simply had to be an accurate representation of the content of what one said.5 It didn’t have to be word for word. Therefore, authors in Scripture routinely followed that same pattern in their translations. They would often paraphrase an Old Testament text. This is how we often share what someone else said today, especially when shared verbally. Our intent is to relay the truth, and not necessarily the exact words.

  • The Bible can be inerrant and still contradict accepted historical or scientific beliefs.

It should be remembered that current scientific and historical beliefs often contradict previously held beliefs. Science and history are still evolving as more findings are discovered, but Scripture does not change. It is complete. Therefore, we can be assured that when all subsequent discoveries are revealed, Scripture will be proved correct. For this reason, Christians should not doubt Scripture’s accuracy because of scientific or historical theories, as compelling as they may be. God is the Creator of the world, and he established how the world runs (science); he also knows the beginning from the end and is in control of both (history). Therefore, we can trust what the Bible says in all areas of science and history.

3. Someone Might Ask, “If We Do Not Have The Original Manuscripts, Isn’t The Argument Of Inerrancy In The Original Manuscripts A Moot Argument?”

When we consider how the apostles and the early church viewed the copies of Scripture, their belief in the reliability and authority of the copies is clear. Therefore, we should trust them as well. Consider the following:

  • In 2 Timothy 3:16, when Paul spoke about Scripture being God-inspired and useful for training in righteousness, he was using copies, not the originals. The early church was using copies just as we are now. The original texts were copied and passed from church to church. Yet, the early church believed those copies were inspired and authoritative.
  • It is clear that the early church believed the copies were authoritative by their use of Old Testament quotations in the New Testament. The majority of the OT quotes in the NT were from the Septuagint, which was the Greek version of the Old Testament.6 Even though the original verses were in Hebrew, the writers of the NT still considered the Greek translation authoritative. Even Jesus quoted the Septuagint in his rendering of Isaiah 29:13, from Mark 7:6–7:

He said to them, “Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. They worship me in vain, teaching as doctrine the commandments of men.’

Again, this is a quote from a translated copy, but it was still inspired by God. The apostles primarily quoted from Greek copies of the OT in the inspired New Testament. If Jesus and the apostles trusted the copies, then we can trust them as well.

Here is a contemporary argument. If I apply for a job, the company will most likely take a photocopy of my driver’s license and social security card to keep for its records. The company knows the copy is not perfect, it may have a smudge here or there, but in general, the copy is considered accurate and acceptable. This is how the early church handled the copies of Scripture, and so should we. God has preserved his words, and they are still authoritative.

As mentioned, when we compare the thousands of copies of Scripture, they are in 95 to 99% agreement.7 The errors are typically small copyist errors. When comparing a manuscript error with the content of thousands of other manuscripts, what was originally penned is typically clear. This is what we call textual criticism.

If there are errors in the Bible, they are errors in our understanding of the text, with the copy of the manuscript used, or with the translation. But the Bible itself cannot have errors because God is its author, and he cannot err. He has promised to preserve his Word.

Application

What does all this mean for us?

1. Scripture’s Inerrancy Means We Can Trust What The Bible Says.

We should not doubt spectacular stories in Scripture, such as the universal flood, Moses parting the Red Sea, Jonah being swallowed by a big fish, the virgin birth, Christ’s sinless life, the resurrection, or prophecies about the end times. We can believe the Bible’s teaching about history, science, morality, wisdom, Christ, salvation, and the end times. Scripture holds the very words of God, and therefore, it is not only authoritative and powerful, it is also trustworthy.

2. Scripture’s Inerrancy Gives Us Insight Into How To Study God’s Word.

As mentioned, it is good to occasionally meditate on individual words—noting their tenses, meaning, position in a sentence, etc.—because each word was specifically chosen by God. Every part of Scripture (including each word) is God-inspired and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so God’s people can be equipped for every good work (2 Tim 3:16-17).

To the Sadducees, Jesus said, “Have you not read?” Yes, they had read Scripture, but they hadn’t studied and meditated on each word—and therefore missed the powerful truth of the resurrection, which would have changed their lives (cf. Matt 22:30–32). Many times, we miss a great deal in our study of the Bible as well. Therefore, we should study Scripture both telescopically (trying to understand the big picture) and microscopically (trying to understand details). Both approaches will greatly enrich our time in God’s Word.

Reflection

  1. In the reading, what aspect of the Bible’s inerrancy stood out most to you and why?
  2. What is the difference between limited inerrancy and absolute inerrancy?
  3. What are some reasons to believe in the absolute inerrancy of Scripture?
  4. How should the absolute inerrancy of Scripture affect a person?
  5. What other questions or applications do you have from the reading?

Copyright © 2020 Gregory Brown

Unless otherwise noted, the primary Scriptures used are taken from the NET Bible ® copyright © 1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NASB) are taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, and 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are from the King James Version of the Bible.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added.

BTG Publishing all rights reserved.


1 Ryrie, C. C. (1999). Basic Theology: A Popular Systematic Guide to Understanding Biblical Truth (p. 92). Chicago, IL: Moody Press.

2 Grudem, W. A. (2004). Systematic theology: an introduction to biblical doctrine (p. 90). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; Zondervan Pub. House.

3 Ryrie, C. C. (1999). Basic Theology: A Popular Systematic Guide to Understanding Biblical Truth (p. 93). Chicago, IL: Moody Press.

4 MacDonald, William. Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments. (A. Farstad, Ed.). Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1995), 1287.

5 Grudem, W. A. (2004). Systematic theology: an introduction to biblical doctrine (p. 92). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; Zondervan Pub. House.

6 Gleason Archer and Gregory C. Chirichigno, Old Testament Quotations in the New Testament: A Complete Survey. (Eugene, Oregon: Wipf & Stock Pub, 2005), Kindle edition.

7 Josh Mcdowell. New Evidence that Demands a Verdict. (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1999), Kindle edition.

Related Topics: Basics for Christians, Bibliology (The Written Word), Inerrancy

Lesson 4: The Bible Is Unique In Its Canonicity

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The English word “canon” comes from a Hebrew and Greek word which means “measuring rod.”1 Later the word came to refer to a “standard” or “list.” When used of Scripture, it refers to the official list of books in the Bible. Therefore, the topic of “canonicity” refers to how the books of the Bible were recognized as authoritative. We will look first at the OT and then the NT.

Old Testament Canon

As we considered previously, revelation was continually added to the Old Testament. It started with God writing the Ten Commandments with his own hand, then Moses writing the books of the law, Joshua adding to Moses’ work, and God successively calling other prophets to write down revelation. By God’s command, these authoritative books were kept in the tabernacle and later the temple. The last Old Testament book written was Malachi, and it was written about 430 BC—430 years before Christ came.

The period between the writing of the last OT book and the appearance of Christ is called the intertestamental period (the time between the testaments). This was a period of over 400 “silent” years, throughout which there were no Scriptural additions. There were, however, historical writings produced during those silent years, such as the Apocrypha, which are not part of the Canon. These books demonstrated the common belief among Jews that God had stopped speaking authoritatively during that time period. Wayne Grudem adds:

When we turn to Jewish literature outside the Old Testament, we see that the belief that divinely authoritative words from God had ceased is clearly attested in several different strands of extrabiblical Jewish literature.

In 1 Maccabees (about 100 BC) the author writes of the defiled altar, “So they tore down the altar and stored the stones in a convenient place on the temple hill until there should come a prophet to tell what to do with them” (1 Macc. 4:45–46). They apparently knew of no one who could speak with the authority of God as the Old Testament prophets had done. The memory of an authoritative prophet among the people was one that belonged to the distant past, for the author could speak of a great distress “such as had not been since the time that prophets ceased to appear among them” (1 Macc. 9:27; cf. 14:41).2

Because of the general consensus that God was not speaking during the intertestamental period, the fact that the OT was kept secure by the priests and Levites who served the temple, and that the OT was preserved and taught in various Jewish synagogues throughout the world, the current list of OT books was accepted “as early as the fourth century BC and certainly no later than 150 BC.”3 Though there must have been some debate, there was early universal acceptance of the established thirty-nine books. Within the New Testament, there is no record of debate amongst Christ, the disciples, or the Jews about the canonicity of the OT.4 Since the religious leaders brought other debatable questions about the OT to Christ, if the OT Canon was in doubt, it seems reasonable to presume such doubt would have been a prominent question to pose to him; however, it never was (and if it had been, it was not deemed significant enough to include in the NT canon). Also, the fact that the NT authors quoted the OT Scriptures 295 times as divinely inspired and didn’t quote the Apocrypha or any other writings as having divine authority, implies they were settled on the extent of the OT canon.5 The OT Canon debate, if any, was clearly settled before New Testament times.

Further confirmation of the OT Canon’s early acceptance is seen in Josephus’ writing (AD 37–100). He said that the Jews held as sacred only twenty-two books, which included exactly the same content as our present thirty-nine book OT Canon.6 Also, the Jewish council of Jamnia discussed the canonicity of the existing Hebrew Canon in AD 90. “Some questioned whether it was right to accept (as was being done) Esther, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon.”7 The council simply confirmed the already accepted Canon.

Apocrypha

The questions must then be asked, “What is the Apocrypha?” and “Why do the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Bibles include the Apocrypha in the Old Testament?” The Apocrypha are books written during the intertestamental period, which detail the history of that time period. Several of these books are included in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Bibles. In the fourth century AD, St. Jerome, the translator of the Latin Vulgate, was the first to name the books the “Apocrypha” (meaning “hidden” or “concealed”).8

The history of how the Apocrypha was created includes the Jews being exiled by Babylon, Persia’s eventual rule over Babylon and thus the Israelites, and eventually, the Greeks conquering Persia. As Greece became the world power under Alexander the Great, Greek became the known world’s official language. Consequently, many Jews began to lose their native tongue, Hebrew, and needed Old Testaments in the Greek language. The Greek translation written during the third and second centuries BC is called the Septuagint (or LXX), which means “seventy” in Latin.9 Legend says that Ptolemy II Philadelphus of Egypt (285-246 BC) commissioned seventy-two Jewish scholars to translate the Hebrew Bible.10 Within the Septuagint, the Apocrypha was added to fill in the historical gap between the Old and New Testament. The books were considered good reading but were never considered part of the Canon by the Jews. However, because it was included in the Greek translation of the Old Testament and many could not read the Hebrew Canon, some began to believe the Apocrypha was part of the original Canon.

Pope Damasus I, who lived from AD 305 to 384, commissioned a scholar named Jerome to translate a Latin Bible, as Rome was the dominant world power and propagator of Christianity. Jerome created the Latin Vulgate which included the Apocrypha and was used by the Roman Catholic Church and those who spoke Latin for centuries. However, when he added them, he said they were “not books of the Canon” but “books of the Church.” Unfortunately, this clarification did not stop people from considering them as part of the Canon. In 1546, at the Council of Trent, the Roman Catholic Church officially ruled that the Apocrypha would be part of the Canon.11 It is significant to note that this council was the Catholic Church’s response to Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation, which challenged many Catholic doctrines12 and removed the Apocrypha from Protestant Bibles.13

Why was the Apocrypha accepted into the Canon by the Catholic Church? For at least two reasons: (1) As mentioned, during this period some believed that it was part of the Canon, because it was included in the Septuagint and the Latin Vulgate. (2) Additionally, the Apocrypha was included because the teachings were crucial to certain beliefs in Catholic doctrine, which are not supported in the rest of Scripture. These beliefs include purgatory (a place for believers to go to be purged before entering heaven), almsgiving for forgiveness, prayers for the dead (the prayers of believers help the dead become purged in purgatory so they can enter heaven), and salvation by works.

Why is the Apocrypha not included in the Protestant Old Testament Canon? For many reasons:

1. None of the writers declared divine inspiration.

2. Jesus and the apostles never clearly quoted or applied it anywhere in the NT.

3. Many of the teachings contradict the Bible, such as purgatory, salvation by works, prayers for the dead, etc., and in general, many of its teachings do not fit with the character and nature of God. For example, consider the following verses from Ecclesiasticus:

Any iniquity is insignificant compared to a wife’s iniquity.

Ecclesiasticus 25:19

From a woman sin had its beginning. Because of her we all die.

Ecclesiasticus 25:24

It is a disgrace to be the father of an undisciplined, and the birth of a daughter is a loss.

Ecclesiasticus 22:3

4. The Jews never accepted it as part of the Canon.

5. The books in the Apocrypha make reference to the silent 400 years, during which there were no prophets to write inspired materials. Consider the following verses from 1 Maccabees:

And they laid up the stones in the mountain of the temple in a convenient place, till there should come a prophet, and give answer concerning them.

1 Maccabees 4:46

And there was a great tribulation in Israel, such as was not since the day, that there was no prophet seen in Israel.

1 Maccabees 9:27

And that the Jews, and their priests, had consented that he should be their prince, and high priest for ever, till there should arise a faithful prophet.

1 Maccabees 14:41

In conclusion, the Apocrypha was written around 200-150 BC and was included in the Greek translation of the OT, called the Septuagint, and later in the Latin Vulgate. Because of this, some eventually began to consider it as inspired, even though it was initially merely considered good reading for Jews and Christians. Though Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christians accept some of these books as inspired, Jews and Protestants do not accept them as inspired for many reasons, including the fact that New Testament never quotes them, that the doctrine within them at times contradicts Scripture, and that the authors of the Apocrypha never claim divine inspiration.14

New Testament Canon

What about the New Testament Canon: when was it formed and how? The NT process of canonization is more complex than the OT process. Unlike the Old Testament, New Testament books were not kept securely in the temple by the priests and Levites, with copies in every Jewish synagogue. The NT books were being circulated around the Middle East, Asia, Europe, and Africa. At the same time, many false writings started to circulate with them and there arose a need to affirm which books were in the Canon. It should be noted that the early church did not select books for the Canon but simply recognized what God had already affirmed. Norm Geisler and William Nix said this:

A book is not the Word of God because it is accepted by the people of God. Rather, it was accepted by the people of God because it is the Word of God. That is, God gives the book its divine authority, not the people of God. They merely recognize the divine authority which God gives to it.15

Key to affirming NT books was apostolic approval. This considers whether a specific book was written by an apostle or approved by the apostles. Just as the primary writers of the Old Testament were prophets—those who proclaimed declarative words from the Lord—the primary writers of the New Testament were apostles. The apostles were Christ’s twelve disciples and a few others, such as Paul. All were official witnesses of Christ’s resurrection. In Ephesians 2:18-20, Paul described the apostles as the foundation of the church:

so that through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer foreigners and noncitizens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household, because you have been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.

The apostles were the foundation of the church by their teachings and their writing of the New Testament. Similarly, Peter said: “I want you to recall both the predictions foretold by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles” (2 Peter 3:2). Peter declared in his letter that Jesus was speaking through the apostles and thus classified them as having the same rank and authority as the OT prophets who recorded Scripture. Dr. Michael Kruger said this about the early church’s perspective of the apostles and their writings:

If apostles were viewed as the mouthpiece of Christ, and it was believed that they wrote down that apostolic message in books, then those books would be received as the very words of Christ himself. Such writings would not have to wait until second-, third-or fourth-century ecclesiastical decisions to be viewed as authoritative—instead they would be viewed as authoritative from almost the very start. For this reason, a written New Testament was not something the church formally “decided” to have at some later date, but was instead the natural outworking of the early church’s view of the function of the apostles.16

Dr. Kruger’s insight highlights the role of apostolic approval, one of the primary instruments used when affirming the books of the New Testament. For example, the books of Mark, Luke, Acts, Hebrews, and Jude were not written by apostles but were accepted and approved by them.

There were still other criteria used in determining which books were to be recognized as part of the NT Canon. The early church asked these questions:

  1. Is it authoritative? (Did it claim to come from the Lord with sayings such as: “Thus saith the Lord”?)
  2. Is it prophetic? (Was it written by an apostle or a prophet? Or, did it have the approval of the apostles, such as the books of Mark and Luke?)
  3. Is it consistent? (Did it agree or disagree with Scripture?)
  4. Is it dynamic? (Did it effect change in peoples’ lives, as Scripture does?)
  5. Is it received? (Did it have the approval of the early church by being widely circulated and thus bearing the witness of the Holy Spirit in believers?)17

For example, in the case of Luke and Acts, they had the affirmation of the apostles and the early church. Luke was an apostolic associate—serving with Paul in his missionary journeys. When referring to Luke’s writings, Paul called them Scripture. Consider what Paul said, in 1 Timothy 5:18: “For the scripture says, ‘Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,’ and, ‘The worker deserves his pay.’” When describing Deuteronomy 25:4 and Luke 10:7, Paul referred to them both as Scripture. In Luke 10:7, Luke quoted Christ saying, “Stay in that same house, eating and drinking what they give you, for the worker deserves his pay. Do not move around from house to house.” Paul’s affirmation of Luke’s writing shows that it was already being widely circulated and accepted by the early church.

Similarly, Mark was not only a companion of Paul but also of Peter, and the early church readily accepted his writing. Jude and James were brothers of Christ, and James, specifically, was also called an apostle (though not of the original twelve; cf. Gal 1:19, 2:6-10). These books were affirmed by the apostles, widely circulated amongst the early church, and consistent with the rest of Scripture.

With Paul, Peter specifically affirmed his writings as Scripture. In 2 Peter 3:15-16, he said:

And regard the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as also our dear brother Paul wrote to you, according to the wisdom given to him, speaking of these things in all his letters. Some things in these letters are hard to understand, things the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they also do to the rest of the scriptures.

Hebrews is another matter. The early church thought Paul wrote it; however, there is no clear textual evidence to support that belief. Nevertheless, it was included because of its rich truth and the external witness of the early church. Hebrews quotes the Old Testament more than any other New Testament book and was widely accepted by the early church, despite not knowing its authorship. Again, the church did not decide which books deserved to be in the Canon; it simply recognized what God had already affirmed.

Though there are many early NT Canon partial lists which have survived—including the Muratorian Canon (AD 170) and a list of twenty six NT books in the Council of Laodicea (AD 363)—the Thirty-ninth Paschal Letter of Athanasius (AD 367) gives the first authoritative list of the NT Canon with all twenty-seven books.18 The Council of Hippo (AD 393) and the Council of Carthage (AD 397) also had the same list.19

Pseudepigrapha

As mentioned, many false books were being circulated in the early church, which made identifying the official books especially important. These false books were called Pseudepigrapha, which means “false writings.” They were written between 200 BC to 300 AD.20 The true authors are unknown, but they tacked the names of famous biblical characters to the books to gain a readership. Even Paul had to deal with these types of writing. He warned the Thessalonians to not be “shaken” or “disturbed” by any letter which was “allegedly” from him (2 Thess 2:2). The books not only have false names, but historical errors, gross fabrications, and even heresy in them.

A few of them are the Testament of Abraham, the Books of Enoch, the Books of Noah, the Gospel of Mary Magdalene, the Gospel of Thomas, the Gospel of Judas, and the Gospel of Barnabas. Why were they not included in the Canon? Simply because they failed the criteria used for recognizing canonical books. They were not written by apostles or their associates; they were not recognized by the early church; and they contradict the rest of Scripture in many aspects.

For example, the Gospel of Thomas became quite popular because of a conspiracy theory fiction book, later made into a movie, called The Da Vinci Code. In the story, the Catholic church secretly hid the Gospel of Thomas, keeping it from ever being accepted as part of the Canon. Is this possible? No. Any reader familiar with Scripture can tell that what is taught in the book doesn’t align with Scripture. For example, in The Gospel of Thomas (Saying 114), it says:

Simon Peter said to them: “Let Mary go away from us, for women are not worthy of life.” Jesus said: “Lo, I shall lead her, so that I may make her a male, that she too may become a living spirit, resembling you males. For every woman who makes herself a male will enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Clearly, its teachings fail the test of consistency. The rest of the Pseudepigrapha has similar flaws.

Personal Acceptance Of The Bible

We’ve talked about the process of canonicity which the early church went through in affirming the official books of the Bible; however, we must now address the question, “Why should we personally trust that the Bible is God’s Word?” We certainly weren’t with the early church when the decisions were made, and most of us haven’t considered other potential books which could be included in Scripture. We can personally accept the Bible as God’s Word for the following reasons:

1. We can accept the Bible because of the Holy Spirit’s confirmation in our hearts.

Christ said this:

… I told you and you do not believe. The deeds I do in my Father’s name testify about me. But you refuse to believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; no one will snatch them from my hand.

John 10:25-28

He also described, in John 10:4-5, how sheep recognize the voice of the shepherd and will not follow a stranger. Those who are truly born again recognize Christ’s voice in God’s Word, and that’s why they believe the Bible is true. This is a supernatural work which the Holy Spirit does in the life of a believer. First Corinthians 2:12-14 says the same:

Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things that are freely given to us by God. And we speak about these things, not with words taught us by human wisdom, but with those taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual things to spiritual people. The unbeliever does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. And he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.

If we are Christ’s sheep, the Holy Spirit confirms and enlightens his Word to us. Has the Holy Spirit confirmed the truthfulness of God’s Word in your heart?

2. We can accept the Bible based on God’s promises to preserve his Word.

In Matthew 5:17-18, Christ said:

Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have not come to abolish these things but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth pass away not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter will pass from the law until everything takes place.

Part of the reason we can trust that the Bible is God’s Word is because of God’s faithfulness to his promises. Not a letter or stroke of the pen will disappear from Scripture. It is imperishable and enduring (cf. 1 Pet 1:23-25). If God wanted people to know his Word, surely he would keep and preserve it. We trust that he has.

3. We can accept the Bible because there are many evidences that confirm it as truth.

There are innumerable historical evidences of the Bible’s truthfulness. As mentioned, the Bible is the most historically reliable ancient book, a fact which manuscript evidence and archaeological findings continue to affirm. In addition, the Bible contains much prophetic evidence of its truthfulness. The Bible is a prophetic book with some 1000 prophecies in it—half of them have come true and the other half awaits completion.21 Prophecies prove the truthfulness of Scripture. We’ll study some of these soon. If these were not enough, we have the evidence of changed lives. God is continually changing lives through this book. Hopefully, we’ve all experienced this as a personal evidence, which gives us confidence in God’s Word.

Is The Canon Complete?

How do we know the Bible is complete? Will future books be added? Obviously, some have tried to add to the Canon, such as Mormons and other groups. However, historically, the church has always believed that the Canon is closed. Why? First, it should be said that the Bible never clearly says it is complete, but there are many reasons to believe it is. For example:

  1. The book of Revelation is the perfect closure to the Bible, just as Genesis is the perfect beginning. In Genesis, God creates the heavens and the earth. In Revelation, it gives future details about the judgment of the current heavens and the earth and the renewing of the heaven and earth. After creation, Genesis describes God’s presence in a garden, with people and the tree of life (Gen 2). Revelation closes with God’s presence in a city, with people and trees of life (Rev 22:2). Revelation is the perfect bookend to the Bible’s story.
  2. At the end of the Old Testament Canon with Malachi, there was unparalleled silence during the intertestamental period, as they awaited the coming of Christ. Similarly, since the writing of Revelation, there has been unparalleled silence as we await the return of Christ.
  3. It seems that the need for prophets and apostles, in the sense of those who wrote Scripture, has ceased. Therefore, there are no candidates who would be universally accepted to write other books.
  4. The early church—those closest to the apostles—believed Revelation was the last book of the Bible.

Reflection

  1. In the reading, what stood out most to you and why?
  2. Why is it important to establish that God selected the books in the Canon and believers just affirmed them and not vice-versa?
  3. What questions were asked by early believers about books which could potentially be included in the Canon?
  4. Why did Jews and early Christians reject the inclusion of the Apocrypha? Why do the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches include them?
  5. How do we know that no new books will be added to the Canon?
  6. What other questions or applications do you have from the reading?

Copyright © 2020 Gregory Brown

Unless otherwise noted, the primary Scriptures used are taken from the NET Bible ® copyright © 1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NASB) are taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, and 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are from the King James Version of the Bible.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added.

BTG Publishing all rights reserved.


1 Accessed 9/5/19 from https://www.britannica.com/topic/biblical-literature/Old-Testament-canon-texts-and-versions

2 Grudem, W. A. (1994). Systematic theology: An introduction to biblical doctrine (56). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Inter-Varsity Press; Zondervan Pub. House.

3 McDowell, Josh. Evidence That Demands a Verdict (p. 34). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

4 Grudem, W. A. (2004). Systematic theology: an introduction to biblical doctrine (p. 56). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; Zondervan Pub. House.

5 Grudem, W. A. (2004). Systematic theology: an introduction to biblical doctrine (p. 57). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; Zondervan Pub. House.

6 Ryrie, C. C. (1999). Basic Theology: A Popular Systematic Guide to Understanding Biblical Truth (p. 121). Chicago, IL: Moody Press.

7 Ryrie, C. C. (1999). Basic Theology: A Popular Systematic Guide to Understanding Biblical Truth (pp. 121–122). Chicago, IL: Moody Press.

8 McDowell, Josh. Evidence That Demands a Verdict (p. 38). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

9 Accessed 9/5/19 from https://www.gotquestions.org/septuagint.html

10 Accessed 9/5/19 from https://biblearchaeology.org/research/new-testament-era/4022-a-brief-history-of-the-septuagint

11 McDowell, Josh. Evidence That Demands a Verdict (p. 40). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

12 Grudem, W. A. (2004). Systematic theology: an introduction to biblical doctrine (p. 59). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; Zondervan Pub. House.

13 Accessed 9/5/19 from https://www.biblica.com/resources/bible-faqs/why-do-some-bibles-have-a-section-called-the-apocrypha/

14 Grudem, W. A. (2004). Systematic theology: an introduction to biblical doctrine (p. 59). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; Zondervan Pub. House.

15 McDowell, Josh. Evidence That Demands a Verdict (p. 26). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

16 McDowell, Josh. Evidence That Demands a Verdict (p. 27). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

Lesson 5: The Bible Is Unique In Its Prophetic Nature

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The Bible is unique in that one quarter of it is prophetic; it contains about 1000 prophecies, 500 of which have not yet been fulfilled.1 In fact, God used prophecy to prove his deity and to disprove the deity of other “gods.” Isaiah 41:21-24 says:

Present your argument,” says the Lord. “Produce your evidence,” says Jacob’s king. “Let them produce evidence! Let them tell us what will happen! Tell us about your earlier predictive oracles, so we may examine them and see how they were fulfilled. Or decree for us some future events! Predict how future events will turn out, so we might know you are gods. Yes, do something good or bad, so we might be frightened and in awe. Look, you are nothing, and your accomplishments are nonexistent; the one who chooses to worship you is disgusting.

God challenged other so-called “gods” to share their past prophecies or to share new ones to prove their deity. He then declared that those who worship these false gods were disgusting. In Isaiah 42:8-9 and 48:3, God said this about himself:

I am the Lord! That is my name! I will not share my glory with anyone else, or the praise due me with idols. Look, my earlier predictive oracles have come to pass; now I announce new events. Before they begin to occur, I reveal them to you.

I announced events beforehand, I issued the decrees and made the predictions; suddenly I acted and they came to pass.

God presented prophecy as proof that he is the true God—he foretold events and they happened. Since prophecy is given as an evidence of God’s deity, these prophecies must be diligently studied to strengthen the faith of believers and used apologetically with nonbelievers. What are some of these prophetic evidences? First, we’ll consider fulfilled, past prophecies and then unfulfilled, future ones.

Fulfilled Prophecies

Prophecies About King Cyrus And King Josiah

At times in Scripture, God gives names of prominent people and the works they would accomplish even before they were born. In fact, after challenging the false gods to prove themselves by giving and fulfilling prophecies, God predicted that he would send Israel back from captivity through a future leader, named Cyrus. Consider Isaiah 44:28 and 45:1-4:

who commissions Cyrus, the one I appointed as shepherd to carry out all my wishes and to decree concerning Jerusalem, ‘She will be rebuilt,’ and concerning the temple, ‘It will be reconstructed.’”

This is what the Lord says to his chosen one, to Cyrus, whose right hand I hold in order to subdue nations before him, and disarm kings, to open doors before him, so gates remain unclosed: “I will go before you and level mountains. Bronze doors I will shatter and iron bars I will hack through. I will give you hidden treasures, riches stashed away in secret places, so you may recognize that I am the Lord, the one who calls you by name, the God of Israel. For the sake of my servant Jacob, Israel, my chosen one, I call you by name and give you a title of respect, even though you do not recognize me.

What makes this prophecy even more interesting is the fact Israel had not yet been exiled to Babylon. To the Israelites, Isaiah must have appeared crazy. The book of Isaiah was written between 739—681 BC, during Isaiah’s prophetic ministry to Judah.2 In Isaiah 39, Isaiah actually prophesied to Hezekiah that in a later generation, Babylon would take Judah into exile. Then he prophesied that Cyrus, the king of Persia, would send Israel back to their land to rebuild it, which happened in 538 BC. Isaiah gave this prophecy approximately 100 years before Cyrus was born and an almost 150 years before his rule.3

Because of the difficulties of this prophecy, liberal scholars teach that Isaiah must not have written the book. They declare there must have been two or three authors (Deutero-Isaiah or Trito-Isaiah) writing the book at different times.4 Since liberal scholars don’t accept the miraculous nature of prophecy and it would be impossible for Isaiah to have lived before Israel’s exile, throughout their exile, and after their eventual return, the only conclusion for them is that the book had multiple authors. They speculate that one author would have written before the exile, another during the exile, and the final author after the exile. However, this does not correspond with the internal and external evidence of the book. In Isaiah 1:1, the author claims to have lived during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah—the kings of Judah. In addition, New Testament authors affirm Isaiah as the book’s author by their citations (cf. Matt 12:17, 15:7, etc.).5

Though the miracle of prophecy may be hard to accept for some, God predicting the future and proving himself to be God is the exact point of the context. God essentially said, “False gods, perform a miracle! Predict the future to prove yourself!” and then God predicted the future to prove his deity to all. Again, Isaiah 41:21-23 says:

Present your argument,” says the Lord. “Produce your evidence,” says Jacob’s king. “Let them produce evidence! Let them tell us what will happen! Tell us about your earlier predictive oracles, so we may examine them and see how they were fulfilled. Or decree for us some future events! Predict how future events will turn out, so we might know you are gods…

The fulfillment of the Cyrus prophecy happens in 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 (and Ezra 1:1-11), when Cyrus issued an edict to rebuild Israel and sent a delegation to accomplish it. Second Chronicles 36:22-23 says:

In the first year of the reign of King Cyrus of Persia, in fulfillment of the promise he delivered through Jeremiah, the Lord moved King Cyrus of Persia to issue a written decree throughout his kingdom. It read: “This is what King Cyrus of Persia says: ‘The Lord God of the heavens has given to me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has appointed me to build for him a temple in Jerusalem in Judah. May the Lord your God energize you who belong to his people, so you may be able to go back there!”

King Josiah

Likewise, God also prophesied about King Josiah—calling him by name and telling of his future works long before he was born. In 1 Kings 13:1-2, God predicted that a king named Josiah would arise and sacrifice the false priests on specific high places. First Kings 13:1-2 says:

Just then a prophet from Judah, sent by the Lord, arrived in Bethel, as Jeroboam was standing near the altar ready to offer a sacrifice. With the authority of the Lord he cried out against the altar, “O altar, altar! This is what the Lord says, ‘Look, a son named Josiah will be born to the Davidic dynasty. He will sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who offer sacrifices on you. Human bones will be burned on you.”

This prophecy was fulfilled 300 years later in 2 Kings 23:14-20, as earlier prophesied.6 Second Kings 23:14-20 says:

He smashed the sacred pillars to bits, cut down the Asherah pole, and filled those shrines with human bones. He also tore down the altar in Bethel at the high place made by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who encouraged Israel to sin. He burned all the combustible items at that high place and crushed them to dust; including the Asherah pole. When Josiah turned around, he saw the tombs there on the hill. So he ordered the bones from the tombs to be brought; he burned them on the altar and defiled it. This fulfilled the Lord’s announcement made by the prophet while Jeroboam stood by the altar during a festival. King Josiah turned and saw the grave of the prophet who had foretold this. He asked, “What is this grave marker I see?” The men from the city replied, “It’s the grave of the prophet who came from Judah and foretold these very things you have done to the altar of Bethel.” The king said, “Leave it alone! No one must touch his bones.” So they left his bones undisturbed, as well as the bones of the Israelite prophet buried beside him. Josiah also removed all the shrines on the high places in the cities of Samaria. The kings of Israel had made them and angered the Lord. He did to them what he had done to the high place in Bethel. He sacrificed all the priests of the high places on the altars located there, and burned human bones on them. Then he returned to Jerusalem.

Prophecies Dating The Messiah And About Israel’s Future

What are some other major prophecies in Scripture? Daniel 9:24-27 is often called “God’s Prophetic Time Clock” and “The Backbone of Bible Prophecy.”7 As background, Daniel was praying about the future of Israel (Dan 9:1-3) when the angel, Gabriel, appeared and shared with Daniel about Israel’s future, including the coming of the messiah. Consider verse 25:

So know and understand: From the issuing of the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until an anointed one, a prince arrives, there will be a period of seven weeks and sixty-two weeks. It will again be built, with plaza and moat, but in distressful times.

This prophecy gives not only information about Israel’s future but also the actual date that the messiah would be on the earth. When the angel referred to “weeks,” it could also be translated “sevens,” as in the NIV. This could mean seven days or years.8 Years makes the most sense, because the context deals with Israel’s long-term future including the coming of the messiah, and also because Daniel already had been thinking in terms of years (Israel’s seventy years of exile, Daniel 9:2). The angel Gabriel told Daniel that it would be seven sevens (49) plus sixty-two sevens (434) until the messiah comes. Altogether, that equals 483 years (49 + 434 = 483). From the issuance of the decree to rebuild Jerusalem until the messiah came would be 483 years. Gabriel adds that Jerusalem would be rebuilt in “distressful times.” The book of Nehemiah tells us that while Nehemiah led Israel in rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls, there was much persecution. In one scene, the Israelites did their work with one hand and held a weapon in the other (Neh 4:17).

Though Israel was sent back to their land by Cyrus, the issuing of the decree to rebuild Israel was given by King Artaxerxes to Nehemiah in 444 B.C (Neh 2).9 When one takes into account that the Jewish calendar was 360 days and not 365 as ours is today, 483 years later would be 33 AD—right around the time of Christ’s death.10

Those who have actually counted the days claim that the prophecy was fulfilled on Palm Sunday11—the day when Jesus road into the streets of Jerusalem on a donkey, and the people shouted, “Hosanna! Hosanna!” as they recognized Jesus as the messiah. Consider what Jesus said about the city on that very day:

Now when Jesus approached and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “If you had only known on this day, even you, the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and surround you and close in on you from every side. They will demolish you—you and your children within your walls—and they will not leave within you one stone on top of another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.”

Luke 19:41-44

Daniel 9:25 prophesies the exact day Christ would be on the earth, so Israel would be ready to accept their messiah. However, they failed to give attention to the prophecy and instead crucified the Son of God—bringing judgment upon themselves.

Prophecy Of Israel’s History After Christ

Along with announcing the time-period when Christ would be on the earth, the prophecy also shares glimpses into Israel’s future history. In Daniel 9:26 (ESV), the angel specifically describes Israel’s history after the 483 years, which has certainly come true. It says:

And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed.

The angel prophesied that Christ would be killed, the city and temple would be destroyed, and Israel would continue in a state of war and desolation until the end of days. In AD 70, the Romans destroyed the temple and Jerusalem. Israel’s history since then has proven the prophecy true as well. The nation has constantly been in a state of war and desolation, even until this day. Later, we will consider Israel’s future as prophesied in Daniel 9:27.

The Destruction Of The City Of Tyre

In Ezekiel 26-28, God predicted the destruction of a famous city named Tyre, years before it began and over 250 years before it was finally completed.12 The name Tyre means “Rock.” It was an impregnable city, known for its sea commerce. Tyre consisted of two parts: the mainland city on the coast of Lebanon and the island city off the coast of Lebanon. The city had a double wall around it that was 150 feet tall, with 25 feet of earth packed in between. In 587 BC, Ezekiel wrote three long chapters prophesying about the city’s destruction, which ultimately was fulfilled.13

Why would it be destroyed? Israel and Tyre were bitter trade-competitors until Babylon besieged and later conquered Israel in 586 BC. 14 Tyre had previously “dominated the sea routes, while Jerusalem controlled the caravan routes.”15 Without Jerusalem controlling the land routes, Tyre would be more prosperous. Therefore, when Babylon besieged Jerusalem, Tyre scoffed at the nation and boasted in its own future prosperity. This prompted God to prophesy coming judgment on Tyre—he promised to bring “many nations” against them. Ezekiel 26:2 says:

Son of man, because Tyre has said about Jerusalem, ‘Aha, the gateway of the peoples is broken; it has swung open to me. I will become rich, now that she has been destroyed,’ therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am against you, O Tyre! I will bring up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves.

In Ezekiel 26:7-11, Ezekiel prophesied the demise of Tyre years before it began. The first nation to judge them would be Babylon. Verse 7-11 says:

For this is what the sovereign Lord says: Take note that I am about to bring King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, king of kings, against Tyre from the north, with horses, chariots, and horsemen, an army and hordes of people. He will kill your daughters in the field with the sword. He will build a siege wall against you, erect a siege ramp against you, and raise a great shield against you. He will direct the blows of his battering rams against your walls and tear down your towers with his weapons. He will cover you with the dust kicked up by his many horses. Your walls will shake from the noise of the horsemen, wheels, and chariots when he enters your gates like those who invade through a city’s broken walls. With his horses’ hoofs he will trample all your streets. He will kill your people with the sword, and your strong pillars will tumble down to the ground.

History says that Nebuchadnezzar conquered Israel in 586 BC, then headed north in 585 BC to besiege Tyre. The siege lasted for thirteen years, until Tyre was defeated in 573 BC, as prophesied by verses 7-11.16 Afterwards, Tyre still existed but never regained its former power.

However, in verse 12, the prophecy considers the other nation which would conquer Tyre. Ezekiel changed the pronoun “he”—referring to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon—to “they”—referring to Greece. Babylon started the destruction of Tyre, but Greece completed it. Ezekiel 26:12-14 says:

They will steal your wealth and loot your merchandise. They will tear down your walls and destroy your luxurious homes. Your stones, your trees, and your soil he will throw into the water. I will silence the noise of your songs; the sound of your harps will be heard no more. I will make you a bare rock; you will be a place where fishing nets are spread. You will never be built again, for I, the Lord, have spoken, declares the sovereign Lord.

In 332 BC, Alexander the Great destroyed the city after a seven-month siege.17 To reach the island city, he had his soldiers throw the ruins of the mainland city into the ocean to build a causeway to reach it—fulfilling the prophecy on the stones, soil, and trees being thrown into the sea (26:12).18 After destroying the city, he left it a “bare rock” (26:14). The island city has never been rebuilt, just as God foretold (26:14). Ezekiel predicted this about 250 years before it happened.19

William MacDonald, in the Believer’s Bible Commentary, said:

Over a hundred years ago a traveler described the ruins of Tyre as being exactly as predicted: The island, as such, is not more than a mile in length. The part which projects south beyond the isthmus is perhaps a quarter of a mile broad, and is rocky and uneven. It is now unoccupied except by fishermen, as “a place to spread nets upon.”20

Today, the island city of Tyre is just a bare rock which has never been rebuilt, as Scripture predicted. However, the coastal mainland still exists, as they are currently part of Lebanon.

Consider that in Ezekiel 26, there are eight prophecies alone about Tyre:

  1. Many nations would come against Tyre (Ezekiel 26:3)
  2. The walls of Tyre would be broken down (Ez. 26:4)
  3. Dust would be scraped from her and she would be left like a bare rock (Ez. 26:4)
  4. Fishermen would spread their nets at Tyre (Ez. 26:5)
  5. King Nebuchadnezzar would build a wall against Tyre (Ez. 26:8)
  6. King Nebuchadnezzar would plunder the city (Ez. 26: 9-12)
  7. Nations would come to destroy the city and the stone ruins would be cast into the sea (Ez. 26:12)
  8. The city would never be rebuilt (Ezekiel 26:14)21

Mathematician Peter Stoner says the probability of all these prophecies happening as it did are 1 in 400 million.22 Truly amazing!

Prophecies Of Alexander The Great

What other major prophecies are found in the Bible? In Daniel, there are some very detailed prophecies about the rise and fall of Alexander the Great—given almost 200 years before his birth.23 It should be mentioned that, like Isaiah, the book of Daniel is a battle ground for the liberal-minded. The prophetic details are too accurate for someone with a naturalistic mindset to accept. Therefore, they deny the internal and external evidence and declare, “Somebody else had to have written the book of Daniel! It couldn’t have been written around 530 BC24 before the historical events happened! It is history! Not prophecy!” Mark Hitchcock shares a story which illustrates how ludicrous some of these attacks are:

A professor at a liberal theological seminary was teaching from the book of Daniel. At the beginning of one of his lectures he said, “Now I want you to know that Daniel was written during the Maccabean period in the second century B.C. The facts were written, as all history is, after the events took place.” One young man raised his hand and asked, “How can that be, sir, when Christ said in Matthew 24:15 that the book of Daniel was written by Daniel?” The professor paused for a moment, looked the student square in the eyes, and said, “Young man, I know more about the book of Daniel than Jesus did.”25

Daniel’s prophecies about Alexander the Great are most emphasized in Daniel 8 and 11, but Greece is prophetically introduced in Daniel 2 and 7. In Daniel 2, Nebuchadnezzar had a dream, which Daniel interprets, of four successive nations that would rule the earth. Initially, they are not all named, but eventually they become clear by prophecies given later in Daniel and through the confirmation of historical events. The nations are Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome. In Daniel 2:37-40, Daniel’s interpretation of the dream is given:

You, O king, are the king of kings. The God of heaven has granted you sovereignty, power, strength, and honor. Wherever human beings, wild animals, and birds of the sky live—he has given them into your power. He has given you authority over them all. You are the head of gold. Now after you another kingdom will arise, one inferior to yours. Then a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule in all the earth. Then there will be a fourth kingdom, one strong like iron. Just like iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything, and as iron breaks in pieces all of these metals, so it will break in pieces and crush the others.

In the dream, there was a statue with a gold head representing Babylon, a silver chest and arms representing Persia, a bronze belly and thighs representing Greece, and iron legs with feet made of clay and iron representing Rome (Dan 2:33-34). In Daniel 5:28-31, part of the prophecy was fulfilled as Persia eventually conquered Babylon. The prophecy of Greece, the kingdom of bronze, conquering Persia, the kingdom of silver, happened many years after Daniel’s writings. But the details of these conquests are seen in Daniel 7, 8, and 11. In Daniel Chapter 7, Daniel again prophesied about these four kingdoms, through the symbolism of various beasts. In these prophecies, Greece was symbolized by a winged leopard. Daniel 7:6 says: “After these things, as I was watching, another beast like a leopard appeared, with four bird-like wings on its back. This beast had four heads, and ruling authority was given to it.” The leopard with wings represented the great speed and ferociousness of the nation’s conquering power. Alexander the Great, the king of Greece, left with his army in 334 BC at the age of twenty-two26 and essentially conquered the world in 323 BC by age thirty-three.27

Specifics about Alexander are added to this prophecy in Daniel 8, as it described the battle between Persia and Greece (334-331 BC).28 Persia was symbolized by a ram with two horns with one longer than the other, and Greece was symbolized by a goat with a conspicuous horn (or “large horn,” NIV). Daniel 8:1-8 says:

In the third year of King Belshazzar’s reign, a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that had appeared to me previously. In this vision I saw myself in Susa the citadel, which is located in the province of Elam. In the vision I saw myself at the Ulai Canal. I looked up and saw a ram with two horns standing at the canal. Its two horns were both long, but one was longer than the other. The longer one was coming up after the shorter one. I saw that the ram was butting westward, northward, and southward. No animal was able to stand before it, and there was none who could deliver from its power. It did as it pleased and acted arrogantly. While I was contemplating all this, a male goat was coming from the west over the surface of all the land without touching the ground. This goat had a conspicuous horn between its eyes. It came to the two-horned ram that I had seen standing beside the canal and rushed against it with raging strength. I saw it approaching the ram. It went into a fit of rage against the ram and struck it and broke off its two horns. The ram had no ability to resist it. The goat hurled the ram to the ground and trampled it. No one could deliver the ram from its power. The male goat acted even more arrogantly. But no sooner had the large horn become strong than it was broken, and there arose four conspicuous horns in its place, extending toward the four winds of the sky.

What does the ram with two horns, with one larger than the other, and the goat with one large horn represent? The ram with two horns represented Persia and the Medes, with Persia being the prominent horn. In 550 BC, Cyrus, the King of Persia, conquered the Medes29 and then united the two tribes by putting officials from both kingdoms in charge of making a great army. This army eventually conquered Babylon in 539 BC.30 Then Greece conquered Persia in 331 BC31, as symbolized by the goat with a prominent horn.

Though not explained in Daniel 8, the symbols of the ram and goat probably would have been understood by the ancient audience without further clarification. Harold Wilmington shared this: “Marcellius, a historian in the fourth century, states that the Persian ruler bore the head of a ram as he stood in front of his army.”32 Similarly, there are ancient drawings which depict Greek armies as a horned goat.33 Using animals as national symbols was common in the ancient world, even as it is today.

The large horn on the goat clearly represented Alexander the Great, as clarified by Daniel 8:8. In describing him, it says: ”The goat became very great, but at the height of his power his large horn was broken off, and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven.” This appears to represent how Alexander the Great died at the young age of thirty-three, and his kingdom was divided into fourths. The “four horns” were his four generals: “Cassander over Macedon and Greece, Lysimichus over Thrace and Asia Minor, Seleucus over Syria and Babylon, Ptolemy over Egypt.”34

Daniel 11:2-4 further clarifies this prophecy, without symbols, by naming Persia and Greece and giving more detail about Alexander. It says:

Now I will tell you the truth. “Three more kings will arise for Persia. Then a fourth king will be unusually rich, more so than all who preceded him. When he has amassed power through his riches, he will stir up everyone against the kingdom of Greece. Then a powerful king will arise, exercising great authority and doing as he pleases. Shortly after his rise to power, his kingdom will be broken up and distributed toward the four winds of the sky—but not to his posterity or with the authority he exercised, for his kingdom will be uprooted and distributed to others besides these.

As shared in Daniel 11:4, when Alexander died at age thirty-three, his kingdom would not go to “his posterity” but to “others.” Alexander’s wife was pregnant with his only child when he died. Since no one knew the sex of the child, it caused dissension amongst his army about who would be king. The dissension continued even after Alexander’s son was born. Eventually, it led to the kingdom being divided amongst Alexander’s generals.35

To further add to the wonder of these prophecies, Josephus, an ancient Jewish historian, shared a story about Alexander reaching Jerusalem during his military campaign. Upon entering the city, he was met by Juddua, Israel’s high priest, who came dressed in a magnificent garb. The priest declared to Alexander how Daniel predicted his defeat of the Persians hundreds of years earlier. After reading Daniel 8, King Alexander fell down and worshiped him.36

The accuracy of Biblical prophecy is clearly seen in Daniel’s prophecies of Persia’s defeat of Babylon, Greece’s defeat of Persia, and even more specifically, the details about Alexander the Great—the large horn on the goat which breaks into four horns in Daniel 8 and the mighty king whose kingdom was broken up and distributed to “the four winds” in Daniel 11. Though liberal theologians try to deny that Daniel wrote these prophecies, internal evidence (what Daniel says about himself in the book) and external evidence (the NT authors’ beliefs and the writing of ancient Jews) support that Daniel wrote these amazing prophecies—some of them over 200 years before they happened. God’s Word is truly amazing!

Prophecies Of The Syrian Wars And Antiochus Epiphanies

The next prophecy we are going to briefly consider has been called the “Battleground of Daniel.”37 It is called this because the prophecies are so accurate, people say they must be history, not prophecy. Instead of accepting the traditional dating of 530 BC, liberal scholars date it to around 165 BC. In Daniel 11:1-35, at least 100 prophecies are recorded, and maybe as many as 135.38 John Walvoord said, “Probably no other portion of Scripture presents more minute prophecy than Daniel 11:1-35, and this has prompted the sharpest attack of critics seeking to discredit this prophetic portion.”39 John Phillips noted, “When Daniel 11 was written, they were not history but prophecy. We see them as history; Daniel saw them still ahead in the unborn ages. No other chapter in all of Scripture gives us such exhibition of God’s power to foretell the future.”40

Daniel 11:1-35 covers three topics: the battle between Persia and Greece (v. 2-4), the Syrian Wars between Syria and Egypt (v. 5-35), and specifically, the rise of a Syrian king named Antiochus Epiphanes, who was a vicious enemy of the Jews (v. 21-35). In Scripture, he is used as a “type” of future Antichrist. In fact, verses 36-45 stop describing Antiochus and begin to describe the Antichrist, an end-time figure who will hate God and persecute both Jews and Christians. Because the current focus is prophecies that have been fulfilled, only the basics of verses 1-35 will be covered.

Persia Versus Greece (V. 2-4)

Daniel 11:2-4 says,

Now I will tell you the truth. “Three more kings will arise for Persia. Then a fourth king will be unusually rich, more so than all who preceded him. When he has amassed power through his riches, he will stir up everyone against the kingdom of Greece. Then a powerful king will arise, exercising great authority and doing as he pleases. Shortly after his rise to power, his kingdom will be broken up and distributed toward the four winds of the sky—but not to his posterity or with the authority he exercised, for his kingdom will be uprooted and distributed to others besides these.

The first part of the prophecy is somewhat of a repetition. God gave Daniel visions of what was going to happen to Israel in the future, adding more details with each successive vision. Babylon had already been conquered by Persia, but God was revealing more about the future conflict between Greece and Persia.

In verse 2, the angel said there would be four more kings who would rule in Persia and the fourth would be very wealthy and stir the nation up against Greece. As clearly seen from history, “Those four kings were Cambyses (530–522 B.C.), Pseudo-Smerdis (522–521), Darius I Hystaspes (521–486), and Xerxes (486–465).”41

The fourth king, Xerxes, was the king who married Esther, a Jewish woman who protected the Jews as detailed in the book of Esther. As mentioned, Xerxes led Persia to advance against Greece; the advance was unsuccessful, creating a bitter rivalry between the two kingdoms. Eventually, the “mighty king,” Alexander the Great, defeated Persia in 331 BC. When Alexander died, the kingdom did not go to his young son, but instead to his four generals who oversaw Egypt, Syria-Babylon, Asia Minor, and Macedon-Greece.42 Again, the Bible predicted this over 200 years before it occurred.43

The Syrian Wars: Syria Versus Egypt (V. 5-35)

Daniel 11:5-6 says:

Then the king of the south and one of his subordinates will grow strong. His subordinate will resist him and will rule a kingdom greater than his. After some years have passed, they will form an alliance. Then the daughter of the king of the south will come to the king of the north to make an agreement, but she will not retain her power, nor will he continue in his strength. She, together with the one who brought her, her child, and her benefactor will all be delivered over at that time.

Verses 5-35 is an account of the relationship and battles between the Northern Kingdom, Assyria, and the Southern Kingdom, Egypt. The first king of the South was Ptolemy I; the subordinate, who would grow strong and rule a greater kingdom, was Syria’s prince, Seleucus I. Initially, these two were allies, but as Seleucus grew in power, he eventually took control of Syria and they became antagonists.44 This was the beginning of 160 years of discord between Egypt and Syria45, during which the stronger kingdom always maintained control of Israel.46 After their initial alliance was split, the two kingdoms were eventually yoked by marriage. Antiochus II, king of Syria, married Berenice, the daughter of Ptolemy II, the king of Egypt.47 “Yet the agreement would not continue nor would Berenice retain her position of power, as Antiochus’s former wife Laodice would murder Antiochus, Berenice, and their child.”48 Daniel 11:5-35 chronicles the 160-year struggle between the two dynasties from approximately 323 BC to 164 BC.49 This information was given to Daniel because it would greatly affect Israel. The rest of the prophecy describes these battles, but we will not consider all the minute detail here.

Syrian Wars: Antiochus Epiphanes (V. 21-35)

Daniel 11:21-23 says:

Then there will arise in his place a despicable person to whom the royal honor has not been rightfully conferred. He will come on the scene in a time of prosperity and will seize the kingdom through deceit. Armies will be suddenly swept away in defeat before him; both they and a covenant leader will be destroyed. After entering into an alliance with him, he will behave treacherously; he will ascend to power with only a small force.

Verses 21-35 highlight the rise of an infamous Syrian ruler named Antiochus Epiphanes. He was an enemy of the Jews and their religion. Verse 21 says that he was not royalty and that he actually seized the kingdom by deceit. Antiochus was the uncle of the rightful heir to Syria but seized control of it, since the true heir, his nephew, was only a child. Later, the prophecy details his war with the king of Egypt (v. 25) and his persecution of the Jews.

Daniel 11:31-34 says this about Antiochus’ attack on Israel:

His forces will rise up and profane the fortified sanctuary, stopping the daily sacrifice. In its place they will set up the abomination that causes desolation. Then with smooth words he will defile those who have rejected the covenant. But the people who are loyal to their God will act valiantly. These who are wise among the people will teach the masses. However, they will fall by the sword and by the flame, and they will be imprisoned and plundered for some time. When they stumble, they will be granted some help…

Antiochus stopped Jewish worship by abolishing the sacrificial system, setting up an altar of Zeus in the temple, destroying Jewish Bibles, forbidding circumcision, sacrificing a pig on the altar, and making the Jewish priests eat pig meat. According to David Guzik, Antiochus was also said “to have killed 80,000 Jews, taken 40,000 more as prisoners, and sold another 40,000 as slaves. He also plundered the temple, robbing it of approximately $1 billion by modern calculations.”50

In verse 31, the “abomination that causes desolation” was the idol of Zeus set up in the temple, which, according to Christ, was a foreshadowing of what the Antichrist will do during the end times. In Matthew 24:15-16, Jesus warned the Jews: “‘So when you see the abomination of desolation—spoken about by Daniel the prophet—standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains.” The initial abomination was just a foreshadowing of a later rebellion against God during the end times. Second Thessalonians 2:3-4 describes this:

Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not arrive until the rebellion comes and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, and as a result he takes his seat in God’s temple, displaying himself as God.

Daniel 11:32, in describing Antiochus’ works, says a number of Jews rejected their covenant with God to follow Antiochus. Likewise, verses 33-35 describe how those loyal to God will “act valiantly” and teach many during that time period, but also suffer for their faith. Specifically, this describes the Maccabean brothers and the rebellion they inspired—eventually leading to Antiochus’ defeat. This story is more fully told in 1 and 2 Maccabees which is part of the Apocrypha. Today the Jews still celebrate this great victory. It is called the “Festival of Lights” or “Hanukkah.”

Purpose Of The Daniel 11 Prophecy

We must ask ourselves, “Why did God give such minute detail about the Syrian Wars and the future of Israel in Daniel 11?” It was primarily so the Jews would not lose hope during those hard years, especially when they were persecuted by Antiochus. Also, as they experienced the fulfillment of prophecy, it would help sustain their hope in the coming messiah and all of God’s promises in Scripture.

In verses 36-45, which we will not cover, there is a prophetic gap, as Daniel’s prophecy skips ahead to the Antichrist, foreshadowed in the person of Antiochus. The prophecies described in those verses were not fulfilled by Antiochus, which is clearly seen by their ending with the resurrection of the righteous and the unjust (12:2). It says, “Many of those who sleep in the dusty ground will awake— some to everlasting life, and others to shame and everlasting abhorrence.” The final prophecy focuses on the end times.

Similar to Antiochus, the Antichrist will greatly persecute the Jews (and Christians), as Revelation 12 and 13 describes. He will declare himself as God in the rebuilt Jewish temple, and the people of God will be tempted to fall away because of the great persecution. However, Daniel’s prophecy, as well as other prophecies, encourage God’s people to not give up hope, as Christ will eventually return to reward his people and bring justice.

Though liberal scholars try to discount these prophecies, they are important to confirm the faith of God’s people, to help unbelievers come to know God, and to encourage God’s people to persevere in hard times. To reject or minimize them is to rob people of great blessings.

Reflection

  1. In the reading, what fulfilled prophecy stood out most to you and why?
  2. What are some fulfilled prophecies about Tyre, as mentioned by Ezekiel?
  3. Why do liberal scholars reject Isaiah and Daniel as the authors of their respective books? What are some evidences that Isaiah and Daniel were the actual authors of their books?
  4. What are some specific prophecies about Alexander the Great in Daniel?
  5. What chapter in Daniel is called “The Battleground of Daniel” and why?
  6. What other questions or applications do you have from the reading?

Copyright © 2020 Gregory Brown

Unless otherwise noted, the primary Scriptures used are taken from the NET Bible ® copyright © 1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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1 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 8). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

2 Accessed 8/5/19 from https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Isaiah.html

3 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 16). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

4 MacDonald, W. (1995). Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments. (A. Farstad, Ed.) (p. 936). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

5 Longman III, Tremper. An Introduction to the Old Testament: Second Edition. Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

6 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 20). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

7 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 43). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

8 Rydelnik, M. A. (2014). Daniel. In The moody bible commentary (p. 1305). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.

9 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 46). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

10 Rydelnik, M. A. (2014). Daniel. In The moody bible commentary (p. 1306). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.

11 Rydelnik, M. A. (2014). Daniel. In The moody bible commentary (p. 1306). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.

12 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 27). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

13 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 24). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

14 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 24). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

15 Dyer, C. H., & Rydelnik, E. (2014). Ezekiel. In The moody bible commentary (p. 1243). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.

16 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 26). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

17 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 27). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

18 MacDonald, W. (1995). Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments. (A. Farstad, Ed.) (p. 1057). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

19 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 27). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

20 MacDonald, W. (1995). Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments. (A. Farstad, Ed.) (p. 1057). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

21 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 30). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

22 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 30). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

23 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 32). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

24 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 52). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

25 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 51). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

26 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 31). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

27 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 31). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

28 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 33). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

29 “The Persian Empire” accessed 8/6/2019 from http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/imperialism/notes/persia.html

30 “The Persian Empire” accessed 8/6/2019 from http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/imperialism/notes/persia.html

31 “Alexander the Great” accessed 8/6/2019 from https://www.ancient.eu/Alexander_the_Great/

32 Wilmington, Harold. Wilmington’s Guide to the Bible (Expanded Edition, pg. 235). Tyndale House Publishers; Carol Stream, IL, 2011.

33 Wilmington, Harold. Wilmington’s Guide to the Bible (Expanded Edition, pg. 235). Tyndale House Publishers; Carol Stream, IL, 2011.

34 Rydelnik, M. A. (2014). Daniel. In The moody bible commentary (p. 1301). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.

35 Accessed 9/9/19 from http://encyclopedia.kids.net.au/page/al/Alexander_IV_of_Macedon

36 Wilmington, Harold. Wilmington’s Guide to the Bible (Expanded Edition, pg. 235). Tyndale House Publishers; Carol Stream, IL, 2011.

37 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 52). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

38 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 55). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

39 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 53). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

40 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 54). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

41 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (pp. 55-57). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition

42 Rydelnik, M. A. (2014). Daniel. In The moody bible commentary (p. 1301). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.

43 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 57). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

44 MacDonald, W. (1995). Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments. (A. Farstad, Ed.) (p. 1088). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

45 Rydelnik, M. A. (2014). Daniel. In The moody bible commentary (p. 1310). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.

46 Guzik, D. (2013). Daniel (Da 11:5). Santa Barbara, CA: David Guzik.

47 “Daniel 11” accessed 8/6/19 from https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/daniel-11/

48 Rydelnik, M. A. (2014). Daniel. In The moody bible commentary (p. 1310). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.

49 Rydelnik, M. A. (2014). Daniel. In The moody bible commentary (p. 1310). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.

50 “Daniel 11” accessed 8/6/19 from https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/daniel-11/

Related Topics: Basics for Christians, Bibliology (The Written Word), Prophecy/Revelation

Lesson 7: Unfulfilled Prophecies

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We’ve discussed fulfilled prophecies, but what about future, unfulfilled prophecies? We’ll consider some of those now.

Prophecies Of A Third Jewish Temple

Daniel 9:24-27 (NIV) says:

Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place. “Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ [483 years] It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”

In considering Daniel 9:24-27, it said there would be 483 years (69 x 7) from the call to rebuild Jerusalem to when the messiah came. As covered previously, this was fulfilled on Palm Sunday. When Christ entered Jerusalem, the people cried out, “Hosanna! Hosanna!” However, the prophecy then speaks of a prophetic gap. After the 483 years, the messiah would be killed and “a people” would destroy Jerusalem and the temple (which happened in AD 70). Then, wars would continue in Israel until the end times. After the gap, there would be one final seven-year period. At this point in history, the prophetic gap has lasted almost 2000 years.

Are prophetic gaps normal in Scripture? Yes, they are. In Isaiah 9:6, there is one. It says: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.” The child being born and the son being given was fulfilled in Christ’s first coming; however, the government resting on his shoulders won’t happen until his second coming. In the first coming, Christ was a prophet, priest, and sacrifice for the sins of the world. In the second coming, he will be a king who judges and rules the earth. Again, there is a prophetic gap of almost 2000 years, so far.

Now, let’s consider the final seven years of Daniel’s prophecy. Daniel 9:27 (NIV) says:

He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”

The “he” Daniel refers to is the Antichrist—a powerful end-time figure who will be antagonistic toward God and his people. He will make a seven-year covenant with Israel. Since the context is “war will continue to the end” (9:26), this probably refers to some type of peace treaty. But, in the middle of the seven years, the Antichrist will break that treaty by putting an end to the Jewish sacrificial and offering system. He will also set up an abomination at the temple until he experiences divine judgment. The future Antichrist resembles the Syrian King, Antiochus, who did similar things to Israel during the intertestamental period, including putting an idol of Zeus in the temple, as prophesied in Daniel 11:21-35.

Many things should stand out about this prophecy: (1) First, it was originally proclaimed while Israel was exiled in Babylon and there was no Jewish temple. (2) Next, Daniel 9:26 had already prophesied the destruction of the second temple, which was built in 516 BC after the Jewish return.1 After the predicted 483 years, the messiah would be cut off, the city of Jerusalem destroyed and the temple with it, which happened in 70 AD by the Romans. (3) Finally, Daniel 9:27 alludes to a third Jewish temple, which has not yet been built.

The building of the third Jewish temple is one of the great, unfulfilled prophecies in the Bible. Currently, the Muslim place of worship, the Dome on the Rock, is located where the second temple previously stood.

Is there currently any movement on the rebuilding of the temple? Obviously, before Israel regained their land in 1948, there was no talk of rebuilding the temple. However, there is now a growing enthusiasm for its construction. Consider the results of this Jewish poll:

Ynet News reported the startling findings of a poll taken on July 30, 2009. The poll asked respondents whether they wanted to see the temple rebuilt. “Sixty-four percent responded favorably, while 36% said no. … The Temple was destroyed 1,942 years ago, and almost two-thirds of the population want to see it rebuilt, including 47% of seculars.”2

Because the majority wants the temple rebuilt, there are government leaders vigorously pushing for it.3 Also, there are groups in Israel, such as the Temple Mount Faithful, who have made calls to Rome, requesting the Pope to return vessels and treasures stolen by the Romans when they destroyed the second temple in 70 AD. The hope is that these would be used in the third temple.4

Nobody knows when the third temple will be built, but with the majority of the Jews desiring it and government officials pushing for it, it may happen soon. Then the sacrificial system will resume, which the coming Antichrist will terminate (Dan 9:27).

Prophecy Of A Revived Roman Empire

What else do we see in the Daniel 9:26-27 (NIV) prophetic timetable? There is a prediction of the nation from which the Antichrist will come. It says:

After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”

In describing the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, it says the “people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary.” Who were the people that destroyed the temple? The Romans. What ruler is the passage talking about? Again, it’s describing the Antichrist who will make a peace covenant with Israel, as Daniel 9:27 describes. But how is it possible that this future world ruler will come from the Roman Empire, which no longer exists? Obviously, there must be a revival of Rome as a world power.

What is Rome’s history? After Greece conquered the world, Rome conquered Greece and became the dominant world power for many centuries. However, in the Middle Ages, Rome disintegrated. The Roman Empire, though centralized in Italy, it primarily consisted of all the European nations. It is speculated that a similar coalition will arise when it is revived. It will include some type of partnership between European nations.

From Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the fourth kingdom, many believe this to be an accurate picture of Rome’s history and future. Consider the following verses about the fourth kingdom, “the kingdom of iron”:

As for that statue, its head was of fine gold, its chest and arms were of silver, its belly and thighs were of bronze. Its legs were of iron; its feet were partly of iron and partly of clay.

Daniel 2:32-33

Then there will be a fourth kingdom, one strong like iron. Just like iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything, and as iron breaks in pieces all of these metals, so it will break in pieces and crush the others. In that you were seeing feet and toes partly of wet clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom. Some of the strength of iron will be in it, for you saw iron mixed with wet clay. In that the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, the latter stages of this kingdom will be partly strong and partly fragile. And in that you saw iron mixed with wet clay, so people will be mixed with one another without adhering to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay.

Daniel 2:40-43

Rome is pictured as iron legs and feet mixed with clay and iron. This appears to refer to different stages of the Roman kingdom. Daniel 2:42 says, “In that the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, the latter stages of this kingdom will be partly strong and partly fragile.” In the beginning, when Rome was united, it was strong and smashed everyone into pieces. However, later it began to divide and become weaker—only retaining some of the strength of the iron. In 285 AD, Roman Emperor Diocletian divided the empire into East and West because he considered it too big to govern from Rome, though together they were still called the Roman Empire.5 However, in 395 AD, under Theodosius I, the two sides broke apart, never to be reunited.6 Eventually, the Western side was conquered in AD 476, and the Eastern side was conquered in AD 1453.7 The Roman Empire disintegrated into separate countries throughout Europe.

Is there any contemporary movement to revive the Roman kingdom—a divided kingdom yet still strong? Yes, many believe so. This is seen in the development of the European Union. After World War II, there was a growing sentiment amongst European nations to forbid such a tragedy from happening again. In fact, in 1946, British politician Winston Churchill called for a “United States of Europe!” This led to the development of many different European partnerships, including the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) in 1952, the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC) and the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1957, and other European entities. After many years of partnering in various ways, the European Union (EU) was formed in 1993 by the Maastricht Treaty.8 The EU is a political and economic union of European nations. One of the EU’s objectives is economic interdependence, since countries that are dependent upon one another economically are less likely to war with one another. In light of that, the EU created a common citizenship, a common dollar (the euro), and common union goals. It began with only six countries but eventually expanded to twenty-eight.9 Many see the brittle pasting-together of the European nations in the EU as beginning to fulfill Daniel’s prophecy. Before the Antichrist arrives, the ‘Roman Empire,’ which disintegrated into independent nations in the Middle Ages and has warred with one another since that time, culminating in World War II, will be reunited. It is a mixture of both strength like iron and weakness like the clay, as Daniel prophesied.

With that said, the EU doesn’t seem to be the final form of the Roman Empire. Daniel 7:23-27 gives more details:

This is what he told me: ‘The fourth beast means that there will be a fourth kingdom on earth that will differ from all the other kingdoms. It will devour all the earth and will trample and crush it. The ten horns mean that ten kings will arise from that kingdom. Another king will arise after them, but he will be different from the earlier ones. He will humiliate three kings. He will speak words against the Most High. He will harass the holy ones of the Most High continually. His intention will be to change times established by law. They will be delivered into his hand for a time, times, and half a time. But the court will convene, and his ruling authority will be removed—destroyed and abolished forever! Then the kingdom, authority, and greatness of the kingdoms under all of heaven will be delivered to the people of the holy ones of the Most High. His kingdom is an eternal kingdom; all authorities will serve him and obey him.’

In Daniel 7, an angel gave Daniel further clarification about the last kingdom: it will have ten kings who form a federation together. After them, another king will rise up, whom we know as the Antichrist. He will subdue three of the kings, leaving only seven in the federation. It then describes some of the exploits of the Antichrist. He will persecute the saints, probably in the context referring to Jews (but certainly including Christians, cf. Rev 12-13). Then his power will be taken away and destroyed forever, as the final kingdom will begin to rule on the earth. It will be an everlasting kingdom which Christ and his saints—the people of God—will rule over. One of the reasons the revived Roman Empire is so significant is because its formation tells us that Christ’s coming and eternal kingdom is near. It seems that the EU may in some form be embryonic of the final ten-king federation, which eventually becomes a seven-king federation.

Prophecy Of A Revived Babylon

Are there anymore future prophecies to be fulfilled? There are obviously many; one of the most controversial is prophecy regarding the city of Babylon’, which will serve as the capital of the Antichrist’s kingdom during the end times.

Babylon was and is a central city in the Bible. Other than Jerusalem, Babylon is mentioned more than any other city and is commonly pictured as a place of evil. It is mentioned some 290 times (compared to Jerusalem, mentioned some 800 times).10 It is believed that the Garden of Eden, where the fall happened (Gen 3), was in Babylon. Also, after the flood, the people rebelled against God and built the Tower of Babel in the same area (Gen 11). Because of their rebellion, God confused the languages—leading people to scatter across the globe. Finally, Babylon again rose to prominence during Israel’s divided kingdom. They eventually conquered the Southern Kingdom—sending everybody into exile (Dan 1).

Many have speculated that in the same way God has chosen to show special affection for Jerusalem, Satan, who is an imitator, has chosen to show special affection for Babylon. God has called for Jerusalem to be a special place of blessing, and Satan has called for Babylon to be a special place he uses for evil. In light of this, Scripture seems to indicate that Babylon will rise to power again in the end times and be used to propagate corruption and evil. We see this in various passages. First, consider Isaiah 13:17-22:

Look, I am stirring up the Medes to attack them; they are not concerned about silver, nor are they interested in gold. Their arrows will cut young men to ribbons; they have no compassion on a person’s offspring, they will not look with pity on children. Babylon, the most admired of kingdoms, the Chaldeans’ source of honor and pride, will be destroyed by God just as Sodom and Gomorrah were. No one will live there again; no one will ever reside there again. No bedouin will camp there, no shepherds will rest their flocks there. Wild animals will rest there, the ruined houses will be full of hyenas. Ostriches will live there, wild goats will skip among the ruins. Wild dogs will yip in her ruined fortresses, jackals will yelp in the once-splendid palaces. Her time is almost up, her days will not be prolonged.

Many Biblical prophecies have a dual fulfillment—both a near and a far fulfillment. Isaiah prophesied that the Medes (and Persians) would conquer Babylon. However, the prophecy seems to go from a near fulfillment to a far fulfillment in verses 19-22. It is said that Babylon will be overthrown not just by the Medes, but also by God. After God overthrows Babylon, it will never again be inhabited by humans; it will become a place inhabited by desert creatures—jackals, owls, wild goats, and hyenas. This same prophecy is given in other passages of Scripture (cf. Isaiah 14:4, 12-15). For example, consider Jeremiah 50:1 and 39-40:

The Lord spoke concerning Babylon and the land of Babylonia through the prophet Jeremiah… Therefore desert creatures and jackals will live there. Ostriches will dwell in it too. But no people will ever live there again. No one will dwell there for all time to come. I will destroy Babylonia just like I did Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighboring towns. No one will live there. No human being will settle in it,” says the Lord.

The issue with this prophecy is that it has not been fulfilled yet. In 539 BC, the Medes and Persians conquered Babylon, but not in such a way that it was never inhabited again.11 It continues to be inhabited to this day. After Babylon was conquered, Daniel continued to work for the Persians in Babylon (Dan 6). Also, American soldiers camped there during Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003-2011).

Are there other prophecies which help clarify how this prophecy will ultimately be fulfilled? Yes. In Revelation, Babylon appears to be a central city in the Antichrist’s world empire. Revelation 18:1-5 says:

After these things I saw another angel, who possessed great authority, coming down out of heaven, and the earth was lit up by his radiance. He shouted with a powerful voice: “Fallen, fallen, is Babylon the great! She has become a lair for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detested beast. For all the nations have fallen from the wine of her immoral passion, and the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have gotten rich from the power of her sensual behavior.” Then I heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people, so you will not take part in her sins and so you will not receive her plagues, because her sins have piled up all the way to heaven and God has remembered her crimes.

From the description, it appears that the city will become a center of false worship, which is what the phrases “immoral passion” and “sexually immorality,” in part, refer to (Rev 18:3). This city will be instrumental in turning other nations away from worshiping God to worshiping the Antichrist and Satan (cf. Rev 13). In addition, it will be a place of tremendous wealth and trade, which will help the nations grow rich (Rev 18:3). Revelation 18:20-22 describes its destruction by God:

(Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has pronounced judgment against her on your behalf!) Then one powerful angel picked up a stone like a huge millstone, threw it into the sea, and said, “With this kind of sudden violent force Babylon the great city will be thrown down and it will never be found again! And the sound of the harpists, musicians, flute players, and trumpeters will never be heard in you again. No craftsman who practices any trade will ever be found in you again; the noise of a mill will never be heard in you again.

Essentially, the same prophecies spoken about Babylon in Isaiah 13 and Jeremiah 50 are prophesied in Revelation 18. After God destroys the city, no work will ever happen in this city again; nobody will ever be married in it, and there will be no music played in it. By comparing Old Testament prophecies with Revelation 18, it seems clear that Babylon will arise again in the end times. It will be used by the Antichrist to seduce nations to evil through wealth and false religion. Eventually, God will destroy it completely, as prophesied thousands of years ago.

With that said, theologians are divided on Revelation 18. Since Babylon is a symbol of evil in Scripture, some have said it could be any major city with worldwide influence. It could be Washington D.C., Moscow, Berlin, or Beijing; however, the problem with these possibilities is they leave Old Testament prophecies about Babylon’s absolute destruction unfulfilled. For that reason, many Bible students believe that the ancient city of Babylon will be resurrected to power during the Antichrist’s end-time, world reign.

Are there any signs of Babylon being rebuilt? Yes, there are certainly rumblings. For instance, when Saddam Hussein was in power, he vowed to rebuild Babylon and make it the great city it once was. Before his death, he started the process, but it has been left incomplete. Currently, the government of Iraq is moving forward with plans to rebuild it. Mark Hitchcock shares:

The government of Iraq is moving forward with plans to protect the amazing archaeological remains of the ancient city of Babylon, even as progress is made toward building a modern city. The project, originally begun by the late Saddam Hussein, is designed to attract scores of “cultural tourists” from all over the world to see the splendor of Mesopotamia’s most renowned city. What’s more, the U.S. government has contributed $700,000 toward the Future of Babylon Project through the state department’s budget via the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. According to reports, Officials hope Babylon can be revived and made ready for a rich future of tourism, with help from experts at the World Monuments Fund (WMF) and the U.S. embassy. The Future of Babylon project launched last month seeks to map the current conditions of Babylon and develop a master plan for its conservation, study and tourism.12

Finally, without even considering prophecy, Babylon is very strategic because of its location: It is geographically near the center of the world’s land masses. It is at the crossroads of three great continents: Africa, Asia, and Europe.13 For these reasons, Babylon has been called the most ideal place for a world trade center, a world banking center, a world cultural metropolis, or even a world capital!14 Many believe it is just a matter of time before this great city will be rebuilt and take center stage during the end times.

Other Future Prophecies

What are some of the other major, future Bible prophecies? There are many. We won’t cover these with much detail. (1) There will be a world-wide tribulation in the end times. Revelation 5-19 details much of what will happen. During this period, God will judge the earth by war, famine, disease, and other expressions of his judgment. This is also when the Antichrist will arise, inciting a rebellion against God and the persecution of his people. (2) Some think Christians will be raptured (resurrected with heavenly bodies) to be with Christ before the tribulation, during it, or at the end of it. (3) At the end of the tribulation, there will be the second coming, when Christ returns to earth with his saints to rule. Those who believe the rapture will happen at the end of the tribulation see the rapture and Christ’s second coming as occurring simultaneously. Christ will appear, saints will be raptured to meet him in the air, and they will come down to the earth with him to rule and judge. (4) After Christ returns, there will be the millennium, during which Christ rules the earth for 1000 years of perfect peace. Then there will be a period where Satan is released to tempt the nations; Christ will crush him and his followers. (5) After this, there will be the Great White Throne of Judgment. There, unbelievers will be resurrected and judged. Revelation 20 details the millennial kingdom, Satan’s final judgment, and the Great White Throne of Judgment. (6) Finally, there will be the eternal state, including a new heaven and a new earth, where there will be no death, pain, or crying—only perfect peace, righteousness, and joy, as redeemed people serve and worship God forever (Rev 21-22).

The Purpose Of Prophecy

Why does God give prophecies in the Bible?

1. God Gives Bible Prophecy As A Sign Of Intimacy With His People.

In John 15:15, Christ said to his disciples: “I no longer call you slaves, because the slave does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because I have revealed to you everything I heard from my Father.” Likewise, when God was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, God shared his plans with Abraham because he was God’s friend (Gen 18). God does the same with us through both doctrine and prophecy. God’s sharing prophecy with his followers is a sign of intimacy and trust—just as how we share intimate details with those whom we love and trust.

2. God Gives Bible Prophecy So We Can Have Peace And Comfort During Turbulent Times.

In John 16:32-33, Christ said this to his disciples, as he warned them of his impending death and how they would be scattered:

Look, a time is coming—and has come—when you will be scattered, each one to his own home, and I will be left alone. Yet I am not alone, because my Father is with me. I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In the world you have trouble and suffering, but take courage—I have conquered the world.”

As the disciples watched Christ die and many former disciples desert him, they could take comfort in Christ’s words. God was not taken by surprise—even these horrible events were part of his greater plan. Similarly, much of biblical prophecy is given so that believers can have comfort in turbulent times. God is in control, and we can trust him.

3. God Gives Bible Prophecy To Prove To People That He Is God.

As mentioned earlier, in Isaiah 41:21-24, God challenged the false gods to prove their deity by predicting the future or telling the past, which they could not do. This proved that they were frauds. Then God prophesied to prove his deity. He predicted over 150 years before it happened that the Persian king, Cyrus, would send Israel back to their land after the Babylonian captivity.15 In speaking about Cyrus, God said:

For the sake of my servant Jacob, Israel, my chosen one, I call you by name and give you a title of respect, even though you do not recognize me. I am the LORD, I have no peer, there is no God but me. I arm you for battle, even though you do not recognize me. I do this so people will recognize from east to west that there is no God but me; I am the LORD, I have no peer.

Isaiah 45:4-6

God gave and fulfilled the prophecy so people would recognize that there is no God but the LORD. For this reason, we should use prophecy as an apologetic tool, to help people believe in the validity of Scripture and ultimately God.

4. God Gives Bible Prophecy To Strengthen The Faith Of Those Who Believe.

In John 14:28-29, Christ talked to the disciples about his death and resurrection. He said:

You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I am. I have told you now before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe.

Christ told them beforehand to confirm their faith. Likewise, God confirms the faith of believers through Bible prophecy as well. This is especially true as we consider fulfilled Bible prophecy in comparison to unfulfilled prophecy. We can trust that, in the same way God fulfilled prophecies about Cyrus, Josiah, Israel, and Christ, he will fulfill all future prophecies down to the most microscopic detail. God is faithful to his Word.

Conclusion

One of the things that makes the Bible unique is that it is a book of prophecy. It records around 1000 prophecies—500 have been fulfilled and 500 await their fulfillment. Prophecies not only show God’s wisdom, but also his control over all of history. It truly is His-story!

Reflection

  1. In the reading, what unfulfilled prophecy stood out most to you and why?
  2. Why do many believe that Israel’s temple will be rebuilt before the end-times?
  3. Why do many believe that the Roman Empire will be revived?
  4. Why do many believe that Babylon will be the capital city of the Antichrist’s empire during the end times?
  5. Why does God give prophecy? Why is it so important?
  6. In what ways does studying prophecy encourage your faith?
  7. What other questions or applications do you have from the reading?

Copyright © 2020 Gregory Brown

Unless otherwise noted, the primary Scriptures used are taken from the NET Bible ® copyright © 1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NASB) are taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, and 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are from the King James Version of the Bible.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added.

BTG Publishing all rights reserved.


1 “What was Zerubbabel’s temple/the second temple?” accessed 8/8/19 from https://www.gotquestions.org/Zerubbabel-second-temple.html

2 Hitchcock, Mark (2010-04-01). The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 180). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

3 Accessed 9/23/19 from https://www.timesofisrael.com/zehuts-feiglin-says-he-wants-to-build-third-temple-right-away/

4 “A Request to Pope Francis to Return Temple Menorah and other Temple Vessels Hidden in the Vatican” accessed 8/8/19 from https://www.templemountfaithful.org/articles/letter-to-pope-francis-to-return-stolen-temple-items.php

5 Accessed 9/19/19 from https://www.ancient.eu/Western_Roman_Empire/

6 Accessed 9/19/19 from https://www.historyhit.com/divorce-and-decline-the-division-of-east-and-west-roman-empires/

7 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 112). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

8 “European Union” accessed 8/8/19 from https://www.britannica.com/topic/European-Union

9 “From 6 to 28 members” accessed 8/8/19 from https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/policy/from-6-to-28-members_en

10 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 184). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

11 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 188). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

12 Hitchcock, Mark (2010-04-01). The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 195). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition

13 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 194). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

14 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 194). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

15 Hitchcock, Mark. The Amazing Claims of Bible Prophecy, (p. 16). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Related Topics: Basics for Christians, Prophecy/Revelation

Lesson 8: The Bible Is Unique In How You Study It--Reasons To Study Scripture

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Unfortunately, many Christians struggle with establishing and practicing a plan for reading and studying the Bible. Why? For many reasons. One of them is a lack of motivation. As with any endeavor, if we don’t recognize how beneficial something is, we will struggle with motivation and without motivation, we won’t do it, or won’t do it consistently.

This is, in part, why Scripture repeatedly teaches about the benefits of studying the Word of God. It challenges us to study, not only because God calls us to do so, but also because there are so many blessings for us when we do. In this lesson, we will consider ten reasons for studying Scripture, with the goal of becoming motivated to study God’s Word with greater dedication and continuity.

People Should Study Scripture To Learn About Salvation—How To Have Eternal Life

In 2 Timothy 3:15, Paul told Timothy to continue in what he had learned—referring to the Scriptures—because it was able to give him “wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.” Scripture gives people wisdom on how to be saved. The Old Testament tells the story of God creating the earth, the world falling into sin and disarray, and God’s promise to redeem the world through a male child. It reveals that the child would have a Jewish lineage and that the child would be both human and divine. Then, the Gospels reveal this person as Jesus, the Son of God. The Son of God lived, died on the cross for our sins, and rose from the dead, so we could have eternal life through faith in him. People should read the Bible because no other book teaches about how a person can be saved. The Bible teaches redemptive history—how God saves the world.

People Should Study Scripture To Grow In Righteousness

In 2 Timothy 3:16-17, Paul said, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” After people accept Christ, Scripture gives them “teaching” or “doctrine.” This is one of the elements that makes Christianity unique in comparison to other religions. It is filled with doctrine. Scripture not only teaches the doctrine of salvation but also the doctrine of God. God is a triune God: a trinity. He is God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. They are three independent persons, co-equal, and yet one.

The Bible teaches the doctrine of humanity (or anthropology). People were made in the image of God and reflect God in various ways, including through being male and female (cf. Gen 1:27, 1 Cor 11:3). It teaches the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. God gave the Holy Spirit to convict unbelievers and lead them to the truth; additionally, the Holy Spirit is given to believers to empower them and transform them into the image of God. The Bible is filled with doctrinal teachings, which we need for life and godliness.

In addition, the Bible rebukes us by revealing the ways we are in sin and calls us to repent. The Bible also corrects us by not only showing us how we are wrong, but how to get right. Finally, the Bible trains us for every good work, which includes being a godly spouse, parent, child, worker, or leader. This is what we call the sufficiency of Scripture: it equips us for every good work. The more a person knows God’s Word, the more God can use them to bless others.

People Should Study Scripture To Discern God’s Direction

In Psalm 119:105, David said, “Your word is a lamp to walk by, and a light to illumine my path.” For David, to be in the Word was to be able to see clearly and make decisions about going to the left or to the right. To not be in the Word was to make decisions in the dark. The Bible tells us what to do in moral situations—do not lie, steal, or cheat—and also gives us principles for all situations, including marriage, parenting, work, and conflict, to name just a few examples. Proverbs 11:14 says there is victory or safety in the multitude of counselors. We should seek wisdom from other godly people in making decisions. Romans 12:2 teaches us about how to better discern God’s direction. It says, “Do not be conformed to this present world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test and approve what is the will of God—what is good and well-pleasing and perfect.” Many can’t discern God’s voice because the world’s voice is so strong in their ears. The more we reject sin and the teachings of the world, and instead renew our minds according to God’s Word, the more we’ll be able to better discern God’s clear guidance.

People Should Study Scripture To Have A Fruitful Life

Psalm 1:1-3 (NIV) says:

Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers.

David described how a person who rejects the world and sin and instead delights and meditates on God’s Word will become like a tree. What does the tree metaphor signify? Trees are not made for their own pleasure but for the pleasure and security of others. God said to Abraham, “I will bless you and you will be a blessing” (Gen 12:1-3). People would eat from the fruit of Abraham’s life (and his descendants) and find nourishment. Similarly, God will use those who delight in and live in Scripture to bless many. In fact, the Psalmist says, “whatever they do prospers” (v. 3).

Unlike the fruitful person in Psalm 1 whose life is a blessing to others, many people are consumed with themselves. They are takers instead of givers. That is the natural disposition of people apart from God; however, when we allow God to rule in our lives—specifically through living in and obeying his Word—he makes us givers. We become like trees, bearing fruit that many will eat.

People Should Study Scripture To Conquer Sin And Temptations From The Devil

In Psalm 119:11 (NIV), David said, “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” By hiding Scripture in his heart, David was able to defeat sin. This is exactly what Christ did when tempted in the wilderness by Satan: He defeated Satan by quoting Scripture (Matt 4). Similarly, 1 John 2:14 says, “I have written to you, young people, that you are strong, and the word of God resides in you, and you have conquered the evil one.” The implication is that spiritual young men (and women) conquer the devil because of their deep knowledge of Scripture, even as Christ conquered the devil. In contrast, if people are weak in Scripture, they will find themselves more vulnerable to temptation, sin, and the devil.

Paul taught that even the Old Testament narratives were meant to help us battle sin. For example, in 1 Corinthians 10:6-11, Paul said that Israel’s grumbling and committing immorality during their wilderness wanderings were included in Scripture “as examples for us, so that we will not crave evil things as they did” (v. 6). Therefore, we should study Scripture to help us conquer sin and temptations from the devil.

People Should Study Scripture To Be Protected From False Teaching

One of the most repeated themes in the New Testament is warnings against false teaching. Christ warned against false teaching (Matt 7:15-20). Most of Paul’s letters were written to correct false doctrines that were spreading throughout the church. He also taught that in the last days there would be many demonic teachers and teachings in the church (1 Tim 4:2).

Because of this reality, believers must continually study God’s Word to be protected. Paul described immature believers as “children, tossed back and forth by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching by the trickery of people who craftily carry out their deceitful schemes” (Eph 4:14). Just as small children are prone to danger because of lack of wisdom and life experience, so are spiritual children. In order to grow, they must study Scripture. First Peter 2:2 says, “And yearn like newborn infants for pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up to salvation.” By yearning for God’s Word (and therefore studying it), believers mature and become less vulnerable to false teaching. In fact, the Berean Christians in Acts 17:11 (NIV) were called “noble” because of their consistent and fervent practice of testing Paul’s teaching against Scripture to see if it was true. We must do the same.

People Should Study Scripture To Know And Experience God’s Promises

Scripture is full of promises. Some have counted over 3,000 within Scripture. Second Peter 1:3-4 says this about God’s promises:

I can pray this because his divine power has bestowed on us everything necessary for life and godliness through the rich knowledge of the one who called us by his own glory and excellence. Through these things he has bestowed on us his precious and most magnificent promises, so that by means of what was promised you may become partakers of the divine nature, after escaping the worldly corruption that is produced by evil desire.

These promises were given to enable us to participate in the divine nature—which means to make us more like God—and to help us escape the corruption of the world. Some are unconditional, such as God’s promise, “I will never leave you and I will never abandon you” (Heb 13:5). However, others are conditional—meaning that we have a role in receiving them.

Here are a few conditional promises to consider. Philippians 4:6-7 says,

Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God. And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

God promises his supernatural peace for those who practice prayer, petition, and thanksgiving in everything they do. When we live out these disciplines, instead of worrying and complaining, God gives us his peace.

First John 1:9 says: “But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous, forgiving us our sins and cleansing us from all unrighteousness.” God promises to forgive us when we confess our sins to him; therefore, believers don’t have to live in guilt. God is gracious to forgive all our sins when we come to him with repentant hearts.

Proverbs 11:25 says: “whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.” Likewise, Christ said, “Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy” (Matt 5:7). This is especially important for those in serving ministries who are prone to burn out and discouragement. This doesn’t give them a license to neglect rest and self-care, but it does mean that when they prioritize caring for others, God will care for them.

Scripture is full of God’s promises which are meant to change, direct, and comfort us.

People Should Study Scripture To Find Endurance And Encouragement

In Romans 15:4, Paul said, “For everything that was written in former times was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and through encouragement of the scriptures we may have hope.” For example, many find great encouragement by reading in the Psalms, how others transparently wrestled with their faith while encountering the trials and worries of life. The Old Testament narratives also often help people endure difficulties, as they consider how others faithfully endured seemingly insurmountable circumstances and how God used those circumstances for good. God used Moses’ flight from Egypt as a fugitive and his role as a shepherd in the wilderness for forty years, as preparation for him to lead the Israelite slaves out of slavery in Egypt and shepherd them for forty years in the wilderness. God used the evil Joseph’s brothers did against him—selling him into slavery—to create character in Joseph and the circumstances where Joseph would one day rule over Egypt and help many people. We should read Scripture to gain endurance and encouragement to persevere in life’s trials.

People Should Study Scripture To Be Empowered By God’s Spirit

Consider the following passages: In Ephesians 5:18-20, Paul said:

And do not get drunk with wine, which is debauchery, but be filled by the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music in your hearts to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for each other in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

When Paul commanded believers to be filled with the Spirit, he was challenging them to be continually controlled and empowered by God’s Spirit. This is clear from the implied comparison with drunkenness. In the same way wine can control a person, believers should be controlled and empowered by the Spirit. Paul then described the fruits of a Spirit-filled person: a Spirit-filled person worships God by singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. While an unfilled person is consumed with themselves, a filled person is consumed with worshiping God. The filled person is thankful. When unfilled, we are prone to bitterness and grumbling, but when filled, we see God in control of even difficult circumstances, causing us to be thankful. Finally, the filled person submits to others out of reverence to Christ instead of constantly fighting with them and seeking his or her own way. Such submission is accomplished by the power of the Spirit. A Spirit-filled life is a supernatural life.

How then can we be filled with the Spirit—controlled and empowered by him? Consider a parallel passage written by Paul in Colossians 3:16-18,

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and exhorting one another with all wisdom, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, all with grace in your hearts to God. And whatever you do in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.

As believers allow the word of Christ to dwell in them richly, they become teachers, worshipers, Christ-conscious, thankful, and submissive. These characteristics are virtually the same as being filled with the Spirit. This makes perfect sense. Since the Spirit is the author of Scripture, he controls and empowers the person who is filled with God’s Word. Unfortunately, many lack power in their Christian life—power to conquer sin, to love others, and to be thankful, regardless of their circumstances—because they are not filled with God’s Word and therefore are not filled with God’s Spirit.

People Should Study Scripture To Please God And Be Approved By Him

In 2 Timothy 2:15 (NIV), Paul said, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” Essentially, Paul said that God approves those who do their best to study and correctly handle God’s Word. Therefore, it must be realized that some will ultimately not be approved because of how they neglected and mishandled Scripture.

This is not referring to God rejecting some for salvation, as salvation comes by faith and not by works (Eph 2:8-9). But it certainly refers to being useful to the Lord and rewarded. To some, God will say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” and reward them (cf. Matt 25:21, 1 Cor 3:14). For others, there will be a loss of reward, based on what they did (or did not do) with God’s Word (cf. Matt 5:19, 2 John 1:8, 1 Cor 3:15). We should do our best to study Scripture, rightly apply it, and teach others so we can bring pleasure to God and be approved by him. As Paul said of himself and the apostles, we are all stewards of God’s mysteries, who must prove ourselves faithful (1 Cor 4:1-2).

Conclusion

Why do so many Christians struggle with reading and studying Scripture? Maybe, in part, because they have never thought deeply about how great Scripture is and the benefits of studying it, and therefore lack consistent motivation.

  1. People Should Study Scripture to Learn About Salvation—How to Have Eternal Life
  2. People Should Study Scripture to Grow in Righteousness
  3. People Should Study Scripture to Discern God’s Direction
  4. People Should Study Scripture to Have a Fruitful Life
  5. People Should Study Scripture to Conquer Sin and Temptations from the Devil
  6. People Should Study Scripture to Be Protected from False Teaching
  7. People Should Study Scripture to Know and Experience God’s Promises
  8. People Should Study Scripture to Find Endurance and Encouragement
  9. People Should Study Scripture to Be Empowered by God’s Spirit
  10. People Should Study Scripture to Please God and Be Approved by Him

Reflection

  1. In the reading, what reason for studying Scripture stood out most to you and why?
  2. Do you struggle with being motivated to study Scripture? If so, why? If not, why not?
  3. How have you experienced the benefits of Scripture, including God making you more fruitful, giving you encouragement, endurance, guidance, and the ability to conquer sin?
  4. What is your favorite promise in Scripture and why?
  5. What are some other, unlisted, benefits of studying Scripture?
  6. What other questions or applications do you have from the reading?

Copyright © 2020 Gregory Brown

Unless otherwise noted, the primary Scriptures used are taken from the NET Bible ® copyright © 1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NASB) are taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, and 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are from the King James Version of the Bible.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added.

BTG Publishing all rights reserved.

Related Topics: Basics for Christians, Bibliology (The Written Word)

Lesson 9: The Bible Is Unique In How You Study It--Foundations For Understanding Scripture

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When constructing a building, builders start by securing a strong foundation. If the foundation is off, the building will have problems and possibly be unsafe. Likewise, when developing a life of studying and understanding Scripture, great attention must be given to the foundation. A faulty foundation will seriously compromise one’s study—possibly leading to spiritually injuring oneself and others. Many in the body of Christ have been hurt by a faulty foundation and some have even fallen away from the faith. In this lesson, we will consider six foundations for understanding Scripture.

Foundation 1: We Must Be Born Again To Understand Scripture

The first foundation for understanding the Bible is the necessity of the new nature, which we receive at spiritual birth. Consider what the Bible says about the state of every person before salvation: In 1 Corinthians 2:14, Paul said: “The unbeliever does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. And he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.” Similarly, in Romans 8:7 (NIV), he said, “The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.”

Paul taught something called human inability. When sin came into the world, it affected people in such a way that, apart from God’s grace in salvation, they cannot accept God’s Word. Scripture is foolishness to them, and they can’t understand it. Apart from saving grace, the world scoffs at a God who created the earth by his Word. They scoff at a God who judged the earth through a world-wide flood. They scoff at God’s Son becoming a man, being born of a virgin, dying for the sins of the world, and then being resurrected. Only God’s Spirit can give someone grace to accept the things of God. Therefore, people need to be born again to properly interpret Scripture.

How can a person be born again? John said this:

But to all who have received him—those who believe in his name—he has given the right to become God’s children—children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God.

John 1:12-13

When a person receives Christ—believing that Christ died on the cross and rose from the dead for people’s sins and commits to following him as Lord and Savior—he or she is spiritually born again. God gives that person the Holy Spirit and a new nature with a desire to study Scripture and a capacity to understand and obey it.

False Teaching

With that said, it should be understood that a lot of false doctrine comes from those within the church who are not truly born again and therefore cannot properly understand Scripture. Consider what Peter said about Paul’s scriptural writings:

Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position.

2 Peter 3:15-17 (NIV)

Peter said that some of Paul’s writings were hard to understand and that ignorant and unstable people distorted them, as they did with other Scriptures, to their own destruction. He also said these people were lawless—meaning disobedient to God. In fact, Peter’s entire letter is a warning against false teachers. It seems evident that those twisting Scripture “to their own destruction” were not true believers (v. 16).

Christ taught something similar in the Parable of the Weeds and the Wheat (Matt 13:36-43). The parable teaches that in the kingdom there are weeds—false believers—planted by the evil one, and wheat—true believers—planted by God. The apostle John taught something similar when describing the false believers and teachers who left the church of Ephesus. In 1 John 2:19-20, he said:

They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us, because if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. But they went out from us to demonstrate that all of them do not belong to us. Nevertheless you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all know. I have not written to you that you do not know the truth, but that you do know it, and that no lie is of the truth.

John said those who left the church because of accepting heretical doctrine were not saved. He said, “they went out from us, but they did not really belong to us.” They were never truly born again. Then John said to the church, “but you have an anointing from the Holy One and you all know” (v. 20). John believed that the true believers in Ephesus were not led astray into heretical teaching because they had an “anointing” from God. This refers to the Holy Spirit. In the Old Testament, the term “anointing” was used for the prophets, priests, and kings who were anointed with oil, conferring upon them the recognition and resources needed for their ministries. When they were anointed, the Spirit came on them to empower them for their work. The work that John referred to is that of interpreting Scripture. True believers have an anointing which teaches them “truth” (v. 20-21) which will keep them from heretical error. Similarly, in John 10, Christ taught that his sheep hear his voice and will not follow the voice of others.

False conversion—not being truly born again—partly explains some of the great heresies infiltrating the church, such as Christ not being God or human, all people will go to heaven, salvation by works, to name a few. Being truly born again is the foundation of understanding Scripture. The person without the Spirit cannot understand or accept the things that come from the Spirit.

This does not mean true Christians will not have different understandings of Scripture, especially on minor doctrines; but in a supernatural way because of their anointing, they will be kept from heretical error which misinterprets the gospel and essential aspects of it.

Have you been born again? Do you have the Holy Spirit’s anointing to understand Scripture? With this anointing, one will have a desire to study God’s Word and the ability to understand and obey it (cf. 1 Pet 1:2, Rom 8:7, 1 Cor 2:14-15). This is a proof that one is born again by the Spirit of God, and it is crucial for studying and understanding Scripture.

Foundation 2: We Must Depend On God To Understand Scripture

This corresponds with the first point. In salvation, God enlightens our minds to understand the gospel; however, we must daily learn to live in dependence upon God to continually understand Scripture. In fact, consider what Christ said to the disciples about the Holy Spirit’s work in their lives:

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. For he will not speak on his own authority, but will speak whatever he hears, and will tell you what is to come. He will glorify me, because he will receive from me what is mine and will tell it to you.

John 16:13-14

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth, and his job is to guide us into truth. In 1 Corinthians 2:12, Paul said: “Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things that are freely given to us by God.”

Example Of The Disciples

We get a good picture of our need to depend on God to correctly study Scripture from the story of Christ talking with his disciples on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24. After Christ’s death, the disciples were confused about Jesus. Was he truly God? Why, then, did he die? While they were walking, Christ appeared to them (although they did not recognize him). He began to teach from Scripture, explaining that the messiah had to die and be resurrected. As Christ was teaching, Luke, the narrator, added something special to the story:

Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds so they could understand the scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it stands written that the Christ would suffer and would rise from the dead on the third day

Luke 24:44-46

Luke said that Christ “opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.” Though they were saved, Christ still needed to enlighten them so they could understand Scripture. This is just as much a need for us today as it was for Christ’s disciples then. How can we depend on God so we can properly interpret Scripture?

1. To depend on God, we must approach Scripture humbly.

James 4:6 says, “God opposes the proud, but he gives grace to the humble.” If we approach Scripture confidently because of our educational achievements or spiritual background, we close the door to true understanding. God fights against the proud but gives grace to the humble. A great example of humility is Moses. In Numbers 12:3, it says Moses was the humblest man on the earth; soon after, it says that God spoke to him face to face, unlike with other prophets, to whom God spoke in dreams and visions (v. 6-8). No doubt, Moses’ understanding of God’s mysteries was connected to his great humility. When we are proud, we depend on ourselves. When we are humble, we depend on God (and others). Therefore, we must confess our pride and confidence and recognize our inability apart from God to understand Scripture.

Are you approaching Scripture humbly or pridefully? Sometimes, the more we learn about God’s Word, the more prone we are to pride—hindering our ability to receive. First Corinthians 8:1 says “knowledge puffs up.” Therefore, being humble is a discipline we must continually practice by the power of God’s Spirit (cf. Gal 5:22-23), especially as we grow in the knowledge of Scripture.

2. We must approach Scripture prayerfully, demonstrating our dependence on God.

Unfortunately, many Christians don’t pray when reading Scripture or listening to a sermon, which often robs them of understanding and application. We must ask God to open our minds to his Word and remove any hindrances to understanding and obedience. Consider how David prayed in Psalm 119:

Open my eyes so I can truly see the marvelous things in your law!

Psalm 119:18

Help me to understand what your precepts mean! Then I can meditate on your marvelous teachings.

Psalm 119:27

Give me a desire for your rules, rather than for wealth gained unjustly.

Psalm 119:36

In order to understand Scripture, we must depend totally on God—approaching Scripture humbly and prayerfully. The prideful are blocked from the riches of God’s Word—only the humble receive keys to God’s rich truths.

Foundation 3: We Must Depend On Mature Believers To Understand Scripture

To understand Scripture deeply, we must not only depend on God but also seek the insight and counsel of mature believers. This is God’s ordained method for believers to study and understand Scripture. In Ephesians 4:8, 11-13, Paul said this:

Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he captured captives; he gave gifts to men.” … It was he who gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, that is, to build up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God—a mature person, attaining to the measure of Christ’s full stature.

This passage describes Christ’s ascension to heaven and his bestowing gifts upon people. However, it does not itemize a list of gifts. Instead, it lists gifted people: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. By God’s providence, these gifted people are God’s blessings to his church to help her mature and grow in serving others.

If believers are going to grow in their understanding of God’s Word, they must avail themselves of these gifts. They do this by being involved in a good church where the Bible is clearly preached each week, by participating in church small groups where the Bible is discussed, and by reading good Christian books. By doing this, mature believers help other believers better understand God’s Word.

Some Christians may say, “We don’t need to depend on other believers to understand God’s Word because we have the Holy Spirit!” However, the Holy Spirit is the ultimate author of Ephesians 4, which teaches that God’s ordained method to train his church is through the teachings of mature believers. The Holy Spirit empowers this process because God has ordained it; therefore, we must take advantage of it, both to learn God’s Word and to help others learn as we teach God’s Word to others.

Foundation 4: We Must Develop An Obedient Heart To Understand Scripture

In John 7:16-17, Christ said: “…My teaching is not from me, but from the one who sent me. If anyone wants to do God’s will, he will know about my teaching, whether it is from God or whether I speak from my own authority.”

In this text, the Jews and the Pharisees were testing Jesus. Essentially, they were asking, “Are Jesus’ teachings from God or not?” In response, Christ said the only way they could discern if his teachings were authentic was to choose to do God’s will. Negatively speaking, if they continued to have a disobedient heart, God would not give them understanding of Christ’s teachings.

This principle is true for us as well. Apart from a willingness to obey God’s Word, God will not give us understanding. This is especially noteworthy because often we come to Scripture with our own presuppositions and ideas. We are looking to support what we already believe or want to do, which only hinders true understanding. Sometimes, people even approach Scripture like the Pharisees did with Christ—already antagonistic towards what they perceive God is saying through the text. They don’t like what Scripture says about this topic or that topic. Sometimes, they even force their presuppositions into the text—making the text say something it doesn’t say. An obedient heart is crucial to properly grasp Scripture. Without it, God will not give us understanding.

Disobedience Leads To Deception

In fact, a disobedient or antagonistic heart will often lead to deception. In 1 Timothy 4:1-2 (NIV), Paul described the influx of false teachers in the end times and how they originated. He said:

The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.

Paul taught that demons would deceive people who apparently were already living hypocritically, and these same people would espouse demonic lies. Because these people professed Christ but lived in unrepentant sin, their consciences stopped working and they became vulnerable to deception.

The conscience is a natural warning system from God in all people. It is not perfect, as it has been tainted by sin, but it does provide guard rails to our thinking and actions, indicating approval when we do well and disapproval when we do wrong. If we continue to sin, over time the conscience becomes hardened and stops working as it should.

Without the warning system which cautioned that practicing sexual immorality is wrong, lying is wrong, cheating is wrong, abusing people is wrong, these professed believers practiced these sins—making themselves more vulnerable to demonic deceptions. Eventually, they themselves championed and taught various demonic doctrines. A hardened conscience can lead to all types of wrong views and sins.

In the same way that an obedient heart allows the Holy Spirit to bring understanding, a disobedient heart allows demons to bring deception—even leading some to become false prophets and teachers. Satan uses people with twisted consciences to twist God’s Word. This is what the Pharisees did—they twisted God’s Word to their own benefit and others’ demise. Obedience is a critical foundation to knowing God’s Word.

What are some applications we can take from our need to have an obedient heart to understand God’s Word?

1. We should consider the need for an obedient heart as an encouragement and promise to those who truly want to understand Scripture.

Christ said, “If anyone wants to do God’s will, he will know about my teaching, whether it is from God or whether I speak from my own authority” (John 7:17). There are many difficult doctrines in Scripture and various views about them; however, if we truly want to obey God’s will, God promises to give us understanding. We should bring this promise before God as we seek to understand his Word.

2. We should consider the need for an obedient heart as a warning to the disobedient.

The more we disobey Scripture, the more prone we are to compromise what it says and lead others astray. This should be sobering for every Bible student. Many cult leaders and followers started out in the church and so did many atheists.

In 1 Timothy 4:16, Paul said, “Be conscientious about how you live and what you teach. Persevere in this, because by doing so you will save both yourself and those who listen to you.” Our life and doctrine are inseparable. They affect one another. An ungodly life negatively affects our doctrine, and false doctrine negatively affects our lives. Therefore, we must protect both.

Foundation 5: We Must Develop A Diligent Spirit To Understand Scripture

In 2 Timothy 2:15, Paul said, “Make every effort to present yourself before God as a proven worker who does not need to be ashamed, teaching the message of truth accurately.” “Make every effort” can also be translated “be diligent” or “do your best.” One of the reasons there is a lot of misinterpretation of Scripture is simply due to laziness. Many come to Scripture apathetically—unwilling to work hard or give their best efforts to understand it—which often results in misinterpretation. This was especially important for Timothy because he was a teacher and his interpretations affected others—both positively and negatively. However, even without being a teacher, our misinterpretations give the devil an open door into our lives and others.

Again, consider the story of the Bereans in Acts 17:11, “Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” The Bereans are memorialized in Scripture because when taught by Paul, they examined Scripture with “great eagerness” every day to discern what was true. Unfortunately, there are very few noble Christians. Most simply accept what they were taught by parents, friends, pastors, and teachers. Even our best teachers make mistakes and, therefore, must be tested.

It’s especially important to be diligent in our study of Scripture because some doctrines are hard to understand (cf. 2 Peter 3:15-16). What is the Trinity? How do we reconcile God’s sovereignty and human responsibility? How could Christ be fully God and yet fully human? Though some doctrines are hard to understand, they are still indispensable—bearing blessings for proper interpretation and consequences for misinterpretation. Difficulty in understanding a text or doctrine does not excuse us from diligent pursuit of proper interpretation and application. God even promised special blessings to those who read, heard, and obeyed the words of Revelation, which is probably the most difficult book in the Bible to understand (Rev 1:3).

Working hard to understand Scripture is not only necessary because some teachings are hard to understand, but also because of how pervasive false teaching is in the church. In Matthew 7:13-20, Christ described how hard it was to enter the kingdom of God, and one of the reasons was because there were so many false teachers. There are many on the wide road that leads to destruction instead of the narrow road, in part, because of rampant false teaching. Without working hard to understand God’s Word, we are prone to be led astray—even unto damnation.

How can we practice diligence in our study of the Bible, like the Bereans?

  1. To be diligent in our study of Scripture, we must set aside time to study. It takes time to mine Scripture for its riches. Many can’t understand various deep doctrines in Scripture simply because they are not willing to set aside time to do so. What time in your schedule can you dedicate to studying more of God’s Word?
  2. To be diligent in our study of Scripture, we must make sacrifices. Sacrifice implies cost—giving up something we enjoy to prioritize studying God’s Word. The cost could be time watching TV, playing video games, time spent on social media, time with friends, or even sleeping. Are you willing to sacrifice to reap the benefits of studying Scripture?
  3. To be diligent in our study of Scripture, we must become zealous. Zeal is the emotional component of working hard. There is a difference between someone who just shows up to work and someone who shows up and works hard, and part of that difference is zeal. Jeremiah 29:13 (NIV) says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” If we don’t seek God in his Word with all our heart, we will often miss the riches he desires to give us, in particular, his presence. Are you zealous to understand God’s Word? If not, why not?

Foundation 6: We Must Teach Others To Understand Scripture

It has been well-attested that the best way to learn is to teach. We remember 10% of what we hear, 20% of what we read, 70% of what we discuss, and 95% of what we teach. And throughout Scripture, it is clear that God desires every believer to teach in some capacity. In fact, in Hebrews 5:11-12, the author said:

On this topic we have much to say and it is difficult to explain, since you have become sluggish in hearing. For though you should in fact be teachers by this time, you need someone to teach you the beginning elements of God’s utterances. You have gone back to needing milk, not solid food.

The author said that the Jewish Christians should have been teaching others, but they needed to be retaught the basics and couldn’t learn deeper theology because of that. That’s how many people are in the church today. They have to be continually retaught because they don’t retain what they learn.

All believers are called to teach God’s Word. Parents should teach their children (Eph 6:4). Older women should teach younger women (Titus 2:3-4). Believers should teach one another in all wisdom (Col 3:16), and they should also teach unbelievers (Matt 28:19-20). If one struggles with identifying whom to teach, he or she should simply find somebody who knows less and teach that person—even if it is a child or an unbeliever. This is the best way to retain what one has learned and learn more.

Conclusion

In this study, we considered six foundations for understanding Scripture. Apart from them, there will be cracks in our foundation which will hinder our ability to understand Scripture, grow in spiritual maturity, and help others. In fact, bad foundations can hurt us and others.

Foundation 1: We Must Be Born Again to Understand Scripture

Foundation 2: We Must Depend on God to Understand Scripture

Foundation 3: We Must Depend on Mature Believers to Understand Scripture

Foundation 4: We Must Develop an Obedient Heart to Understand Scripture

Foundation 5: We Must Develop a Diligent Spirit to Understand Scripture

Foundation 6: We Must Teach Others to Understand Scripture

Reflection

  1. In the reading, what foundation stood out most to you and why?
  2. Why is being born again so important for properly understanding Scripture?
  3. In what ways have you seen or experienced how an obedient heart leads to understanding Scripture and how a disobedient heart hinders understanding and can even lead to deception?
  4. Why is it so important to be diligent and work hard in our study of Scripture? How is God calling you to grow in this area?
  5. How have you experienced the benefits of teaching others what you learned from the Bible? Who do you feel God is calling you to, specifically, teach in this season?
  6. What other questions or applications do you have from the reading?

Copyright © 2020 Gregory Brown

Unless otherwise noted, the primary Scriptures used are taken from the NET Bible ® copyright © 1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NASB) are taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, and 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are from the King James Version of the Bible.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added.

BTG Publishing all rights reserved.

Related Topics: Basics for Christians, Bible Study Methods, Bibliology (The Written Word)

Lesson 10: The Bible Is Unique In How You Study It--Hindrances To Studying Scripture

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How do we prepare our hearts to study the Bible? One of the ways we do this is by getting rid of every potential hindrance to studying and understanding God’s Word. Ezra 7:10 (ESV) says, “For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.” In the KJV, it is translated that Ezra “prepared his heart.”

In Scripture, the heart often refers to the mind, will, and emotions. It is the center of who we are. Proverbs 4:23 says, “Guard your heart with all vigilance, for from it are the sources of life.” Our heart affects our jobs, families, friendships, and our relationship with God and his Word. In Matthew 13:1-23, Christ illustrated this in the Parable of the Soils. In it, he described God’s Word being sown into the ‘soil’ of four different hearts—the wayside ground, the rocky ground, the thorny ground, and the good ground. Though each received the Word, only the good ground produced fruit that lasted. Therefore, we also, like farmers, must discern the ground of our heart and prepare it to receive God’s Word and produce fruit.

In this lesson, we will consider six hindrances to studying Scripture, which will aid us in preparing the ground of our heart so it can produce maximum fruit.

Hindrance 1: The Unrepentant Heart

James 1:21 says, “So put away all filth and evil excess and humbly welcome the message implanted within you, which is able to save your souls.” What’s interesting about James’ command to get rid of sin is that it implies that God’s Word was already in the hearts of the hearers; however, it was ineffective. In order for the Word to change them, they needed to get rid of sin. Sin hinders our ability to truly receive God’s Word.

Peter said something similar, “So get rid of all evil and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. And yearn like newborn infants for pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up to salvation” (1 Pet 2:1-2). Since Peter called believers to get rid of sin before commanding them to “yearn” for or “crave” God’s Word, the implication is that sin not only stops us from truly receiving God’s Word but also from desiring it. Many believers struggle with their appetite for God’s Word because they delight in sin and in the world. Likewise, in 1 John 2:15, John said, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” There is a principle working in the world system that draws people away from God. It seeks to satisfy people apart from God, and it is utterly antagonistic to him.

Consider this saying: “The Word of God will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from the Word of God.” People’s relationship to God’s Word is often an indicator of their relationship to sin. A life characterized by not attending church nor participating in a small group (where God’s Word is taught), or by not reading God’s Word will lead people into sin. When people are living in sin or being drawn to it, they will often stop attending places or doing things where they hear God’s Word. Sin is a hindrance to studying God’s Word.

Hindrance 2: The Uncommitted Heart

In the Parable of the Soils, Christ said this about the rocky ground:

The seed sown on rocky ground is the person who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. But he has no root in himself and does not endure; when trouble or persecution comes because of the word, immediately he falls away.

Matthew 13:20-21

This type of soil represents people who hear the Word in church, small group, through their personal study, or by some other means, and they accept it joyfully. However, their faithfulness to it lasts only a short time. When trials or persecution come, they quickly fall away. The ground of their heart is shallow, their commitment weak; therefore, they don’t continue in obeying God’s Word and many ultimately fall away from God.

This is the uncommitted heart. People with an uncommitted heart may look as if they are living a life that honors and prioritizes God. They may study Scripture, attend church, and participate in small groups regularly, but they produce no lasting fruit because of their lack of commitment. They want God and his Word as long as things are good, as long as God is blessing them; but as soon as things go wrong, they fall away from Scripture reading, church attendance, and obedience to God. They may even get angry at God and deny him altogether.

How can we tell if we have an uncommitted heart? Simply by considering how we respond in trials. If we continually get angry at God and run away from him in trials instead of running to him, we have an uncommitted heart, which negatively affects our ability to receive God’s Word.

Consider our typical response to one who is uncommitted or untrustworthy: Would we entrust our deepest secrets to someone who is uncommitted or untrustworthy, or give them an important task? No, we wouldn’t, because they would probably be unfaithful with it. We can be sure that God doesn’t entrust the revelation of his Word to someone who is uncommitted or untrustworthy, either. Psalm 25:14 says, “The LORD’s loyal followers receive his guidance, and he reveals his covenantal demands to them.” God reveals his Word to his “loyal followers”—not the uncommitted ones. Shallow hearts only get shallow revelation. As they become faithful with little, then God will give them more (cf. Lk 16:10). When they are unfaithful with little, God takes away even what they have (cf. Matt 13:12). The uncommitted heart is a hindrance to studying God’s Word.

Hindrance 3: The Worrying Heart

In Matthew 13:22 (NIV), Christ described the thorny ground and how worry kept this type of heart from fruitfulness. In explaining it, Christ said, “The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life … choke the word, making it unfruitful.”

Some of the most frequent commands in Scripture are, “Don’t be afraid,” “Do not worry,” or “Be anxious for nothing.” What is wrong with worrying? Worry essentially says to God either “I don’t trust you!” or “You are not in control!” However, Scripture tells us that God works all things according to the counsel of his will (Eph 1:11) and that he specifically works all things for the good of those who love him (Rom 8:28). Though hard things happen in our lives, God is always in control and using them for our good; therefore, we must trust him.

Consider this from a human relationship standpoint: if we don’t trust somebody, then that distrust will affect what we give them or accept from them. Similarly, how can we expect God to teach us his Word if we don’t trust him? One of the prominent themes of Scripture is our need for faith—for us to trust God. We need to put our faith in God for salvation (Eph 2:8-9), but we also need to put our trust in him to receive many of his promises. In Mark 9:23, Christ said to a father seeking healing for his child, “All things are possible for the one who believes.” Since fear is basically a lack of faith, it prohibits our ability to receive God’s promises and his Word.

In reality, many people faithfully spend time in God’s Word, yet God’s Word is ineffective in their lives because of their propensity to worry. They constantly worry about their future, their past, their relationships, and everything else. Consequently, their worry chokes God’s Word and makes it unfruitful (Matt 13:22). Therefore, if we are going to prepare our hearts to study God’s Word, we must resolve not to worry but instead to pray, give God thanks, and trust him. Philippians 4:6-7 says,

Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God. And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

And 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, “Always rejoice, constantly pray, in everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Hindrance 4: The Materialistic Heart

When describing the thorny ground which didn’t produce fruit from God’s Word, Christ not only mentioned worry, but also the deceitfulness of wealth as a hindrance. Again, Matthew 13:22 (NIV) says, “The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but … the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.”

This seems to be one of the temptations that kept Eve from obeying God’s Word. Though Eve had everything in the world, Satan focused her attention on the one thing that she didn’t have—the fruit of the forbidden tree. She looked at the fruit, lusted for it, and ate it—disobeying God’s Word.

Since then, “the deceitfulness of wealth” (or materialism) has been a major hindrance to studying and obeying God’s Word. Christ declared that a person can only have one master, God or Money; otherwise, the person will hate one and love the other (Matt 6:24). Christ also emphasized how hard it was for a rich man to get into heaven (Matt 19:23). We are often deceived by wealth. We are tempted to think that it will ultimately satisfy us, so we pursue it more than God. Paul taught Timothy that many had pierced themselves with many sorrows because of the love of wealth and some had even fallen away from the faith (1 Tim 6:9-11).

For this reason, if we are going to prepare our hearts to study God’s Word, we must guard against materialism—loving things more than God and others. It’s very easy for money, clothes, cars, and electronics to become our idols—hindering our love for God’s Word, our ability to understand it, and our desire to obey it.

How can we protect our hearts from materialism? By being obedient to God in these ways: (1) Christ taught that we should not store up treasures on earth, because they are temporary and tend to consume our hearts, but to instead store up treasures in heaven, which are eternal (Matt 6:19-21). Likewise, Paul taught that we should guard our hearts from being “engrossed” with the things of this world (1 Cor 7:31 NIV). To live in the world, we must use things (cars, phones, laptops, Internet, money), but we must guard against being engrossed in them. Sometimes that means not acquiring them, giving them away, or simply being disciplined with them. (2) We are to practice contentment. In 1 Timothy 6:6-8, Paul said if we have food and covering, we should be “content.” Contentment is a spiritual discipline we must learn and practice. It often starts with simply giving God thanks for what we have and choosing to not pursue more than what we have. Unfortunately, since our hearts are so deceitful, many are unaware of how consumed their hearts are with material things and how that idolatry has hindered their ability to desire, study, and obey God’s Word.

Do you have a materialistic heart? Christ said we can only have one master—God or money. We will love one and hate the other. In order to study God’s Word, we must love God and be careful of materialism, which can choke God’s Word and render it ineffective.

Hindrance 5: The Busy Heart

Another common hindrance that keeps many from knowing and receiving God’s Word is simply busyness. We get a good picture of this in the Mary and Martha story in Luke 10. In the story, Jesus visited Mary and Martha’s home. While there, Jesus was teaching and sharing God’s Word with the disciples. Mary sat with them and listened while Martha was the ‘good’ hostess—working feverishly to serve everybody. Eventually, Martha complained to Jesus and asked him to tell Mary to help with serving. Jesus replied: “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things, but one thing is needed. Mary has chosen the best part; it will not be taken away from her” (Lk 10:41-42).

Likewise, many people won’t study Scripture simply because they are too busy. Often what keeps them away from studying God’s Word are not bad things; they can be very good things like school, work, family, or hobbies. However, often the enemy of the best thing is not the evil but the good. No doubt, this is why Paul prayed this for the Philippians:

And I pray this, that your love may abound even more and more in knowledge and every kind of insight so that you can decide what is best, and thus be sincere and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.

Philippians 1:9-11

As people made in the image of God, we have a tremendous capacity to love; however, our love must be wise. We must be able to discern what is best so we can be holy, fruitful, and bring maximum glory to God.

Is busyness keeping you from studying God’s Word and receiving all the benefits which come from it, including fruitfulness? Be careful of the hindrance of the busy heart.

Hindrance 6: The Sectarian (Or Denominational) Heart

The sectarian or denominational heart is the believers’ tendency to exalt a leader, church, or denomination to the point that it hinders their ability to rightly interpret and obey Scripture. This tendency has plagued the church since its inception and even before the church was formed. In 1 Corinthians 3:1-5, Paul rebuked the Corinthians for unduly exalting their teachers:

So, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but instead as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready. In fact, you are still not ready, for you are still influenced by the flesh. For since there is still jealousy and dissension among you, are you not influenced by the flesh and behaving like unregenerate people? For whenever someone says, “I am with Paul,” or “I am with Apollos,” are you not merely human? What is Apollos, really? Or what is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, and each of us in the ministry the Lord gave us.

This same heart tendency is demonstrated by Joshua in his reverence for Moses. In Numbers 11:28-29, two men were prophesying in the Israelite camp and Joshua responded: “‘My lord Moses, stop them!’ Moses said to him, ‘Are you jealous for me? I wish that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!’”

Similarly, we have a propensity to divide into factions around great leaders, churches, and denominations and to become jealous to protect them, even when they are potentially in error. When we overly-reverence them, we risk becoming blind to their flaws. Our idolization hinders our ability to rightly understand and apply God’s Word. Robert West in his book, How to Study the Bible, gives a challenging warning against overly exalting our teachers, which can also be applied to our churches and denominations:

Christians must also beware of becoming -ites. These are believers who automatically accept everything that a certain Christian author says or writes. Using the names of popular contemporary Christian authors, these people could be known as Swindollites, Lucadoites, or LaHayeites.1

Though God uses great teachers and leaders to help us grow, we must remember they still have clay feet—they stumble and make mistakes, including misinterpreting Scripture. Certainly, this is also true with churches and denominations. None of them have a patent on the truth. With that said, we should allow God to use our teachers, churches, and denominations to help us learn truth. However, we must, like the Bereans, test everything taught (and practiced) by comparing it to God’s Word (Acts 17:11), holding fast to the good and discarding the bad.

As an application, we must continually come before Scripture with an open heart and mind—trying to honestly discern what Scripture says, even if it differs from what we’ve previously learned or accepted. We must recognize that only God’s Word is infallible—not ourselves, our culture, great leaders, churches, or denominations.

Conclusion

Even as Ezra prepared his heart to study Scripture, we must do the same. We must get rid of every potential hindrance to studying and obeying Scripture. As Proverbs 4:23 says, we must guard our hearts, for out of them flow the issues of life. We must be especially careful of hindrances like:

  1. The Unrepentant Heart
  2. The Uncommitted Heart
  3. The Worrying Heart
  4. The Materialistic Heart
  5. The Busy Heart
  6. The Sectarian (or Denominational) Heart

Reflection

  1. In the reading, what hindrance stood out most to you and why?
  2. How have you seen or experienced this saying, “The Bible will either keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from the Bible”?
  3. Why is worry such a hindrance to understanding and obeying God’s Word? In what ways do you struggle with worry? How can we protect ourselves from this hindrance?
  4. Why is busyness such a hindrance to understanding and obeying God’s Word? How can we protect ourselves from this hindrance?
  5. How have you seen or experienced the sectarian heart? What is the remedy for this negative tendency?
  6. What other questions or applications do you have from the reading?

Copyright © 2020 Gregory Brown

Unless otherwise noted, the primary Scriptures used are taken from the NET Bible ® copyright © 1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NASB) are taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, and 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are from the King James Version of the Bible.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added.

BTG Publishing all rights reserved.


1 West, Robert M. How to Study the Bible (Value Books). Barbour Publishing, Inc. Kindle Edition.

Related Topics: Basics for Christians, Bible Study Methods, Bibliology (The Written Word)

Lesson 11: Bible Study Tools

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When you come, bring with you the cloak I left in Troas with Carpas and the scrolls, especially the parchments.

2 Timothy 4:13

What types of resources does one need to study the Bible?

If you visited the home of someone who is great at something, typically you would find that he or she would have collected many tools and resources related to their hobby or craft. Great fishermen will have an assortment of fishing rods, types of lures, the appropriate clothes, and possibly even a boat. Great musicians will have a collection of instruments, sheet music, perhaps electronic equipment, and the like. Great businessmen will have books on leadership, marketing, and maybe even statistics. Similarly, people who are going to go deep in their study and understanding of the Bible will also need a collection of helpful resources.

In fact, many believe that 2 Timothy 4:13 mentions the tools of the greatest apostle. When Paul asked for “parchments,” he was probably asking for the Hebrew Scriptures, which were often written on bark or animal skins. The “scrolls” were very likely parts of the New Testament and other resources used to study Scripture. There were many Jewish writings on the Old Testament which Paul, as a Pharisee, would have had at his disposal. Presumably, these were the resources that he was requesting. Charles Spurgeon used this passage to rebuke pastors who preached but neglected study. He said this of Paul:

He is inspired, and yet he wants books! He has been preaching at least for thirty years, and yet he wants books! He had seen the Lord, and yet he wants books! He had had a wider experience than most men, and yet he wants books! He had written the major part of the New Testament, and yet he wants books!1

To study God’s Word deeply, Christians should seriously consider developing their libraries.

Needing Resources Outside Of The Bible

Now some would automatically reject this and say, “All we need is our Bibles for study!” However, for at least two reasons, outside resources are needed for deeper study: (1) The first reason is that the Bible is an ancient manuscript. We need to know the historical background and culture, which is often different from ours, to properly understand the text. Resources outside the Bible will help with that. (2) And secondly, God has chosen to mature his church through gifted people teaching the Word. In Ephesians 4:11-12, Paul said this:

It was he who gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, that is, to build up the body of Christ,

Often people rely on God to equip the church only through the oral instruction given by teachers in Sunday service or Bible study. This is certainly part of God’s plan to edify and instruct his people; however, God also builds the church through the writings of gifted teachers. In fact, God chose to build up the church not only through the oral teachings of the apostles but specifically through their writings—many of which are now known as Scripture.

God, by his grace, has equipped many great teachers to write about Scripture to aid the church in understanding his Word. Unlike the Bible, these resources are not inspired, and as such, should never replace Scripture. But, properly used, they can greatly supplement our studies and help us understand the Bible better.

Like Paul, we must use our “scrolls” to help us understand the Bible—the historical background, the ancient culture, the nuances of the original languages, how a specific text corresponds with the rest of Scripture, etc.

Types Of Tools

What types of tools should Christians use to help them understand Scripture better? It should be noted that many of these resources can be found on the Internet for free. However, one will have to spend some money to adequately expand their library.

1. Multiple Bible Translations

As mentioned, when Paul asked for the parchments, he was probably referring to the Old Testament, of which there were multiple versions. Often when Paul or other NT writers quoted the Old Testament, they quoted the Septuagint—the OT Greek translation. Other times, they used the Hebrew translation. Similarly, reading and referencing multiple translations will aid our understanding of Scripture, as well.

Multiple translations are helpful because one translation alone cannot fully capture the meaning of a word in the original Hebrew or Greek. For instance, in English there is one word for ‘love,” but in Greek, there are at least four, each depicting distinct types and characteristics of love. Sometimes by using different translations and comparing them, it helps us have a fuller understanding of a given word or verse.

It has often been asked, “What is the best Bible translation?” The simple answer is, “Whatever one you will read!” There are many versions: The English Standard Version, the New American Standard, the New King James, the NIV, the NET, among others, are all rich translations, which benefit readers in some way or another.

The below online resources provide multiple Bible translations for study:

2. A Study Bible

Why is a study Bible so important? A study Bible minimizes one’s need for multiple resources. The first few pages of each book in a study Bible includes introductory material: author, original audience, historical background, the purpose of the book, etc. Surveying the introductory material of a Bible book before reading the book is like surveying the forest before looking at each tree—it will often enrich one’s Bible reading.

In the center of each study Bible page, there are Scripture cross-references for each verse. When you read a verse on divorce (cf. Matt 5:31-32), several similar verses are provided (cf. Matt 18: 3-9, 1 Cor 7:10-14), which will enhance one’s understanding of the particular passage or the topic within the passage you are reading. A study Bible also has small commentary for many of the verses in a chapter. Do you ever look at a verse and say, “What does that mean?” The commentary will often provide both insight and application. Also, a study Bible will have a small concordance where one can look up verses by simply remembering key words in the passage. Here are four recommended study Bibles:

  • The ESV Study Bible
  • John MacArthur’s Study Bible
  • The Life Application Study Bible
  • The NIV Study Bible

3. Commentaries

Comments in a study Bible will be concise; however, commentary volumes will give a more thorough explanation of each verse. These are especially helpful for not only comprehending verses but for preparation to teach them. Often commentaries lead the reader from asking the question “What does this mean?” to “What do we do about it?” This is especially true of commentaries made for personal devotions and for helping pastors prepare to teach. Purchasing one or more commentaries for each Bible book is costly; however, there are free high-quality commentaries online, as well as good single volume commentaries for purchase. Some examples of both are below:

Likewise, there are many good commentary series with single volumes of various Bible books. For example, The Preaching the Word series, The Tyndale Commentaries, The MacArthur New Testament series, and The Bible Teacher’s Guide series. With that said, it should be noted that not all commentaries are created equal. Some are written by liberal scholars with a naturalistic bend—meaning that they don’t believe in miracles, such as the resurrection. Some are academic—focusing on the original languages, which might be hard to understand without language training. Each commentary will reflect the theological persuasion of the author (Reformed, Arminian, Dispensational, Lutheran, etc.). Nonetheless, God has especially gifted commentators from various theological persuasions to write certain books or a series of books. To discern the best commentaries, it is wise to consider reviews, get counsel, and if possible, read portions of the commentary before purchasing.

4. Systematic Theologies

Unlike commentaries, which focus on a single Bible book and verses within it, systematic theologies teach what the whole Bible says about major topics like God the Father, the Holy Spirit, Jesus, salvation, angels, and eschatology (end times). Within those major topics, they cover sub-topics, including the Trinity, God’s sovereignty, election, the security of a believer, and demons. There are many fine systematic theologies available: Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology (and the smaller version, Bible Doctrine), Millard Erickson’s Christian Theology (and the smaller version, Introducing Christian Doctrine), and Charles Ryrie’s Basic Theology, among others.

5. A Bible Concordance And Dictionary

A concordance is helpful for locating passages in the Bible. It indexes Bible words in alphabetical order—allowing people to find verses they are looking for by only remembering a key word in a certain passage. Concordances are based on specific Bible translations; therefore, looking up words from the KJV in a NIV concordance might not be very helpful. The indexed words in a concordance are also often connected to the original language equivalent—allowing a person to look up the exact meaning in Hebrew, Greek, or Aramaic. A popular concordance based on the KJV is Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance. Additionally, if a significant portion of a passage is entered online, search engines like Google and Yahoo can function like concordances, when those phrases are searched.

6. Other Tools

There are many other great Bible tools including biblical encyclopedias, which have hundreds of articles about topics in Scripture, Bible atlases, which help with understanding the geography in Bible times, and Bible surveys, which provide an overview of every book in the Bible. If we are going to thoroughly study Scripture, like Paul, we need our “scrolls” and “parchments” (2 Tim 4:13). Do you have yours?

Reflection

  1. In the reading, what stood out most to you and why?
  2. Are tools outside the Bible necessary to study the Bible? Why or why not?
  3. Which Bible tools are you most familiar with and how have you found them helpful?
  4. Is there a specific tool you are most interested in trying?
  5. What other questions or applications do you have from the reading?

Copyright © 2020 Gregory Brown

Unless otherwise noted, the primary Scriptures used are taken from the NET Bible ® copyright © 1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NASB) are taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, and 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are from the King James Version of the Bible.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added.

BTG Publishing all rights reserved.


Bible Study Skills: OIL

When studying the Bible, an important acronym to remember is OIL: Observation, Interpretation, Life application. Observation asks this question about a passage, “What does it say?” Interpretation asks, “What does it mean?” Life Application asks, “What should we do about it?” Only after diligently analyzing a passage can one truly find its meaning, and only after understanding the meaning of a passage can one properly apply it. Observing, interpreting, and applying are skills which the Bible student must develop to become competent at studying Scripture. We will look at each skill separately.

Lesson 12: Observation

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A popular genre of film and books is criminal scene investigation (CSI). CSI stories follow a regimented procedure: after a crime is committed and discovered, the police isolate the crime scene to make sure no one tampers with evidence. Then, investigators screen the area for items such as blood, hair, broken glass, bubble gum, and receipts. They do this because they realize that any detail, even a tiny detail that seems insignificant, might lead to solving the crime. Like an investigator meticulously studying a crime scene for clues, Bible students must learn to develop a similar procedure when studying Scripture. Several components are necessary for a Bible student to do this:

Believe That All Scripture Matters

First, Bible students must believe that all Scripture matters—even seemingly insignificant details. Consider the following verses:

Every scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the person dedicated to God may be capable and equipped for every good work.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

But he answered, “It is written, ‘Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.

Matthew 4:4

Second Timothy 3:16 tells us that “every” or “all” Scripture is inspired, not “some.” Jesus stated that we live by “every” word that comes from the mouth of God. In fact, in Matthew 5:18, Christ said this: “I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth pass away not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter will pass from the law until everything takes place.” These verses emphasize that every portion of Scripture is important—even the smallest letter and stroke of a letter. This realization is vital to developing the skill of observation. God chose the specific words, including tenses, in a passage for a purpose. Therefore, we must develop keen vision to notice details and seek to understand what the Holy Spirit, through human authors, was trying to say to the original audience and now to the contemporary audience.

We can discern the importance of every word and how it can lead to both meaning and application by observing how Christ confronted the Sadducees’ lack of belief in the resurrection in Matthew 22:30-32. He said:

For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. Now as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living!” When the crowds heard this, they were amazed at his teaching.

Christ asked, “have you not read what was spoken to you by God, ’I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?” Surely the Pharisees had read it before, just as most Christians have, but what made Christ’s reading of this OT text so different was his keen observation of it. Christ pointed out that though Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were dead, the original writer wrote about them in the present tense, which meant they were still alive and therefore would be resurrected.

Believing in the importance of every aspect of Scripture is indispensable. If we don’t believe that all of Scripture is important, we might skip certain parts (like genealogies or historical details) or not read God’s Word at all. If we’re going to develop observation skills, we must believe that “all Scripture is God-breathed,” that we are called to live by “every word” of God, and that even the smallest letter and least stroke of the pen will never pass away. Just as Christ asked the Sadducees, we must ask ourselves, “Have we truly been reading?”

What else is needed to properly observe Scripture?

Become Spiritually Inquisitive

To properly observe Scripture, we must become spiritually inquisitive. We must ask questions about the Bible and its passages. Many can’t understand Scripture deeply merely because they’re not interested in knowing the meaning and application of Scripture. They’re simply content to read it, if that. This is part of the reason why, in 1 Peter 2:2, Peter commanded believers to “yearn” for “spiritual milk” like an infant. People won’t need to be told to read the Bible, memorize it, and study it, if they actually “yearn” for it. Yearning will motivate us to do all those things. Therefore, God commands us to have a hungry disposition, as we will need it to understand Scripture and grow from it.

Certainly, we see this inquisitive, hungry disposition in the disciples, who often asked Christ questions about his teachings. For example, consider the disciples’ interaction with Christ after he taught the Parable of the Sowers in Luke 8:8-9:

But other seed fell on good soil and grew, and it produced a hundred times as much grain.” As he said this, he called out, “The one who has ears to hear had better listen!” Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant.

After presenting the parable, Jesus added, “The one who has ears to hear had better listen!” This meant that not everybody was capable of understanding the parable—including his own disciples! However, their desire to understand it and their request for Christ to explain it was proof that they had ears to hear. Sadly, most people read passages in the Bible without any understanding and simply move on to the next verse. They don’t ask questions of the text, pray about it, or research it further. Having “ears to hear” doesn’t just mean we understand Scripture when we read it; it means we desire understanding and are willing to pursue it. This separated the disciples from the rest of the hearers in Luke 8:8-9, who didn’t understand the parable either but failed to pursue further explanation.

As we read the Gospels, the inquisitive nature of the apostles continues to be displayed. After Christ taught the need to pursue reconciliation with those who sinned against us, Peter asked, “Lord, how many times must I forgive my brother who sins against me? As many as seven times?” (Matt 18:21). Similarly, after Christ taught the disciples about the destruction of the temple in Matthew 24:3, they asked him privately, “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

One might say, “We don’t have Christ here to ask questions of the Bible. How do we get further understanding of his words, and the Bible’s teachings in general, like the disciples did?” In John 14:16-17, Christ said this to the disciples, after telling them that he would be leaving them: “Then I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate [or Counselor] to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth.” Christ used an interesting word to refer to the Holy Spirit. Two Greek words are typically used for “another.” One means “another of a different kind,” and the other is “another of the same kind.” Christ used the latter. Essentially, Christ said to his disciples, “I will send you someone just like me. I will not leave you as orphans. I will send the Holy Spirit to you. He will teach you the truth and explain things to you. He will be your counselor. In the same way, you asked me questions, ask him questions.” Christ has given us this Counselor as well—the Spirit of truth. He will lead us into all truth, as we depend on him.

Therefore, it must be understood that those who don’t prayerfully ask questions of the Bible—trying to understand its meaning and applications—will not grow in understanding it. Like the multitudes who listened to Christ while never understanding his words, so is the person who reads Scripture and listens to sermons, yet never asks questions or pursues answers. Again, Christ said, “The one who has ears to hear had better listen!” The person who has ears is the one with an inquisitive nature—who genuinely wants to understand and obey God’s Word.

What should we do if we don’t desire to read and understand God’s Word?

  1. Repent of not desiring to know God. Repent of not desiring to understand his Word. Repent of desiring and prioritizing so many other things above God and his Word.
  2. Pray for God to give you a hunger to read and understand God’s Word. In Psalm 119:36, David prayed, “Give me a desire for your rules, rather than for wealth gained unjustly.” He prayed for his desire and so must we.
  3. Begin to read Scripture, ask questions of the text, and pursue those answers.

Ask Questions Of Scripture

As we become spiritually inquisitive, we must ask questions of Scripture as we study it, such as:

  • Who
  • What
  • Why
  • When
  • Where
  • How

These questions are fundamental to reading in general; however, it is helpful to write the questions down and routinely ask them while reading the Bible, until this becomes a natural habit. For example:

Who: Who is the author of the text? Who was this text originally written to?

What: What exactly is being said? What does the writing mean? What is the theme or purpose of the writing? What is the historical background? What type of writing is this—narrative, prophecy, letter, sermon, song, prayer, quotation, etc.? What is the immediate context of the passage?

Why: Why was this written? Are there any purpose clauses (these typically begin with so, because, to, for, so that, etc., which help discern the author’s purpose in writing a specific text)?

When: When was this written or when will this promise be fulfilled? Are there any time references in the text such as before, after, until, then, etc.?

Where: Where was this text written? Where is the narrative taking place?

How: How does this passage connect with other teachings in Scripture? How should this passage be applied? How should I pray from this passage?

Develop An Eye For Details

While reading the text and asking questions, take note of details which may provide answers to the questions or prompt further questions. Specifically, focus on details such as:

  • literary genre (narrative, poetry, prophecy, epistle, etc.)
  • grammatical structure of a sentence or paragraph
  • key words
  • things emphasized by repetition, amount of space given to it, or the order (sometimes order shows priority)
  • comparisons
  • contrasts
  • cause and effect
  • explanations
  • commands
  • exaggerations
  • foreshadowing
  • promises
  • applications
  • doctrine
  • going from specific to general (or vice versa)
  • the end of a scene
  • the plot
  • the climax

As one practices searching passages for details, his or her eyes will begin to readily pick up noteworthy aspects that lead to interpretation and application. Secondary tools (like commentaries and systematic theologies) will help with training one’s eyes to do this, continually pointing the person back to specific aspects of the text and their meaning/application.

Find The Answers By Research

As these questions are asked and details are noticed, they will often inspire the Bible student to further research. This research might lead to reading the text over and over again, reading the surrounding text to establish context, consulting a study Bible or commentary, or directing questions to a more knowledgeable believer. Eventually, if not immediately, these practices will reveal the meaning of the text (interpretation) and how to apply it (life application).

Observation Tips

What are some tips to help with observation?

1. Saturate the study of Scripture with prayer. In Psalm 119:18, David said, “Open my eyes so I can truly see the marvelous things in your law!” Like David, we should ask God to open our eyes before studying his Word and while studying it. We should also pray for grace to live out the truths learned from Scripture.

2. Read the text over and over again (including the surrounding context). Psalm 1:1-2 (NIV) describes how God blesses the person who delights in and meditates on God’s Word. The Hebrew word for “meditate” was used of a cow chewing her cud. A cow has a four-chambered stomach, and because of that, she chews, swallows, and regurgitates over and over again as the food works its way through each chamber. Cows do this in order to maximize extraction of nutrients. Similarly, we’ll find as we prayerfully re-read Scripture over and over again that God blesses such study. The Holy Spirit will extract maximum nutrients from the text to edify us. In referring back to the crime scene investigator illustration, often the investigator realizes that he’s missing something and, therefore, revisits the crime scene to look for further clues. We must also do that as we study God’s Word. And since Scripture is living and active (Heb 4:12), we will find that God continually meets us in the text, no matter how many times we’ve read it before.

3. Allow secondary materials to be secondary. The Bible is the primary source and the Holy Spirit is the guide. Consider commentaries, systematic theologies, Bible dictionaries, and any other secondary material, only after prayerfully meditating on the text. Allow the Bible tools to refocus one’s eyes on the text in a fresh way, in order to aid in finding meaning and application.

Conclusion

Are you prayerfully observing God’s Word—meditating on it to extract all the nutrients for your spiritual health? Or, are you simply reading Scripture, quickly skimming it, or neglecting it all together? If we are going to understand God’s Word, we must believe that all Scripture matters, develop a spiritually inquisitive nature, prayerfully ask questions of the text, begin to notice details, and research for answers. These are critical steps in discerning meaning and then applying it.

Reflection

  1. In the reading, what aspect about observing Scripture stood out most to you and why?
  2. How can we develop an inquisitive nature—one that seeks to understand and obey Scripture?
  3. What types of questions should we ask when studying Scripture?
  4. What types of details should we look for when studying the text?
  5. What other questions or applications do you have from the reading?

Copyright © 2020 Gregory Brown

Unless otherwise noted, the primary Scriptures used are taken from the NET Bible ® copyright © 1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NASB) are taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, and 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are from the King James Version of the Bible.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added.

BTG Publishing all rights reserved.

Related Topics: Basics for Christians, Bible Study Methods, Bibliology (The Written Word)

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