Session 9 - Biblical Authority
The Bible Says It, That Settles It? Session 9 Biblical Authority Session Overview This session examines the eleventh and twelfth of our 12 theses on the Bible and its interpretation: THESIS 11: Biblical inerrancy is not the most helpful model of biblical authority. THESIS 12: You don’t have to be an expert to read the Bible for all its worth.
Session Outline 1. The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy (again)
"... Scripture is without error or fault in all its teaching, no less in what it states about God's acts in creation, about the events of world history, and about its own literary origins under God, than in its witness to God's saving grace in individual lives." The authority of Scripture is inescapably impaired if this total divine inerrancy is in any way limited or disregarded, or made relative to a view of truth contrary to the Bible's own; and such lapses bring serious loss to both the individual and the Church."
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A well meaning statement that attempts to uphold and affirm biblical authority for the church today o This statement make several problematic assumptions First, the notion of “inerrancy” makes a genre mistakes (see thesis 3) o Assumes that the Bible, when it talks about creation, sets out to be scientifically inerrant; or, when talking about the past, that it sets out to be historically accurate according to modern standards of historiography o To hold up the Bible as an “inerrant” standard of history or science is to project onto the Bible an unbiblical standard of truth and an anachronistic evaluation of its intended aims Second, the notion of “inerrancy” demands that the Bible be rigidly consistent in the manner of a single-‐authored book (see thesis 4) o Chicago Statement goes on to say that there is a unity and internal consistency in the Bible; that is to say, the Bible always be found to be saying the same thing about the same things
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o But as a library, the Bible intentionally offers us different theological perspectives and different points of view. o For instance: which view on wisdom is “inerrant” – that of Proverbs, Job, or Ecclesiastes? Third, inerrancy overlooks the fact that the Bible is a book with a history (see thesis 5) o We do not posses the original manuscripts of individual books of the Bible; rather, we only have access to much later copies of the copies of these originals o The oldest complete manuscript of the Bible dates from around 1000 CE o When compared with earlier fragments of biblical books, this complete manuscript is by and large the same in content – but not completely o Sometimes the difference is just a matter of a word here or there. Sometimes, whole portions of the text are found to be missing or added (for instance, some early versions of the Gospel of Mark do not include the resurrection; the Hebrew version of the book of Jeremiah is 1/8 shorter than early Greek translations of this book) o If inerrancy only applies to the original (and unrecoverable) manuscripts of the Bible, then the authority of our present Bibles might be called into question Inerrancy, at least as defined by the Chicago Statement, is not necessary for upholding the biblical authority
2. You don’t have to be an expert • One of the goals of this course is to challenge and further nuance overly simplistic understandings about the Bible and its interpretation, especially as they are reflected in the bumper sticker “The Bible says it, that settles it.” o Remember the words of Gerhard von Rad: "to be sure, the Bible never was easy reading; and the finest interpretation cannot and should not make it so. Whatever one wrote in ancient Israel, it was not for speed-‐reading….Reading the bible has always demanded that one be prepared for contemplation." • But we must be aware of an unintended consequence of this view: “The Bible says a lot of things. It’s really difficult to understand. So I better leave it to an expert.” o While biblical scholars and academic commentaries can be very helpful, the Bible is nevertheless meant to be read and interpreted by lay audiences
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o The Bible, after all, was written in the everyday languages of its original audiences (Hebrew, Greek) and since then, the Bible has been translated into hundreds of languages so as to give all people a chance to interact with its content Seeking out more detailed understandings about the Bible and its interpretation is not a task specific to ordained pastors or Bible scholars; rather, it is an act of discipleship for all believers
Discussion Questions v What other documents or people can you think of that have a high level of authority but are not necessarily inerrant or infallible? On what basis does their authority rest if not in inerrancy or infallibility? v As mentioned in the lecture, ancient manuscripts of the Bible occasionally differ from one another in small details. Consider the following example from Jonah 2:4, where Jonah is praying to the LORD from the belly of the great fish. Two variants are attested:
(1) I am driven away from your sight; how shall I look again upon your holy temple? (2) I am driven away from you sight; nevertheless, I shall look again upon your holy temple.
What differences do you see between these two variants? How do these differences change your understanding of the nature of Jonah’s prayer and how he understands his “belly of the fish” experience?
v What resources do you typically turn to when studying the Bible or preparing for a small group / Sunday School class? What type of information (historical background, notes about language, theological comments, etc.) is most helpful to you? Why? v What parts of the Bible or biblical themes are you most interested in learning more about? Why? v What are some practical ways you can continue to learn and grow in your knowledge of the Bible and its interpretation?
