“All
scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for
reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God
may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
The term scripture refers to the written word and
Paul makes the point that all of the scriptures are inspired, or breathed out,
by God. Of course, there can be no doubt that Paul is speaking in part of the
Old Testament scriptures, for in verse 15, he makes the point that Timothy had
been raised up with the “holy scriptures.” His mother was a Jew (Acts 16:1) who
had converted to Christianity and she had taught young Timothy the stories of
the Old Testament. These scriptures were inspired by God. But Paul doesn’t just
say that the Old Testament is inspired by God; he says that “all
sciripture” is inspired. This would include the New Testament scriptures which
were still in the process of being recorded.
It is right and
proper to identify what we have in the New Testament as inspired scripture, for Paul and the other apostles indicate that
they wrote by inspiration.
“…how
that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written
already, by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the
mystery of Christ), which in other ages
was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the
Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets” (Ephesians 3:3-5).
In other words,
the writers of the New Testament differ in no way from the writers of the Old
Testament in that they wrote by
inspiration the word and will of God. We cannot say that Moses and David and
Solomon wrote by inspiration, but Paul merely wrote personal letters to local
churches of the first century with partial
inspiration. This is why we cannot limit 2 Timothy 3:16-17 to the Old Testament
scriptures. Again, ALL scripture, including the New Testament, is breathed out
by God and is able to perfectly equip us to be exactly who God wants us to be.
With that in
mind, notice what is written in 2 Peter 1:20-21:
“…knowing
this first, that no prophecy of scripture is of any private interpretation, for
prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were
moved by the Holy Spirit.”
Yes, Peter is
speaking primarily of the Old Testament prophets, but this passage gives us
some insight into the process of inspiration. The point is, those who are
inspired do not receive an inspired concept from God that they then interpret
and record in their own words. Truly inspired individuals record exactly what
has been revealed to them. This strengthens the point made in 2 Timothy
3:16-17, that all the scriptures are inspired, or breathed out, by God. It’s
not verbally inspired and then fallibly interpreted and recorded. The
scriptures themselves—the written word—are perfectly inspired.
Having said
that, there are certain passages penned by Paul the apostle that might be
confusing. These passages seem to indicate that Paul did sometimes insert his own opinions in the midst of the inspired
record. Here are four such verses, all of which are from 1st and 2nd
Corinthians.
“Do
not deprive one another except with consent for a time, that you may give
yourelves to fasting and prayer; and come together again so that Satan does not
tempt you because of your lack of self-control. But I say this as a
concession, not a commandment. For I wish that all men were even as
I myself. But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner and
another in that…Now to the unmarried I command, yet not I but the Lord: a wife
is not to depart from her husband” (1 Cor. 7:5-7, 10).
“Now
concerning virgins: I have no commandment from the Lord; yet I give judgment as
one whom the Lord in His mercy has made trustworthy” (1 Cor. 7:25).
“But
if anyone seems contentious, we have no such custom, nor do the churches of
God” (1 Cor. 11:16).
“What
I speak, I speak not according to the Lord, but as it were, foolishly, in this
confidence of boasting” (2 Cor. 11:17).
All four of
these verses (and there may be a few others) seem to indicate that Paul would
occasionally have a lapse in inspiration. Sure, most of what he wrote was
inspired, but some of what he wrote was merely his opinion. It is easy to see
how some sincere Bible students reach these conclusions, but these conclusions
are wrong nonetheless.
First of all, it
is important for all of us to admit that we cannot fully comprehend the inspiration
process that took place during Bible times. Obviously, the apostle Paul’s
writings are very personal; he uses the word “I” a lot and refers to specific
individuals and experiences. Luke’s style of writing is different from Paul’s.
John’s gospel has a slightly different theme than Matthew’s, and Mark was
obviously more abbreviated in his approach. In the Old Testament book of
Psalms, David recorded his emotions and thoughts while in the midst of grief
and persecution. The book of Isaiah reads differently than Ezekiel and Daniel.
It is clear to
me at least that God didn’t ignore these men’s backgrounds, personalities or
writing styles. I do not believe that these 40+ men wrote the scriptures while
in some hypnotic trance; it’s evident that they were coherant when they applied
quill to parchment. Did God tell them exactly what to write? Was God simply
guiding their thoughts providentially or miraculously so that they penned His
will with precision? Were they in a
trance? I don’t know how that worked. Neither do you. Again, what we do know is
that they wrote the will of God by inspiration, and that it wasn’t by private
interpration, but with exactness.
So David’s
psalms, as emotional and private as they may seem, were written by the
direction of the Holy Spirit. Daniel recorded his frustrations and
difficulties, not with personal bias, but by divine inspiration. And Paul,
whose letters read like private letters to close companions and struggling
churches, wrote what was revealed to him by Christ through the Holy Spirit.
How? In what way? I don’t know. But it’s the truth. I am reminded of the words
of Paul in Romans 11:33…
“Oh,
the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How
unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!”
These things
must be accepted before we can truly understand the four verses cited above. In
other words, while some comments may seem private or personal, that doesn’t
mean that Paul was writing apart from the inspiration of God. God used Paul’s
personality, his experiences, and his circumstances rather than ignoring them.
Secondly, there
is a difference between command and principle (or advice), and I think that
religious people understand this point. In 1 Corinthians 7, for example, Paul
commands us, saying that we are not permitted to divorce our spouse (7:10). But
then he advises married couples not to abstain from sexual intercourse except
in specific situations where there is a greater spiritual need (vs. 5). This is
sound advice, for when married couples are not sexually-active, or when one
spouse refuses sex to the other, it can lead to temptation. Must we assume that
the principle of verses 5-6 is uninspired while the command of verse 10 is inspired. No! Both are inspired.
Again, God’s word is filled not only with specific commands but with general
principles for better living. If God, through Paul, wanted to offer a
suggestion or advice, that was/is His perogative…obviously.
The same is true
in 1 Corinthians 7:25 and Paul’s comment about virgins. God wasn’t commanding,
nor is He comanding virgins to remain
unmarried. However, due to the “present distress” (vs. 26), it was wise for
young, unmarried women to remain in that state. There was no commandment from
the Lord, but there was advise from the Lord, confirmed by Paul and recorded in
scripture.
In 1 Corinthians
11:16, when Paul says that “we have no such custom, neither do the churches of
God,” he is referring, not to his inspired comments on the head covering (vs.
1-15), but to the act of being contentious. If he were referring to the
instructions for the head covering, the question might reasonably be raised:
“If it’s not necessary in the first place, why spend so much time acting like
it’s necessary?” It is this very line of reasoning that leads some to view 1
Corinthians 11:1-16 as an expression of Paul’s personal opinions, rather than
divine revelation. But again, if you’ll notice the context, beginning in verse
16, it’s evident that Paul was alluding to the divisiveness.
Finally, in 2
Corinthians 11:17, Paul was not really acting “foolishly,” nor was he really
boasting. These are hyperbolic terms employed by Paul to make a point to these
Corinthians…to these men and women in Corinth who were being misled to question
Paul’s motives. Again, in light of 2 Timothy 3:16-17 and all the other verses
that detail the inspiration process, even these comments by Paul were written
by inspiration.
As we study the
scriptures, let us do so with the understanding these these words are inspired.
What is recorded in the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is there only
because God wanted it to be there. We cannot question the Psalms simply because
David penned his emotions, or the writings of Paul simply because his letters
seem personal.
Even if there
are a few places in the Bible where God permitted the inspired writers to
diverge from the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to make a personal comment or
to offer some sound advice, these few instances would be the exceptions to the
rule, and not the rule. And if Paul was permitted to record a personal
judgment, it was under the oversight of the Holy Spirit. I do not believe this
to be the case, but this would be the furthest that anyone could reasonably go.
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