{"id":39121,"date":"2019-09-04T13:46:21","date_gmt":"2019-09-04T11:46:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kernbeisser.ch\/is-the-bible-reliable-1\/"},"modified":"2023-08-31T08:18:53","modified_gmt":"2023-08-31T06:18:53","slug":"is-the-bible-reliable-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kernbeisser.ch\/en\/is-the-bible-reliable-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Is the Bible reliable? 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

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What do I mean by “reliable”?<\/h3>\n

Is the Bible reliable or not? Black or white? No direct answer can be given to such a question if we have not first clarified what “reliable” means for us.<\/p>\n

Here is a comparison: a cheese slicer is reliable when used correctly and in the context of cheese. It is rather unsuitable for other tasks. “Reliability” is therefore defined by the interaction of “tool” and “task”, as well as “correct handling”. This is also the case with the Bible.<\/p>\n

When I say that the Bible is “reliable,” I am referring to reliable use for the intended purpose. The Bible speaks of God and the world and of us humans. It is about circumstances, relationships, experiences, origins and goals. That’s the cheese. That’s what the cheese slicer is for.<\/p>\n

A cheese slicer, on the other hand, is less suitable for chopping wood (even if the handle is possibly made of wood), for bringing iron ore to light (even if the slicer was undoubtedly made of metal). Inauthentic use would be inefficient. Non-matching expectations also cannot be met. A cheese slicer would be just the everyday example here. However, when we have the Bible in front of us, we should also remember that we do not have a universal tool in front of us, but a book with a specific purpose. We should use the Bible “scripturally” according to our own purpose. Otherwise, we will rape them.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text uncode_shortcode_id=”102197″]<\/p>\n

Verbal inspiration<\/h3>\n

By the word “verbal inspiration” is meant an understanding of the Bible that sees every word as “inspired by God.” According to this understanding, every letter is “given” by God. Verbal inspiration says: It is God’s word, word by word and letter by letter – as if it were dictated. For some, this statement applies to the basic text. Others even want to apply this view to certain translations (King James, old Luther translation). One defends this word as if it were God Himself.<\/p>\n

Not everyone sees the Bible as dictation. This can even be justified from the Bible. Some writers of the Bible make it clear that they themselves – as human beings – react, speak, write (for example Isa 6:5 or 1Cor 7:12). Therefore it is not a mechanical reproduction, like a dictation machine, “but from God men<\/span> spoke, driven by the Holy<\/span>Spirit”<\/em> (2Pet 1,21 Elbf.). The words of men are considered to be consistent with God’s purpose. The words are still God’s words, but God has included man.<\/p>\n

Those who define themselves as “Bible believers” (and there are quite a few of them) have to put up with the question of whether they now believe in the Bible? And what about God? Are God and the Bible the same? Or is God greater than the Bible? The word “Bible-believing” is a really strange construct against the background of the Bible itself. The Bible encourages us to “believe God.” It was never a matter of “believing in the Bible.” I myself have not been talking about “believing in the Bible” for a long time, but about “trusting” the Bible and its statements. How I trust is still not clarified with it. It takes reflection and a context for me to give this “trust” a color and identity.<\/p>\n

However, there are other views that assume no less that God is the author of the Bible. This other consideration is about where authority lies. Reliability is where the authority lies, not in any other place. It is probably God’s Word, but it is not a dictation directly from Him. People have reproduced God’s intention, but with their own, human words. Therefore, it may contain spelling or other errors. God Himself is not questioned by this, just as little as the reliability of my trust in Him. Here we might also consider the words from the book of Proverbs: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your understanding!”<\/em> (from: Prov 3:5-8).<\/p>\n

Let us look again at the text from the 2nd Letter of Peter. He wrote that people “spoke from God, driven by Holy<\/span>Spirit,”<\/em> but they did so in their own words. The words carry the message, just as the paper absorbs the writing, but infallibility lies with the author, not with the human transcript.<\/p>\n

Now we already have two terms:<\/p>\n