The following rules of interpretation are not some “special rules” belonging only to Bible study. They are identical to the rules that we ordinarily employ in our daily interchange of thoughts between any two rational persons. Applied to Bible study, rules are nothing more than a means of disciplining the mind by which we allow the Bible to mean what it must mean, not what “we” want it to mean. These common sense rules are a science developed over many centuries. Like an... more

Some years ago there was a movie that chronicled the Japanese attack of Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941. The title of the production was, “Tora, Tora, Tora.” “Tora” is a Japanese term meaning “tiger.” The expression was a code signal back to Tokyo, signifying that the stab-in-the-back mission was complete. That wordplay is not an inappropriate title for this article, which addresses certain hostile attacks currently being perpetrated upon the first five books o... more

The word “Pentateuch” is derived from the Greek pentateuchos, which means “five books” or a “five-volume scroll.” This was applied to the first five books of the Old Testament, commonly referred to in Hebrew as the Humash (“the five fifths”), or the Torah (“the law”). In both Testaments, the first five books of the Bible are considered a unit. In the Old Testament, they are called: “the law” (Josh 1:7; Ezra 10:3; Neh... more

Some books you can take or leave — one way or the other, and it won’t make much difference — if any. The Bible is not in that category. If you “leave” it, you’ve lost the most important body of information in the world — and the key to your access to heaven. If you “take” it (to be the word of God), you labor under the serious responsibility of understanding as much of it as you possibly can. For many, though, understanding the Bible is a ta... more

In attempts to discredit the divine origin of the New Testament, some critics have accused Christian apologists of mishandling 2 Timothy 3:16-17. The argument goes something like this: "When the apostle Paul wrote, ‘All Scripture is given by inspiration of God,’ he was referring to the Old Testament, not the New Testament." As "proof," these individuals cite 2 Timothy 3:15 wherein Paul told Timothy, "From childhood you have known the holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise f... more

Sometimes Christians forget that when the church of Christ was first established on Pentecost, it did not possess the New Testament as we have it today. The church’s “Bible” was the Old Testament. It had been completed about 425 B.C., and was the Bible Jesus and others often quoted in their teachings. The church’s new teachings were based on the authority Christ gave the apostles (John 14:26; 16:13). Inspired men soon put in writing new divine regulations (cf. 1 Corinthia... more

Q. Critics have claimed that the Bible contains all kinds of factual errors. Is the Bible trustworthy when it speaks of historical matters? A. The Bible contains two kinds of information. Some of it can be checked; some of it cannot. For example, it is not possible to “check” scientifically the accuracy of Genesis 1:1—“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” While the affirmation is not in any way inconsistent with available scientific data, at t... more