The Doctrine of the Inerrancy of Scripture

The Foundational Claim about Scripture

It is God breathed.

God is the very source of Scripture.

Scripture is not just a testimony about God, but is God’s very words.

Other Passages Confirming the Word of God

Matthew 24:35 “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”

Isaiah 55:11 “so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

Hebrews 4:7 “again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.””

Definitions

Inerrancy - lack of error; infallibility (dictionary.com)

Lack of errors, or the incapacity for errors, means that the Bible is true.

The Doctrine of Inerrancy is the teaching that the Bible is true on any matter that it speaks.

What is the foundation for this belief?

The Doctrine of the Word of God Chapter 26: The Inerrancy of Scripture

Error arises from two sources: deceit and ignorance. Deceit is intentional error, lying. Ignorance may lead to unintentional error. But God does not lie (Num. 23:19; 2 Tim. 2:13; Titus 1:2; Heb. 6:18), and he is ignorant of nothing (Ps. 33:13–15; Heb. 4:12–13). If Scripture is his Word, therefore, it contains no errors. It is inerrant.

Truth, Precision, and Error

Truth and precision are not synonymous.

There must be a certain level of precision for something to be true.

Different contexts demand different levels of precision to avoid being labeled an error.

Math problem

Age

The audience usually determines the level of precision required.

Professor and students

Editor and Publishing Company

Inerrancy is Compatible with:

unrefined grammar

non-chronological narrative

round numbers

imprecise quotations

prescientific phenomenalistic description

use of figures and symbols

imprecise descriptions

Why This Matters?

It reflects on the character and nature of God.

It impacts the authority of Scripture.

It impacts the reliability of Scripture.