The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy: Article XVIII

Let me begin by saying that the Bible is a book like any other book. Before you unfriend me or delete Place for Truth from your favorite bookmarks, let me explain.

The biblical writings contain elements found in other documents, e.g., metaphor, simile, metonymy, synecdoche, synonyms, allegory, ellipses, brachylogy, Zeugma, euphemism, litotes, meiosis, irony, epizeuxis, hyperbole, and all their subspecies, as well as word order, parts of speech, and everything else that made high school English so hard to master. Before you consult your dictionary—sorry, Google—don’t worry about those words; they are not germane to this discussion, except to say that, with all of these nuances to consider, how do we expect to find the correct meaning of a Bible passage?

To be sure, I affirm that the Bible is “other” than other writings because it is wholly the product of God’s Spirit superintending the authors to write the autographs without error of any kind (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21). But God’s intention was to speak plainly to humans, and it’s the prerogative of fallible humans to, under the illumination of the Holy Spirit, determine what He means to say. This is known as “hermeneutics,” simply defined as “the science of interpretation.”

Article XVIII of the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy mandates rightly dividing the Word of God (2 Timothy 2:15), emphasizing “grammatico-historical exegesis … literary forms and devices … Scripture is to interpret Scripture.” What does this mean?

Feinberg offers a useful definition of “inerrancy”: “Inerrancy means that when all facts are known, the Scriptures in their original autographs and properly interpreted will be shown to be wholly true in everything that they affirm, whether that has to do with doctrine or morality or with the social, physical, or life sciences” (Inerrancy, Norman L. Geisler, ed., Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 1980, 294). Inerrancy is not dependent upon the interpreter knowing all the facts; it is intrinsic to the Scriptures and the Divine Author. Proper exegesis, based on proper hermeneutics, is the attempt to find out what God meant to say (which is always what He does say) and bridge the gap between the original recipients and the current reader. Hence, one must understand the historical context and the use of words in that context.

The Ligonier Statement on Inerrancy affirms a Christocentric view of Scripture, “no more and no less Christ’s view.” As my old seminary president said, “Jesus is the best example of anything he ever did.” In Luke 24:27, Jesus “hermeneuticed” the Scriptures to the disciples. We don’t know what he said, but we know from other Scriptures that Christ often referred to historical events and figures in his inerrant teaching.

A grammatical understanding of Scripture is vital for its application to life. If we don’t correctly understand the Word, we can miss out on God’s manifold blessings. Recognizing that word meanings may change, and grammar and syntax rules are altered by time, does not mean language is an unreliable means of communication. Also, just because the Bible is inspired by God doesn’t mean the words can’t be taken at face value. Looking for hidden or deeper meanings can only lead to confusion. God is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33).

Many believe in taking the words of Scripture literally. Skeptics counter with, “Does that mean Jesus was a literal door or vine or lamb, Ha ha?” My preference is to take the words normally. In other words, words have a literal meaning, but this view allows for figures of speech, which only make sense when based on literal words.

Because the Bible is uniquely encased in the inspiration of God, with a singular message and flow, it is logical to allow Scripture to interpret Scripture. Many genres but one Author, Who cannot contradict or confuse Himself. Word study is like ripples moving outward in a pond: start with the immediate context, move to the surrounding context, then the author’s other works, other writers, and, if necessary, nonbiblical sources.

The Bible is not a history book, but it contains history, explains history, and was written within the bounds of history, to people who understood the language in their slice of history. Therefore, to understand what the original audience understood requires understanding the historical context and language. Indeed, the Word of God is history—past, present, and future. Although the message is timeless, the acts and actors were staged within a particular culture with its unique language and society, thousands of years removed from ours. So it is vital to contextualize their writings to understand what God meant to say to them.

Knowing the historical circumstances of a text not only aids our understanding—it helps us relate to people with their foibles, emotions, temptations, and victories; gives depth to the words, and immerses the reader into the events, adding a tangible “You are there” quality. Why was Jesus’ “I am the light of the world” statement so powerful? Was it weird that Abishag was given to David to keep him warm? How could something as offensive as slavery be regulated, and not outlawed, by God? Why didn’t Jesus ride a white stallion into Jerusalem? How could Quirinius the governor command a census before Quirinius was governor? Without historical context, the Bible becomes just a collection of nice sayings.

The Bible is not like a Star Trek episode (the product of man’s fallible imagination) that is set in a future time that cannot be examined, documented, or verified. That is only possible with the human past. There is ample historical evidence buried in the ground and written into ancient documents to shine light on the inerrancy of the Bible.

Finally, remember that as sinful human beings, our interpretations of the infallible Word are not infallible, as proven by the plethora of denominations.

Time and word counts don’t allow lessons on hermeneutics, exegesis, and historiography, or examples of each. May this article serve as motivation for, and proof of, the need to carefully examine every jot and tittle of the Word and the history of the human authors to whom it was given, so as to be understood by us for whom it was also written.

Alan P. Allegra is a graduate of Calvary Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Lynda, live in Bethlehem, PA. Alan is editor of Lifestyles over 50 magazine. He is also an adult Bible teacher at First Baptist Church, Allentown, PA.