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God's Word on God's Word – Part 4

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We find the Bible assuming itself to be the Word of God in the special terms that it uses to describe itself. In this blog series’ third installment, we consider a couple more of these terms: “the Law”, “the Law and the Prophets”, and “the Law and the Prophets and the Psalms.”

7. The Law

A term used in the New Testament for the Old Testament Scripture is, “the Law.” The expression often refers to the entire Old Testament while at other times it is speaking the Law of Moses—the first five books of the Bible. In John 12:34, for example, we find it referring to the entire Old Testament.

The crowd answered him, “We have heard from the law that the Messiah remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” (John 12:34).

There is nothing in the Law of Moses, the first five books of Scripture, that says the Christ will live forever. In this context “the Law” is used of the entire Old Testament. The following verses teach that Christ will live forever.

The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, you are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek (Psalm 110:4).

Isaiah predicted

Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this (Isaiah 9:7).

The Lord predicted that the Messiah, David’s greater Son, would live forever.

They will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children’s children will live there forever, and David my servant will be their prince forever (Ezekiel 37:25).

Therefore the term “Law” can refer have a narrow meaning, the Law of Moses, or a much wider meaning, the entire Old Testament.

8. The Law And The Prophets

Another New Testament expression used for the entire Old Testament is the Law and the Prophets. It looks at the Old Testament from the standpoint of how it is divided. The Apostle Paul wrote.

But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify (Romans 3:21).

9. The Law And The Prophets And The Psalms

Jesus spoke of a threefold division of the Old Testament – the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms.

In Luke’s gospel we read.

Then he [Jesus] said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you — that everything written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms must be fulfilled” (Luke 24:44).

Comments

  1. As we witness to people it is wonderful to share scriptures with them that affirms Jesus as Lord. This gives me a ready reference.

  2. Thanks for this series. Maybe a further question: How does God’s Word establish its own authority? (Where in the Bible is there grounds for it being authoritative?) Who decided that the Bible was the Bible? I think that would be helpful.

    Thanks,
    David

      • O, Dan,
        Micah.6:8
        Mat.18:3-4
        Ps.131
        When man prevails, God bewails.So ‘I’ die daily.
        Help me ,Lord. Amen.
        Grace be with you all.
        Poor and needy one,
        mathew

        • Oops! Dick, Dan or Dave, it does’nt matter. One greater than David is here. That is the law of His Kingdom. Try to befriend Bin Laden, that’s sedition. You’ll be in jail sooner or later. Hoe much more.. How much sorer..? Grace be with you all.
          Poor and needy one,
          mathew

    • David,

      Here are a few Scriptures that speak about Scripture being authoritative and powerful! For more go to 2 Tim 3:16 and click on the “K” button to see a number of cross-references. I hope this helps. God bless.

      “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,” – 2Ti 3:16 NKJV

      “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” – Hbr 4:12 NKJV

      “And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; 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.” – 2Pe 1:19-21 NKJV

      • I instantly thought of 2 Ti 3:16 when I read David’s question. Thanks for the other verses too. They are all good to have memorized. God Bless

      • Thanks Jim (and others) for your answer,

        A few follow up questions then:

        1. Regarding 1Tim 3:16, if Paul is writing this to Timothy, doesn’t he mean what we call the Old Testament, when he say “Scripture?” That is, do you think he was referring to what he was writing at that moment when he said “Scripture?”

        2. Regarding Hbr 4:16, it seems that the same Greek phrase “word of God” is used another time by the author of Hebrews in Hbr 13:7 where it says: “Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of [their] conduct.” This use of the word seems to indicate some spoken teaching as opposed to what we would call Scripture. How do you see this as implicitly justifying the authority of Scripture?

        3. Regarding 2Pet 1:19-21, I think my first point is applicable here, as well as my second in terms of prophetic word seeming to be something spoken, not written. However, I am also curious about the last phrase and how we know it to be true in the actual case of each book of the Bible. “…holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” Peter is saying this of others assumedly, but how or who decided if that was the case for each of the books of the Bible? Aren’t there other books written around that time that aren’t in the Bible?

        Thanks for your time,
        David

        • The Scripture, God, The Word of God (Rev.19:13) is both WONDERFUL IN COUNSEL & WONDERFUL IN CORRECTION,SO IF WE ARE CORRIGIBLE, DIRIGIBLE, SENSITIVE WE ARE KEPT ON THE STRAIGHTLINE, NEITHER TO THE LEFT, NOR TO THE RIGHT & WE REACH THE GOAL. We have so great a cloud of witnesses Heb.12:1. Proving is YOUR/MY responsibility. AMEN.
          Grace be with you all.
          Poor and needy one,
          mathew

        • David:

          It is good to have an understanding of how we got the canon and it’s authority. So I commend you investigation into these matters.

          At the end of this post I will provide a few links to some FAQs on the matter and a link to a search of the BLB’s FAQs related to New Testament Canon.

          Before that though, I just wanted to note that your subsequent questions are from a slightly different angle from the first question you posted.

          Your first question asked how God’s Word established it’s own authority. This presumes an understanding that “God’s Word IS God’s Word.” The subsequent questions start to ask, “IS God’s Word, God’s Word,” e.g., is the New Testament really God’s Word.

          Here are some thoughts on your subsequent questions.

          Question 1 re: 1 Tim 3:16.

          Paul states the following in his first epistle to the Corinthians:

          1 Cor 7:25 NKJV – 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.

          Paul makes this same type of statement in 1 Cor 7:12, 40; 2 Cor 8:8; 11:17.

          I believe this indicates that Paul clearly felt that his other pronouncements were commandments and teachings directly from the LORD. Otherwise, there would be no point to state his comments in this context. And as to these specific verses, as Paul indicated in 1 Cor 7:40, even though he did not claim he heard this directly from the Lord, he still felt it was authoritative as his position of apostle.

          So I do believe Paul was referring to both Old Testament and New Testament Scripture.

          Paul writes in 1 Tim 5:18

          “For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads the grain,’ and, ‘the laborer is worthy of his wages'”

          The interesting thing is that the second noted “Scripture” (i.e., ‘the laborer is worthy of his wages’) is from Luke 10:7 and is not found in the Old Testament. So in Paul’s earlier epistle to Timothy he equates both Old and New Testament writings equally as Scripture.

          Question 2 & 3

          These examples just as easily could be spoken teaching on God’s Written Word. Just as today I could speak the Word of God in my teaching, by merely reading passages of Scripture. So I don’t think this is definitive in any way. But more to the point of your question.

          Lexicographially, the underlying Greek word translated for “prophesy” can mean either the predictive Word of the Lord OR the forthtelling of God’s already established Word. The occurrences in the Old Testament where a prophet was told to go give a message to the king of Israel, and that message is also in writing, shows that both forms of God’s message exist, written and spoken. So sometimes God’s Word is a ‘written’ account of what a prophet ‘spoke’. And sometimes it is an account of God’s message in only written form.

          Re: Heb 4:12, this is almost universally understood to be the written Word of God as contained in the Canon. We would have no way to know the spoken Word of God, from the time of the Old and New Testament periods, that was not written (and therefore contained in our Canon).

          Re: 2 Pet 1:19-21, I believe that Peter is clearly speaking of the written prophetic Word of the Old Testament that was spoken/written by the prophets and recorded in the Old Testament Scripture. That is his whole point, that the prophetic written Word that testified about Christ was MORE SURE than God’s spoken voice that Peter heard at the Mount of Transfiguration (c.f., 2 Peter 1:16-18)! The only way Peter could “have the more sure word” was that it was ‘written’, since he is juxtaposing it with God’s ‘spoken’ word at the Mount. The fact that the Old Testament prophet spoke it and it was recorded or even if it was just written, doesn’t reflect negatively on that it is still God’s Word.

          Much of this underlying question is about how we got the Canon, and so I would suggest the following from the BLB FAQs.

          Does the New Testament Ever Quote Itself as Authoritative Scripture?
          http://blb.sc/0000ER

          What Happened Historically to Cause the Twenty-Seven Books of the New Testament to Be Recognized as Scripture?
          http://blb.sc/0000ES

          FAQs on New Testament Canon
          http://blb.sc/0000ET

          Sorry for the long response, but I hope it answers some of your questions.

          Pastor Jim Milligan
          Executive Director of the Blue Letter Bible

  3. Definition of faith: “Choosing to live as though the Bible is true regardless of circumstances, emotions, or cultural trends.”
    (from Life Builders, CRU)

    Thos who argue that “God’s Word on God’s Word” is faulty due to circular reasoning refuse to embrace the above definition.

    “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6

    • Yes, Brother, they are caught in a VICIOUS CYCLE, VICIOUS CIRCLE Rom.8:2. The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of grace, the Spirit of truth is the ONLY viable answer for man’s vicious circles. Isa.1 portrays a sort of vicious cycle. Only the Holy Spirit can rescue them. Here is a case. A non-Christian ex-terrorist, somehow comes to church unwillingly, hesitantly murmuring. After a while as the meeting progresses the Holy Ghost falls on him/her & she/he bursts forth into speaking in tongues. When the Sun of Righteousness ( not lawlessness)kisst her/him the tongue was involved! Amen. Hallelujah! He/ She is a full-time missionary now, pl. pray for her/him. Like it or lump it , God’s promise IS true Acts.2:39. Jesus Christ IS the same.. Heb.13:8.