The Bible Defined

8/14/2019 The Bible Defined

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TTTTTable of Contentsable of Contentsable of Contentsable of Contentsable of Contents

Chapter 1: What is This Book We Call The Bible? .................................. 3Purpose Of This Course ....................................................................... 3

The Word Of God ................................................................................ 3What the Word of God Says About Itself ................................... 4What Others Have Said About The Bible ................................. 5

External Proofs That The Bible is True ..................................... 5

It is the Word! ....................................................................................... 5

Study Questions.................................................................................... 6

Chapter 2: The Books of The Bible ........................................................... 7Chapter and Verse ................................................................................. 7The Old Testament .............................................................................. 8

Old Testament Facts ................................................................ 8Basic Divisions of the Old Testament ........................................ 8

The New Testament ........................................................................... 10New Testament Facts.............................................................. 10Basic Divisions of the New Testament ..................................... 10

Abbreviations and Reference Notation ................................................ 12

Study Questions.................................................................................. 12

Chapter 3: Intermission Fun Bible Facts ............................................. 13Psalm 118 Facts .................................................................................. 13

Science Before Science Knew It ........................................................... 14

Chapter 4: How We Got The Bible ....................................................... 15The Flow Of Gods Word .................................................................... 15

Revelation ............................................................................. 15Inspiration ............................................................................ 15Manuscripts .......................................................................... 16Translation ........................................................................... 16Preservation .......................................................................... 17

Translations ........................................................................................ 17

Study Questions.................................................................................. 18

Appendix A: King James Words ............................................................. 19


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All Scripture Quotations Are From the King James Version unless otherwise noted.

Hebrew definitions from the Brown-Driver-Briggs Lexicon, Greek definitions are from the ThayersLexicon unless otherwise noted

Copyright 2004 by Apostolic Network, All Rights Reserved


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men who lived in different times, different cultures and came fromdifferent backgrounds: socially, economically and racially.

Isaiah was a prophet to the royal court of Judah. He came

from wealth and privilege. Amos, a prophet his contempo-rary was a farmer.

Peter was a fishermen. Paul a trained and educated theolo-

gian from the ruling Jewish sect; the Pharisees. Luke was aGreek physician with no Biblical training or background.

How do we know the Bible is truly the Word of God? What evidence isthere that attests to this fact?

The scripture says:

In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word beestablished.

2 Corinthians 13:1

Here are three witnesses:

What the Bible says about itself. What others say about the Bible.

External proofs that the Bible is true.

What the Word of God Says About Itself

The Bible testifies several things about the truth and power of the Word ofGod

That it is profitable for doctrine (2 Timothy 3:16). That it is Spirit and Life (John 6:63).

That God inspired men to put it on paper (2 Peter 1:21).

That it will accomplish the purpose for which God sends it

(Isaiah 55:11).

That it is Alive, Powerful and Perceptive (Hebrews 4:12)

That the hearing of it invokes faith (Romans 10:17).

That it is the source of the New Birth (1 Peter 1:23).

That it is to be spiritually perceived (1 Corinthians 2:14).


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What Others Have Said About The Bible

Some of the most prominent figures in US history were men who believedthat the Bible is the Word of God.

Gods Word, contained in the Bible, has furnished all

necessary rules to direct our conduct. Noah Webster. I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to

men. All the good from the Savior of the world is commu-nicated to us through this book. Abraham Lincoln.

Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet anchor of your liberties;

write its precepts on your hearts and practice them in yourlives. To the influence of this Book we are indebted for theprogress made, and to this we must look as our guide in the

future. Ulysses S. Grant. It is impossible rightly to govern the world without God

and the Bible. George Washington.

The Bible is the cornerstone of Liberty. Thomas

Jefferson.

External Proofs That The Bible is True

Fulfilled Prophecy Jesus Christ fulfilled completely 332

prophecies in the Old Testament concerning himself. Scientific Discoveries Multiple verses in the Old Testa-

ment reveal knowledge that scientists have only discoveredin the last 500 years.

Biblical Archeology Archeological Discoveries in the last

100 years have done much to confirm and validate thewritings of the Bible. Discoveries such as the Dead SeaScrolls confirmed the accuracy of the Old Testament.

Best Selling Book Over 800,000,000 copies sold since1611. Over 2,000,000 per year, and over 5000 per day. Thisis a very conservative estimate, and it doesnt include thosetranslated for missionary work. Top that Buddha.

The Testimony of the People of God Perhaps the most

important proof! The Bible says that things will happenwhen people receive God into their lives AND THEYDO!

It is the WIt is the WIt is the WIt is the WIt is the Wororororord!d!d!d!d!

Understanding that the Bible contains the Word of God is the first step tounderstanding that God has a plan for man collectively, and for youindividually! By knowing that God is able to speak to us we take the firststep to believing and being born again.


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Study QuestionsStudy QuestionsStudy QuestionsStudy QuestionsStudy Questions

1. The Bible contains the _______________ of __________.

2. The Bible was written over a period of __________ years.

3. The Bible was written by _______ different men, but only has _______author.

4. 2 Timothy 3:16 says All _________ isgiven by inspiration of God, andisprofitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction inrighteousness:

5. Isaiah 55:11 states So shall my ________ be that goeth forth out of my

mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall ________ that whichI please, and it shall prosper inthethingwhereto I sent it.

6. Romans 10:17 reads: So then _______ cometh by ________, andhearing by the ______ of God.

7. Hebrews 4:12 reads: For the word of God is__________, and__________, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to thedividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and isa

_______________ of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

8. How many Old Testament Prophecies did Jesus Christ fulfill?_________________

9. Who said, The Bible is the cornerstone of Liberty?__________________________

10. Understanding that the Bible contains the Word of God is the first

step to understanding _____________________________________


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Chapter 2

The Books of The BibleThe Books of The BibleThe Books of The BibleThe Books of The BibleThe Books of The BibleThis chapter is more than just a table of contents for the Bible. It is aintroduction to the 66 books that make up the Bible.

The Bible is divided into 2 parts:

The Old Testament 39 Books

The New Testament 27 Books

In turn each of these are divided into categories (see Figures 1 and 2 on thefollowing pages).

Chapter and VChapter and VChapter and VChapter and VChapter and Verseerseerseerseerse

The chapter/verse division of the Bible is man-made (but you can still see

the hand of God even in this in Chapter 3: Bible Facts). The Old Testamentwas divided into chapters and verses in 1443, with the New Testamentfollowing in 1451.

The chapter and verse division of the scripture makes it easy for us tosearch and find the different verses and communicate them to one another!

BibleThe word Bible comes from the Latinword Biblia, which simply meansbooks! It isnt one book it is acollection of 66 books!Quick Fact

TestamentIn Biblical Terminology a Testament isa covenant, or agreement, betweenGod and Man. The Old Covenant and

the New Covenant.Definition


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The Old TThe Old TThe Old TThe Old TThe Old Testamentestamentestamentestamentestament

Old Testament Facts

Contains 39 Books

Written from 1400 B.C. to 400 B.C. Written in the Hebrew language.

Target audience the Hebrew (Jewish) race.

Central Them: The promise of the coming Messiah (Jesus

Christ).

Relevance to us:

1) Examples of God dealing with his people.2) Promises and warnings to the people of Israel can apply

to us collectively and individually.

The Old Testament, though fulfilled in Jesus Christ is still

the Word of God.

Basic Divisions of the Old Testament

The Old Testament is divided into four basic divisions, These divisions aresimply mans attempt at categorization for easy remembrance. Note thatthese divisions arent the end-all as there is History contained in the Law,Prophetic writings in both the Law and the Poetic Books.

These divisions are for sake of categorization only. They are:

The Law or Penteteuch 5 Books

The Historical Books 12 Books

The Poetic Books 5 Books

The Prophetic Books 17 Books (5 Books - Major Prophets,12 Books - Minor Prophets). NOTE: There is no such thingas a Major or a Minor Prophet. They were all Prophetsdelivering the Word of the Lord. The ones listed as Majorsimply wrote bigger books.

For a list of the books in each category see Figure 1,

MessiahLiterally means the anointed one.This word is transliterated from the

Hebrew word Mashaich. Because ofJesus it has taken the contemporarymeaning of: champion, defender orsavior.

Definition


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Genesis

Numbers

Deuteronomy

Leviticus

Exodus

Joshua

Isaiah

Job

2Samuel

Daniel

2Chronicles

Obadiah

Z

ephaniah

Esther

SongOfSolomon

Ruth

Lamentations

Proverbs

2Kings

Joel

Nahum

Nehemiah

Micah

Z

echariah

Malachi

Judges

Jerimiah

Psalms

1Kings

Hosea

Ezra

Jonah

Haggai

39 Books

The Law

The Historical Books

The Prophetic Books

The Poetic Books

Major Prophets Minor Prophets

Figure 1: The Old Testament Books and Divisions


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The New TThe New TThe New TThe New TThe New Testamentestamentestamentestamentestament

New Testament Facts

Contains 27 Books

Written from 40 A.D. to 100 A.D. Written in the Greek language.

Target audience the people of the world.

Central Theme: The Death, Burial, and Resurrection of

Jesus Christ, The Church.

Relevance to us:

1) Explains how to be saved.2) Teaches how to live a Christian life.3) Contains the Promise of Eternal life.

The fruit of the New Testament is Christ in You, the hope

of Glory.

Basic Divisions of the New Testament

Like the Old Testament, the New Testament is divided into four basicdivisions,

These divisions are for sake of categorization only. They are:

The Gospels 4 Books

Historical Narrative 1 Book

The Epistles 21 Books

Prophecy 1 Book

For a list of the books in each category see Figure 2,

EpistlesThe New Testament contains 21 bookscalled Epistles. An Epistle is merely aletter or message. These were letters

written to church assemblies andindividuals, and by extension to youand I, by the Apostles

Definition


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Matthew

John

Luke

Mark

Romans

2Thessalonians

Ephesians

Philemon

Ac

ts

Of

Th

e

Apos

tl

e s

Re v e

la

ti

on

2Corinthians

2Timothy

Colossians

James

1John

3John

1Corinthians

1Timothy

Philippians

Hebrews

2Peter

27 Books

The Gospels - The Life Of Christ Historical Narrative

The Pauline Epistles

The General Epistles Revelation

Figure 2: The New Testament Books and Divisions


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AbbrAbbrAbbrAbbrAbbreviations and Refereviations and Refereviations and Refereviations and Refereviations and Reference Notationence Notationence Notationence Notationence Notation

The standard method of abbreviating the books of the Bible is to use thefirst three letters of the book.

Example: Exodus 1:12 will be written as Exo. 1:12. Philippians 4:8 as Phi.4:8, 1 Peter 2:5 as 1 Pet. 2:5

This is standard notation and is used not only throughout this course butin many books and article where specific parts of the Bible are referenced.


1. The second book of the Law is named __________.

2. The third Old Testament Historical book is ______________.

3. Another word for Testament is ____________________.

4. An Epistle is a letter or _________________.

5. There are _______ Prophetic books in the Old Testament.

6. How many Gospels are there? ___________

7. What is the first Epistle in the New Testament?

8. What is the reference notation for 1 Corinthians Chapter 2, Verse 5?_________________

Figure 3: Reference Notation for Philippians, Chapter 4, Verse 8

Figure 4: Reference Notation for Isaiah, Chapter 44, Verses 17 through 22

Book VerseChapter

Book VersesChapter


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Chapter 3

Intermission Fun Bible FactsIntermission Fun Bible FactsIntermission Fun Bible FactsIntermission Fun Bible FactsIntermission Fun Bible Facts

This chapter is a collection of interesting facts about the Bible.

The first English Translation of the Bible was initiated by John

Wycliffe in 1382.

The printing press was invented by Johannes Gutenburg in

1448. The first book ever printed was the Bible.

The average person can read the Bible through in about seventy

hours reading time. Reading three chapters per day and five onSundays, you can read your Bible through in one year. Aboutfourteen chapters per day will take you through in three months.

Esther 8:9 is the longest verse, while John 11:35 is the shortest.

The word Bible never appears in the Bible.

There are 1189 chapters and over 31,000 verses in the Bible.

The longest chapter in the Bible is Psalm 119.

The shortest chapter in the Bible is Psalm 117.

Which brings us to Psalm 118

Psalm 118 FactsPsalm 118 FactsPsalm 118 FactsPsalm 118 FactsPsalm 118 Facts

Psalm 118 is the middle chapter of the Bible

Psa. 118:8 is the middle verse in the Bible. It reads: Itis

better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in

man. The middle two words in the Bible is the LORD.

There are 594 chapters before Psalm 118, and 594 chapters

after Psalm 118. Add them up you get 1188, which bringsus back to the center verse Psa. 118:8

All that is a coincidence right?


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Science BeforScience BeforScience BeforScience BeforScience Before Science Knew Ite Science Knew Ite Science Knew Ite Science Knew Ite Science Knew It

No actual moon light (Job 25:5)

Light travels (Job 38:19)

Stars cannot be counted (Gen. 15:5; 22:17)

Empty place in North (Job 26:7)

Earth suspended in space (Job 26:7)

Entropy increases (Psa. 102:25-27)

Pleiades star cluster (Job 38:31)

Sea mounts (Jon. 2:3-6)

Sea springs (Job 38:16; Pro. 8:28)

Submarine canyons (II Sam. 22:16)

Ocean currents (Psa. 8:8)

Earth not flat (Isa. 40:22)

Running water more sanitary, (Lev. 15:13)


1. The first English translation of the Bible was initiated by

_______________ _____________ in the year 1382.

2. The middle chapter of the Bible is _______________.

3. The Middle two words of the Bible are _________ __________.

4. Job 26:7 reads: He stretcheth out the north over the ___________,andhangeth the earth upon ____________.

5. Isa 40:22 reads: Itishe that sitteth upon the ___________________,and the inhabitants thereofareas grasshoppers; that stretcheth out theheavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:

6. Lev 15:13 And when he that hath an issue is cleansed of his issue; then

he shall number to himself seven days for his cleansing, and wash hisclothes, and bathe his flesh in ____________________, and shall beclean.

7. The shortest chapter in the Bible is: __________________.


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Chapter 4

How WHow WHow WHow WHow We Got The Biblee Got The Biblee Got The Biblee Got The Biblee Got The BibleThe Flow Of GodThe Flow Of GodThe Flow Of GodThe Flow Of GodThe Flow Of Gods Ws Ws Ws Ws Worororororddddd

How we got the Bible is a process that actually started with the creation ofthe world, but kicked into high gear around 1450 B.C. Our Bible is theresult of a 4 step process with divineoversight throughout.

Those steps are illustrated in Figure 5 andare:

Revelation

Inspiration

Manuscripts

Translation

Revelation

God reveals things about himself in manyways. God began revealing him self and hisplan to Moses around 1450 B.C. As timepassed God revealed more of himself andhis plan to the other writers of the OldTestament. Much of the New Testament

was revealed to the Apostles by JesusChrist through the Holy Ghost.

Of note: the Old Testament Prophets wereinspired to write many things concerning

Jesus, things, the meaning of which, wasnot revealed to them!

Inspiration

Inspiration is the process that God used toguide the writers of the books of the Bible.Inspiration literally means God-breathed. The source of the scriptures isGod. God gave the writers the words to

write, and preserved it from then untilnow.

Revelation

Inspiration

Manuscripts

Translation

The Bible

P

reservation

Figure 5: The Flow of

Gods Word


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As was mentioned, Inspiration and Revelation are not the same thing.Consider King David. God revealed many things to David about God.However, God inspired David to write many prophecies about Christ, themeaning of which David had no idea.

Manuscripts

The books of the Bible were written primarily on parchment and papyrus.Then, copies were made so that people could access them. Until theprinting press was invented this was painstakingly done by hand.

One of the powerful statements about the truth of the word of God is thesheer volume of original manuscripts available to us today. There are over5000 copies of the New Testament, the earliest dating back to 150 A.D.

Additionally there are even more copies of the Old Testament. In 1947 aPalestinian shepherd boy stumbled into a cave and made a startlingdiscovery the Dead Sea Scrolls! There, stored in clay jars were portionsof original manuscripts from the Old Testament, including a completebook of Isaiah.

Translation of these scrolls proved to the academic world that the contentand context of the Bible had indeed been preserved through the ages!

Translation

Now comes the sticky part. Very few of us speak the Hebrew dialect thatMoses did. Very few of us speak the Common Greek of the New Testa-ment that was the trade language of the Roman Empire. Even fewer speakboth.

In order for us, or anyone else, to understand the Word of the Lord it mustbe rendered into the language that we understand. This process is calledtranslation.

What I s Up With The Italics?There are a number of words that exist in theEnglish language that do not in the originaltongues, words like his, it, is and so on. Alsothere are words that are grammaticallynecessary in English that either arent availablein the original tongues or were not used..When using these, the translators were carefuland desiring not to risk the original words tobe corrupted. Thus they used italics to differ-

entiate the words they added for sake ofclarification.

Quick Fact


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Preservation

Part of having faith in the word of the Lord is having faith in Gods abilityto preserve it. The same God who had the ability to reveal himself to hisprophets, inspire them to write the words he would have committed to

parchment, can also inspire translators to be accurate in their translation.To bring us the pure Word of God, to the end that we may be saved.

TranslationsTranslationsTranslationsTranslationsTranslations

Today we face a dilemma. There are so many translations or versions of theBible on the shelves that it is difficult, without guidance, to pick the one

which is right.

Translations are available between two benchmarks: Literal

Paraphrase

Figure 6 illustrates the position on the literal to paraphrase scale. At the far

left of the scale you have the most literal translation available, which is theInterlinear. The Interlinear is a direct word-for word translation with the

original word above the English word. While accurate, the Interlinear isdifficult to read.

Very close to the literal end of the spectrum is the King James Version,which we use in this course and is most popular in our churches. This isthe translation of the Bible that we recommend that you use.

Literal P araphrase

Interlinear

Amplified

King James

New King James

New Revised

Standard (NRSV)

New International (NIV)

New International

Readers (NIrV)

Todays English (TEV)

Living Bible

The Message

Figure 6: Version Scale, Literal to Paraphrase

Paraphrase VersionsAvoid Paraphrase Versions like the Message andTodays English Version like the plague. Inparaphrasing the Bible, it ceases being the word ofGod and becomes the word of man!. Theseversions are easy to read and entertaining BUTNOT PROFITABLE FOR DOCTRINE!

WARNING!


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1. ________________ is the way God shows himself.

2. The Prophets and Writers of the books of the Bible recieved the Word ofGod by _____________________.

3. There are over ___________ copies of New Testament manuscriptsavailable.

4. In 1947, the __________ _________ __________ were discovered,validating the accuracy of many Old Testament manuscripts.

5. The process by which a manuscript is rendered from the originallanguage to another is called ______________ .

6. When using a word that didnt exist in the original language, but isgrammatically necessary in English, the translators put the word in______________ so that we would understandthat it was not used in the

original text.

7. God _______________ his Word so that we may have access to thetrue word of the Lord.

8. What is the most literal translation? _________________

9. What is the least literal translation? _________________

10. What version of the Bible holds the middle spot between literal andparaphrase? ____________________________


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Appendix A

King James WKing James WKing James WKing James WKing James Wororororordsdsdsdsds1) abjects, outcasts2) adamant, very hard stone3) affinity, related by marriage4) afore, before5) amerce, fine6) amiable, lovely7) anathema, cursed8) anon, immediately9) apothecary, spice dealer10) assay, attempt11) asswage, restrain12) avouched, declared13) beeves, cattle14) besom, broom15) bestead, facing difficulty16) bewrayeth, betrays17) blains, boils, sores18) bowels, affections19) bruit, rumour, report

20) buckler, small shield21) bunches, humps22) careless, free from care,secure23) carriages, baggage24) causeway, paved road25) chamberlain, household manager26) chapiter, head of a column27) charger, large dish28) chode, complained29) churl, miserly

30) clouts, rags31) coasts, borders32) cockatrice, adder, cobra33) cockle, weeds34) coffer, box35) collops, lumps36) comeliness, beauty37) compass, go around38) confectionaries, ointment makers39) contemn, despise40) convocation, assembly41) coulter, plough blade42) covert, shelter43) cumbered, worried44) cunning, skill45) curious, embroidered46) curious arts, sorcery47) custom, tax48) damsel, girl49) daysman, mediator

50) describe, divide51) descry, search out52) diadem, head dress,

crown53) dispensation, steward

ship, distribution54) distaff, rod for holding

wool55) divers, different56) divination, magical

prediction57) earing, ploughing58) earnest, deposit, pledge59) emerods, swellings60) ensue, to follow61) eschew, avoid62) fain, gladly63) fetters, shackels64) fray, frighten

65) fret, to be worried, angry66) froward, perverse67) fuller, cleaner of cloth68) garner, barn69) gier eagle, vulture70) gin, trap71) greaves, leg armour72) grisled, grey73) hart, deer74) helve, ax handle

75) holpen, helped76) hosen, stockings77) hough, cut hamstrings78) husbandman, farmer79) implead, accuse80) jangling, foolish talking81) kine, cows82) laden, loaded83) laud, praise84) leasing, lying85) leaven, yeast86) lewd, vicious87) listeth, chooses88) mammon, riches89) maul, hammer90) mete, to measure91) mitre, head dress92) muffler, facial scarf93) murrain, cattle plague94) noisome, very hurtful


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95) pate, head96) peradventure, perhaps97) pilled, peeled98) polled, cut hair99) post, mail man100) potsherd, broken pottery

101) pottage, soup102) profane, dishonorable103) proselyte, convert104) publican, tax collector105) pulse, vegetables106) purtenance, internal organs107) quarternions, group of four guards108) quick, alive109) quit, behave110) rail, boldly speak against111) rase, destroy112) rereward, rear guard113) rue, a herb114) savour, taste115) scall, sore116) scrip, bag117) seethe, boil118) severally, separately119) shambles, meat market120) silverlings, silver coins121) sleight, deceitfulness

122) sod, boiled123) sottish, foolish124) stay, support125) strake, streak126) subtil, sly, cunning127) tabering, hitting128) taches, fastenings129) tell, count130) tares, weeds131) tire, head dress

132) traffick, trade133) trow, think134) usury, interest135) vagabond, fugitive136) vaunt, boast137) venture, at random138) vestments, apparel139) vex, trouble140) victuals, food141) vile, useless, wicked

142) wist, knew143) wont, accustomed144) wot, know145) wroth, wrathful, angry


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The Bible Defined