The Uniqueness of Scripture: Part 1 — The Old Testament
We can get sola scriptura wrong. It doesn’t mean just me and my Bible. We learn together with all the saints, both past and present, the love of God in Christ, growing in unity “to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (see Ephesians 3:14-19, 4:1-16).
Neither does sola scriptura mean that the Bible is the only way God communicates. God reveals himself in creation: “The heavens declare the glory of God” (Psalm 19:1). Paul teaches that God’s eternal power and divine nature can be discerned from creation (Romans 1:19-20).
Not only that, when the message of the gospel is preached faithfully, it is the word of God (Romans 10:14; Ephesians 2:17). To this we may add that when the church exercises church discipline in accordance with the Bible, it is God speaking through the courts of the church (Matthew 18:18-20). The Bible is the church’s normative authority, but the faithful preaching of the word, administration of the sacraments, and exercise of church discipline by the men that he raises up to lead the church, is its practical authority.
Nevertheless, while sola scriptura does not exclude tradition and recognises that God’s word is wider than itself, it nevertheless claims that the Bible has a special and unique place in God’s revelation. Simply put, it is the sole, and, therefore, ultimate authority for faith and practice for the church. That does not exclude all other authorities. Rather, it means that all other authorities – the creeds and confessions of the church, the magisterial doctors of the church, ministers and elders – derive their authority from Christ as he reveals himself in the Scriptures. Scripture alone stands supreme; it has no rivals. All other authorities are under it and tested by it.
An objection might be raised here. Does the Bible itself recognise this? Does the Bible itself teach sola scriptura?
The contention of these articles is that the Bible recognises itself as the written word of God, having supreme authority in the life of his covenant people. It is the unique, canonical document by which the Covenant King, our Triune God, administers and regulates his covenant relationship with his people. No other document or word has this unique place, and all other words are regulated and tested by it. Anything which contradicts it or undermines it has no place in the life of the church.
What follows is a very short account of the place of the written word of God in the life of the people of God. Because this is about the Bible’s view of itself, it will focus on the Bible’s testimony about the written word. However, it will also briefly reference evidence outside the Bible which corroborates its own view of itself. It is impossible to be comprehensive, but the aim is to be coherent. We begin with the Old Testament Scriptures.
The Book of the Covenant
Crucial to our consideration is the Mosaic Covenant, God’s covenant with Israel given through Moses at Sinai. There is no question that it is this covenant that has administrative dominance in the Old Testament. This is the covenant associated with the great rescue of the Old Testament, the exodus. This is where Israel as a nation is born. It is also Israel in the wilderness that is called the church (“the assembly”).
And it is here that we see the covenant regulated by a written document. First, it is through the Ten Words, written by the finger of God. Following this is the Book of the Covenant (Exodus 24:7). Then, on the plains of Moab, we have the law reissued and expounded in the Book of Deuteronomy. This book comes to us in a clear covenantal structure, mirroring the suzerain treaties of the day. This combines with the first four books of Moses to form the Pentateuch, which becomes the foundation for the rest of the Bible. Note how in Ezra 6:18 the Book of the Law has expanded to “the Book of Moses”, where, in the context, there is reference to rules in the Book of Numbers.
As long as the Mosaic administration is in force, this covenant law is not to be altered. The LORD through Moses tells the people: “Now, Israel, hear the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land the Lord, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the Lord your God that I give you” (Deuteronomy 4:1-2).
It was this law that the king was to write for himself and which he was to read constantly (Deuteronomy 17:18-20). He was under the law as much as the people. It was the law Joshua was to meditate on and obey as he entered the land (Joshua 1:7-8). It is the solemn duty of Israel’s leaders to read this law to the people every seven years at the Feast of Tabernacles (Deuteronomy 31:9-13). This law went missing during the period of the kings. The church can lose the Scriptures! It was rediscovered by Josiah leading him to tear his clothes and bring reformation to the land (2 Kings 22).
There are lots of questions we might have and information which we do not have access to. But it is clear, the word written, the covenant document, has the central place in revealing the will of God from the Mosaic period onward.
A natural question arises: if the Book of the Law, which came into being through Moses, is the unalterable law of the people before the coming of Christ, what are we to think about the rest of the Old Testament? A number of things can be said.
Joshua
First of all, note that Joshua himself adds to the Book of the Law. Joshua summons the people and charges them to follow the LORD as he and his household has done. This is a renewal of the covenant that God had made with his people through Moses. After these words we read: “So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and put in place statutes and rules for them at Shechem. And Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God. And he took a large stone and set it up there under the terebinth that was by the sanctuary of the Lord” (Joshua 24:25-26).
How can Joshua do this? He can do so because he is God’s authorised successor to Moses. He can also do this because it is recognised that God’s covenantal dealings with his people will continue from generation to generation. They have just entered the land; Joshua, under God, divides the land and determines the boundaries for the tribes of Israel. An authoritative written record is required to preserve this.
In addition, there is a recognition in Deuteronomy that there will be a king to come who will rule over the people, something that is yet to transpire. The promises God made to his people will be fulfilled typologically over time, and substantially with the coming of Christ. Joshua’s actions, the actions of one who closely shadowed Moses, clearly indicate that redemptive historical covenantal progress does not contradict the supremacy of God’s covenant law; neither does the addition of other authorised written material which ends up being incorporated into the Book of the Law. There is organic, historical development, but it is always consonant with what has already been written, and it is attested by miraculous signs from God. God bears witness to his own word.
The Prophets
Second, note the expectation of prophets in Deuteronomy. In chapter 13 a test is given for prophets who arise in Israel. What is it? If they lead God’s people into idolatry, they are to be put to death. The LORD through Moses commands the people: “You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him” (Deuteronomy 13:4). See the test – it is God’s written word! Test the spirits!
That prophets are expected shows that God has more to reveal to his people. The prophets, as covenant executors, will never contradict what has already been revealed. Rather, they will apply God’s written word to the people in the circumstances in which they find themselves. When they do so, as well as when they proclaim what God has revealed to them concerning the future, they speak the very word of God.
On top of that, a climactic prophet is to come from among them - Deuteronomy 18:15-22. Until that time, God will raise up prophets in which he will reveal his will for the people of the day, as well as unfold with greater clarity the character and work of the seed who is to come. During this period, alongside the written word, was the spoken word of the prophets. God gave the prophets because his covenant word was not complete.
A Divine Deposit
Next, we note that this spoken word became written. We have already seen evidence of this with the Book of Joshua. But what we see with Joshua is replicated throughout the Scriptures.
This is true of “The Prophets” (The Former Prophets and The Latter Prophets). Zechariah 7:12 speaks of “the law and the words of the LORD of hosts” which “he had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets.” Note the law and the prophets are placed side-by-side. A written form of Isaiah the prophet is referenced in 2 Chronicles 32:32. Daniel has clear access to the prophecies of Jeremiah and speaks in the first person as having “perceived in the books the number of years” of the exile (Daniel 9:2). The most dramatic example of the words of a prophet being written up is found in Jeremiah 36. The picture is clear – what was spoken was then written, along with accompanying narrative, for the people of God in future generations.
It is true of the kingly wisdom literature, “The Writings”. Solomon’s proverbs are referenced in 1 Kings 4:32, but in Proverbs 22:20 he references proverbs that are written. Daniel himself is told to “shut up the words and seal the book” of the prophecies he has received (Daniel 12:4, 9). Post-exilic and Moses-like Ezra recognises the written Law of Moses for the regulation its sacrifices and the directions of David for its worship (Ezra 3). Here is the regulative principle at work. Note that Ezra-Nehemiah begins by referencing Jeremiah. Here are all three divisions of the Scriptures at the end of Israel’s scripturally recorded history – the Law, the Prophets and the Writings.
Certain writings are laid up before the Lord - 1 Samuel 10:25, 2 Kings 22:8. This is recognised by later Jewish historian Josephus who speaks of “Scripture which is laid up in the temple” and the “books laid up in the temple” (Antiquities 3.1.7 and 5.1.17). These are the authoritative covenant writings, designed to reveal the God of the covenant and regulate the covenant people.
The Lord Jesus
What were the Scriptures of the Lord Jesus in the gospels? The Law, the Prophets and the Psalms, the Psalms being representative of the “the Writings” (Luke 24:27, 44-45). It was these that he quoted to settle all matters – “it is written”, “Scripture says”. This was his weapon against Satan. This is what must be fulfilled, and Jesus self-consciously fulfilled it (see, for example, Luke 4:16-20, with the scroll of Isaiah).
Jesus was born under the law, under the Old Covenant. What was his rule of life? Was it the tradition of the church at the time? No! This he condemned in no uncertain terms when it contradicted Scripture (Matthew 15:1-9, Mark 7:1-13).
Were the authorities of the church at the time his rule of faith and life? No! The authorities of the church were largely his enemies. This wasn’t because he paid no respect to them. When he cleanses a leper, he goes and tells him to show himself to the priests (Mark 1:44). Jesus was no vigilante. The problem was that the church at the time had departed from the Scriptures. It was to the Scriptures that Jesus adhered.
The Jesus of the gospels himself shows us the way. Of course, for this particular aspect to be Scripture’s view of itself, we need to consider whether the New Testament recognises itself as Scripture, both in continuity with the Old Testament, and on a par with the Old Testament. This is what we will take up next.
