Bible Dictation

By John-Luke Muresan, MTS Tyndale University

Introduction

We have in The Commentary Foundation and in The Writing of Scripture described our view of the Bible being Dictated by the Holy Spirit. In this article we will explain these things in a way that shows where we align with the Early Church Fathers and combine some understandings together.

The Bible is Dictated by the Holy Spirit

We believe that the Bible is “dictated word-by-word by the Holy Spirit to the soul and spirit of willing disciples (writers)”. This means the actual author of the Bible, from beginning to end, is the Holy Spirit. Our Introduction to the Gospel of Mark states:

“The actual author of the Gospel of Mark, the whole Gospel from the beginning until the end, has only one author: the Holy Spirit; the words to put down in the Gospel itself came through the mercy of the Holy Spirit.”

“Mark did not copy from anyone, and also, he did not write the Gospel down from learning or experience; the Holy Spirit gave to him what to write and how to connect each thing.”

There is a lot of confusion regarding who the true Author of Scripture is, some people believe that the Scripture is a result of a collaboration process between God and man, but we would be wrong to then call the Bible the Word of God. For if the Scripture comes from human memory or understanding then we would be calling the words of man, the words of God, and the Bible says this is not something we should do.

“On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them. And the people were shouting, ‘The voice of a god, and not of a man!’ Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.” Acts 12:21-23, ESV

“And if your eye causes you to sin, cast it out: it is good for you to enter Into the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be thrown into hell; where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched.” Mark 9:47-48, ASVh

The Difference Between “Inspiration” and “Dictated”

When we think about how God speaks to humans there is the Inspiration of the Holy Spirit and the Verbal Dictation of the Holy Spirit.

When we say that somethings is a result of the Verbal Dictation of the Holy Spirit we mean:

“The Holy Spirit works straight to give the understanding; the Holy Spirit speaks directly to the soul and spirit of the writer, then from the soul and spirit, the understanding goes to the heart and from the heart into the head. When Holy Spirit dictated, the writer will have only one understanding to write down.” The Writing of Scripture

When we say that something is a result of the Inspiration of the Holy Spirit we mean:

“The Holy Spirit gives the understanding to convince the heart of the person and becomes understanding in this way, different from Holy Spirit dictated. Inspired is understanding in the heart and from the heart to the head; the meditation of the Word gives the understanding; in this case, there is no direct communication between the Holy Spirit and the soul and spirit of the writer.” The Writing of Scripture

Speaking in tongues and interpretation will be the Inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is speaking, but there is an interpretation that is needed. The words are not the direct words of the Holy Spirit but they are words from the Lord.

On the other hand, the Bible is the direct Word of the Lord and is a result of the Verbal Dictation of the Holy Spirit. Only the Bible can give life.

How the Bible Relates to Humans

In writing the Scripture, the human authors supplied their willingness to be used by the Holy Spirit and wrote not according to their understanding, but according to the understanding the Holy Spirit placed in them. In our Introduction to the Gospel of Matthew we state:

“Matthew got the Gospel from the Lord straight; he did not take words from anyone, only from the Holy Spirit; his ear was opened, his heart was gentle, and the work of the Holy Spirit has been done through him.”

So, there is a cooperation between God and man to write the Scripture but not a collaboration. When the Scripture was written, the authors of Scripture needed to meditate on what they had written in order to understand it, just as we do today.

“Joseph answered Pharaoh, ‘It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.’” Genesis 41:16, ESV

The true understanding and knowledge of Scripture can only be found in the Word of God, which refers to both the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:1, ASVh

“The ‘Word’ here in this verse refers to both Jesus and the Holy Spirit, and God refers to God the Father because here it tells us about the Trinity of God. We can imagine in this way as well, God the Father is so big that God the Son and the Holy Spirit are in Him, and all Three are tangled together, cannot be separated, but each of the Three has His own duty as well.’ Comment on John 1:1, BCF

“And the angel answered and said to her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the being born will be called the Son of God.” Luke 1:35, ASVh

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14, ASVh

“By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.” Hebrews 11:3, ESV

“…but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.” Hebrews 1:2, ESV

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” Genesis 1:1-3, ESV

“In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” John 1:4, ASVh

The Lord Jesus Christ is as the Voice of God to humans. He is God’s Word, and God’s Word to humans. While He was on earth, He was the place where the Holy Spirit abided with humans, and now He has given that place to His Word, the Bible.

“‘It is the Spirit that gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I speak to you are Spirit and are life.’” John 6:63, ASVh

“As this verse has told, the beloved Son of God did not want to teach only His disciples but also the ones after, who will read the Holy Word.” Comment on John 6:63, BCF

“Indeed also many other signs, therefore, did Jesus in the sight of the disciples, which are not written in this book; however, these have been written in order that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” John 20:30-31, ASVh

“The beloved Son of God, with the name of human, as Jesus, has come and has done many miracles among humans; however, not all that He has done have been put down; each day, the miracles have happened, and the beloved Son of God has taught and performed many miracles, but not all have been written down for humans; the beloved Son of God is the Christ of God the Father Himself.” Comment on John 20:30-31

We see that God has spoken many things, and even today God speaks, and works many miracles. But only some have been chosen to be part of the Holy Bible. These ones have been given by the Holy Spirit to the willing writers so that humans can have the true words of life that come from God. These were not selected by the human mind, nor written with human creativity, nor copied from other humans, but they were written by God, verbally dictated to the human writers. Only because the Bible was made in this way it can be called the Word of God.

Support from the Church Fathers

While the Church Fathers do not agree with us on all points, we can see that they saw the Holy Bible as a product of the Verbal Dictation of the Holy Spirit and not of the Inspiration of the Holy Spirit. They saw the Holy Bible as the very Word of God.

“There were a long time ago men of greater antiquity than all these reputed philosophers, men blessed and righteous and beloved of God who spake by the Divine Spirit, and foretold those things of the future, which indeed have come to pass. Prophets do men call them. They, and they only, saw the truth and declared it to mankind, without fear or shame of any, not dominated by ambition, but saying only what they had heard and seen, filled as they were with the Holy Spirit. Now their writings still remain with us even to the present time, and it is open to anyone to consult these, and to gain most valuable knowledge both about the origin of things and their end, and all else that a philosopher ought to know, if he believes what they say. For they have not made their discourses, when they wrote, with logical proof, inasmuch as being trustworthy witnesses of the truth they are superior to all such proof, but the things that did take place and are taking place now compel agreement with what they have spoken.” Justin Martyr (Lived 100-165AD), Dialogue with Trypho. Ch vii.

“[The Church] in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are in them; and in one Christ Jesus, the Son of God, who became incarnate for our salvation; and in the Holy Spirit, who proclaimed through the prophets the dispensations of God, and the advents, and the birth from a virgin, and the passion, and the resurrection from the dead, and the ascension into heaven in the flesh of the beloved Christ Jesus, our Lord, and His [future] manifestation from heaven in the glory of the Father “to gather all things in one,”…” Irenaeus (Lived 130-200AD). Against Heresies. Book I, x.

“Wherefore the Holy Spirit says by David: Blessed is the man who hath not walked in the counsel of the ungodly: that is, the counsel of the nations which know not God: for those are ungodly who worship not the God that truly is. And therefore the Word says to Moses: I am He that is…” Irenaeus (Lived 130-200AD). The Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching.

“…the writings either of Moses or of Isaiah and Jeremiah, and the other prophets, who, lifted in ecstasy above the natural operations of their minds by the impulses of the Divine Spirit, uttered the things with which they were inspired, the Spirit making use of them as a flute-player breathes into a flute — what, then, do these men say? ‘The Lord is our God; no other can be compared with Him.’” Athenagorus (Lived 133-190AD), A Plea for Christians. Ch ix.

“Now the Apostle John, in the Apocalypse, describes a sword which proceeded from the mouth of God as ‘a doubly sharp, two-edged one.’ This may be understood to be the Divine Word, who is doubly edged with the two testaments of the law and the gospel—sharpened with wisdom, hostile to the devil, arming us against the spiritual enemies of all wickedness and concupiscence, and cutting us off from the dearest objects for the sake of God’s holy name. If, however, you will not acknowledge John, you have our common master Paul, who ‘girds our loins about with truth, and puts on us the breastplate of righteousness, and shoes us with the preparation of the gospel of peace, not of war; who bids us take the shield of faith, wherewith we may be able to quench all the fiery darts of the devil, and the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit,’ which (he says) ‘is the word of God.’” Tertullian (Lived 160-225AD). Against Marcion. Book III, xiv.

“And by the words of Christ we do not mean those only which He spake when He became man and tabernacled in the flesh; for before that time, Christ, the Word of God, was in Moses and the prophets. For without the Word of God, how could they have been able to prophesy of Christ? And were it not our purpose to confine the present treatise within the limits of all attainable brevity, it would not be difficult to show, in proof of this statement, out of the Holy Scriptures, how Moses or the prophets both spake and performed all they did through being filled with the Spirit of Christ. And therefore I think it sufficient to quote this one testimony of Paul from the Epistle to the Hebrews, in which he says: ‘By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of the Egyptians.’ Moreover, that after His ascension into heaven He spake in His apostles, is shown by Paul in these words: ‘Or do you seek a proof of Christ who speaketh in me?’” Origen (Lived 185-254AD), Origen De Principiis. Preface.

“He who believeth then the divine Scriptures with sure judgment, receives in the voice of God, who bestowed the Scripture, a demonstration that cannot be impugned.” Clement of Alexandria (Lived 150-215AD). The Stromata. Book II, ii.