改革宗信仰基础02：圣经的默示与权威Basics of the Reformed Faith:The Inspiration and Authority of the Bible

作者: Kim Riddlebarger   译者/校对者: 李博爱/王一

https://www.wscal.edu/blog/basics-of-the-reformed-faith-the-inspiration-and-authority-of-the-bible

http://www.reformedbeginner.net/basics02-inspiration-authority-of-bible/

在《创世记》1:1写道：“起初上帝……” 与圣经的开篇宣告相呼应，《约翰福音》1:1写道：“太初有道，道与上帝同在，道就是上帝。” 但是约翰福音继续写道，“道成了肉身，住在我们中间，充充满满地有恩典，有真理。我们也见过他的荣光，正是父独生子的荣光。”（约1:14）。上帝选择在耶稣基督的位格中启示祂自己（道成肉身），这便引导我们去思考圣经的默示与权威。

了解圣经的不同人类作者如何评价圣经是至关重要的。这是一本什么样的书？他们为这本书作了什么见证？

圣经从未自称是一本“启发灵感”的书，好像可以给读者某种属灵洞见或者自我启迪。圣经不是为了激励我们过更好的生活或者做伟大的事业。正如我们所看见的，圣经是上帝所赐用来见证那位成了肉身的道（即耶稣）。

圣经作者的见证是最为关键的。正如保罗在他写给提摩太的第二封书信中所说：“圣经都是上帝所默示的，于教训、督责、使人归正、教导人学义都是有益的，叫属神的人得以完全，预备行各样的善事。”尽管“圣经的默示”这个术语是用来形容上帝以文字形式向我们启示他自己，现代圣经的翻译（如英语标准译本ESV）则准确地指出，英王钦定本（KJV）翻译成“默示”（θεόπνευστος）的那个词更准确的翻译是被上帝“呼出的”（breathed out）。这强调了一个事实，那就是圣经不同的经卷是由上帝通过人类作者的媒介所“呼出”的。这就是为什么在《罗马书》3:2中保罗会说旧约圣经是“上帝的圣言”。

在《彼得后书》1:16-21写道：“我们从前将我们主耶稣基督的大能，和他降临的事告诉你们，并不是随从乖巧捏造的谎言，乃是亲眼见过他的威荣。他从父神得尊贵荣耀的时候，从极大荣光之中有声音出来向他说：‘这是我的爱子，我所喜悦的。’我们同他在圣山的时候，亲自听见这声音从天上出来。我们并有先知更确的预言，如同灯照在暗处。你们在这预言上留意，直等到天发亮，晨星在你们心里出现的时候，才是好的。第一要紧的，该知道经上所有的预言没有可随私意解说的；因为预言从来没有出于人意的，乃是人被生灵感动，说出上帝的话来。”在这段文章中，使徒彼得称自己是耶稣生命中关键事件的见证者（也就是耶稣变像），他否认这是编造或者虚构。对于彼得来说，圣经是人在圣灵“感动”或“推动”（carried along）下的产物。圣经不是随着人的意愿而产生的（“我觉得我今天要写一卷圣经！”），而是在人被圣灵“感动”下产生，这确保了人的罪和软弱不会使圣经中失去其属神的权威性或其真实准确性（无误性）。

其次，是耶稣自己的见证。我们的主说，圣经是“上帝的口”里所出的（太4:4），“经上的话是不能废的”（约10:35），是上帝的真理（约17:17）。耶稣告诉自己的门徒，圣灵要来，将一切的事指教他们，并且让他们想起耶稣对他们所说的一切话（约14：26）。耶稣在《约翰福音》16:13中说：“只等真理的圣灵来了，他要引导你们明白一切的真理，因为他不是凭自己说的，乃是把他所听见的都说出来，并要把将来的事告诉你们。”

既然圣经本身就是上帝的话（不仅仅是包含了上帝的话），那么对我们来讲它便具有了上帝自己具有的权威。圣经是书写的上帝的话，因此必须被看作是通过人类媒介表达出来的上帝的话语。正如华菲德（B. B. Warfield）恰当表述的：“它说的，就是上帝说的。”

Basics of the Reformed Faith: The Inspiration and Authority of the Bible

By Kim Riddlebarger

In Genesis 1:1 we read “in the beginning was God.”  Echoing the opening declaration of the Bible, in John 1:1 we read that “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  But John goes on to say “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).  The fact that God chose to reveal himself in the person of Jesus Christ (the eternal word made flesh) brings us to the subject of the inspiration and authority of the Bible.

It is important to understand what the various human writers of the Bible say about the Bible itself.  What kind of book is it?  What do they testify about it?

The Bible never claims to be an “inspirational” book which grants its reader some sort of spiritual insight or self-enlightenment.  The Bible was not given to motivate us to live better lives, or to motivate us to do great things.  As we have seen, the Bible is given by God as a testimony to the Word made flesh (Jesus).

The testimony of the biblical writers is paramount.  As Paul says in his second letter to Timothy, “all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”  Although the term “inspiration of Scripture” is used to describe God’s revelation of himself to us in written form, modern translations of the Bible (such as the ESV) correctly note that the verb which the King James Version famously translated as “inspired” (theopneustos) is better translated as “breathed out” by God.  This emphasizes the fact that the various books of the Bible (Scripture) are given to us by God (”breathed out”) through the agency of human authors.  This is why in Romans 3:2, for example, Paul can speak of the Old Testament as “the very words of God.”

In 2 Peter 1:16-21, we read, “For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.   For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, `This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,’ we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain.  And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation.  For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”  In this passage, the Apostle Peter claims to be an eyewitness to key events in the life of Jesus (i.e., Jesus’ transfiguration), and he denies inventing or following myths.  For Peter, Scripture is the product of men being “carried along” by the Holy Spirit.  Scripture does not arise in the will of man (“I think I’ll write a book of the Bible today!”), but only as men are “carried along” by the Holy Spirit, ensuring that human sin and frailty do not rob the Bible of either its divine authority, or its factual accuracy in all that it addresses (inerrancy).

And then there is the testimony of Jesus himself.  Our Lord states that Scripture comes from the “mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4), “Scripture cannot be broken” (John 10:35), that it is God’s truth (John 17:17).  Jesus tells his disciples that the Holy Spirit will come, teach them all things, and remind them of all that Jesus taught them (John 14:26).  Indeed, says Jesus in John 16:13, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.”

Since the Bible is the very words of God (it doesn’t merely contain the word of God), it comes to us with the authority of God himself.  The Bible is God’s word written and must be seen as divine speech through human agency.  As one writer (B. B. Warfield) so aptly put it, “It says, God says.”