Miracles of revelation and of providence 2 Providence

The miracle of providence

People often wonder when it was that the contents of the Bible were fixed in their present form, and by whom and on what grounds. Implicit in such questions is the feeling that if human selection has decided what is called ‘the canon’ of scripture, then the choice  cannot be relied on as infallible. It is sometimes wrongly suggested in reply that the final form of the Bible was determined by the decision-making processes of church councils from the second to the fifth centuries CE, and that the canon of scripture must therefore be faithfully accepted on the authority of the church alone.

Instead, there is clear evidence to show that it was the character of each Bible book, as inspired and revealed, which ensured its more or less immediate inclusion in the growing body of Divine scriptures, which were committed as they grew first to the Jewish nation and ultimately to the early Christians (see Romans 3:2 and 2 Timothy 3:15). There is much internal Bible evidence to indicate that this process went on steadily in both Old and New Testament times alike (see 2 Chronicles 34:14 and 2 Peter 3:15,16 for just two examples).

Quadruple combination opened to the Book of Isaiah – note the cross references between Biblical and Latter-day Saint scripture in the footnotes (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The councils of the Jewish and, later, of the Christian churches did not so much choose what was to be included or excluded from the Bible as confirm what had already been long accepted as the word of God.

We can rest assured in all this that the contents of the Bible have not been left merely to the fallible choice of men. It is, after all, not unreasonable to expect that an all-powerful God should safeguard through the centuries, by providential means, that which He had already brought into existence by miraculous revelation. “My word”, said God, “shall not return unto me void” (Isaiah 55:11).

(8)  “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares יהוה {Jehovah}. (9) “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. (10) “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from the heavens, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, and give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, (11) so is My Word that goes forth from My mouth – it does not return to Me empty, but shall do what I please, and shall certainly accomplish what I sent it for. (Isaiah 55:8-11 The Scriptures 1998+)

All words written down in the Holy Scriptures are truth Divine in its source, able to produce a marvellous change on the human heart,  giving instruction, comfort, strength and confidence. They are God’s thoughts and God’s way, given to all of us. Those Words shall stay alive and shall show the world that God His Plan shall come to conclusion. God’s Word always fulfils His purpose on earth. It shall never fail in His intended purpose.

God’s continuing care for the preservation of His word has clearly extended also to the manner in which it has been transmitted from age to age. We do not now possess so much as a single original Bible manuscript; and yet the centuries of scrupulously devoted copying which have preserved the text of the Bible as we know it today have done far more than simply safeguard the overall integrity of the Divine message. For God has ensured, through the labours of generations of gifted and painstaking men, from the early Jewish scribes to the later Massoretes and the monastic copyists of the Christian era, that the text of His word has remained remarkably free from substantial change or corruption.

In this respect too the Bible is without parallel in ancient literature.

The discovery in 1947 of the Dead Sea Scrolls, in caves near Qumran, has illustrated in particularly spectacular fashion just how accurately the manuscripts on which our English, Dutch, French or German Bible is based correspond with copies from a much earlier date.

The miracle of providence enables us to say with confidence that we have a Bible text “so near to the original as makes no difference in any vital respect”.

God’s Word doesn’t “barely” get the job done. It shall prosper in the purpose God has for it. It is rich and full of life. God’s Word always succeeds, and always fulfils God’s purpose. Whatever men tried to do to destroy it, they never succeeded, and they shall never be able to destroy it.
God’s Word also shall never fail to achieve its aims.  It shall accomplish that which Jehovah pleases, prospering in the thing whereto He sent it.

 

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Preceding articles:

Miracles of revelation and of providence 1 Golden Thread and Revelation

Book of books and great masterpiece

Unread bestseller

Materialism, would be life, and aspirations

Looking to the East and the West for Truth

Testimony to Bible Truth

Dutch version / Nederlandse versie: Wonder van voorzienigheid

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Additional reading:

1. Bible Word of God, Inspired and infallible
2. Jerusalem God’s City for ever
3. Preexistence in the Divine purpose and Trinity
4. In the death of Christ, the son of God, is glorification
5. Kingdom of God what will it be like
6. Creator and Blogger God 10 A Blog of a Book 4 Listening to the Blogger
7. Jesus begotten Son of God #4 Promised Prophet and Saviour
8. The Spirit of God brings love, hope and freedom
9. Isaiah’s Book of the Messenger of Glad Tidings
10. Dead Sea Scrolls
11. Dead Sea Scrolls available at the Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls digitization project
12. Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls for Judaism and Christianity

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Also of interest:

1. Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library at your fingertips
2. Dead Sea Scrolls online
3. The Holy Land: 7 Amazing Archaeological Finds
4. Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls for Judaism and Christianity
5. The Gabriel Revelation Real or forgery
6. Dead Sea scrolls at Drents Museum in Assen
7. The Dead Sea Scrolls: Conference Announcement
8. The Boston Park Plaza Hotel – A Boston Hotel Welcomes Visitors to an Exciting Boston Event: The Dead Sea Scrolls: Life in Ancient Times Exhibit
   In 1947 a goat herder stumbled upon one of the greatest archaeological finds in history. More than 970 scrolls dating from 2,000 years ago were found. Visitors to the traveling exhibit The Dead Sea Scrolls: Life in Ancient Times can see fragments of these scrolls as well as other important ancient artifacts.
9. Treading Cautiously at Qumran
10. Qumran Pt 1: What are the Dead Sea Scrolls?
    It took decades for all the scrolls to be assembled, pieced together, photographed, and ultimately published so that they could be read. The whole process was a bit of a mess and took far longer than it probably should have (which further fueled the conspiracy theories; more on this later). But at long last, the bulk of the scrolls began seeing light in the early 1990s and are easily accessible in both original languages and English translations today.
11. Part 2: Why do the Dead Sea Scrolls Matter?
    Though scholarship is still unfolding even today regarding the Scrolls’ origins, interpretation, history, etc., we at least have the benefit of over sixty years of perspective to evaluate the findings.
12. Rabbi Roitman of Jerusalem will discuss Dead Sea Scrolls on Thursday
    The lecture is presented by Kent State’s Jewish Studies program, with support from the College of Arts and Sciences and the Department of Philosophy.  A dessert reception will follow the lecture. The event is free and open to the public.
13. Why The Dead Sea Scrolls Are The Most Important Archaeological Discovery Ever
    The Dead Sea Scrolls of course are not the original Old Testament manuscripts, yet radio carbon dating places many of the scrolls at 150-100 B.C. The Dead Sea Scrolls’ manuscripts of the Old Testament are about two hundred years older than the first New Testament books that followed the life of Jesus Christ. Hence the Dead Sea Scrolls verify the actual time of the two testaments, the prophecies that were indeed fulfilled, and the truth of the Word of God.
14. Gabriel Stone: Jerusalem Unveils Mysterious Hebrew Tablet (Photos)
    The so-called Gabriel Stone, a meter (three-foot)-tall tablet said to have been found 13 years ago on the banks of the Dead Sea, features 87 lines of an unknown prophetic text dated as early as the first century BC, at the time of the Second Jewish Temple.
15. Archaeological Discoveries In Israel 2013
    Professor, author and researcher Dr. Ken Hanson returned to discuss the new stone tablet unearthed near the Dead Sea, which contains prophecies about the Messiah as well as revelations from the Angel Gabriel. He’s been studying the 3-ft. tablet, known as the ‘Gabriel Revelation,’ for the last year. Containing 87 lines of Hebrew, the ink is inscribed directly into the stone, which prevents it from being carbon dated, he explained, noting that it’s possible the artifact is a forgery.But Hanson said he’s come to believe the tablet is genuine. Thought to be made in the decade before Jesus’ birth, it speaks of a messianic figure who will rise from the dead after three days. “The implications are overwhelming,” he said, in that the resurrection of a messiah could be part of Jewish tradition.The ancient Judeans known as the Essenes believed in the coming of two messiahs– one from the priestly branch, the other from the lineage of King David, Hanson pointed out. Archaeological Discoveries In Israel 2013

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Related articles

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  Every reference we find to “Scripture” in the Bible can only be referring to the Old Testament—either part or all of it, depending on when the comment was made. The Jewish men who penned our Bible had never heard of the New Testament. When Paul wrote his letters to Timothy and various churches, he had no idea that his letters would be preserved for all time. When he wrote to the church in Rome, he wasn’t trying to extend the length of what he considered to be inspired Scriptures. He was simply writing a letter to address certain issues, just as we write letters to people today. None of the New Testament authors were trying to expand the Scriptures. As far as they were concerned, the Scriptures plus the revelation of Jesus were complete and sufficient for training souls in righteousness. In their day, Jesus’ teachings were being spread about verbally and through individual letters like Romans, Colossians and Luke. There was no convenient collection of documents like we have today.
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  If someone had asked a minister in 1947 to prove that the original Hebrew Scriptures from the Old Testament were reliably copied without error throughout the last two thousand years, he might have had some difficulty in providing an answer. The oldest Old Testament manuscript used by the King James translators was dated approximately A.D. 1100. Obviously, that old manuscript from A.D. 1100 was a copy of a copy of a copy, etc. for over two thousand years. How could we be sure that the text in the A.D. 1100 copy of the Scriptures was identical with the original text as given to the writers by God and inspired by Him? However, an extraordinary discovery occurred in the turbulent year before Israel became a nation. A Bedouin Arab found a cave in Qumran near the Dead Sea which ultimately yielded over a thousand priceless manuscripts dating back before A.D. 68, when the Roman legions destroyed the Qumran village during the Jewish war against Rome.
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• What is the canon of Scripture? (altruistico.wordpress.com)
  The word “canon” comes from the rule of law that was used to determine if a  book measured up to a standard. It is important to note that the writings of  Scripture were canonical at the moment they were written. Scripture was  Scripture when the pen touched the parchment. This is very important because  Christianity does not start by defining God, or Jesus Christ, or salvation. The  basis of Christianity is found in the authority of Scripture. If we cannot  identify what Scripture is, then we cannot properly distinguish any theological  truth from error.

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