|
|
 |
|
|
The Bible is God's Holy, inspired Word. It is the most powerful and most quoted book in the world. Some of the greatest men in modern history have had a deep respect for the Bible: Abraham Lincoln: "I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man. All the good from the Savior of the world is communicated to us through this book." Immanuel Kant: "The existence of the Bible, as a book for people, is the greatest benefit which the human race has ever experienced. Every attempt to belittle it is a crime against humanity." Robert E. Lee: "In all my perplexities and distresses, the Bible has never failed to give me light and strength." Daniel Webester: "If there is anything in my thought or style to commend, the credit is due to my parents for instilling in me early love for the scriptures." Hundreds of millions of people have read its sacred pages, making it the best-selling book of all time. The composition of the Bible is indeed amazing. A library of city-six books, it was written by forty different human authors under the divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit. These writers wrote independently, knowing almost nothing of other's part. None had anything in common, and their literary qualifications were diverse. Moses, for example, was a man of learning, trained in the best universities of Egypt. Peter, on the other hand, was a fisherman without claim to formal education. Yet each wrote the wisdom of God with powerful force. It took the Old and New Testament writers fifteen centuries to complete the Bible, which was written in three languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek) on three continents. Ineed, this collection of books is really one, not sixty-six, for it is coherent in content and progressive in truth.
"There are more sure makes of authenticity in the Bible than in any profane history." Christian church leaders of the fifth century A.D. decided upon the list of books to be included in the Bible. This collection of accepted writings came to be known by scholars as the "canon," and were considered inspired and authoritative. In this lesson you will study the various names of the Bible, survey its construction, and gain insights that will make your own Bible study more meaningful. | |||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
You will receive a copy of the answers to this study sent to the e-mail address entered above by hitting the SEND button. Hitting the SEND button will also give you the opportunity to submit a question or comment. Site development and maintenance by GlobalMediaOutreach.com. All materials copyright ©1994, 2006 Campus Crusade for Christ. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, except in the case of brief quotations printed in articles or reviews, or as the normal function of this web site, without prior permission in writing from the New Life Publications. Printed versions of these studies, and the leaders materials are available from New Life Resources.
|
The Bible is composed
of 1189 chapters (929 in the Old Testament and 260 in the New) and
utilitizes 773,746 words to convey its life-changing message. This
literary masterpiece contains history, laws, poetry, prophecy, biography,
dramatic stories, letters, and revelations. In the words of Sir Isaac
Newton: 
