All scriptural citations taken from the 2013 revision of the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (Study Edition).

The inspired Scriptures are clear that no human being can ransom another individual, let alone a multitude of human souls:

“None of them can ever redeem a brother Or give to God a ransom for him, (The ransom price for their life is so precious That it is always beyond their reach); That he should live forever and not see the pit… They are assigned like sheep to the Grave. Death will shepherd them; The upright will rule over them in the morning. Every trace of them will fade away; The Grave rather than a palace will be their home. But God will redeem me from the power of the Grave, For he will take hold of me. (Selah)” Psalm 49:7-9, 14-15

In fact, God was so appalled that he couldn’t find anyone good enough to accomplish this work of salvation that he had no other choice but to do it himself:

“Truth has vanished, And anyone who turns away from bad is plundered. Jehovah saw this and was displeased, For there was no justice. He saw that there was no man, And he was astonished that no one interceded, So his own arm brought about salvation, And his own righteousness supported him. Then he put on righteousness like a coat of mail And the helmet of salvation on his head. He put on the garments of vengeance as his clothing And wrapped himself with zeal like a coat. He will reward them for what they have done: Wrath to his adversaries, retribution to his enemies. And to the islands he will repay their due. From the sunset they will fear the name of Jehovah And from the sunrise his glory, For he will come in like a rushing river, Which the spirit of Jehovah drives along. ‘To Zion the Repurchaser will come, To those in Jacob who turn from transgression,’ declares Jehovah.” Isaiah 59:15-20

“I looked, but there was no one to help; I was appalled that no one offered support. So my arm brought me salvation, And my own wrath supported me.” Isaiah 63:5

Jesus himself emphatically affirms that it is impossible for humans to save themselves, which is why God alone is able to save anyone:

“When the disciples heard that, they were greatly astounded, saying: ‘Who really can be saved?’ Looking at them intently, Jesus said to them: ‘With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’” Matthew 19:25-26 – Cf. Mark 10:26-27; Luke 18:26-27

And yet Christ is able to do it that which is humanly impossible, namely, save the world by offering his own soul to ransom a host of human lives that are so numerous that they cannot even be counted!

“Just as the Son of man came, not to be ministered to, but to minister and to give his life as a ransom in exchange for many.” Matthew 20:28 – Cf. Mark 10:45; 14:22-24

“For God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life. For God did not send his Son into the world for him to judge the world, but for the world to be saved through him. Whoever exercises faith in him is not to be judged. Whoever does not exercise faith has been judged already, because he has not exercised faith in the name of the only-begotten Son of God.” John 3:16-18

“But if anyone hears my sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I came, not to judge the world, but to save the world.” John 12:47

“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, a man, Christ Jesus, who gave himself a corresponding ransom for all—this is what is to be witnessed to in its own due time.” 1 Timothy 2:5-6

“In addition, we ourselves have seen and are bearing witness that the Father has sent his Son as savior of the world.” 1 John 4:14

“When he took the scroll, the four living creatures and the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb, and each one had a harp and golden bowls that were full of incense. (The incense means the prayers of the holy ones.) And they sing a new song, saying: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and open its seals, for you were slaughtered and with your blood you bought people for God out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and you made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they are to rule as kings over the earth.’” Revelation 5:8-10

Astonishingly, Christ is even described as being the Source of salvation,

“And after he had been made perfect, he became responsible for everlasting salvation to all those obeying him,” Hebrews 5:9

“After this I saw, and look! a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes; and there were palm branches in their hands. And they keep shouting with a loud voice, saying: ‘Salvation we owe to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb.’ All the angels were standing around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell facedown before the throne and worshipped God, saying: ‘Amen! Let the praise and the glory and the wisdom and the thanksgiving and the honor and the power and the strength be to our God forever and ever. Amen.’ In response one of the elders said to me: ‘These who are dressed in the white robes, who are they and where did they come from?’ So right away I said to him: “My lord, you are the one who knows.’ And he said to me: ‘These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. That is why they are before the throne of God, and they are rendering him sacred service day and night in his temple; and the One seated on the throne will spread his tent over them. They will hunger no more nor thirst anymore, neither will the sun beat down on them nor any scorching heat, because the Lamb, who is in the midst of the throne, will shepherd them and will guide them to springs of waters of life. And God will wipe out every tear from their eyes.’” Revelation 7:9-17

A characteristic that the Hebrew Bible ascribes to Jehovah alone:

“Salvation belongs to Jehovah. Your blessing is upon your people. (Selah)” Psalm 3:8

“But as for me, with the voice of thanksgiving I will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed, I will pay. Salvation is from Jehovah.” Jonah 2:9

In fact, the [O]ld [T]estament emphasizes the point that all human beings are in need of Jehovah’s forgiveness since all of them are sinners worthy of condemnation, and are therefore completely dependent upon Jehovah to redeem them from their iniquities:

“If errors were what you watch, O Jah, Then who, O Jehovah, could stand? For with you there is true forgiveness, So that you may be held in awe… Let Israel keep waiting for Jehovah, For Jehovah is loyal in his love, And he has great power to redeem. He will redeem Israel from all their errors.” Psalm 130:3-4, 7-8

And yet the [N]ew [T]estament proclaims that Jesus came into the world that he created for the express purpose of saving it from its sin, and to grant forgiveness to all who would put their trust in him:

“She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21

“As they continued eating, Jesus took a loaf, and after saying a blessing, he broke it, and giving it to the disciples, he said: ‘Take, eat. This means my body.’ And taking a cup, he offered thanks and gave it to them, saying: ‘Drink out of it, all of you, for this means my “blood of the covenant,” which is to be poured out in behalf of many for forgiveness of sins.” Matthew 26:26-28 – Cf. Luke 22:19-20

“The true light that gives light to every sort of man was about to come into the world. He was in the world, and the world came into existence through him, but the world did not know him. He came to his own home, but his own people did not accept him. However, to all who did receive him, he gave authority to become God’s children, because they were exercising faith in his name. And they were born, not from blood or from a fleshly will or from man’s will, but from God. So the Word became flesh and resided among us, and we had a view of his glory, a glory such as belongs to an only-begotten son from a father; and he was full of divine favor and truth.” John 1:9-14

“The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and he said: ‘See, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!’” John 1:29

“This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that anyone may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread he will live forever; and for a fact, the bread that I will give is my flesh in behalf of the life of the world.” John 6:50-51

“namely, that God was by means of Christ reconciling a world to himself, not counting their offenses against them, and he entrusted to us the message of the reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors substituting for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us. As substitutes for Christ, we beg: ‘Become reconciled to God.’ The one who did not know sin, he made to be sin for us, so that by means of him we might become God’s righteousness.” 2 Corinthians 5:19-21

“This saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Of these, I am foremost.” 1 Timothy 2:5 

“while we wait for the happy hope and glorious manifestation of the great God and of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to set us free from every sort of lawlessness and to cleanse for himself a people who are his own special possession, zealous for fine works.” Titus 2:13-14

“He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact representation of his very being, and he sustains all things by the word of his power. And after he had made a purification for our sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.” Hebrews 1:3

“But we do see Jesus, who was made a little lower than angels, now crowned with glory and honor for having suffered death, so that by God’s undeserved kindness he might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting that the one for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the Chief Agent of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both the one who is sanctifying and those who are being sanctified all stem from one, and for this reason he is not ashamed to call them brothers, as he says: ‘I will declare your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you with song.’ And again: ‘I will put my trust in him.’ And again: ‘Look! I and the young children, whom Jehovah gave me.’ Therefore, since the ‘young children’ are sharers of blood and flesh, he also similarly shared in the same things, so that through his death he might bring to nothing the one having the means to cause death, that is, the Devil, and that he might set free all those who were held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death. For it is not really angels he is assisting, but he is assisting Abraham’s offspring.  Consequently, he had to become like his ‘brothers’ in all respects, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in things relating to God, in order to offer a propitiatory sacrifice for the sins of the people. Since he himself has suffered when being put to the test, he is able to come to the aid of those who are being put to the test.” Hebrews 2:9-18

“Furthermore, many had to become priests in succession because death prevented them from continuing as such, but because he continues alive forever, his priesthood has no successors. So he is able also to save completely those who are approaching God through him, because he is always alive to plead for them. For it is fitting for us to have such a high priest who is loyal, innocent, undefiled, separated from the sinners, and exalted above the heavens. Unlike those high priests, he does not need to offer up sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, because he did this once for all time when he offered himself up. For the Law appoints as high priests men who have weaknesses, but the word of the oath sworn after the Law appoints a Son, who has been made perfect forever.” Hebrews 7:23-28

“However, when Christ came as a high priest of the good things that have already taken place, he passed through the greater and more perfect tent not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. He entered into the holy place, not with the blood of goats and of young bulls, but with his own blood, once for all time, and obtained an everlasting deliverance for us. For if the blood of goats and of bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who have been defiled sanctifies for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of the Christ, who through an everlasting spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works so that we may render sacred service to the living God? That is why he is a mediator of a new covenant, in order that because a death has occurred for their release by ransom from the transgressions under the former covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the everlasting inheritance… Yes, according to the Law nearly all things are cleansed with blood, and unless blood is poured out no forgiveness takes place. Therefore, it was necessary for the typical representations of the things in the heavens to be cleansed by these means, but the heavenly things require far better sacrifices. For Christ did not enter into a holy place made with hands, which is a copy of the reality, but into heaven itself, so that he now appears before God on our behalf. This was not done to offer himself often, as when the high priest enters into the holy place from year to year with blood that is not his own. Otherwise, he would have to suffer often from the founding of the world. But now he has manifested himself once for all time at the conclusion of the systems of things to do away with sin through the sacrifice of himself. And just as it is reserved for men to die once for all time, but after this to receive a judgment, so also the Christ was offered once for all time to bear the sins of many; and the second time that he appears it will be apart from sin, and he will be seen by those earnestly looking for him for their salvation.” Hebrews 9:11-15, 22-28

“So when he comes into the world, he says: ‘“Sacrifice and offering you did not want, but you prepared a body for me. You did not approve of whole burnt offerings and sin offerings.” Then I said: “Look! I have come (in the scroll it is written about me) to do your will, O God.”’ After first saying: ‘You did not want nor did you approve of sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sin offerings’—sacrifices that are offered according to the Law—then he says: ‘Look! I have come to do your will.’ He does away with what is first in order to establish what is second. By this ‘will’ we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time. Also, every priest takes his station day after day to offer holy service and to make the same sacrifices often, which can never take sins away completely. But this man offered one sacrifice for sins for all time and sat down at the right hand of God, from then on waiting until his enemies should be placed as a stool for his feet. For it is by one sacrificial offering that he has made those who are being sanctified perfect for all time. Moreover, the holy spirit also bears witness to us, for after it has said: ‘“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days,” says Jehovah. “I will put my laws in their hearts, and in their minds I will write them.”’ Then it says: ‘And I will no longer call their sins and their lawless deeds to mind.’ Now where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer an offering for sin.” Hebrews 10:5-18

“However, if we are walking in the light as he himself is in the light, we do have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7

“My little children, I am writing you these things so that you may not commit a sin. And yet, if anyone does commit a sin, we have a helper with the Father, Jesus Christ, a righteous one. And he is a propitiatory sacrifice for our sins, yet not for ours only but also for the whole world’s.” 1 John 2:1-2

“By this the love of God was revealed in our case, that God sent his only-begotten Son into the world so that we might gain life through him. The love is in this respect, not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a propitiatory sacrifice for our sins.” 1 John 4:9-10

“and from Jesus Christ, ‘the Faithful Witness,’ ‘the firstborn from the dead,’ and ‘the Ruler of the kings of the earth.’ To him who loves us and who set us free from our sins by means of his own blood—and he made us to be a kingdom, priests to his God and Father—yes, to him be the glory and the might forever. Amen.” Revelation 1:5-6

To sum up the biblical proclamation:

1. Jehovah alone is able to save anyone from their sins, since salvation is a work that is impossible for any human being to accomplish.
2. Jesus became the Source of salvation by entering into the world for the express purpose of offering his life as a ransom to save human beings from all their sins.
3. Since Jesus does what is humanly impossible to do, which only Jehovah God is able to accomplish, Christ must therefore be Jehovah God Almighty in the flesh.
4. And yet Jesus is not the Father or the Holy Spirit, which means that the one true God Jehovah isn’t a single divine Person. Rather, Jehovah eternally subsists as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  

FURTHER READING

Jesus Christ and JWs: Who is the Jehovah That Saves?

Sufi Muslim Hamza Yusuf is fond of citing Jewish scholar Dr. Kaufman Kohler’s seemingly positive statements concerning Muhammad and his role in bringing about the Messianic Era. I have, therefore, decided to quote what Kohler actually wrote for the benefit of the readers, lest they be deceived by the lies and misinformation of Muhammad’s such aa Yusuf.

1. “It shall come to pass on that day that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the eastern sea and half of them toward the western sea. … And the Lord shall be King over all the earth; in that day shall the Lord be One, and His name one.” These prophetic words of Zechariah may be applied to the two great world-religions which emanated from Judaism and won fully half of the human race, as it exists at present, for the God of Abraham. Though they have incorporated many non-Jewish elements in their systems, they have spread the fundamental truths in the Jewish faith and Jewish ethics to every part of the earth. Christianity in the West and Islam in the East have aided in leading mankind ever nearer to the pure monotheistic truth. Consciously or unconsciously, both found their guiding motive in the Messianic hope of the prophets of Israel and based their moral systems on the ethics of the Hebrew Scriptures. The leading spirits of Judaism recognized this, declaring both the Christian and Mohammedan religions to be agencies of Divine Providence, intrusted [sic] with the historical mission of cooperating in the building up of the Messianic Kingdom, thus preparing for the ultimate triumph of pure monotheism in the hearts and lives of all men and nations of the world. These views, voiced by Jehuda ha Levi, Maimonides, and Nahmanides, were reiterated by many enlightened rabbis of later times. These point out that both the Christian and Mohammedan nations believe in the same God and His revelation to man, in the unity of the human race, and in the future life; that they have spread the knowledge of God by a sacred literature based upon our Scripture; that they have retained the divine commandments essentially as they are phrased in our Decalogue; and have practically taught men to fulfill the Noahitic laws of humanity. On account of the last fact the medieval Jewish authorities considered Christians to be half-proselytes, while the Mohammedans, being pure monotheists, were always closer to Judaism. (Dr. Kaufman Kohler, Jewish Theology: Systematically and Historically Considered [The Macmillan Company, 1918], Part III. Israel and the Kingdom of God, LVII. Christianity and Mohammedanism The Daughter-Religions of Judaism, pp. 426-427)

4. … He offered the Jews inducements to recognize him as the last, “the seal,” of the prophets, by promising to adopt some of their religious practices;  but when they refused, he showed himself fanatical and revengeful, a genuine son of the Bedouins, unrelenting in his wrath and ending his career as a cruel, sensuous despot of the true Oriental type. Nevertheless, he created a religion which led to a remarkable advancement of intellectual and spiritual culture, and in which Judaism found a valuable incentive to similar endeavors. Thus Ishmael proved a better heir to Abraham than was Esau, the hostile brother of Jacob. (Ibid., pp. 429-430; bold emphasis mine)

11. … From the sources of information we have about the life and revelation of Mohammed, we learn that the origin of the belief in Allah, the God of Abraham, goes back to an earlier period when Jewish tribes settled in south Arabia. Among these Jews were traders, goldsmiths, famous warriors, and knights endowed with the gift of song, who disseminated Jewish legends concerning Biblical heroes. Amid hallucinations and mighty emotional outbursts this belief in Allah took root in the fiery soul of Mohammed, who thus received sublime conceptions of the one God and His creation, and of the world’s Judge and His future Day of Judgment… In spite of all these facts, the Jews could not be brought to recognize the uneducated son of the desert as a prophet. Therefore his proffered friendship was turned to deadly hatred and passionate revenge. His whole nature underwent a great change; his former enthusiasm and prophetic zeal were replaced by calculation and worldly desire, so that the preacher of repentance in Mecca became at the last a lover of bloodshed, robbery and lust. Instead of Jerusalem he chose Mecca with its heathen traditions as the center of his religious system and aimed chiefly to win the Arabian tribes for his divine revelation. (Ibid., pp. 441-442; bold emphasis mine)

12. It cannot be denied that the Mohammedan monotheism has a certain harshness and bluntness. It cannot win the heart by the mildness of heaven or the recognition of man’s individuality. Islam, as the name denotes, demands blind submission to the will of God, and it has led to a fatalism which paralyzes the sense of freedom, and to a fanaticism which treats every other faith with contempt. Islam has remained a national religion, which has never attained the outlook upon the whole of humanity, so characteristic of the prophets of Israel. Its view of the hereafter is crude and sensuous, whiles its picture of the Day of Judgment bears no trace of the divine mercy. On the other hand, we must recognize that the reverence of the Koran lent the “Men of the Book,” the representatives of culture, greater dignity, and provided a mighty incentive to study and inquiry. Damascus and Baghdad became under the Caliphs centers of learning, of philosophical study, and scientific investigation, uniting Nestorian, Jew, and Mohammedan in the great efforts towards general enlightenment. The consequence was that Greek science and philosophy, banished by the Church, were revived by the Mohammedan rulers and again cultivated, so that Judaism also felt their fructifying power. Our modern Christian civilization, so-called by Christian historians, is largely the fruit of the rich intellectual seeds sown by Mohammedans and Jews, after the works of the ancient Greeks had been translated into Syrian, Arabic, and Hebrew by a group of Syrian Unitarians (Nestorians [sic]) assisted by Jewish scholars. (Ibid., p. 443; bold emphasis mine)

This post will be short and to the point.

Bi-la kayfa (“without [asking] how”). A theological principle of not questioning revelation when it may perplex or defy human understanding. This concept is most closely associated with al-Ash’ari, but has been also used by others, such as Ibn Hanbal. Al-Ash’ari invoked the notion bi-la kayfa wa la tashbih (“without asking how or making comparison”) most notably in respect of the Koran’s so-called “anthropomorphizing” expressions which speak of God as having human attributes – such as the “Hand of God” or the “Face of God,” or God’s being “seated” on a throne. Although God could not physically have a hand, according to al-Ash’ari and Ibn Hanbal, these expressions have to be accepted literally as they are, “without asking how.”    

These expressions have also been interpreted not literally, but figuratively, today as in the past. The use of the term “anthropomorphizing” in Western writings on the subject of Islam may be misleading, because the references are isolated and do not actually entail anything beyond the level of certain concepts; they do not in fact imply an “anthropomorphic” idea of God. The device of bi-la kayfa reflects the need felt by theologians in the past to reconcile the fact that if the Koran has symbolic planes of meaning, it must first of all be accepted as true on the literal plane. Because there was the equal imperative to acknowledge God as completely incomparable, solutions had to be sought of which bi-la kayfa was the closest at hand. Moses Maimonides adopted the principle for Jewish theology.  

Resorting to the principle bi-la kayfa is similar to the recourse to “divine mystery” in Catholicism when dogma and metaphysics cannot be reconciled on the purely theological plane without surpassing theology itself by antimony. John Milton, as a radical, or even Puritan Protestant, also accepted similar anthropomorphic expressions in the Bible literally, and even believed in creation through emanation. See ISTAWA’. (The New Encyclopedia of Islam, edited by Cyril Glasse [Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., Fourth edition 2013], p. 101)

Protestant apologists such as James R. White will often appeal to the following biblical passage to prove that the Holy Scriptures are the sole infallible rule of faith since they alone are theopneustos (“God-breathed”):

“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God (theopneustos) and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:14-17 English Standard Version (ESV)

Since the Scriptures alone have been breathed out by God, no other authority can be on equal par with the Holy Bible or can ever function as an infallible rule of faith for believers.

There are several glaring problems with this Protestant claim.

First, the argument fails to adequately address or deal with fact that the Bible itself does not tell us which or how many books God has breathed out or inspired. Without this prior knowledge, the Scriptures cannot even begin functioning as the sole infallible rule of faith.

Second, this basically amounts to an argument from silence since the Holy Bible nowhere emphatically states that Scripture ALONE is God-breathed or breathed out by God.

This leads me to my third point.

The Holy Bible does in fact teach that there are other things that are God-breathed, namely the holy men of God whom the Holy Spirit appointed to not only write down, but also to verbally or orally proclaim the perfect words of God:

“On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’ When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.’ And when he had said this, HE BREATHED ON THEM and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.’” John 20:19-23 ESV

“And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you HEARD from us, you accepted it not AS THE WORD OF MEN but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.” 1 Thessalonians 2:13 ESV

“since you seek proof that Christ is speaking in me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you… For this reason I write these things while I am away from you, that when I come I may not have to be severe in my use of the authority that the Lord has given me for building up and not for tearing down.” 2 Corinthians 13:3, 10 ESV

“And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, 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.” 2 Peter 1:19-21 ESV

Finally, in ancient Christian literature the term theopneustos was used in reference to specific individuals, councils, inscriptions and other writings which were not included in the biblical canon. As Protestant Lee Martin McDonald, considered one of the foremost scholars on the canon of the Holy Bible, notes:

F. Inspiration

This is one of the more controversial areas of canon formation, as we saw earlier in Chapter 17… Was inspiration a criterion for canonization? The answer appears to be both yes and no. No church father who recognized a NT book as Scripture ever denied its inspiration. On the other hand, it is difficult to make a qualitative difference on this basis between some writings that were accepted as Scripture and others that were not. It is difficult to demonstrate the inspiration of one book over another, for example, Jude over the Didache or 1 Clement. The criterion for making that distinction is missing in antiquity except in so far as inspiration was attributed to the orthodoxy of a writing and was affirmed by the majority of churches, as we saw earlier in Chapter 17.

Theophilus of Antioch (ca. 180) is typical of the belief that Scriptures were inspired when he asserts that “the holy writings teach us, and all the spirit-bearing [inspired] men… that at first God was alone, and the Word in Him” (Autol. 2:22, ANF). For him, inspiration involved “men of God carrying in them a holy spirit [pneumatatophoroi] and becoming prophets, being inspired and made wise by God, becoming God-taught, and holy and righteous” (Autol. 2:9).⁴⁸ The author of 2 Clement believed that 1 Clement was an inspired document and cites 1 Clem. 23:3-4 with the words “for the prophetic word also says [legei gar kai ho prophetikos logos] (2 Clem. 11:2), the usual words that designate writings as inspired. Barnabas 16.5 introduces a passage from 2 Enoch with the words “for the Scripture says [legei gar he graphe].” In a somewhat different light, Clement of Rome (ca. 95) told his readers that Paul’s letter, 1 Corinthians, was written “with true inspiration [ep aletheias pneumatikos]” (1 Clem. 47:3), but he later claimed THE SAME INSPIRATION for himself, saying that his own letter was written “through the Holy Spirit [gegrammenois dia tou agiou]” (1 Clem. 63:2). Ignatius also expressed awareness of his own inspiration: “I spoke with a great voice – with God’s own voice… But some suspected me of saying this because I had previous knowledge of the division of some persons: but he in whom I am bound is my witness that I had no knowledge of this from any human being, but the Spirit was preaching and saying this [to de pneuma exerussen legon tade]” (Ign. Phld. 7.2, LCL).

To what extent did inspiration play a role in the canonization process? Traditionally, many have argued that the biblical canon resulted from the church’s recognition of the inspired status of certain writings. As noted earlier, it is more accurate to say that inspiration was a corollary rather than a criterion of canonicity. It is especially difficult to show demonstratively that God inspired a NT writer to write a text, though admittedly, this is what the author of Revelation claims (Rev 22:18-19).

The problem with adding inspiration to the above two criteria is twofold. First is the problem of determining what is or is not inspired. This difficulty stems from the term’s fluidity of meaning in ancient Christianity. In fact, the church as a whole has never presented a comprehensive and clear definition of inspiration. The resultant ambiguity is seen in the variety of ways the term has been used throughout the ages, including in our own. Second, and more importantly for our purposes, the early church NEVER LIMITED the concept of inspiration to its sacred writings, but rather EXTENDED IT TO EVERYTHING CONSIDERED THEOLOGICALLY TRUE, WHETHER IT WAS WRITTEN, TAUGHT, OR PREACHED.  

The ancient church fathers believed that their Scriptures were inspired, but inspiration alone was not the basis for including those works in the NT canon. Several writers of sacred truth believed that they were inspired as they wrote. The author of the book of Revelation, for example, claims prophetic inspiration: “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of the prophecy” (Rev 1:3), and “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book; if anyone adds to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this book; if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away that person’s share in the tree of life and the holy city, which are described in this book” (Rev 22:18-19). The author of these words believed that he had the voice of prophecy and was inspired by God when he wrote, but this is not as obvious in other NT writings.

The ancient churches assumed the inspiration of their Scriptures, but to what extent did inspiration play a part in the canonizing process? Irenaeus, for example, makes it clear that the Scriptures, even when they are not clearly understood, “were spoken by the Word of God and by His Spirit” (Haer., 2.28.2, ANF). This appears on the surface to be more of an after recognition based on whether the truth that had been handed down through APOSTOLIC SUCCESSION (the regula fidei) was portrayed in the writings in question. Origen maintained that “the Scriptures were written by the Spirit of God, and have a meaning, not such only as is apparent at first sight, but also another which escapes the notice of most” (First Principles, Preface 8, ANF).⁴⁹ Seeking to discredit the Doctrine of Peter, he says that he can show that it was not written by Peter “or by any other person inspired by the Spirit of God” (First Principles, Preface 8, ANF). The operating assumption here, of course, is that Scripture is inspired, but heresy, and falsehood are not. The criterion for determining a text’s inspiration is not easily recognized apart from its affirmation of the church’s core tradition passed on in the early churches.

As we saw earlier, there are examples of noncanonical authors who claimed, or were acknowledged by others, to have been filled or inspired by the Spirit WHEN THEY SPOKE OR WROTE.⁵⁰ The point is that the church’s Scriptures were NOT THE ONLY ancient messages or words believed to be inspired by God. Generally speaking, in the early churches the common word for “inspiration” (theopneustos; or “God-breathed”; see 2 Tim 3:16) was used NOT ONLY in reference to the Scriptures (OT or NT) BUT ALSO OF INDIVIDUALS WHO SPOKE OR WROTE THE TRUTH OF GOD. For example, Gregory of Nyssa (ca. 330-95) describes Basil’s (330-79) commentary on the creation story and claims Basil’s work was inspired and that his words even surpassed those of Moses in terms of beauty, complexity, and form: it was an “exposition GIVEN BY THE INSPIRATION OF GOD… [admired] no less than the words composed by Moses himself.”⁵¹ This is quite remarkable since the text in question is compared to the church’s OT Scriptures (words of Moses) and believed to be SUPERIOR to them. This reference does not suggest that there was a qualitative difference in the notion of inspiration in either the biblical or ecclesiastical texts. Similarly, the famous epitaph of Abercius (ca. fourth century) was called an “inspired inscription [theopneuston epigramma]” and a synodical letter of the Council of Ephesus (ca. 433) describing the council’s condemnation of Nestorius was termed “his [or its] inspired judgment [or decision] [tes autou theopneustou chriseos].”⁵² 

From these and many other examples, we see that the ancient church DID NOT limit inspiration to the Scriptures or even to literature alone. In his Dialogue with Trypho, Justin Martyr argues that: “the prophetical gifts remain with us even to the present time. And hence you ought to understand that [the gifts] formerly among your nation [Israel] have been transferred to us” [Dial. 82, ANF; see also Dial. 87-88). He was speaking of the present and not of the past writing of NT Scriptures. Kalin finds NO EVIDENCE that the early church confined inspiration to an already past apostolic age or to a collection of sacred writings, even in writings that dealt with the Montanist controversy (see Eusebius, Hist. eccl. 5. 14-19) in the latter third of the second century.⁵³ The traditional assumption that the early Christians believed that only canonical writings were inspired IS NOT DEMONSTRABLE from the available evidence.

The rabbinic notion that “when the latter prophets died, that is, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, then the Holy Spirit came to an end in Israel” (t. Sotah 13:2)⁵⁴ was simply not shared by the church.⁵⁵ From his investigation of the church fathers up to 400, Kalin failed to turn up ONE EXAMPLE where an orthodox, but noncanonical, writing was ever called “uninspired”; such a designation appears to have been reserved for heretical authors. He concludes: “If the Scriptures were the only writings the church fathers considered inspired, one would expect them to say so, at least once in a while.”⁵⁶ He adds that in the early church inspiration applied not only to all Scripture, BUT ALSO TO THE CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE, as it bore “living witness of Jesus Christ.” Only heresy was considered to be uninspired, because it was contrary to this witness.⁵⁷ Von Campenhausen agrees here but adds that the presence of prophetic literature among Montanists – literature believed by the Montanists to be born of or prompted by the Holy Spirit but by others to be misguided – shows that at the end of the second century belief in inspiration was beginning to be confined to first-century literature.⁵⁸ But, if this were the case, we would see more examples of it in the second and later centuries. It would be more accurate to say that inspiration was not limited to the first century, but by the end of the second century the church was beginning to assume that inspired Scripture ceased after the apostolic era. (McDonald, The Formation of the Biblical Canon: Volume 2 The New Testament: Its Authority and Canonicity [Bloomsbury Publishing, 2017], Chapter 22. THE CRITERIA QUESTION, II. What Criteria Did the Churches Employ?, pp. 342-345; bold and capital emphasis mine)

⁵² Vita Aberacii 76. Abercius Marcellus himself, who was bishop of Hieropolis in Phrygia of Asia Minor in the late second century, apparently penned the writing. He died ca. 200 CE.Kalin gives several other examples of the ancient use of the term “inspired” (theopneustos) to show that it was NOT used exclusively of Scriptures. See Kalin “Argument from Inspiration,” 169-73. (Ibid., p. 344)

Here are some of the sources McDonald referenced which employ theopneustos for other than the canonical books:

The Testament of Abraham 1^st/2^nd century

20.10 And immediately Michael the archangel stood beside him with multitudes of angels, and they bore his honorable soul in their hands in divinely woven linen,

20.10 καὶ εὐθέως παρέστη Μιχαὴλ ὁ ἀρχάγγελος μετὰ πλήθους ἀγγέλων· καὶ ἦραν τὴν τιμίαν αὐτοῦ ψυχὴν ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτῶν ἐν σινδόνι θεοϋφάντῳ

20.11 And they tended the body of the righteous one with theopneustic (theopneustois) ointments and perfumes until the third day after his death.

20.11 καὶ μυρίσμασι θεοπνεύστοις καὶ ἀρώμασιν ἐκήδευσαν δὲ τὸ σῶμα τοῦ δικαί ου’ ἕως τρίτης ἡμέρας τῆς τελειώσεως αὐτοῦ· (Schmidt 1986)

Nonnus of Panopolis 400s (Pagan author)

“but one is coming after me. He is present in our midst already today, and my mortal hand is not worthy to touch his feet, to loosen the strap of his theopneustic (theopneustio) sandal.” –(Paraphrase 1.96-99 Paraphrasing the Gospel of Saint John)

Saint Gregory of Nyssa Apologia in Hexameron XXVI:2 (PG 44:61)

“… and although the human body be dispersed among carnivorous birds, or among the most savage beasts by becoming their food, and although it pass beneath the teeth of fish, and although it be changed by fire into vapor and dust, wheresoever one may in argument [logos] suppose the man to be removed, he surely remains in the world [kosmos]; and the world, the voice of inspiration [theopneustos] tells us, is held by the hand of God.”

Life of Abercius (Sanct. Abercii vita LXXVI) 300s

Describing the famous Inscription of Abercius, it identifies it as:

“Inspired inscription (theopneuston epigramma).”

Council of Ephesus’s condemnation of Nestorius: 431

“(Nestorius) has been judged by just decree of the holy Trinity and their divinely inspired judgment.”

ψήφωι δικαίαι τῆς ἁγίας τριάδος καὶ τῆς αὐτῶν θεοπνεύστου κρίσεως κατακέκριται (Source: St. Cyril from the Acta Conciliorum Oecumenicorum)

The foregoing references show that the quality of being theopneustos was not believed to be a unique characteristic of the canonical books.

FURTHER READING

One Mediator and One God Pt. 1

One Mediator and One God Pt. 2