Expert: Thurman C. Petty, Jr. - 12/31/2007

Question
Dear Pastor Petty,

My question may seem a bit unusual, but can you tell me something related to "writing" in the Bible as I have to conducat classes on 'writing skills for evangelism' for a group of Christian academics here in India. I am a former journalist and hence the reason for this question.

With love and prayers
Tharian Mathew

Answer
Dear Brother Mathew,

Thank you for your question about writing as it is displayed in the Bible. I am a writer, and have long been involved with the study of the Bible. All of the things I have written have been related to Bible subjects and stories. You may find examples of them on my web site www.PettyPress.com. One of the books is “How to Write 101: A Beginner’s Guide.”

In the Bible, God Himself is not presented as a writer. The only part of the Bible that God actually wrote, was the Ten Commandments, which He wrote on stone with His own finger. Otherwise, the Bible was written by men who were chosen by God to present His messages to other men. God almost always works like that. Seldom do you see angels directing or telling men what to do. It’s usually men who have been inspired by God telling other men what God has asked them to do.

The writers in the Bible generally wrote things that God showed them in visions or dreams. Although most of them didn’t explain how they came about receiving the messages and then writing them down, the Apostle John in the Revelation gives us several examples of how he came to write the book:

Rev. 1:1-3: God gave a message to Jesus, who gave it to an angel, who showed it to John, and John wrote it down—explaining that those who read the message would receive a blessing.

Rev. 1:11: John was instructed to write down what He saw. You’ll notice that the One who spoke didn’t say, “Write down the words that I give to you,” (such as a secretary would transcribe the words of his/her employer), but “write down what you see.” Use your own words, but give the message of God.

However, several times in the Revelation, John did quote Jesus, such as the messages to the seven churches, Rev. 1:17-3:22.

And so it continues all through the book. John wrote down what He saw and heard in the visions that Jesus gave him. Sometimes he quoted angels and other beings of Heaven, but mostly he wrote what he saw. And this is the method used by most of the writers of the Bible. They occasionally wrote words specifically given to them, but most often, they presented the messages in their own words.

The historical portions of the Bible were written by men whom God inspired to gather the stories and information that had been collected down through the centuries that preceded them, and wrote them in a book. This was the kind of work done by the writer(s) of the books of 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, etc. They were inspired by God to gather these works and codify them so that we would have the examples of these people to know what to do for God, and what not to do. Many Bible scholars believe that Ezra was involved with this work.

The Psalms and Proverbs, etc. were written expressing the wisdom and spiritual experiences of men of God.

I hope this is a help to you. Mostly, you will discover these things as you study the Word for yourself. You will also find spiritual inspiration, and salvation through Christ as you meditate on the themes that you find in the Bible. You can use the Bible lessons on my web site as a guide, if you like. They present the study of the Bible by subject, rather than by reading it through line by line.

Always be ready for Jesus to come,
Thurman C. Petty, Jr.
Thurman@PettyPress.com