Review: Is All Scripture Inspired?

The short answer to this question is ‘Yes’, says J. C. Ryle, the well known Church of England minister. In this small paperback, first published in 1877, he gives reason after reason why the Bible is truly the word of God.

Written in a popular rather than academic style he outlines the internal evidence and also the external evidence that God was behind every word and every sentence.

He asks such questions as: What other book has made such an impact on society? What other book, written by over 30 authors over 1,500 years has such a unity of thought?

He also highlights the extraordinary accuracy of the Bible. He says at one point that the Bible ‘stands, perfect, fresh and complete as it did 18 centuries ago’. (As an aside, this is still true today. For instance think of all the archaeological finds since his day.)

The book ends with a brief look at some of the objections to verbal inspiration and the importance of not corrupting the word.

There are other works that cover this subject more fully, but few that are written in such a clear and persuasive way. This would be an excellent book to have on a church bookstall and a good present for a sceptical inquirer.

This article was first published on GoodBookReviews.org.uk. The website has been closed as of March 2019.