THE BIBLE: THE BOOK OF BOOKS

When my health failed, forcing me to pull the plug on over thirty years of ministry in the Sunshine State, as well as to return home to my beloved Smokies, I spent my first year back in the hills of East Tennessee writing this book. It was a labor of love, since I've spent my life devoted to the study of the Scripture. Unlike other books I've written, however, this book is not so much about the teachings (doctrines) or truths taught in the Bible, but about the Bible itself.

 

How did we get the Bible? When, where, and by whom was the Bible written? How was the Bible copied, translated, and preserved through the centuries? How and when was the canon of Scripture put together? What proof do we have of the Bible's incredible claim to be the divinely inspired, inerrant, and infallible written revelation of God to man? What unprecedented influence has the Bible had upon our world? This book answers these important questions and many more.

 

Truly, the story of the Scripture is a most spectacular one. As Sir Fredrick Kenyon, the former Director and Principle Librarian of the British Museum, once said: "The Bible has a human history as well as a divine inspiration. It is a history full of interest, and it is one which all those who value their Bible should know, at least in outline, if only that they may be able to meet the criticisms of skeptics and the ignorant." It is our sincere hope and earnest prayer that this book will prove to you, the reader, both informative and inspirational, inspiring in you a lifelong appreciation for the Bible, the most incredible book that has ever been written!

CHAPTER 1

The Bottomless Pond

CHAPTER 2

The Old and New Testaments

CHAPTER 3

The Books

CHAPTER 4

Divine Revelation

CHAPTER 5

Divine Illumination

CHAPTER 6

Divine Inspiration

CHAPTER 7

The Bible's Reliability 

CHAPTER 8

The Original Manuscripts

CHAPTER 9

The Ancient Manuscripts

CHAPTER 10

The Scriptorium

CHAPTER 11

The Canon of Scripture

CHAPTER 12

Early Translations

CHAPTER 13

English Translations

CHAPTER 14

The King James Translation

CHAPTER 15

Modern-Day Translations

CHAPTER 16

Spiritual Authority

CHAPTER 17

The Rock of Our Republic

CHAPTER 18

The Bible's Incomparability 

CONCLUSION

The All-Important Question

APPENDIX 1

The Apocrypha

APPENDIX 2

Debunking the Da Vinci Code

APPENDIX 3

The Bad News About the Gospel of Judas

APPENDIX 4

Translators' Preface to the King James Bible

APPENDIX 5

The King James Only Controversy