Numa Verse

Systematic theologyWhat does it teach as a whole?

Bibliology

What is bibliology?

Bibliology is the doctrine of Scripture: the part of theology that studies what the Bible is, where it comes from, what kind of authority it carries, how it is related to God's revelation, and how it is to be read. In English the word also names the science of books, a sense that belongs to library science.

  • 143Sources
  • 16Traditions
  • 16Dated entries
  • 13Minutes

Study v1.3, 15 October 2026

Bibliology

At a glance

Why it matters for reading Scripture

The doctrine of Scripture itself: revelation, inspiration and authority, and how each tradition understands the text.

What the study found

The traditions agree that God has spoken and that Scripture is inspired, but differ on its truth, canon, text and authority; the study sets these out as eight questions from revelation to reception.

Where traditions divide

Catholics hold Scripture and Tradition as one deposit, Orthodox read Scripture within Tradition, Lutheran and Reformed make Scripture the only rule, and evangelicals debate inerrancy and infallibility.

How the traditions compare

  • Roman Catholic Church

    Scripture and Tradition form "one sacred deposit of the word of God", and the Magisterium "is not above the word of God, but serves it".

    Dei Verbum 11 holds that God is the author and that the books teach without error the truth God wanted put into them "for the sake of salvation"; whether that phrase limits what Scripture asserts remains disputed within Catholic scholarship. The canon includes Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch and two books of Maccabees, as listed at the Council of Trent.

    Sources1–4

  • Eastern Catholic Churches

    Hold the same doctrine: canon 598 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches places what is to be believed in the word of God "written or handed down, the one deposit of faith entrusted to the Church".

    They keep their own vernacular Bibles under their own authority, and the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church began a new official "Kyiv Bible" in November 2023, from Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek.

    Sources5–7

  • Eastern Orthodox Church

    Places Scripture within Holy Tradition, the life of the Church guided by the Holy Spirit, among whose elements "the Bible holds the first place".

    Georges Florovsky wrote that "the book and the Church cannot be separated". The Septuagint remains, in Eugen Pentiuc's words, "the quasi-official form of the Old Testament"; many Orthodox writers call the additional books anagignoskomena, "readable" rather than canonical, while the Synod of Jerusalem of 1672 called them "genuine parts of Scripture", and neither is the single Orthodox position.

    Sources8–11

  • Oriental Orthodox Churches

    The Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church holds Scripture "true, sacred, infallible, and normative" and gives "equal importance" to Scripture and tradition, and Pope Shenouda III of the Coptic Orthodox Church defended "sound" Tradition, which must agree with the Bible's doctrine and spirit.

    Canons differ: the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church lists 81 books, 46 in the Old Testament and 35 in the New, with Enoch and Jubilees among them.

    Sources12–14

  • Church of the East

    Inherited the Peshitta, whose historical New Testament lacks 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John, Jude and Revelation, together with the historical exegesis of Theodore of Mopsuestia, its interpreter par excellence.

    No synodal statement of the Assyrian Church of the East on its canon was found, and its official website makes no statement on revelation or Scripture.

    Sources15–17

  • Lutheran churches

    The Formula of Concord (1577) calls the prophetic and apostolic Scriptures "the only rule and norm" by which all dogmas and teachers are to be judged, and receives the creeds and confessions "in the rank of witnesses".

    The LCMS Brief Statement (1932) teaches verbal inspiration and finds no errors or contradictions in Scripture, including in historical and geographical matters.

    Sources18–20

  • Reformed churches

    The Westminster Confession, chapter 1, holds that Scripture's authority depends "wholly upon God" rather than on the Church's testimony, that full assurance of it comes from "the inward work of the Holy Spirit", and that the Hebrew and Greek texts were "kept pure in all ages".

    Louis Berkhof, after Herman Bavinck, describes inspiration as organic: the Spirit worked through the writers' character, gifts and style, even to the choice of their words.

    Sources21–22

  • Anglican Communion

    Article VI of the Thirty-nine Articles holds that Scripture contains all things necessary to salvation, and that the other books are read "for example of life" but not to establish doctrine.

    In The Gift of Authority (1999) Anglicans and Catholics agreed that "Within Tradition the Scriptures occupy a unique and normative place".

    Sources23–24

  • Methodist churches

    Place Scripture first among four sources, Scripture, tradition, experience and reason: the United Methodist Book of Discipline says Scripture "remains the norm by which all traditions are judged".

    Albert Outler, who coined the term quadrilateral, noted that it does not occur in the Wesley corpus and regretted coining it.

    Sources25–26

  • Baptist and evangelical

    Confess the verbal plenary inspiration of the autographs: the Chicago Statement (1978) says "Scripture in its entirety is inerrant, being free from all falsehood, fraud, or deceit", and the Baptist Faith and Message (2000) calls Scripture "truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter".

    Their internal debates set full against limited inerrancy and include concursive and incarnational models of Scripture.

    Sources27–30

  • Anabaptist and Mennonite

    Read Scripture through Christ, holding the New Testament over the Old, and in early Anabaptism "The congregation was the hermeneutic community".

    The Mennonite Brethren confession calls Scripture "infallible", glossed as "unable to fail" in its purposes. The streams differ: the Hutterites keep Riedemann's sixteenth-century confession as their standing interpretation of Scripture, and the Amish hold it through an unwritten order of community life.

    Sources31–35

  • Pentecostal churches

    The Assemblies of God holds the Scriptures "verbally inspired of God", and its position paper of 2015 places inerrancy in the autographs, keeps a canon of 66 books and rejects any purported prophecy that alters Scripture's meaning.

    Kenneth Archer and Amos Yong describe interpretation as a work of Spirit, Word and community together. The statements range from the devotional and figurative to explicit inerrancy.

    Sources36–41

  • Seventh-day Adventist Church

    Its first Fundamental Belief calls the Scriptures "the supreme, authoritative, and the infallible revelation of His will".

    Sources42

  • Orthodox Judaism

    Holds the Torah to be from heaven, and the Rabbinical Council of America ties the authority of the Written and the Oral Torah to the one revelation at Sinai.

    Maimonides' eighth principle reads "The Torah we have today is the Torah that God gave to Moses at Sinai". In 2013 the same council affirmed that the view that "virtually the entire Torah was written by several authors" is "unequivocally contrary to the faith requirements of historic Judaism".

    Sources43–44

  • Conservative Judaism

    Emet ve-Emunah (1988) affirms revelation as "the uncovering of an external source of truth emanating from God", records three views held within the movement, a personal encounter with propositional content, an ineffable human encounter with God and continuing discovery through nature and history, and rejects both fundamentalism and relativism.

    Sources45

  • Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism

    Reform platforms move from the Bible as "the record of the consecration of the Jewish people" (1885), through revelation as "a continuous process" (1937), to "God's ongoing revelation to our people" (1999).

    Mordecai Kaplan, who founded Reconstructionism, rejected the notion that the Torah and the Talmud had been revealed by God at Sinai.

    Sources46–49

How the field developed

  1. Early church
    c. 180

    Irenaeus writes that the apostles handed the gospel down in the Scriptures "to be the ground and pillar of our faith", and holds Scripture together with the apostolic tradition preserved by the succession of presbyters.5051

  2. Late antiquity
    367

    Athanasius's Festal Letter lists the 27 books of the New Testament and calls the canonical books "fountains of salvation".52

  3. Late antiquity
    405

    Augustine writes to Jerome that he believes the authors of the canonical books alone "completely free from error", and that where a passage seemed contrary to truth he would suppose the manuscript faulty, the translator mistaken or his own understanding at fault.53

  4. Reformation
    8 April 1546

    The Council of Trent receives the written books and the unwritten traditions with equal piety and reverence, lists the canon and declares the Vulgate authentic for public use. Its draft had said "partly in written books, partly in unwritten traditions", and what the change to "and" implies is still debated.454

  5. Reformation
    1646 to 1647

    The Westminster Confession, completed in 1646 and approved by the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland on 27 August 1647, gives ten sections to Holy Scripture.555657

  6. Modern
    1670 and 1678

    Baruch Spinoza's Theological-Political Treatise reads Scripture without presupposing its truth, and in 1678 Richard Simon's Histoire critique du Vieux Testament is seized and destroyed.5859

  7. Modern
    1881

    A. A. Hodge and B. B. Warfield write jointly on inspiration at Princeton, holding that "only the original autographic text" was inspired.60

  8. Modern
    18 November 1893

    Leo XIII's Providentissimus Deus holds that inspiration is "essentially incompatible with error" and forbids restricting it to parts of Scripture.61

  9. Modern
    1932 and 1938

    Karl Barth sets out the threefold form of the Word of God, revealed, written and preached, in Church Dogmatics I/1 and treats Holy Scripture in I/2.6263

  10. Modern
    18 November 1965

    Dei Verbum teaches that Scripture and Tradition form "one sacred deposit" and that the books teach without error the truth God willed "for the sake of salvation".1

  11. Modern
    26 to 28 October 1978

    The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy is adopted at a summit of the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy attended by nearly 300 people, about four-fifths of whom sign it.6465

  12. Modern
    1979 and 1982

    Jack Rogers and Donald McKim argue that the historic view was infallibility in faith and practice, and John Woodbridge answers them in Biblical Authority (1982).6667

  13. Modern
    19 November 2003

    The Evangelical Theological Society votes on charges that Clark Pinnock and John Sanders breached its inerrancy clause; expulsion needs two thirds, and both are retained.2968

  14. Modern
    22 February 2014

    The Pontifical Biblical Commission signs The Inspiration and Truth of Sacred Scripture, which states that it is not an official declaration of the Magisterium.6970

  15. Modern
    2024

    The Lausanne Movement's Seoul Statement gives a whole section to the Bible, calling it "unerring" and the supreme norm.71

  16. Modern
    January and February 2026

    Leo XIV makes Dei Verbum the subject of general audiences, and on 4 February warns that ignoring the human words of Scripture risks "fundamentalist or spiritualist readings".7273

How to study bibliology

The questions it asks

  • How does God make himself known, and how is Scripture related to that knowledge?
  • How did the texts emerge, and what is claimed about divine and human agency in their making?
  • What kind of writings are these, and what kind of truth do they claim?
  • Which writings are received as Scripture, by whom and on what grounds?
  • How are textual forms preserved, reconstructed, translated and authorized?
  • What authority does Scripture have beside tradition, reason, experience and the Church?
  • How is the meaning of Scripture established, who interprets it, and how are conflicting interpretations judged?
  • How does Scripture function in worship, preaching, study, formation and the life of a community?

Its method

Start

  1. Set out the questions that every tradition answers, from revelation to reception and practice, and define each from a reference or confessional source741.

  2. Describe each tradition from its own governing texts: councils, magisterial and synodal texts, confessions, catechisms, denominational statements and platforms.

  3. State the standing of each source, and do not present a theologian's view as a church's position where only a scholar speaks for a tradition.

  4. Weigh texts by their authority: in Catholic teaching, conciliar constitutions and papal encyclicals are acts of the Magisterium, the Pontifical Biblical Commission's studies are not, and individual theologians give scholarly opinion69.

  5. Record the internal diversity of each tradition beside its main position.

  6. Read the key texts, such as 2 Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 1:20 to 21 and John 10:35, noting that each is read in more than one way and that the exegesis does not settle the doctrine on its own.

  7. Draw on canon history, textual criticism and hermeneutics for evidence, while asking the doctrinal question of what the canon is, what inspiration means for copies, and on what authority.

  8. Keep the historical task distinct from the doctrinal one: reconstructing the initial text differs from identifying the autographs and from a theological judgment about preservation75.

What to read

Its primary witnesses

  • The texts on which the doctrine is grounded, each read in more than one way: 2 Timothy 3:16 to 17, 2 Peter 1:20 to 21, John 10:35, Matthew 5:17 to 18, Hebrews 1:1 to 2 and Luke 24:44.
  • The Fathers: Irenaeus, Against Heresies III; Origen, De Principiis IV; Athanasius, Festal Letter 39; and Augustine, Letter 8250765253.
  • The early lists and rulings on public reading: the Muratorian Fragment, the Synod of Laodicea and the African code of 419777879.
  • Catholic conciliar and papal texts: Trent, Session IV; Vatican I, Dei Filius; Providentissimus Deus; Divino Afflante Spiritu; and Dei Verbum48061811.
  • The Reformation confessions: the Formula of Concord, the Belgic Confession, the Second Helvetic Confession, the Thirty-nine Articles and the Westminster Confession, chapter 11882832321.
  • The Confession of Dositheus (1672) and the Orthodox Church in America's catechetical text on Tradition848.
  • Evangelical statements: the Evangelical Theological Society's doctrinal basis (1949), the Lausanne Covenant (1974), the Chicago Statement (1978) and the Seoul Statement (2024)85862771.
  • Jewish texts: Mishnah Avot 1:1 and Sanhedrin 10:1, Maimonides' principles of faith, and the movements' own statements and platforms8788434445.
  • The textual evidence: the Editio Critica Maior, Biblia Hebraica Quinta and the Dead Sea Scrolls899091.

Standard reference works

  • The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry "Divine Revelation", by Mats Wahlberg, first published in 2020 and revised in 202474.
  • Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible (Baker Academic, 2005), edited by Kevin J. Vanhoozer9293.
  • New Dictionary of Theology, second edition (IVP Academic, 2016)94.
  • Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, third edition (Baker, 2017), edited by Daniel J. Treier and Walter A. Elwell9596.
  • The Oxford Handbook of the Bible in Orthodox Christianity (2022), edited by Eugen J. Pentiuc97.
  • The Oxford Handbook of the Reception History of the Bible and The Oxford Handbook of Postcolonial Biblical Criticism9899.
  • The New Catholic Encyclopedia entries "Inspiration, Biblical", "Inerrancy, Biblical" and "Canon, Biblical" (second edition, 2003)100101102.
  • Systematic theologies with a doctrine of Scripture, among them Lewis Sperry Chafer's (1947 to 1948), Herman Bavinck's Reformed Dogmatics, Louis Berkhof's (1938) and Wayne Grudem's (second edition, 2020)103104105106.
  • Five Views on Biblical Inerrancy (Zondervan Academic, 2013), edited by J. Merrick and Stephen Garrett107.
  • The Enduring Authority of the Christian Scriptures (Eerdmans, 2016), edited by D. A. Carson, with 37 contributors108.

Scholarship referenced in this study

The works below shaped the field and are cited in this study, from the earliest to the most recent. Hover over a book, or select it, to see its author and the sources behind it.

  • 367Festal Letter 39Athanasius of AlexandriaFestal Letter 39 (367)Athanasius of Alexandria (298 to 373)Sources52109
  • 405Letter 82Augustine of HippoLetter 82 (405)Augustine of Hippo (13 November 354 to 28 August 430)Sources53110
  • 13th centurySumma TheologiaeThomas AquinasSumma Theologiae (13th century)Thomas Aquinas (1224 or 1225 to 7 March 1274)Sources111–112
  • 1679 to 1685Institutio theologiae elencticaeFrancis TurretinInstitutio theologiae elencticae (1679 to 1685)Francis Turretin (1623 to 1687)Sources113
  • 1915InspirationB. B. WarfieldInspiration (1915)B. B. Warfield (5 November 1851 to 16 February 1921)Sources60114–115
  • 1932Church Dogmatics I/1Karl BarthChurch Dogmatics I/1 (1932)Karl Barth (10 May 1886 to 9 or 10 December 1968)Sources62116
  • 1972Bible, Church, TraditionGeorges FlorovskyBible, Church, Tradition (1972)Georges Florovsky (23 August 1893 to 11 August 1979)Sources117–118
  • 1983Models of RevelationAvery DullesModels of Revelation (1983)Avery Dulles (24 August 1918 to 12 December 2008)Sources119–120
  • 1995Christianity in AfricaKwame BediakoChristianity in Africa (1995)Kwame Bediako (7 July 1945 to 10 June 2008)Sources121
  • 1998Is There a Meaning in This Text?Kevin J. VanhoozerIs There a Meaning in This Text? (1998)Kevin J. VanhoozerSources122–123
  • 2003Holy Scripture: A Dogmatic SketchJohn WebsterHoly Scripture: A Dogmatic Sketch (2003)John Webster (1955 to 25 May 2016)Sources124–125
  • 2005Inspiration and IncarnationPeter EnnsInspiration and Incarnation (2005)Peter EnnsSources126–127

Listed because this study draws on their published work; no association with or endorsement of Numa Verse is implied. Suggest a correction.

Key terms

The words that carry the most weight in this field, each defined from the sources of this study. Turn a card over to read its definition.

General revelation is available to everyone, through nature and creation; special revelation is first given to a limited group, and, in Dei Verbum, culminates in Christ741.

A special divine influence on the writers of the biblical books; B. B. Warfield read theopneustos in 2 Timothy 3:16 as "God-breathed"74128.

The view that all the words of the original are inspired and without error; it concerns the extent of inspiration, not its mode12922.

The view, associated with Herman Bavinck, that the Spirit worked through the writers' character, gifts and style, even to the choice of words22130.

The claim that Scripture in its entirety is free from falsehood, fraud or deceit; the Chicago Statement denies that it is limited to spiritual, religious or redemptive themes27.

The claim that Scripture does not mislead and is the sure rule of faith and practice2786.

A collection of texts which, determined by general agreement or by official religious bodies, are alone viewed as fully authoritative; current debate distinguishes exclusive, functional and ontological definitions131132.

The additional books of the wider Orthodox Old Testament, called "readable" rather than "canonical" or "deuterocanonical" by many Orthodox writers10.

The hypothetical witness from which all the extant witnesses derive, distinct from the original text of the author133.

The Spirit's work in the reader, enabling Scripture to be understood savingly; Klaas Runia distinguishes it from the inspiration of the writers21134.

Where it sits

Builds on

Bibliology

From the Journal

Old leather-bound books and codices of different sizes on a wooden shelfAI-generated imageBibliology

Who decided which books are in the Bible?

No single person or meeting decided. Communities of faith recognized their books over centuries, and Jewish, Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, and Ethiopian traditions still hold canons that differ in a few books.Numa Verse Editorial · November 2026 · 6 min readA wooden printing press with trays of type and printed pages hanging to dryAI-generated imageBibliology

How did the Bible get its chapters and verses?

The biblical authors wrote without numbered chapters or verses. The chapters most Bibles use go back to Stephen Langton in Paris in the early 1200s; the verse numbers came from Jewish scholarship on the Hebrew text and from the printer Robert Estienne, whose New Testament numbering appeared in 1551.Numa Verse Editorial · November 2026 · 4 min read

Questions people ask

The word has two senses in English: Merriam-Webster gives both the history and science of books as physical objects and the study of the theological doctrine of the Bible135. The book sense goes back to Gabriel Peignot's Dictionnaire raisonné de bibliologie (1802 to 1804) and belongs to library science136137. Merriam-Webster records the theological sense from 1789, while the Online Etymology Dictionary dates the English word to 1804135138.

No. The inerrancy debate is chiefly a twentieth-century evangelical one, and the positions answer different questions107. Full inerrancy holds Scripture without error in all it affirms, including history and science; others hold it infallible in faith and practice, or describe it through an incarnational analogy276730. Catholic teaching speaks of truth "for the sake of salvation", Karl Barth of Scripture as witness to revelation, and Orthodox writers of Scripture within Tradition11399.

No. The traditions answer with 66, 73 or more books: the Council of Trent listed the deuterocanonical books, while Protestant confessions receive the shorter Old Testament482. The Orthodox read a wider Old Testament from the Septuagint, and the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church lists 81 books1014. The Hebrew canon counts 24 books against 39 in English Old Testaments, by a different way of counting the same books140.

Lutheran and Reformed confessions make Scripture the only rule and norm, Methodist teaching places it first among four sources, Catholic teaching holds Scripture and Tradition as "one sacred deposit", and Orthodox teaching reads Scripture within Tradition182518. Jewish tradition holds a Written and an Oral Torah together44.

Islamic tradition charges that Jews and Christians altered their scriptures, and Gabriel Said Reynolds distinguishes textual alteration from misinterpretation141. Daniel Wallace, writing as an evangelical text critic, holds that about 1 percent of the variants are both meaningful and viable and that significant variants that alter core doctrines have not yet been produced, while Bart Ehrman gives a more skeptical assessment142143.

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  1. 1Dei Verbum, Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (The Holy See)https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651118_dei-verbum_en.html (opens in a new tab)
  2. 2Jason Bermender, review of The Inspiration and Truth of Sacred Scripture (Catholic Books Review)https://catholicbooksreview.org/2015/biblical.html (opens in a new tab)
  3. 3Is Scripture True Only in a 'Limited' Way? (Leonardo De Chirico, Vatican Files)https://vaticanfiles.org/en/?p=903 (opens in a new tab)
  4. 4Council of Trent, Session IV (Schaff, Creeds of Christendom, CCEL)https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds2.v.i.i.ii.html (opens in a new tab)
  5. 5Codex Canonum Ecclesiarum Orientalium, Tituli XII to XXII (The Holy See)https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/la/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_jp-ii_apc_19901018_codex-can-eccl-orient-2.html (opens in a new tab)
  6. 6CCEO English concordance, "liturgical" (IntraText Library)https://www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG1199/79.HTM (opens in a new tab)
  7. 7Head of the UGCC sets up a coordination group to translate the Holy Scriptures into Ukrainian (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church)https://ugcc.ua/en/data/head-of-the-ugcc-sets-up-a-coordination-group-to-translate-the-holy-scriptures-into-ukrainian-779/ (opens in a new tab)
  8. 8The Orthodox Faith, Tradition (Orthodox Church in America)https://www.oca.org/orthodoxy/the-orthodox-faith/doctrine-scripture/sources-of-christian-doctrine/tradition (opens in a new tab)
  9. 9Georges Florovsky, Bible, Church, Tradition, extract (St Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church, Daytona Beach)https://stdemetriosdaytona.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/florovsky1.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  10. 10Old Testament, Eugen J. Pentiuc (The Encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, azbyka.ru)https://azbyka.ru/otechnik/world/the-encyclopedia-of-eastern-orthodox-christianity/222 (opens in a new tab)
  11. 11The Confession of Dositheus (Schaff, Creeds of Christendom, CCEL)https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds1.v.vii.html (opens in a new tab)
  12. 12Theology (Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church)https://mosc.in/the_church/theology (opens in a new tab)
  13. 13Pope Shenouda III, Comparative Theology, Tradition (St Takla Haymanot Church)https://st-takla.org/books/en/pope-shenouda-iii/comparative-theology/tradition-valid.html (opens in a new tab)
  14. 14Canonical books (Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church)https://www.ethiopianorthodox.org/english/canonical/books.html (opens in a new tab)
  15. 15From the Podcast: The Syriac Bible (Museum of the Bible Magazine)https://www.museumofthebible.org/magazine/collections/from-the-podcast-the-syriac-bible (opens in a new tab)
  16. 16Theodore of Mopsuestia (Jewish Encyclopedia)https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/14359 (opens in a new tab)
  17. 17About Us (Assyrian Church of the East)https://www.assyrianchurch.org/about-us/ (opens in a new tab)
  18. 18Formula of Concord, Epitome (Schaff, Creeds of Christendom, CCEL)https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds3.iii.iv.html (opens in a new tab)
  19. 19Formula of Concord study introduction (Lutheran Church Missouri Synod)https://resources.lcms.org/reading-study/formula-of-concord-study-introduction/ (opens in a new tab)
  20. 20A Brief Statement of the Doctrinal Position of the Missouri Synod (Project Wittenberg)https://projectwittenberg.org/pub/resources/text/wittenberg/mosynod/web/doct-01.html (opens in a new tab)
  21. 21Westminster Confession of Faith, chapter 1, Of the Holy Scripture (CCEL)https://www.ccel.org/ccel/anonymous/westminster3.i.i.html (opens in a new tab)
  22. 22Louis Berkhof, Summary of Christian Doctrine, Scripture (CCEL)https://www.ccel.org/ccel/berkhof/summary.ii.iii.html (opens in a new tab)
  23. 23Thirty-nine Articles (Internet Modern History Sourcebook, Fordham University)https://sourcebooks.web.fordham.edu/mod/1571-39articles.asp (opens in a new tab)
  24. 24Gift of Authority, ARCIC Document (EWTN Library)https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/gift-of-authority--arcic-document-9900 (opens in a new tab)
  25. 25Book of Discipline 105, Our Theological Task (United Methodist Church)https://www.umc.org/content/book-of-discipline-105-our-theological-task (opens in a new tab)
  26. 26Albert C. Outler, The Wesleyan Quadrilateral in John Wesley (Wesleyan Theological Journal, Wesley Center Online)https://wesley.nnu.edu/fileadmin/imported_site/wesleyjournal/1985-wtj-20-1.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  27. 27The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy (Evangelical Theological Society)https://archive.etsjets.org/files/documents/Chicago_Statement.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  28. 28Baptist Faith and Message 2000 (Southern Baptist Convention)https://bfm.sbc.net/bfm2000/ (opens in a new tab)
  29. 29Minutes of the 55th annual meeting (Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society)https://etsjets.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/files_JETS-PDFs_47_47-1_47-1-pp167-173_JETS.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  30. 30Peter Enns, Response to G. K. Beale's Review Article of Inspiration and Incarnation (JETS)https://etsjets.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/files_JETS-PDFs_49_49-2_JETS_49-2_313-326_Enns.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  31. 31Bible, Harold S. Bender (Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online)https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Bible (opens in a new tab)
  32. 32Stuart Wood Murray, Spirit, Discipleship, Community, PhD thesis (The Open University, Open Research Online)https://oro.open.ac.uk/57446 (opens in a new tab)
  33. 33Confession of Faith, Article 2: Revelation of God (Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches)https://www.mennonitebrethren.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/FL001_cof_A2.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  34. 34Peter Riedemann's Hutterite Confession of Faith, front matter (Plough Publishing House)https://www.plough.com/-/media/files/plough/lookinside/p/peterriedemannconfessionenlookinside.pdf?la=en (opens in a new tab)
  35. 35Beliefs (Amish Studies, Young Center, Elizabethtown College)https://groups.etown.edu/amishstudies/religion/beliefs/ (opens in a new tab)
  36. 36Statement of Fundamental Truths (Assemblies of God)https://ag.org/Beliefs/Statement-of-Fundamental-Truths (opens in a new tab)
  37. 37The Inspiration, Inerrancy, and Authority of Scripture, position paper (Assemblies of God USA)https://ag.org/Beliefs/Position-Papers/Inspiration-Inerrancy-and-Authority-of-Scripture (opens in a new tab)
  38. 38John Ketzer, review of Kenneth J. Archer, A Pentecostal Hermeneutic (Catholic Books Review)https://catholicbooksreview.org/2010/archer.htm (opens in a new tab)
  39. 39Spirit-Word-Community: Theological Hermeneutics in Trinitarian Perspective, Amos Yong (Taylor and Francis)https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781351766593 (opens in a new tab)
  40. 40Statement of Faith (Foursquare)https://resources.foursquare.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/08/Statement-of-Faith-ENG.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  41. 41What We Believe (The Apostolic Church UK)https://acuk.online/what-we-believe (opens in a new tab)
  42. 42Fundamental Belief 1, Holy Scriptures (Seventh-day Adventist Church)https://www.adventist.org/holy-scriptures/ (opens in a new tab)
  43. 43The Thirteen Principles of Faith (My Jewish Learning)https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-thirteen-principles-of-faith/ (opens in a new tab)
  44. 44RCA Statement on Torah Min HaShamayim (Rabbinical Council of America)https://rabbis.org/?p=1512 (opens in a new tab)
  45. 45Emet Ve-Emunah: Statement of Principles of Conservative Judaism (Berman Jewish Policy Archive)https://www.bjpa.org/content/upload/bjpa/stat/STATEMENT%20OF%20PRINCIPLES%20OF%20CONSERVATIVE%20JUDAISM.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  46. 46Declaration of Principles, The Pittsburgh Platform (Central Conference of American Rabbis)https://www.ccarnet.org/rabbinic-voice/platforms/article-declaration-principles/ (opens in a new tab)
  47. 47The Guiding Principles of Reform Judaism, The Columbus Platform (Central Conference of American Rabbis)https://www.ccarnet.org/rabbinic-voice/platforms/article-guiding-principles-reform-judaism/ (opens in a new tab)
  48. 48A Statement of Principles for Reform Judaism (Central Conference of American Rabbis)https://www.ccarnet.org/rabbinic-voice/platforms/article-statement-principles-reform-judaism/ (opens in a new tab)
  49. 49Reconstructionist Judaism: The Fourth Denomination (My Jewish Learning)https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/reconstructionist-judaism-the-fourth-denomination/ (opens in a new tab)
  50. 50Irenaeus, Against Heresies III.1 (New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103301.htm (opens in a new tab)
  51. 51Irenaeus, Against Heresies III.2 (New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103302.htm (opens in a new tab)
  52. 52Athanasius, Festal Letter 39 (New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2806039.htm (opens in a new tab)
  53. 53Augustine, Letter 82 (New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1102082.htm (opens in a new tab)
  54. 54Richard Baepler, Scripture and Tradition in the Council of Trent (Concordia Theological Monthly, Concordia Theological Seminary)https://media.ctsfw.edu/Item/GetFullText/5396 (opens in a new tab)
  55. 55Westminster Confession (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/topic/Westminster-Confession (opens in a new tab)
  56. 56Daily quote for 27 August (Christian History Institute)https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/dailyquote/8/27 (opens in a new tab)
  57. 57Westminster Confession of Faith (Orthodox Presbyterian Church)https://www.opc.org/wcf.html (opens in a new tab)
  58. 58Spinoza's Political Philosophy (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/spinoza-political/ (opens in a new tab)
  59. 59Simon, Richard (Jewish Encyclopedia)https://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/13751-simon-richard (opens in a new tab)
  60. 60Warfield timeline (bbwarfield.com)https://bbwarfield.com/timeline (opens in a new tab)
  61. 61Providentissimus Deus (The Holy See)https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_18111893_providentissimus-deus.html (opens in a new tab)
  62. 62Barth lesen: Zentrale Texte seines Denkens, reading sample (Theologischer Verlag Zürich)https://www.tvz-verlag.ch/_files_media/leseproben/9783290182090.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  63. 63Church Dogmatics outline (Center for Barth Studies, Princeton Theological Seminary)https://barth.ptsem.edu/wp-content/uploads/CD-Outline_pdf.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  64. 64Records of the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy (Dallas Theological Seminary)https://biblos.dts.edu/Pages/TL/Special/ICBI.shtml (opens in a new tab)
  65. 65Proinerrancy Forces Draft Their Platform (Christianity Today, 17 November 1978)https://christianitytoday.com/ct/1978/november-17/proinerrancy-forces-draft-their-platform.html (opens in a new tab)
  66. 66Rogers and McKim, The Authority and Interpretation of the Bible (WorldCat)https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/05195556 (opens in a new tab)
  67. 67Woodbridge, Biblical Authority (Trinity Evangelical Divinity School)https://www.tiu.edu/divinity/books/biblical-authority-a-critique-of-the-rogers-mckim-proposal-biblical-authority-a-critique-of-the-rogers-mckim-proposal/ (opens in a new tab)
  68. 68Theological society retains open theists Pinnock, Sanders (Southern Baptist Theological Seminary News)https://www.sbts.edu/news/theological-society-retains-open-theists-pinnock-sanders/ (opens in a new tab)
  69. 69Ispirazione e verità della Sacra Scrittura (The Holy See)https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/pcb_documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20140222_ispirazione-verita-sacra-scrittura_it.html (opens in a new tab)
  70. 70The Inspiration and Truth of Sacred Scripture (Liturgical Press)https://litpress.org/Products/4903/The-Inspiration-and-Truth-of-Sacred-Scripture (opens in a new tab)
  71. 71The Seoul Statement (Lausanne Movement)https://lausanne.org/statement/the-seoul-statement (opens in a new tab)
  72. 72General audience on Dei Verbum, 14 January 2026 (Vatican News)https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2026-01/pope-at-audience-second-vatican-council-14-january-2026.html (opens in a new tab)
  73. 73General audience on Dei Verbum, 4 February 2026 (Vatican News)https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2026-02/pope-lo-xiv-general-audience-dei-verbum-4-february-2026.html (opens in a new tab)
  74. 74Divine Revelation, Mats Wahlberg (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/divine-revelation/ (opens in a new tab)
  75. 75Institute for New Testament Textual Research (Universität Münster)https://www.uni-muenster.de/INTF/en/ (opens in a new tab)
  76. 76Origen, De Principiis IV (New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/04124.htm (opens in a new tab)
  77. 77The Muratorian Fragment, Metzger translation (Bible Research)https://bible-researcher.com/muratorian.html (opens in a new tab)
  78. 78Synod of Laodicea, canons (New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3806.htm (opens in a new tab)
  79. 79Code of Canons of the African Church (New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3816.htm (opens in a new tab)
  80. 80Dei Filius (The Holy See)https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/i-vatican-council/documents/vat-i_const_18700424_dei-filius_la.html (opens in a new tab)
  81. 81Divino Afflante Spiritu (The Holy See)https://www.vatican.va/content/pius-xii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xii_enc_30091943_divino-afflante-spiritu.html (opens in a new tab)
  82. 82Belgic Confession (Christian Reformed Church in North America)https://www.crcna.org/welcome/beliefs/confessions/belgic-confession (opens in a new tab)
  83. 83Second Helvetic Confession (CCEL)https://www.ccel.org/creeds/helvetic.htm (opens in a new tab)
  84. 84The Confession of Dositheus, Robertson translation (CRI/Voice Institute)https://www.crivoice.org/creeddositheus.html (opens in a new tab)
  85. 85About (Evangelical Theological Society)https://www.etsjets.org/about/ (opens in a new tab)
  86. 86The Lausanne Covenant (Lausanne Movement)https://lausanne.org/statement/lausanne-covenant (opens in a new tab)
  87. 87Pirkei Avot 1:1 (Sefaria)https://www.sefaria.org/api/v3/texts/Pirkei_Avot.1.1?version=english (opens in a new tab)
  88. 88Mishnah Sanhedrin 10:1 (Sefaria)https://www.sefaria.org/api/v3/texts/Mishnah_Sanhedrin.10.1?version=english (opens in a new tab)
  89. 89Editio Critica Maior (ECM) publications (Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft)https://www.die-bibel.de/en/editio-critica-maior-ecm-publications (opens in a new tab)
  90. 90Biblia Hebraica Quinta (BHQ) (Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft)https://www.die-bibel.de/en/biblia-hebraica-quinta-bhq (opens in a new tab)
  91. 91The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Origins of the Bible, Ulrich (Press Warehouse)https://cart.presswarehouse.com/products/the-dead-sea-scrolls-and-the-origins-of-the-bible (opens in a new tab)
  92. 92Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible (UNACH library catalogue)https://catalogobiblio.unach.cl/vufind/Record/2282881 (opens in a new tab)
  93. 93Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible (Open Library)https://openlibrary.org/isbn/0801026946 (opens in a new tab)
  94. 94New Dictionary of Theology, 2nd edition (IVP)https://ivpress.com/new-dictionary-of-theology-ebook (opens in a new tab)
  95. 95Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, 3rd edition (Kabarak University library catalogue)https://opac.kabarak.ac.ke/bib/17801 (opens in a new tab)
  96. 96Review of Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, 3rd edition (Reading Religion)https://readingreligion.org/books/evangelical-dictionary-theology (opens in a new tab)
  97. 97Rev. Dr Pentiuc publishes The Oxford Handbook of the Bible in Orthodox Christianity (Hellenic College Holy Cross)https://www.hchc.edu/rev-dr-pentiuc-publishes-the-oxford-handbook-of-the-bible-in-orthodox-christianity/ (opens in a new tab)
  98. 98The Oxford Handbook of the Reception History of the Bible (Oxford Academic)https://academic.oup.com/edited-volume/34393 (opens in a new tab)
  99. 99The Oxford Handbook of Postcolonial Biblical Criticism (Oxford Academic)https://academic.oup.com/edited-volume/43185 (opens in a new tab)
  100. 100Inspiration, Biblical (New Catholic Encyclopedia, Encyclopedia.com)https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/inspiration-biblical (opens in a new tab)
  101. 101Inerrancy, Biblical (New Catholic Encyclopedia, Encyclopedia.com)https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/inerrancy-biblical (opens in a new tab)
  102. 102Canon, Biblical (New Catholic Encyclopedia, Encyclopedia.com)https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/canon-biblical (opens in a new tab)
  103. 103Chafer, Systematic Theology (Christian Community Schools library catalogue)https://library.ccs.edu.au/bib/4392 (opens in a new tab)
  104. 104Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics, vol. 1 (BnF catalogue)https://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb39081397j (opens in a new tab)
  105. 105Berkhof, Systematic Theology (Logos)https://www.logos.com/product/6689/systematic-theology (opens in a new tab)
  106. 106Systematic Theology, Second Edition (Zondervan Academic)https://www.zondervanacademic.com/products/systematic-theology-second-edition (opens in a new tab)
  107. 107Five Views on Biblical Inerrancy (Zondervan Academic)https://www.zondervanacademic.com/products/five-views-on-biblical-inerrancy (opens in a new tab)
  108. 108Carson, ed., The Enduring Authority of the Christian Scriptures (Woodslane)https://woodslane.com.au/products/9780802865762 (opens in a new tab)
  109. 109Athanasius (CCEL)https://www.ccel.org/ccel/athanasius (opens in a new tab)
  110. 110Saint Augustine (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Augustine (opens in a new tab)
  111. 111Saint Thomas Aquinas (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Thomas-Aquinas (opens in a new tab)
  112. 112Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae I q. 1 (New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/summa/1001.htm (opens in a new tab)
  113. 113Francis Turretin, Institutes of Elenctic Theology, vol. 1 (WTS Books)https://wtsbooks.com/institutes-of-elenctic-theology-volume-francis-turretin-9780875524511 (opens in a new tab)
  114. 114Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, 1851 to 1921 (The Online Books Page)https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/who/Warfield%2c%20Benjamin%20Breckinridge%2c%201851%2d1921 (opens in a new tab)
  115. 115B. B. Warfield, Inspiration, International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia (Monergism)https://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/sdg/warfield/warfield_inspiration.html (opens in a new tab)
  116. 116Karl Barth (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/biography/Karl-Barth (opens in a new tab)
  117. 117Georges Florovsky (OrthodoxWiki)https://en.orthodoxwiki.org/Georges_Florovsky (opens in a new tab)
  118. 118Florovsky, Bible, Church, Tradition (CiNii Books)https://ci.nii.ac.jp/ncid/BA03874025 (opens in a new tab)
  119. 119Fordham mourns the death of Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J. (Fordham University)https://now.fordham.edu/faith-and-service/fordham-mourns-the-death-of-avery-cardinal-dulles-s-j/ (opens in a new tab)
  120. 120Dulles, Models of Revelation (Kirkus Reviews)https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/a/avery-dulles-2/models-of-revelation/ (opens in a new tab)
  121. 121Kwame Bediako (Dictionary of African Christian Biography)https://dacb.org/stories/ghana/bediako-kwame/ (opens in a new tab)
  122. 122Welcoming Dr. Kevin J. Vanhoozer (Wheaton College)https://www.wheaton.edu/news/recent-news/2025/october/wheaton-college-welcomes-dr-kevin-j-vanhoozer (opens in a new tab)
  123. 123Vanhoozer, Is There a Meaning in This Text? (Open Library)https://openlibrary.org/isbn/0310211565 (opens in a new tab)
  124. 124John Bainbridge Webster, 1955 to 2016 (School of Divinity, University of St Andrews)https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/divinity/news/title-45892-en.php (opens in a new tab)
  125. 125Webster, Holy Scripture, copyright page (Cambridge University Press)https://assets.cambridge.org/97805218/31185/copyright/9780521831185_copyright_info.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  126. 126Peter Enns, author page (Baker Academic)https://bakeracademic.com/authors/peter-enns/189604 (opens in a new tab)
  127. 127Enns, Inspiration and Incarnation, 2nd edition (Open Library)https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780801097485 (opens in a new tab)
  128. 128B. B. Warfield, God-Inspired Scripture (Monergism)https://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/sdg/warfield/warfield_godinspired.html (opens in a new tab)
  129. 129Sid Litke, Inspiration, How We Got the Bible (Bible.org)https://bible.org/seriespage/3-inspiration (opens in a new tab)
  130. 130Johan D. Tangelder, Dr. Herman Bavinck 1854-1921 Theologian of the Word (Banner of Truth)https://banneroftruth.org/uk/?p=1671 (opens in a new tab)
  131. 131Biblical canon (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/topic/biblical-canon (opens in a new tab)
  132. 132Steve Bauer, review of Michael J. Kruger, The Question of Canon (Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary)https://www.wls.edu/the-question-of-canon/ (opens in a new tab)
  133. 133A Question About the "Initial Text" of New Testament Documents (Brent Nongbri, Variant Readings)https://brentnongbri.com/2020/06/06/a-question-about-the-initial-text-of-new-testament-documents/ (opens in a new tab)
  134. 134Klaas Runia, Karl Barth and the Word of God (TheologicalStudies.org.uk)https://gospelstudies.org.uk/theologicalstudies/pdf/uccf/barth_runia.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  135. 135Bibliology (Merriam-Webster)https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bibliology (opens in a new tab)
  136. 136Peignot, Dictionnaire raisonné de bibliologie (BnF catalogue)https://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb31073238x (opens in a new tab)
  137. 137Peignot, Gabriel (1767-1849) (Bibliothèque de l'histoire de France)https://biblio-bhf.fr/person/ext-000006063 (opens in a new tab)
  138. 138Bibliology (Online Etymology Dictionary)https://www.etymonline.com/word/bibliology (opens in a new tab)
  139. 139Theology (Center for Barth Studies, Princeton Theological Seminary)https://barth.ptsem.edu/karl-barth/theology/ (opens in a new tab)
  140. 140Biblical literature: Old Testament canon, texts, and versions (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/topic/biblical-literature/Old-Testament-canon-texts-and-versions (opens in a new tab)
  141. 141Gabriel Said Reynolds, On the Qur'anic Accusation of Scriptural Falsification (Journal of the American Oriental Society, almuslih.org)https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/Library/Reynolds,%20G%20-%20The%20Quranic%20accusation.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  142. 142Daniel B. Wallace, The Gospel According to Bart (JETS)https://etsjets.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/files_JETS-PDFs_49_49-2_JETS_49-2_327-349_Wallace.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  143. 143About Bart (The Bart Ehrman Blog)https://ehrmanblog.org/about-bart/ (opens in a new tab)

Page record

Reviewed and approved by Duane Herholdt, BA (Theology), Chief Executive Officer, Numa Verse

Study version: v1.3, 15 October 2026 (theology map v1.27)

Last reviewed: 9 November 2026

How these pages are made

  • 9 November 2026: First draft from the approved assessment v1.3.