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2 Timothy 3:16–17
“All Scripture is breathed out by God 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.”
Peter grounded the authority of the Apostolic message in eyewitness testimony and in the Spirit-carried word of the prophets (2 Peter 1:16–21), and yesterday we considered how a Roman centurion’s insight into the nature of authority illumines what it means for God to speak through His Word. Today’s passage takes us further still, as Paul’s statement in 2 Timothy 3:16–17 explains the basis of that authority with a single remarkable word: theopneustos, or “breathed out by God.” Scripture’s authority rests on the fact that God Himself is the ultimate Author of every word. In brief, this is the doctrine of inspiration.
This doctrine does not erase the human dimension of the Bible. God employed real people with distinct personalities, vocabularies, literary styles, and historical situations. Moses wrote differently from David, and Paul wrote differently from John. Yet the Spirit of God so superintended their work that the words they penned are simultaneously their own words and God’s words. The Westminster Confession of Faith affirms this truth when it declares that the Old and New Testaments were “given by inspiration of God” (1.2).
Because God cannot lie (Titus 1:2), and because the Scriptures are His breathed-out Word, it follows that the Bible is wholly trustworthy. It will not mislead us in what it teaches. It will not affirm what is contrary to fact. It will not lead us into error when we read it with faith and care. This is what the church has meant by calling Scripture infallible and inerrant. It is not that translations are flawless or that the Bible always speaks with scientific precision but that its original writings contain no errors and never deceive.
Paul adds that this inspired Scripture is “profitable” for the full range of the Christian life: “for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16). The Bible is not merely a historical artifact or a devotional resource but the fully sufficient guide for every dimension of faith and practice. As Dr. R.C. Sproul frequently noted, the sufficiency of Scripture means that it contains everything we need for the knowledge of salvation and for obedient living before God. We do not need to supplement it with new revelations, mystical insights, or speculative philosophies. What God has breathed out is enough. To add to it is to insult its Author; to subtract from it is to rob ourselves of the very provision that God has made for our souls.
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
Wisdom for every trial we face, every decision we must weigh, and every question about how to live rightly before God can be found in the Scriptures He has provided. Let us come to the Word not merely for information but for formation, trusting that what God has spoken is sufficient for every need that we will ever encounter.
For further study
- Deuteronomy 8:1–3
- Psalm 19:7–11
- Hebrews 4:12–13
- Revelation 1:9–11
The bible in a year
- Psalms 23–24
- Acts 21:1–16