Why Trust the

Bible?

Greg Gilbert

wheaton, illinois

Why Trust the Bible?

Copyright © 2015 by Gregory D. Gilbert

Published by Crossway

1300 Crescent Street

Wheaton, Illinois 60187

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided for by USA copyright law.

Cover design: Matthew Wahl

First printing 2015

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NASB are from The New American Standard Bible®. Copyright © The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission.

Scripture references marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture references marked NRSV are from The New Revised Standard Version. Copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Published by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are from the King James Version of the Bible.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added by the author.

Trade paperback ISBN: 978-1-4335-4346-3

ePub ISBN: 978-1-4335-4349-4

PDF ISBN: 978-1-4335-4347-0

Mobipocket ISBN: 978-1-4335-4348-7

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Gilbert, Greg, 1977–

Why trust the Bible? / Greg Gilbert.

pages cm.—(9Marks books)

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-4335-4346-3 (hc)

1. Bible—Evidences, authority, etc. I. Title.

BS480.G55 2015

220.1—dc23

2015007181

Crossway is a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

To Mom and Dad.

You were the first to teach me that the Bible—

and the Savior it reveals—

are worthy to be trusted.

Contents

1 Don’t Believe Everything You Read

2 Lost in Translation?

3 Copies of Copies of Copies of Copies?

4 Are These Really the Books You’re Looking For?

5 But Can I Trust You?

6 So Did It Happen?

7 Take It on the Word of a Resurrected Man

A Final Word: The Next Question

Appendix: Resources for Further Exploration

General Index

Scripture Index

About the Series

1

Don’t Believe Everything You Read

Don’t believe everything you read. Everybody knows that.

Especially in our age of the Internet, only a misguided person takes as absolute truth everything he or she reads. From newspapers and magazines to tabloids and click-bait online “news” services, one of the most valuable skills we can learn is telling the difference between fact and fiction, truth and fabrication. We don’t want to be dupes, ...