LESSON # 1

THE BIBLE AND ITS BACKGROUND

A. ORIGIN OF THE BIBLE

ETYMOLOGY ( pinagmulan ng salita)

Etymologically the word bible is derived from Latin biblia, a singular word derived from the Greek word
pabiblia, meaning “books. The Greek word biblion, which means “book” or “roll” is derived from byblos.
Because they are made of papyrus, collection of written materials were called biblia by the Greeks.
Eventually, the plural from biblia was used by Latin-speaking Christians to denote all the books of the old
testaments.

1. OTHER NAMES USED FOR THE BIBLE

1. HOLY SCRIPTURE
This name is taken from Latin scriptus which means written, in Greek: Graphe, and Hebrew: Mikra. The
word refers to religious writings that are considered authoritative, foundational, and/or sacred by some
religious group
2. HOLY WRIT
“Writ” literally is something that is written. The bible is also called writ because it contains salvation
history that started with the call of Abraham and climaxed with Jesus’ paschal mystery.
3. THE WORD OF GOD
The Greek term used is logos, which means “ a word as embodying a concept or discourse.” It also refers
to revelation of God’s word.
4. THE ORACLES OF GOD
Christians because it contains God’s divine utterance for humanity.
5. THE LAW ( TORAH)
The Jews call their scripture as Torah or law. The whole of the Old Testament is authoritative as God’s
word of instructions to humanity on how to live well as human beings.
6. THE LAW OF THE PROPHETS
This expression looks at the Old Testament from the perspective of its divisions- the law, the prophets
and the writings.

B. BIBLICAL INSPIRATION AND INERRANCY

1. INSPIRATION

A good point for understanding the notion of the biblical inspiration as God “breathing” His message to
the biblical authors is to look at the scripture itself. In 2 Timothy 3:16, it is called Theopneustia in Greek,
which means “God-breathed out”. This text shows that, whether God’s prophet is speaking or writing,
he/she is guided by God through the Holy Spirit. This process is what we call inspiration. It applies to the
very words and to all of scriptures.

A. THE WRITERS ARE HUMAN AUTHORS

They went through the same process of research and composition and they wrote in their own particular
style and with the linguistic tools available to them as product of their own particular culture and
circumstances in life.
 B. THE HOLY SPIRIT ACTED IN AND THROUGH THE AUTHOR’S OWN NATURAL
POWERS AND ABILITIES.

God did not dictate what to write, in the sense of putting words into their minds. The Holy Spirit made
sure that in their choice of words and forms of expression they were conveying the message of God.
Therefore, the holy spirit is the principal author of sacred scriptures but the message God wanted is
embedded( fixed) in human language that corresponds to the intention of the author.

2. INERRANCY

St. Augustine once said if he ever ran across an apparent error in the bible, he would conclude that:

A. The translator of the sacred text made a mistake when he translated the original Hebrew or
Greek into the vernacular or common language.
B. The person who copied the manuscript from the original made a mistake. He as a reader is
misinterpreting a text and is not using the author’s intended meaning. St. Augustine could
never accept the premise that the bible has any mistake. This idea is known as inerrancy.

FORMATION OF THE BIBLE

1. CRUCIAL EVENT THAT LED TO THE FORMATION OF THE BIBLE

The whole bible was written over a period of more than 1000 years. From about 1000 BC to about 100
A.D. The Old Testament spans nearly two millennia, from the time of Abraham and the patriarchs
( around 1800 B.C.) to the period of the Maccabean wars ( 140 B.C.) If we include the epic accounts of
creation including the pre-patriarchal stories, then the bible will go back to the beginning of time.

The composition of the New Testament is shorter. They were all written during the second half of the 1st
century A.D.(50-100 A.D) the letters of St. Paul were the were the earliest books to be put in writing,
which are dated mainly from the decade of the 50s. The Gospels circulated in the Christian community
during these early decades of the church. But the actual writing only started shortly before or after 70
A.D. with Mark the 1st Gospel to be written.

The bible did not come as a written text. At first, they were words that are proclaimed or even sung.
Before any word was ever written, there was the oral tradition. This means that for centuries, from
Abraham to Moses the only way about the people knew about the creation of the world and the beginning
of the human race was by word of mouth. The oral tradition was transmitted from one generation to
another verbally. Nothing was actually written since the people were basically nomads, and did not yet
have a distinct and recognizable nation. This is the reason why the Jews sometimes call their sacred
scriptures as Miqra from the Hebrew verb Qara which means “to call or proclaim” written traditions
started to take shape when the Israelites became a nation.

The formation of the books of the bible is like a mountain range with four dominant peaks. These
dominant peaks in the biblical history are the Exodus and the covenant at Sinai, the establishment of the
kingdom of Israel, the exile and the Jesus event.
 A. THE EXODUS AND THE COVENANT AT SINAI

The Exodus and the covenant at Sinai were foundational for God’s people. By overpowering the Pharaoh
and his army, Yahweh showed himself to be truly almighty. His providence was also made manifest in his
constant care and concern for them in their journey in the desert. His repeated forgiveness for their
unfaithfulness also proved that God is merciful and compassionate.

His providence was also made manifest in his constant care and concern for them in their journey in the
desert. When at last they reached the promised land, they understood that God indeed could be trusted and
his word is everlasting. Their defeat of the original settlers of the land of Canaan is a proof of God’s
supreme power

B. THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE KINGDOM.

The Israelites people were divided into 12 tribes. How the kingdom was experienced by the Israelites
both in unity and later

in their division into two kingdoms . Their experience of abundance make them forget and become
unfaithful to God.

C. THE EXILE

The period of exile proved to be mixture of blessing and chastisements. It was also providential for the
writing of other books of the bible. Now out of work, some priests turned their effort into gathering old
traditions and organizing them into what is now known as the priestly tradition. In the loneliness of the
exile, Israel was also able to reflect on the past goodness of God and to consolidate its history. Their
experiences made them repent and realize that without God they are nothing.

That is why the tone of the message of the prophets changed. From the message of doom before the exile
their message became a message of hope

D. THE JESUS EVENT

At this point, gradually the forms of literature in the bible will develop a more encompassing expression
of God’s relationship with humanity. From the Christian perspective, this universal expression led to “the
crucial event” that transformed not only the types of literature of the rest of the bible but also the whole
relationship of God with humanity. This event is the birth, public ministry, passion, death and resurrection
of Jesus. Four versions of the gospel were developed from the Jesus event to be understood from different
perspectives. From this event resulted to the composition of the Acts of the Apostles. Letters were
produced to remind the early Christians of the failure to live out the values of this event. Finally, the hope
with was brought about by the Jesus event, the final goal for which it happened was set out in God
disclosing his divine plan of salvation.

The whole process of the development of the bible gives us a clear idea that the bible is not just an ancient
document that was written once and for all. It grew as an understanding of God’s living expression of
love for his chosen people who constantly evolved from their own national concerns to a concern for the
universal salvation that is promised to all humanity.