Devotional 1: The Holy Scripture: The Necessity of God's Written Word

Although the light of nature, and the works of creation and providence do so far manifest the goodness, wisdom, and power of God, as to leave men unexcusable; yet are they not sufficient to give that knowledge of God, and of his will, which is necessary unto salvation. Therefore it pleased the Lord, at sundry times, and in divers manners, to reveal himself, and to declare that his will unto his Church; and afterwards, for the better preserving and propagating of the truth, and for the more sure establishment and comfort of the Church against the corruption of the flesh, and the malice of Satan and of the world, to commit the same wholly unto writing: which maketh the Holy Scripture to be most necessary; those former ways of God's revealing his will unto his people being now ceased.

— Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter 1, Section 1

Introduction: A Confession that Begins with Scripture

Why does the Westminster Confession begin where it begins? It would have been natural to start with God — his nature, his attributes, his triune being. That is where many theological works start. But the Westminster Divines chose to begin, not with God directly, but with the knowledge of God. Before we can speak of God, we must know that he has spoken. Before we can confess our faith, we must establish the foundation upon which that faith rests. That foundation is the Holy Scripture. Over the next ten sections, the Confession will build a complete doctrine of Scripture — its necessity (Section 1), its contents (Section 2), its boundaries (Section 3), its authority (Section 4), its self-authenticating witness (Section 5), its sufficiency (Section 6), its clarity (Section 7), its languages and translation (Section 8), its self-interpreting nature (Section 9), and its role as the supreme judge of all controversies (Section 10). We begin at the beginning: why is Scripture necessary at all?

Scripture Foundation

The Confession does not stand alone. It is built upon the Word of God, and every line of it is saturated with Scripture. The proof texts for this first section alone are many. Let us meditate upon the chief of them. Romans 1:19-20 — "Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse." Here Paul lays the foundation for the first half of the Confession's opening statement. The light of nature is real. The heavens do declare the glory of God. Every man, in his conscience, knows that there is a God of infinite power and majesty. This knowledge is not the result of careful philosophy; it is manifest in them—God has shown it to them directly through the works of creation. And this knowledge carries with it a terrible consequence: men are without excuse. 1 Corinthians 1:21 — "For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe." This verse anchors the second half of the Confession's statement. The world, for all its wisdom, did not come to know God savingly through nature. Human philosophy, for all its brilliance, could not find the way back to God. Therefore God took a new path: the foolishness of preaching, the proclamation of Christ crucified. This is the knowledge that saves—not the knowledge that comes through human wisdom, but the knowledge that comes through divine revelation. 2 Timothy 3:15-17 — "And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works." This is the great proof text for the divine origin and complete sufficiency of Scripture. It is given by inspiration of God—literally "God-breathed." And it is able to make us wise unto salvation. Not nature, not philosophy, not human tradition, but the Scriptures alone can do this. 2 Peter 1:19 — "We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts." The Apostle Peter had just witnessed the transfiguration of Christ. He had heard the voice of God from heaven. And yet he declares that we have a more sure word of prophecy—the written Scriptures. Even the most extraordinary direct revelation is not more sure, not more reliable, than the written Word of God. Hebrews 1:1-2 — "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son." This verse is echoed directly in the language of the Confession. The phrase "at sundry times and in divers manners" is taken from here. It reminds us that God's revelation was progressive, unfolding over centuries, reaching its climax in the person of His Son. The writer of Hebrews is making a contrast. In the past, God spoke in many pieces and in many ways — through prophets, priests, kings, visions, dreams, types, and shadows. Each was a true word from God, but none was complete. They were like pieces of a mosaic that only make sense when you see the whole picture. But in Christ, God has spoken His final and complete Word. Christ is not merely another prophet in a long line; He is the very Son, the radiance of God's glory and the exact imprint of His nature. To reject Him is to reject not just a messenger but the message itself. To hear Him is to hear the final word of God to humanity. Isaiah 8:20 — "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." This verse from Isaiah is one of the proof texts attached to this section of the Confession. It establishes the Bible as the ultimate test of truth. Any teaching, any prophecy, any experience that does not align with the written Word is to be rejected. There is no light in it, no matter how bright it may seem. This is the foundation of the Protestant principle of Sola Scriptura — Scripture alone is the infallible rule of faith.

What the Divines Meant

The Historical Context The Westminster Assembly was not a quiet academic conference. It met in the shadow of civil war. England was torn apart between King and Parliament, between Anglican and Puritan, between Presbyterian and Independent. The Westminster Confession was forged in the heat of controversy, and its opening words bear the marks of that conflict. The divines were facing two enemies at once. On one side were those who denied natural religion altogether, who said that man could know nothing of God from creation. On the other side were the Deists and the Socinians, who claimed that the light of nature was sufficient for salvation and that the Bible was merely a helpful supplement to human reason. The Confession had to steer between these two cliffs. Robert Shaw, in his classic exposition of the Confession, written in the 1840s, explains the genius of the divines' approach. He writes: "It is a peculiar excellence of the Westminster Confession of Faith, that its compilers have stated the several articles in terms the best calculated, not only to convey an accurate idea of sacred truth but to guard against contrary errors." Every phrase was weighed. Every word was chosen to exclude error on both sides. The first section establishes a dialectic that runs through the entire chapter. There is a "light of nature"—the divines affirm this against those who would deny it. But this light is not sufficient for salvation—they affirm this against those who would exalt it. Therefore supernatural revelation is necessary—they affirm this against rationalists. Therefore this revelation has been committed to writing—they affirm this against enthusiasts who claim new revelations. Therefore the canon is closed—they affirm this against Rome and against the radical sects alike. A.A. Hodge, whose commentary on the Confession is perhaps the most widely used in the English-speaking world, draws out four distinct propositions in this single section. He was the son of Charles Hodge and succeeded him at Princeton, and his commentary is a model of theological precision. The first proposition, Hodge says, is that the light of nature and the works of creation and providence are sufficient to reveal the existence and some of the attributes of God, so as to leave men inexcusable. The second is that this knowledge is not sufficient for salvation. The third is that consequently God has given a supernatural revelation. The fourth is that this revelation is now committed wholly to the Scriptures. Hodge notes that the Confession is guarding against three distinct false opinions. First, there were those who denied that any knowledge of God was attainable through nature. Second, there were the Deists who held that nature was sufficient and revelation unnecessary. Third, there were the German Rationalists who admitted that a supernatural revelation had been given but insisted that it only illustrated and enforced truths already known through nature. The Confession refutes all three in a single, carefully crafted sentence. B.B. Warfield, the great Princeton theologian, devoted his life to the doctrine of Scripture, and his works are a rich treasure for understanding what the Westminster divines intended. In his book The Making of the Westminster Confession, Warfield shows that the divines were not creating new doctrine but confessing the faith that had been held by the church since the apostles. The Confession is called a "confession" precisely because it confesses what has already been believed, not because it invents something new. Warfield argues that the divines understood Scripture to be the Word of God in the fullest sense. When they said that God "committed the same wholly unto writing," they meant that the Bible is not merely a record of revelation but is itself revelation, the very Word of God in written form. Warfield's student and colleague, Hugh Martin, developed this point with great force. Martin argues that the Confession's phrase means that "the God of heaven has proceeded author, and the Old and New Testaments are the complete edition of His published works." The Structure of the Section The section has four movements, each building upon the last. First movement: The affirmation of natural revelation. The light of nature, the works of creation, and the works of providence all manifest God's attributes. This is a crucial affirmation. The Reformed tradition has always insisted that God has not left Himself without witness. Every star in the sky, every flower in the field, every beating of the human heart is a testimony to the existence and power of God. The atheist is not merely mistaken; he is suppressing the truth that is plainly before his eyes. Second movement: The insufficiency of natural revelation. This light, though real, is not sufficient for salvation. It can reveal power but not mercy. It can reveal justice but not grace. It can reveal that God exists but not that God saves sinners through His Son. Natural revelation leaves men without excuse; it does not leave them with a Saviour. Third movement: The necessity of supernatural revelation. Therefore it pleased the Lord to reveal Himself. The word "therefore" is crucial. It links the insufficiency of nature to the graciousness of revelation. Because we could not climb up to God, God came down to us. Because we could not read the dim light of nature, God lit the bright lamp of Scripture. Fourth movement: The commitment of revelation to writing. God spoke "at sundry times and in divers manners" through the prophets, but eventually He caused His revelation to be written down. And now that it is written, those former ways have ceased. The canon is closed. The Scripture is complete. Robert Shaw summarizes this by noting that the Confession establishes four propositions. First, the light of nature reveals God's existence and attributes so that men are without excuse. Second, this knowledge is not sufficient for salvation. Third, God has therefore given a supernatural revelation. Fourth, this revelation is now committed wholly to the Scriptures, which are most necessary because the former ways of revelation have ceased. Shaw further observes that the divines chose their words carefully to guard against error on both sides. Against those who denied natural religion, they affirmed the reality of general revelation. Against the Deists, they denied its sufficiency for salvation. Against the enthusiasts who claimed new revelations, they asserted the finality and sufficiency of the written Word. Against Rome, they insisted that Scripture alone is the infallible rule of faith. The Assembly's work on this section was foundational. Before the Confession could say anything about God, or Christ, or salvation, it had to establish the authority and sufficiency of the Scripture itself. This is why Chapter 1 comes first. The divines understood that all theological knowledge rests on the Word of God. If the foundation is uncertain, the whole building is unstable. But if the Scripture is indeed the Word of God, then it can bear the weight of the entire system of doctrine that follows.

Theological Depth

John Calvin on the Insufficiency of Nature In the opening chapters of his Institutes of the Christian Religion, Calvin develops the doctrine of natural revelation with extraordinary eloquence. He describes the universe as a magnificent "theatre" of God's glory, filled with "innumerable and at the same time well-arranged evidences of divine wisdom." The heavens and the earth are like a beautiful book in which every creature is a letter spelling out the glory of God. But then Calvin delivers a devastating judgment: "In vain for us, therefore, does Creation exhibit so many bright lamps lighted up to show forth the glory of its Author. Though they beam upon us from every quarter, they are altogether insufficient." Why? Because of sin. The fall has blinded us. We are like men standing in a brilliantly lit room with our eyes closed. The light is there, but we cannot see it. As Calvin puts it, our minds are "dull and blind." We need more than the light of nature; we need the light of Scripture to open our eyes. "We must go," Calvin says, "to the Word, where the character of God, drawn from His works, is described accurately and to the life." Calvin then makes a point that is crucial for understanding the Reformed view of Scripture. The Spirit and the Word are knit together in an indissoluble union. "The Lord," Calvin writes, "has so knit together the certainty of his word and his Spirit, that our minds are duly imbued with reverence for the word when the Spirit shining upon it enables us there to behold the face of God." This means that we do not believe the Bible because the church tells us to, or because we can prove it by reason alone. We believe it because the Holy Spirit, working through the Word, convinces us of its divine origin. The Spirit bears witness by and with the Word in our hearts. This is what the Confession will later call "the inward work of the Holy Spirit." Thomas Watson on the Excellency of Scripture Thomas Watson's Body of Divinity is one of the most beloved expositions of the Shorter Catechism ever written. Watson was a Puritan minister in London who suffered under the Great Ejection of 1662. His writing is warm, piercing, and full of memorable images. On the subject of Scripture, Watson is at his best. He calls creation "the heathen's Bible, the ploughman's primer, and the traveler's map." It is "a large volume" in which God's works are bound up, a volume with "three great pages in it—heaven, earth, and sea." Through these pages, even the unlearned can see "a representation of the infinite excellencies which are in God." But Watson is equally clear that this knowledge is not saving knowledge. He compares the Bible to a "spiritual telescope" through which we behold the glory of God, and to a "tree of life" that yields fruit for our souls. He writes: "The Scripture is a sacred eye-salve to illuminate us. The commandment is a lamp, and the law is light. The Scripture is the chart and compass by which we sail to the new Jerusalem." Watson then gives a series of arguments for the divine origin of Scripture that are worth pondering. He points to the majesty of its style, the consent of all its parts, the antiquity of its writings, the fulfilment of its prophecies, the preservation of its text through ages of persecution, and its power to transform the human heart. "By reading other books," he says, "the heart may be warmed—but by reading this book it is transformed." He also has a word for those who neglect Scripture. "Oh how many can be looking at their faces in a glass all the morning—but their eyes begin to be sore when they look upon a Bible! Heathens die for lack of Scripture, and these in contempt of it. They surely must needs go wrong who slight their only guide." On the preservation of Scripture, Watson is wonderfully vivid: "The devil and his agents have been blowing at Scripture light—but could never blow it out; a clear sign that it was lighted from heaven." Thomas Vincent on the Purpose of Scripture Thomas Vincent was a Puritan minister who lived through the Great Plague of London in 1665 and the Great Fire of 1666. His Shorter Catechism Explained became a standard textbook in Presbyterian and Congregational churches. Vincent explains why natural reason cannot save. He gives three specific limitations: "Natural reason cannot reveal his love and mercy to sinners in his Son. It cannot reveal how he should be glorified and worshipped. It cannot direct us how we should enjoy him either here or hereafter." These three points correspond to the three great offices of Scripture: it reveals a Redeemer, it teaches us true worship, and it guides us to eternal life. Nature can do none of these things. Vincent also explains why God committed His revelation to writing. "If the word revealed to holy men so many ages since, had been intrusted only unto the memories of men, by tradition to hand it down from one generation to another, yet the memories of men being weak and unfaithful, many truths, in all likelihood, would have been lost by this time." This is a point the divines felt keenly. They had witnessed the corruption of tradition in the Church of Rome. They knew that oral tradition, however well-intentioned, inevitably leads to error. The written Word is a fixed standard, a sure rule that cannot be changed. Hugh Martin on Divine Authorship Hugh Martin, a Scottish theologian of the 19th century, wrote extensively on the Westminster doctrine of Scripture. He makes a point that is often missed. When the Confession says that God "committed the same wholly unto writing," it means that God Himself is the author. Martin contrasts this with the view of the "College Committee" which watered down the language to say that the revelation was merely "committed to writing" without specifying by whom. Martin insists that the original language of the Confession is deliberate and pregnant with meaning. The God of heaven has "proceeded author," and the result is the Bible. He who wrote the Ten Commandments on tablets of stone has, by a different method but with no less divine authority, produced the entire Scriptures. "This is therefore," Martin writes, "in the simplest which is also the fullest meaning of the term, the written Word of God—of divine authorship, throughout and throughout." This is a staggering claim. It means that when you read the Bible, you are reading God's own words. Not merely a human record of divine acts, but God's own testimony concerning Himself. The Bible is not the word of men about God; it is the Word of God about God. A.A. Hodge on the Sufficiency of Scripture Hodge draws out the practical implications. Because Scripture is sufficient for salvation, nothing is to be added to it. "No new revelations of the Spirit are to be expected now," he writes, "because He has already given us a complete and all-sufficient rule." This is a crucial point for the Christian life. We are not to seek new revelations, new prophecies, new words from the Lord apart from Scripture. The Spirit does not give new revelations; He illuminates the revelation that is already given. He does not add to the Word; He applies the Word. The canon is closed, and the Spirit's work today is to open our eyes to see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ as He is revealed in the Scriptures. A Warning from Watson Thomas Watson issues a solemn warning to those who neglect Scripture. He writes of those who "can be looking at their faces in a glass all the morning—but their eyes begin to be sore when they look upon a Bible!" He observes that "heathens die for lack of Scripture, and these in contempt of it." This is a searching word for our generation. We have Bibles in every room, on every device, in every translation — and yet we read them less than any generation before us. Watson would ask us: do you spend more time on your phone than in the Word? Do you know the latest news better than the latest epistle? Do you scroll more than you search the Scriptures? Watson also gives us the great promises attached to Scripture reading. The Word, he says, "has comforted their hearts. When Christians have sat by the rivers weeping—the Word has dropped as honey, and sweetly revived them." The Psalms, the Gospels, the epistles — they are wells of salvation from which we may draw living water. As Paul writes in Romans 15:4, "Whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope." The Spirit and the Word John Calvin insists that the Spirit and the Word are never to be separated. Those who despise the Word while claiming the Spirit are deluded. Those who study the Word without praying for the Spirit are dry. "The Lord," Calvin writes, "has so knit together the certainty of his word and his Spirit, that our minds are duly imbued with reverence for the word when the Spirit shining upon it enables us there to behold the face of God." This is the Reformed balance. We are not rationalists who think the Bible can be understood by human reason alone. Nor are we enthusiasts who think the Spirit speaks apart from the Word. The Spirit speaks through the Word. The Word is the instrument of the Spirit. To separate them is to err on one side or the other.

Puritan Application

Let us now apply these great truths to our own souls, as the Puritans would have us do. First, examine yourself: Do you truly believe the Bible is the Word of God? This is not an academic question. It is the most practical question you can ask. If the Bible is indeed the Word of God, then it demands your attention, your obedience, your love, and your life. If it is merely a human book, then you may take it or leave it as you please. The Puritans would have you examine the evidence. The majesty of its doctrine, the harmony of its parts, the power of its teaching, the fulfilment of its prophecies, its preservation through the ages, its transforming effect on those who read it in faith—all these are evidences that it is not the word of men but the Word of God. As Watson says, "The devil and his agents have been blowing at Scripture light—but could never blow it out." Second, do you prize the Word above all earthly treasures? Watson exhorts us: "Be exhorted to prize the written Word. David valued the Word more than gold. What would the martyrs have given for a leaf of the Bible!" The Word, he says, is "our Magna Charta for Heaven; shall we be ignorant of our charter?" Consider how you treat your Bible. Do you read it daily? Do you meditate upon it? Do you hide it in your heart? Do you order your life by it? Or is it a closed book on your shelf, a neglected treasure, an unopened letter from God? The Scripture is the field where Christ the pearl of great price is hidden. In this sacred mine we dig, not for a wedge of gold, but for a weight of glory. Every time you open your Bible, you are standing before the throne of God, hearing the voice of your Maker. Third, do you search the Scriptures with prayer? Calvin teaches us that the Spirit and the Word are knit together. We cannot understand the Word savingly without the Spirit, and we cannot receive the Spirit truly apart from the Word. Before you open your Bible, pray. Ask the Spirit who inspired the Word to illumine your heart. Pray with the psalmist: "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law." Fourth, do you test all things by Scripture? The Confession will later declare that the supreme judge of all controversies is "the Holy Spirit speaking in the Scripture." This means that every doctrine, every practice, every experience, every teaching must be tested by the Word. We do not submit the Word to the judgment of the church or of reason; we submit the church and reason to the judgment of the Word. This is the great principle of the Reformation: Sola Scriptura. Fifth, are you thankful for the written Word? God did not have to speak. He could have left us in our sin and blindness. But it pleased Him to reveal Himself. It pleased Him to commit His revelation to writing. It pleased Him to preserve that writing through centuries of persecution and neglect. And it pleased Him to give that Word to you, in your own language, at your own fingertips. Think of the generations who did not have what you have. Think of the martyrs who gave their lives for a single page of Scripture. Think of the Reformers who risked everything to translate the Bible into the common tongue. Think of the millions throughout history who yearned for the Word but could not possess it. And you hold the complete canon in your hands, on your phone, on your nightstand. What excuse have you for neglecting it? As Watson says, "Had I the tongue of angels, I could not sufficiently set forth the excellency of Scripture. It is a spiritual telescope, in which we behold God's glory; it is the tree of life, the oracle of wisdom, the rule of manners, the heavenly seed." Let us value it as such. Let us give thanks for the Bible. Let us handle it with reverence. Let us read it with diligence. Let us obey it with joy. Let us share it with others. And let us look forward to that day when we will no longer need the lamp of Scripture because we will see the light of God's face. A Final Word from the Confession The Confession goes on to declare that the Scriptures are "given by inspiration of God to be the rule of faith and life." This means that the Bible is not merely a source of religious insight among many. It is the rule — the only rule — by which all faith and all life are to be measured. Our opinions must submit to it. Our practices must conform to it. Our hearts must be shaped by it. There is no higher authority in heaven or on earth than the Word of God. Let us live in the light of that truth. The Westminster divines began their work with this confession because everything else depends upon it. Before we can speak of God, we must know that He has spoken. Before we can speak of Christ, we must know that He is revealed in the Scriptures. Before we can speak of salvation, we must know that the way of salvation is made known in the Word. The Confession of Faith begins with the Word of God because the Christian life begins with the Word of God. Let us therefore treasure it, study it, believe it, and obey it, all to the glory of God. And as we close this meditation, let us remember that the God who spoke in times past speaks still through these pages. He is not silent. He has given us His Word. He has preserved it through the ages. He has placed it in our hands. Let us hear Him and live. Let us obey Him and be blessed. Let us trust Him and be saved. For the Word of God is living and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Blessed are they that hear the Word of God and keep it. May this be our portion, through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Prayer

O Lord, who didst speak light out of darkness at the creation, and who dost shine into our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of thy glory in the face of Jesus Christ: we bless thee for the gift of thy holy Word. We thank thee that thou hast not left us to wander in the dim light of nature, nor to grope in the darkness of human tradition, but hast given us the sure and certain light of sacred Scripture. We confess that we have often neglected this precious gift. We have treated thy Word as common, when it is most holy. We have read it carelessly, when it deserves our deepest attention. We have failed to hide it in our hearts, when it is the only rule of faith and life. Grant us, we beseech thee, the inward illumination of thy Holy Spirit, that we may hear thy voice speaking in the Scriptures, and that our hearts may be transformed by the truth we find there. Help us to prize thy Word more than gold, to meditate upon it day and night, and to order our lives according to its precepts. Let it be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. Give us grace to read the Scriptures not as a duty but as a delight; not as a task to be completed but as a treasure to be explored. May we come to thy Word as a hungry man comes to bread, as a thirsty man comes to water, as a weary man comes to rest. For thy Word is all of these to our souls. It is the bread of life, the water of life, the rest for our weary souls. Keep us from the deceptions of false teachers, from the delusions of our own hearts, and from the temptation to add to or take away from thy holy Word. Give us grace to search the Scriptures daily, to receive them with faith and love, and to submit our whole selves to their authority. And when at last we shall see thee face to face, and know even as we are known, may we bless thee for ever for the Word that led us to the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ our Lord, who with thee and the Holy Ghost livest and reignest, one God, world without end. Amen.