Me and My Bible

Protestants have often been charged with promoting an individualist reading of Scripture, what with our confession of sola scriptura. That charge, I submit, arises from a misunderstanding of what the Bible is.

In Psalm 119:24, the Psalmist declares his delight in the “testimonies” of Yahweh, and adds that these testimonies are “the men of my counsel.” A serious reader of the Bible is never in a situation of “me and my Bible.” To read the Bible is to enter a cloud of witnesses.

What does that mean? Perhaps this: Scripture is the compilation of writings composed (so it’s traditionally thought) from the time of Moses (at least) to the time of the apostles, that is, a compilation of writings composed over a couple of millennia. Dozens of writers made their contributions to the whole, so that to consult the Bible is to exercise the wisdom of seeking many counselors.

To open the Bible is to gather the wisest council of advisors: Moses and Samuel, David and Solomon and the Chronicler, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Hosea, Ezekiel, Matthew, Mark, Luke, Jesus, Paul, James and Jude and John. I’ll put that up against any list of theologians you’d care to compile.