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<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1"><title>Chapter�1.�Importance of God's Word</title><meta name="generator" content="DocBook XSL Stylesheets V1.75.1"><meta name="keywords" content="Bible, Study, HowTo"><link rel="home" href="index.html" title="The Biblestudy HowTo"><link rel="up" href="index.html" title="The Biblestudy HowTo"><link rel="prev" href="index.html" title="The Biblestudy HowTo"><link rel="next" href="h2-importance-breathed.html" title="A Book that God Breathed"></head><body bgcolor="white" text="black" link="#0000FF" vlink="#840084" alink="#0000FF"><div class="navheader"><table width="100%" summary="Navigation header"><tr><th colspan="3" align="center">Chapter�1.�Importance of God's Word</th></tr><tr><td width="20%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="index.html">Prev</a>�</td><th width="60%" align="center">�</th><td width="20%" align="right">�<a accesskey="n" href="h2-importance-breathed.html">Next</a></td></tr></table><hr></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter�1.�Importance of God's Word"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="h2-importance"></a>Chapter�1.�Importance of God's Word</h2></div></div></div><div class="toc"><p><b>Table of Contents</b></p><dl><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="h2-importance.html#h2-importance-unique">A Book that is Unique</a></span></dt><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="h2-importance-breathed.html">A Book that God Breathed</a></span></dt><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="h2-importance-works.html">A Book that Works</a></span></dt><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="h2-importance-liberates.html">A Book that Liberates</a></span></dt><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="h2-importance-wars.html">A Book that Wars</a></span></dt><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="h2-importance-exhortations.html">Exhortations</a></span></dt><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="h2-importance-once.html">Appendix: "Once for
All"</a></span></dt><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="h2-importance-supplement.html">Supplement: Bible Reading
Programs</a></span></dt></dl></div><p>Understanding God's word is of great importance to all who call on
God's name. Study of the Bible is one of the primary ways that we learn to
communicate with God.</p><div class="sect1" title="A Book that is Unique"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="h2-importance-unique"></a>A Book that is Unique</h2></div></div></div><p>The Bible stands alone in many ways. It is unique in:</p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" type="disc"><li class="listitem"><p>
popularity. Bible sales in North America: more than $500 million per
year. The Bible is both the the all-time and year-to-year best seller!
</p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
authorship. It was written over a period of 1600 years by 40 different
authors from different backgrounds, yet reads as if written by one.
</p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
preservation. F. F. Bruce in <span class="emphasis"><em>Are New Testament Documents Reliable?</em></span>
compares New Testament manuscripts with other ancient texts:
</p></li></ul></div><div class="table"><a name="h2-importance-manuscripts-table"></a><p class="title"><b>Table�1.1.�Comparison of New Testament manuscripts with other ancient texts.</b></p><div class="table-contents"><table summary="Comparison of New Testament manuscripts with other ancient texts." border="1"><colgroup><col><col><col><col><col></colgroup><thead><tr><th>Work</th><th>When Written</th><th>Earliest Copy</th><th>Time Lapse</th><th>Number of Copies</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Herodotus</td><td>448-428 B.C.</td><td>900 A.D.</td><td>1300 years</td><td>8
</td></tr><tr><td>Tacitus</td><td>100 A.D.</td><td>1100 A.D.</td><td>1000 years</td><td>20
</td></tr><tr><td>Caesar's <span class="emphasis"><em>Gallic War</em></span></td><td>50-58 B.C.</td><td>900 A.D.</td><td>950 years</td><td>10
</td></tr><tr><td>Livy's <span class="emphasis"><em>Roman History</em></span></td><td>59 B.C. - 17 A.D.</td><td>900 A.D.</td><td>900 years</td><td>20
</td></tr><tr><td>New Testament</td><td>40 A.D. - 100 A.D.</td><td>130 A.D. Partial manuscripts 350
A.D. Full manuscripts</td><td>30 - 310 years</td><td>5000 Greek & 10,000 Latin
</td></tr></tbody></table></div></div><br class="table-break"><p>Ten copies of Caesar's <span class="emphasis"><em>Gallic War</em></span> exist, the earliest of which was copied
900 years after Caesar wrote the original, etc. For the New Testament we have
full manuscripts dating to 350 A. D., papyri containing most of the New
Testament from the 200s, and a fragment of John's gospel from 130 A. D. How
many manuscripts do we have to compare to each other? 5,000 in Greek and 10,000
in Latin! </p><div class="blockquote"><table border="0" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="blockquote" summary="Block quote"><tr><td width="10%" valign="top">�</td><td width="80%" valign="top"><p>"In the verity and fullness of the evidence on which
it rests, the text of the New Testament stands absolutely and unapproachably
alone among other ancient prose writings." </p></td><td width="10%" valign="top">�</td></tr><tr><td width="10%" valign="top">�</td><td colspan="2" align="right" valign="top">--<span class="attribution">Textual critic F. J. A. Hort, "The New Testament in the
Original Greek", vol. 1 p561, Macmillan Co., quoted in <span class="emphasis"><em>Questions of Life</em></span> p.
25-26</span></td></tr></table></div></div></div><div class="navfooter"><hr><table width="100%" summary="Navigation footer"><tr><td width="40%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="index.html">Prev</a>�</td><td width="20%" align="center">�</td><td width="40%" align="right">�<a accesskey="n" href="h2-importance-breathed.html">Next</a></td></tr><tr><td width="40%" align="left" valign="top">The Biblestudy HowTo�</td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="h" href="index.html">Home</a></td><td width="40%" align="right" valign="top">�A Book that God Breathed</td></tr></table></div></body></html>
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