There’s a famous story about a pastor named Dr. William Evans who once stood at his pulpit, raised his Bible in the air, and started ripping pages out of it.
First went the virgin birth. Then the resurrection chapters. Then the miracle narratives. Then anything supernatural. By the time he was done, tattered scraps of paper littered the floor and all he had left was the Sermon on the Mount. He held it up and said, “And this has no authority for me if a divine Christ didn’t preach it.”
The room was silent. Then a man in the congregation stood and cried out, “No, go on, go on. We want more.”
That illustration makes a point every believer needs to wrestle with. If there are parts of the Bible you can dismiss as outdated, unreliable, or written out of ignorance, then you don’t really have anything left. If you can’t trust a historical Adam, why trust the second Adam, Jesus Christ? If you reject the virgin birth, why believe Jesus is the Son of God? If the resurrection didn’t happen, why believe in heaven, hell, judgment, or salvation?
If we don’t have all of the Bible, we have none of it.
That’s what brings us to one of the most important passages in all of Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:14-17.
What Paul Told Timothy – and Why It Matters to You
The Apostle Paul, writing near the end of his life, told his young protege Timothy: “But you, continue in the things you learned and became convinced of, knowing from whom you learned them. And that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to make you wise unto salvation through faith which is in Jesus Christ. All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be equipped, having been thoroughly furnished for every good work.”
That passage answers two massive questions. First, what is Scripture? Second, what does Scripture do for us?
Let’s take them one at a time.
What Does “All Scripture” Actually Include?
When Paul says “all Scripture,” what’s he talking about?
The word “Scripture” here literally means “writings.” Outside the Bible, you could use this word to refer to any writings – the writings of Plato, for instance. But throughout the New Testament, every single use of this word refers to the sacred writings – the books that have been preserved and read by God’s people all the way back to the time of Moses.
The Old Testament Was the Early Church’s Bible
At a minimum, Paul is talking about the Old Testament: the Torah (the five books of Moses), the Nevi’im (the prophets), and the Ketuvim (the wisdom literature). Together, these make up what’s called the Tanakh – what we know as the Old Testament.
The early church used these writings as their Bible. The Old Testament was the standard for doctrine, the basis for preaching Christ, and the guide for instructing believers in how to live. And yes, all of it – even the parts we might consider “flyover country.” How many people are doing daily devotions in Leviticus or 2 Chronicles? Probably not many. But Paul says even those books are God-breathed. All of them come from the mouth of God.
But It Doesn’t Stop at the Old Testament
There’s a strong case that Paul also had the New Testament writings in mind. By the time he wrote 2 Timothy, he was looking at his final days. All of his letters had been written. Gospels had been written. Other apostles had written.
And Paul treated these writings as Scripture too. Consider the evidence:
Paul told the Colossians to read his letter alongside the Old Testament readings in their church gatherings, and to share it with the church at Laodicea. He told the Thessalonians the same thing – have this letter read to all the brothers.
Paul made it clear that his teaching wasn’t his own opinion. He told the Galatians, “The gospel which I am proclaiming is not according to man. For I neither received it from man nor was I taught it, but I received it through the revelation of Christ.” To the Corinthians he said they spoke “not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit.”
Paul even quoted the Gospel of Luke as Scripture right alongside Deuteronomy. And the Apostle Peter grouped Paul’s letters with “the rest of the Scriptures.”
So when Paul says “all Scripture,” he means the whole thing – Old Testament and New Testament. The complete collection of sacred writings that make up our Bible.
What Does It Mean That Scripture Is God-Breathed?
Here’s where everything hangs. Paul says all Scripture is “God-breathed” – and this one word changes how we understand the entire Bible.
The Word Behind the Word
The Greek word is “theopneustos.” It’s a compound word made up of “theos” (God) and “pneo” (to breathe or blow). This is the only place in the entire New Testament where this word appears, and it’s quite possible Paul coined it himself.
Most translations say the Scriptures are “inspired by God.” That’s fine as far as it goes, but our everyday use of the word “inspired” can actually lead us in the wrong direction.
We say a performance was “inspired” when it was exceptionally moving. We say a sermon was “inspired” when God seemed to work through the speaker in a powerful way. Those are fine uses of the word, but they don’t capture what Paul means here.
Paul isn’t saying the Bible is the product of really gifted men who felt inspired while they wrote. He’s saying the words themselves originate directly from God.
Inspired vs. Expired
Here’s a helpful way to think about it. Rather than saying the Scriptures were “inspired” by God, it’s more accurate to say they were “expired” by God – literally breathed out by Him.
When you talk, you breathe out. When someone dies, we say they’ve “expired” – they’ve breathed out one last time. When God speaks, what comes out is Scripture. The words you read in your Bible are the direct result of God breathing them out through human authors.
That distinction matters. The Bible is the Word of God – not because smart people wrote good things about God, but because God Himself spoke and these words are what came out.
Why This Means the Bible Is Trustworthy
Because the Scriptures come directly from God, certain things follow logically. And they’re worth understanding, especially if you’ve ever asked, “Why should I trust the Bible?”
Biblical Inerrancy: The Bible Cannot Err
If God knows all things, and if God Himself cannot lie, then His Word must be sure, reliable, and fully trustworthy in everything it addresses. This is what we mean by biblical inerrancy – the Bible does not contain errors because it comes from a God who does not make errors.
And this isn’t limited to “spiritual matters” only. Some people try to say the Bible is trustworthy when it talks about faith but not when it touches on history, science, or sociology. But if the words come from God’s mouth, they’re reliable across the board – in every subject they address.
Now, does the Bible have errors? Not if you understand how it communicates. The Bible does use approximations (saying “about 5,000 people” rather than giving an exact census count). It uses observational language (talking about the sun “rising” the same way you and I do in everyday conversation). It uses poetic descriptions (Job’s “storehouses of snow” aren’t literal warehouses in the sky). And there are minor spelling variations across manuscripts (like “Eli” vs. “Eloi” at the cross – same word, slightly different form).
None of that undermines inerrancy. What it means is that the Bible communicates in normal human language, using normal literary conventions – and everything it affirms is true.
Here’s the important distinction: the Bible itself is infallible, but our understanding of the Bible is not infallible. When Christians disagree about what a passage means, the problem isn’t with the Bible. The problem is with us. As Paul wrote to the Romans, “Let God be true, though every man a liar.”
The Bible Is the Ultimate Authority
Because there is no higher authority than God, and because there is no standard by which God Himself can be judged, His Word carries the highest authority in all things, in all matters, in everything it addresses.
Yes, there are other legitimate authorities in life. Parents, government, church elders, teachers – the Bible itself recognizes these. But all of these authorities ultimately must come under the authority of Scripture. Everything must be tested against that ultimate standard.
This has always been the case. In Jesus’ own day, there was a body of teaching called “the traditions of the elders” that supposedly traced back to Moses himself. Sounds authoritative, right? But Jesus said they had forsaken the commandment of God for the sake of their tradition. By placing an outside authority on par with or above Scripture, they destroyed the authority of Scripture.
The same thing happens today. Sacred tradition, scientific consensus, cultural values – any of these can subtly replace Scripture as the lens through which we interpret truth. But Paul’s point is clear: because the Scriptures are God-breathed, everything else is what needs to be tested against them.
That’s exactly what the Bereans did in Acts 17. When the Apostle Paul himself showed up preaching the gospel, they didn’t just take his word for it. They went back to the Scriptures to verify whether what he said was true. And they were commended for it.
Why is the Bible the ultimate authority? Because it comes from the ultimate source. Full stop.
How Were the Books of the Bible Written?
This is a fair question, and 2 Peter 1:20-21 gives us the clearest answer: “No prophecy of Scripture comes by one’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever made by the will of man, but men being moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”
So God used human authors. He used their circumstances, their vocabulary, their emotions, their personalities. And yet somehow, mysteriously, the final result is God-breathed – directly from His mouth.
How exactly does that work? Honestly, we don’t fully know. But we do know what it doesn’t look like.
It’s not “natural inspiration.” This is the idea that the biblical authors were simply geniuses who produced exceptional literature. The problem? If there’s no superintendence of the Holy Spirit, then the Bible is worth no more than any other great book in history.
It’s not “dynamic inspiration.” This view says the authors were guided by the Holy Spirit as they wrote, but the words are still ultimately theirs. The problem? The Holy Spirit has been guiding believers since day one. A pastor preparing a sermon is guided by the Spirit too – but that doesn’t put his sermon notes on the same level as Romans.
It’s not “partial inspiration.” This is the idea that some books are more inspired than others – that Isaiah is really inspired, but Chronicles is maybe a lesser grade. The problem? When God speaks, do any of His words carry less weight than His other words? If a governing body passes two laws, is one law more binding than the other? No. They’re equally authoritative. Same with Scripture.
The inspiration of Scripture means God superintended the entire process so that the result – every word of it – is His Word.
All Scripture Is Profitable: What the Bible Does for You
So we know what Scripture is. But what does it do? Paul gives us four things, and together they cover both how we think and how we live.
Teaching: What You’re Supposed to Believe
The Bible teaches us true doctrine – the doctrine of God, not the doctrines of men. All Christian doctrine must be biblical doctrine. If something is taught that can’t be found in or rooted in Scripture, it’s not Christian doctrine. Period.
Reproof: What You’re Not Supposed to Think
This one might sting a little. The Bible doesn’t just tell you what to believe – it tells you where you’re wrong. And it goes after your thought life, not just your behavior.
As the sermon put it, “The mind is not a safe space from God.” You’re not free to think whatever you want about God as long as your outward conduct looks decent. God says your thoughts are to be aligned with His thoughts. That’s what repentance is – changing your mind, reorienting your thinking from old patterns to new ones. As Paul wrote, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
Correction: What You’re Not Supposed to Do
The Bible also addresses conduct. Yes, it contains rules. Think of the Ten Commandments – most of them start with “Thou shall not.” There are things God says you are not supposed to do. The Bible isn’t just a rule book, but it does contain rules. Pretending otherwise doesn’t make them go away.
Training in Righteousness: What You Are Supposed to Do
But it’s not enough to just avoid wrong behavior. The Bible also trains you in right living. For every negative command, there’s an embedded positive one. If you shall not murder, that means you shall protect and value the life of your neighbor. If you shall not steal, that means you shall respect the property of your neighbor. The Bible doesn’t just tell you what to avoid – it tells you what to pursue.
Is the Bible Relevant Today? More Than Ever
The result of all this, Paul says, is that “the man of God may be equipped, having been thoroughly furnished for every good work.”
Paul was writing to Timothy, a church leader. But the sufficiency of Scripture isn’t just for pastors and scholars. As Paul reminds us elsewhere, every believer is part of a kingdom of priests. Every Christian has been charged with living out the gospel in this world. And God has given us the tools we need to do it – within the Scriptures.
Is the Bible relevant today? There is no doctrine the Bible doesn’t equip you to understand. There is no good work the Bible doesn’t equip you to carry out. If you walk according to the Scriptures, you will walk according to the will of God.
Charles Spurgeon put it powerfully: “How much I desire that each one of you may be a personal student of the holy Scriptures. We need to know them for ourselves, personally grasping them as revelation to himself. The godly man loves them, studies them, feels them, lives upon them, and so knows them.”
Spurgeon went on to warn about what happens when people rely on a teacher rather than learning the Word for themselves. When the teacher dies or leaves, those who were grounded in Scripture remain. Those who weren’t? “Scattered like chaff.”
The Bible isn’t going to die. Your knowledge of Scripture can’t be taken from you. The Holy Spirit isn’t going to depart from you. But those things only matter if you’ve built your life on the Word itself – not on someone else’s understanding of it.
Build Your Life on This Book
Here’s the bottom line. The Bible is the Word of God – not because we decided it was, but because God breathed it out. It’s inerrant, infallible, authoritative, and sufficient. It tells you what to believe, what not to believe, what to do, and what not to do. And it equips you for every good work God has prepared for you.
Don’t just know about the Bible. Know it. Study it. Live on it. Let it shape how you think and how you walk. Because if you build your life on this foundation, nothing can shake it.
And if you’re still asking, “Why should I trust the Bible?” – consider the alternative. If you start tearing out the pages you don’t like, you’ll end up with nothing but scraps on the floor and no authority left to stand on.
All Scripture is God-breathed. All of it is profitable. And all of it points to Christ.
