That was random.

“And the plan seemed right to the king and all the assembly.”

These words are from 2 Chronicles 30:4.  I used an online random number generator to chose them.  Since there are 66 books in the Bible, I asked the Generator to give me a number between 1 and 66. It gave me a 14.  The fourteenth book is 2 Chronicles.  There are 36 chapters in 2 Chronicles, so I asked it to give me a number between 1 and 36.  The result was 30.  The thirtieth chapter contains 27 verses, so once more I asked for a number between 1 and 27 - and the result was a four.  And there you have it - my randomly selected verse-of-the day: 2 Chronicles 30:4.

I lucked-out with that one.  That’s a blank-cheque kind of verse.  Does it mean all my plans will meet divine, if not human, approval?  Is this a implicit divine affirmation for all my ideas (if so, hang on because I have some really wild ones, most of which include motorcycles, bees, and curling stones)?  If God is sovereign - and He is - then did He providentially lead me to this verse to give me a message for my day, to guide and give me direction?

The answers to the above questions are: “No,” “No,” and “Yes, but no.”  

There are several problems with my method and conclusions.  First, they ignore the historical background of the Bible.  As a collection of documents, the Bible is rooted in human history.  It was written by real people who lived in real places in real time.  They wrote using the styles, vocabulary, and images common to their day - but now uncommon in ours.

Second, this approach approaches the Bible from a “me first” perspective.  What does it say TO ME?  What does it mean TO ME?  How does this help ME?  Clearly, the Bible is written to teach us the nature and character of God, what is righteous and good, and the nature of faith.  But it is not written to give us life-hacks, motivational clichés, or as a mystical guide for decision-making like some kind of Christian ouija board.

Third, this method reduces our relationship with God and role in His created order to a subjective interaction with the divine.  Our understanding about who we are, why we are here, and the meaning of life become heavily weighted by the very limited realm of our own perspectives.  Just as a fish doesn’t realize it is wet, so also our own perspective and assumptions about life are so familiar we don’t even realize they exist.  This will bias our understanding of the Bible.

So, how do we avoid these pitfalls?  What do we need to know about the Bible so we can confidently learn of the nature of God and His created order?

Let’s begin by clarifying what the Bible is.  Theologians describe the Bible using four terms:  inspired, plenary, inerrant, and infallible.  Here’s why that is significant:  “inspired” means that God guided each author - in their original work - to choose the exact words and styles God desired for them to use.  Granted, now that we use copies and translations of the originals, there are some small areas where the exact wording can be debated.  However, the science of textual criticism has rendered us a text that we can confidently assert accurately represents the originals.

The term “plenary” means that ALL of the Bible benefits from divine influence - not just what some would consider to be the key doctrinal sections.  “Inerrant” means that the original copies - the final text produced by the original author - did not contain any errors.  Finally, “infallible” means that the teachings contained in the Bible are truthful and reliable.  

This brings us to the question, “What does it do for us?”  What is the purpose of the Bible?  In very broad terms, its purpose is to reveal to us what would otherwise be unknowable (e.g., the nature of God, what happens after death, where we come from, why is there evil, etc.).  Without the Bible, our understanding of God would be dependent on our imaginations, even if we decided to be guided by rigorous empirical observation.  Obviously, that isn’t a good option.

So, how should we view the Bible?  Before we can consider it as a “spiritual” book, we must understand it as an historical book.  It was carefully crafted by skilled authors who wanted to document the interaction of God with His created order.  The normal processes of literary interpretation apply.

If God is knowable and is engaged in His creation - and He is - then we must have a reliable source document with that information.  Thankfully, we do - the ancient anthology of texts we refer to as “The Bible.”  

Just for a giggle, why don’t you try your own “random verse generator” experience and see where it lands you.   I’d love to hear where you land!  But then, take the time to pause, go back, and understand the original author’s intended message for his (or her) original audience.  Enjoy a wander through some of the most beautiful and ancient pages of literature!