Is the doctrine of preservation biblical?

Answer

The concept of preservation concerning Scripture indicates that the Lord has maintained His Word intact in its original meaning. Preservation essentially signifies that we can rely on the Scriptures because God has overseen the process of transmission throughout the centuries in a sovereign manner.

However, it is important to acknowledge that we do not possess the original writings or autographs. What we do have are numerous manuscripts from which the original writings can be determined. Through thorough examination and comparison of these manuscripts, the original content of the writings is established. While there may be minor differences among the manuscripts, these variations are exceedingly small and insignificant, having no impact on the fundamental teachings or message of God’s Word. These discrepancies typically involve minor spelling differences. It is crucial to understand that this does not compromise the accuracy of Scripture, nor does it imply that God has failed to preserve His Word. God has miraculously safeguarded His Word.

The ancient scribes, tasked with producing precise copies of Scripture, were extremely meticulous. One illustration of their meticulous accuracy is the practice of counting all the letters in a particular book and identifying the middle letter. They would then repeat this process with the copy to ensure it matched perfectly. They employed such meticulous and time-consuming methods to guarantee precision.

Moreover, we can observe the following verses that illustrate God’s intention to protect His Word. In Matthew 5:18, Jesus stated, “Truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.” In this verse, Jesus affirmed that even the tiniest stroke of a letter in the Hebrew alphabet would endure until all is fulfilled. He could not have made such a promise unless

He was certain that God would preserve His Word. Jesus also said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away” (Matthew 24:35;Mark 13:31;Luke 21:33). Jesus once again confirms that God’s Word will endure. God’s Word will persist and fulfill what God has planned.

The prophet Isaiah, inspired by the Holy Spirit, declared that God’s Word would endure forever. “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever” «The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. », (Isaiah 40:8). This was reiterated in the New Testament when Peter quoted the same passage and referred to it as “the word that was preached to you” (1 Peter 1:24-25). Neither Isaiah nor Peter could make such statements without the understanding of God’s preservation of Scripture.

We should remember that when the Bible mentions God’s Word enduring forever, it cannot mean that it is kept hidden away in some vault in heaven. God’s Word was specifically given for humanity, and it would not serve its purpose if it were not accessible to us. “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope” «For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. », (Romans 15:4). Also, note that a person cannot be saved apart from the gospel message, which is recorded in God’s Word (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). The

Therefore, for the gospel message to be proclaimed “to the ends of the earth” «For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, That thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. », (Acts 13:47), the doctrines and truths of the Word must be protected. If Scripture were not supernaturally preserved, there would be no way to ensure the consistency of the message it contains.