
A weighty topic when it comes to the Bible is authorship. For the past couple hundred years, the traditional authorship of the Bible has come into question, resulting in many biblical scholars rejecting the traditional authorship of the Bible. While on the surface, it may not seem like such a big deal, the authorship of the Bible is vital if the Bible is to be the Word of God in any way, shape, or form.
God wrote the Bible through his prophets, kings, and apostles. As such, it is common to speak of the Bible as having two authors: God and God’s servants whom he inspired to write. Who wrote the Bible is important because the Bible as the Word of God stands or falls on authorship.
God as the Author of the Bible
There are three ways that God is the author of the Bible.
God Inspired the Human Authors to Write What He Wanted
The classic text stating that God is the author of the Bible is 2 Timothy 3:16:
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.”
2 TIMOTHY 3:16, emphasis added; also see 2 Peter 1:16–21
Paul clearly tells Timothy that “all Scripture” is “breathed out” or “inspired” (θεόπνευστος) by God. Because God inspired the human authors of the Bible to write what He wanted written, it is legitimate to say that God is the author of the Bible.
It should also be noted that because 2 Timothy was written before the New Testament canon was complete, it is possible that Paul is only referring to the Old Testament as inspired. However, in 2 Peter 3:15–16, Peter the apostle put Paul’s writings on the same level as Scripture, which suggests the apostles knew that God was inspiring them and that they were writing Scripture (also see 2 Pet 1:16–21). Thus, 2 Timothy may apply to the entire Bible (both OT and NT).
God Dictated Portions of the Bible
The second way that God is the author of the Bible is through dictation. At times, God explicitly told the human writers what to write and they wrote it. This is the case for much of the Pentateuch and most of the prophetic literature in the Old Testament. For example, in his commission of Jeremiah, God said,
“whatever I command you, you shall speak.”
JEREMIAH 1:7
Frequently throughout the prophetic literature, the prophets say something like “thus says the LORD…”:
“The word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the LORD. . . .’”
JEREMIAH 2:1–2
God Wrote Portions of the Bible Himself
The final way that God is the author of the Bible is by actually writing portions of it. The best example is the Ten Commandments. God himself wrote the Ten Commandments on the stone tablets for Moses:
“And he gave to Moses, when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God.”
“The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.”
EXODUS 31:18; 32:16
We can summarize God’s involvement in the writing of the Bible as (a) writing some of it himself, (b) dictating some of it to his prophets and servants, and (c) inspiring his servants to write exactly what he wanted written.
God’s Prophets, Kings, and Apostles as Authors of the Bible
If God dictated and inspired people to write what he wanted written, then we must also speak of the Bible as being written by people. In addition to God, the Bible has human authors. These human authors are not just anyone, however. They are those within whom God has placed his Holy Spirit for the purpose of writing God’s words, primarily the prophets, kings, and apostles. Let’s address the Old Testament authorship first.
Prophets and Kings Wrote the Old Testament
Because the Old Testament is not comprised of letters like much of the New Testament, determining the human author is somewhat more difficult. With that being said, the biblical text, Jewish tradition, and Church tradition give us plenty of information to narrow down the author of most biblical books.
What is important to note about the human authors of the Old Testament is that most of them are prophets or kings, both of whom receive the Holy Spirit. Even Moses, the author of the Pentateuch (Gen–Deut), is a prophet (Deut 18:15). This will become important when we discuss why authorship matters in the next major section below.
Old Testament Book | Human Author | Evidence |
---|---|---|
The Pentateuch (Gen–Deut) | Moses the prophet | According to Deuteronomy 31:24, Moses wrote “the words of this law in a book.” Although there is some debate as to whether “this law” refers only to Deuteronomy or the entire Pentateuch, both Jewish and church tradition holds that it refers to the entire Pentateuch. Further, most of the Pentateuch is about Moses, records Moses’ sayings and activity, and even mentions Moses as recording the movement and activity of Israel (Num 33:2). It should also be noted that Moses calls himself a prophet in Deuteronomy 18:15. |
Joshua–2 Chronicles | Various prophets, such as Joshua, Samuel, Nathan, Gad, Ahijah, Iddo, Shemaiah, Jehu, and Isaiah. | Josh 24:26; 1 Chron 29:29–30; 2 Chron 9:29; 12:15; 13:22; 20:34; 26:22; 32:32; 33:18–19. |
Ezra | Ezra the scribe | Although the book does not state Ezra wrote it, the first person singular “I” is used to refer to Ezra at various points throughout the book (Ezra 8:15, 21, 24 for a few examples). |
Nehemiah | Nehemiah, a leader of the Jews | Nehemiah 1:1 |
Esther | Unknown | Probably a prophet |
Job | Unknown | Probably a prophet |
Psalms | Many different authors, including kings David and Solomon | Read the superscripts to the psalms for the authors (some don’t have authors). David wrote the most. |
Proverbs | King Solomon, Agur (prophet), and king Lemuel. | Prov 1:1; 30:1; 31:1 |
Ecclesiastes | King Solomon | Eccl 1:1 |
Song of Songs | King Solomon | Song 1:1 |
Book of Isaiah | Isaiah the prophet | Is 1:1 |
Book of Jeremiah | Jeremiah the prophet | Jer 1:1 |
Book of Lamentations | Jeremiah the prophet | Lamentations is found alongside of Jeremiah. Both Jewish and Church tradition hold that Jeremiah the prophet wrote Lamentations |
Book of Ezekiel | Ezekiel the prophet | Ezek 1:1–3 |
Book of Daniel | Daniel the prophet | Daniel writes in the 1st person at various places within the book (Dan 7:9, 11, 13, 15). It has been plausibly argued that someone other than Daniel wrote chapters 1–6. If so, it would most likely have been a prophet. |
Book of Hosea | Hosea the prophet | Hos 1:1 |
Book of Joel | Joel the prophet | Joel 1:1 |
Book of Amos | Amos the prophet | Amos 1:1 |
Book of Obadiah | Obadiah the prophet | Obad 1:1 |
Book of Jonah | Jonah the prophet or an unknown prophet | There is no place in Jonah that explicitly says who authored it. However, due to the private nature of the prayer in Jonah 2, the author is most likely Jonah. |
Book of Micah | Micah the prophet | Mic 1:1 |
Book of Nahum | Nahum the prophet | Nah 1:1 |
Book of Habakkuk | Habakkuk the prophet | Hab 1:1 |
Book of Zephaniah | Zephaniah the prophet | Zeph 1:1 |
Book of Haggai | Haggai the prophet | Hag 1:1 |
Book of Zechariah | Zechariah the prophet | Zech 1:1 |
Book of Malachi | Malachi the prophet | Mal 1:1 |
There is clear biblical evidence for who wrote most of the books in the Old Testament. Most of the biblical authors were either prophets or kings, the only exceptions being Ezra and Nehemiah, whom the Lord God was clearly with.
Apostles Wrote the New Testament
The traditional understanding of the human authorship of the New Testament is that it was written by the apostles of Jesus or those closely associated with the apostles of Jesus. All of the letters with the exception of Hebrews and 1 John tell us who the author is (letters 2–3 of John are somewhat vague only mentioning “the elder”). Tradition has the apostle Paul as the author of Hebrews, but there is compelling evidence to suggest Luke may have written it. The Gospels do not claim who wrote them. However, the earliest complete manuscripts of the Gospels include the traditional author in the title. Thus, Matthew wrote Matthew, Mark wrote Mark, Luke wrote Luke, and John wrote John. Finally, the book of Acts claims to be the second part of the Gospel of Luke (Acts 1:1–2); as such, Luke wrote both the Gospel of Luke and Acts.
Unfortunately, many modern biblical scholars deny the traditional authors, which undermines the truthfulness of the Scripture (see the next major section as to why). Rather than accept what the biblical books say themselves and church tradition, they claim most books in the Bible were written by individuals or groups well after the traditional (and actual) authors wrote their letters and Gospels.
The following chart shows the traditional human authors of the New Testament according to both the books themselves and church tradition:
New Testament Book | Human Author | Evidence |
---|---|---|
Gospel of Matthew | The apostle Matthew | The title that includes Matthew’s name is on the earliest complete manuscripts. |
Gospel of Mark | John Mark, the apostle Peter and Paul’s companion. Tradition has it that Peter was instrumental in the creation of Mark’s Gospel. | The title that includes Mark’s name is on the earliest complete manuscripts. |
Gospel of Luke and Book of Acts | Luke, the apostle Paul’s travelling companion. | That Luke and Acts are written by the same author is clear by the introductions to both books (Luke 1:1–4; Acts 1:1–2). The title on Luke’s Gospel includes Luke’s name on the earliest complete manuscripts. Also, the author uses the pronoun “we” in certain places throughout Acts that suggests the author is Luke. |
John, 1–3 John, Book of Revelation | The apostle John | The title on John’s Gospel includes John’s name on the earliest complete manuscripts. Revelation says it was written by John (Rev 1:4). Terminology and writing style between the Gospel and the letters, plus church tradition, suggest John also wrote the three letters that bear his name. |
Romans–Philemon | The apostle Paul | Rom 1:1; 1 Cor 1:1; 2 Cor 1:1; Gal 1:1; Eph 1:1; Phil 1:1; Col 1:1; 1 Thess 1:1; 2 Thess 1:1; 1 Tim 1:1; 2 Tim 1:1; Titus 1:1; Phlm 1:1. |
Hebrews | The apostle Paul or Luke who wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts. | Church tradition says Paul wrote Hebrew. The writing style is similar to Luke-Acts, suggesting Luke. |
James | James the brother of Jesus who was also the head elder of the church in Jerusalem from appx A.D. 44 to his death in A.D. 62. | James 1:1 |
1–2 Peter | The apostle Peter | 1 Pet 1:1; 2 Pet 1:1 |
Jude | The brother of James and Jesus | Jude 1 |
Why Authorship Matters
Authorship is important because it tells us what the Bible is and is not. If the Bible is authored by God, then it is not a mere human work with errors. Rather, since God is the author of the Bible, it is a divine work that is 100% true in its assertions and claims. Thus, what it says about God, man, salvation, and everything else is true and should be heeded by all people.
Because the Bible is dual authored (i.e., written by God through people), the human authors are also important. The human authors are those who have the Spirit of God and, thus, are accurately writing down God’s words, whether through dictation or inspiration. In general, God commissioned the prophets, kings, and apostles to write Scripture. If the Bible was not written by the prophets, kings, and apostles, then it would be impossible to know what is Scripture (i.e., from God) and what is not. This is especially true when it comes to the apostles and the writing of the New Testament because Jesus only revealed to the apostles his entire teaching and enabled perfect recollection of his entire teaching. Here is what Jesus says to the apostles in John 16:12–15.
“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.”
JOHN 16:12–15, emphasis added
A key question is to whom does “you” refer? What is the antecedent of “you”? Jesus’ words in John 16:12–15 are given to the eleven apostles at the Last Supper (13:1–17:26). Thus, when Jesus says, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth,” he is speaking to his apostles, not us. This becomes key to properly understanding and applying this passage, especially to avoid gross abuse, which has happened in some Christian circles.
The topic of John 16:12–15, believe it or not, is not truth. The topic is the how Jesus is going to continue teaching the apostles. Jesus is telling his remaining eleven apostles that he has many more things to say to them, to reveal to them, but there is a present hindrance to their learning; “you are not able to now bear it” (John 16:12).
Thus, if Jesus is leaving, but still has things to reveal and teach his apostles about himself, the Kingdom of God, being a disciple, etc, the question that naturally arises is, “how will Jesus teach the apostles?”
The answer is that Jesus will use the Holy Spirit, who is called the “Spirit of truth,” to teach the apostles the last of what He (Jesus) wants them to know. In short, the Holy Spirit will shore up and complete Jesus’ teachings for the apostles (John 16:13).
Jesus’ comments about truth are a comfort to the apostles (and us) that the Spirit who will teach them is not a deceiving spirit, but the Holy Spirit and that all He teaches them is true and trustworthy. Evidence of this is that the Spirit will glorify Jesus (John 16:14).
Thus, when Jesus tells the remaining eleven apostles “he [the Spirit] will guide you into all the truth,” Jesus is not saying that every Christian will know “all truth” universally (because Jesus is not addressing all Christians), or that the apostles will know “all truth” universally. Jesus is saying that the Spirit will guide the apostles to know everything that Jesus wants to tell them. An alternate, and perhaps better, translation of “he will guide you into all the truth” is “he will lead you by/in all truth” (instrument or sphere), indicating that the Holy Spirit will use all truth to guide/lead the apostles to learn/know the remainder of Jesus’ teachings.
Why would the Holy Spirit have this unique role amongst the apostles of Jesus? Why would Jesus choose only the apostles to be receptacles of all his teaching, both while on earth and after the ascension? The answer is found in John 21:15–19 and Matthew 28:16–20. We discover from Matthew 28:16–20 and John 21:15–19 that the unique mission of the apostles is to teach Jesus’ disciples all that Jesus taught them so that they can be successful disciples. All of what is necessary to know about Jesus, about being his disciple, the church, the Kingdom of God, etc., has been revealed to the apostles. The Truth (Jesus) deposited the truth to the apostles of Jesus.
So, if Jesus chose the apostles to be the receptacles of all his teaching and guided the apostles to this knowledge either “by all the truth” or by guiding them “into all the truth,” then we, who are Jesus’ disciples, need to seek out the apostles’ teaching in order to know what Jesus taught and what Jesus expects of us, so that we can abide in Jesus’ word/teaching! The apostles’ teaching is the only guaranteed source that accurately and truthfully presents Jesus’ teaching to us.
Thankfully, God has preserved the apostles’ teachings in the New Testament (the entire NT!). Thus, for those who are seeking the Word of God, Jesus’ teachings, and truth, the New Testament cannot be overlooked because its entirety was guided by the Spirit of Truth to convey the teachings of Jesus, who is “the truth” (John 14:6).
Unfortunately, the majority of biblical scholars today deny that most of the books and letters of the New Testament have any association with the apostles of Jesus. A good example of this is Delbert Burkett’s An Introduction to the New Testament and the Origins of Christianity, 2nd ed (Cambridge, 2019). By attacking the authorship of the books of the Bible, critical scholars and some pastors & churches are attacking the location of truth and the Word of God, attempting to suppress it, which leads to unrighteousness and the wrath of God.
Summary and Concluding Thoughts
The Bible has two authors: God and people. God wrote the Bible in three ways: (a) with his own finger (Ex 31:18), (b) dictating the words to his prophets, (c) and by inspiring his Holy Spirit-filled servants to write what God wanted written. The human authors that God used were those who were filled with the Holy Spirit, primarily prophets, kings, and apostles. The apostles are the ones to whom Jesus gave the Holy Spirit for the purpose of teaching them (the apostles) the remainder of Jesus’ teachings so that they (the apostles) can pass that teaching along to all of Jesus’ disciples, including us.
Thus, the authorship of the Bible is important because without God and the Spirit-filled human authors, the Bible is merely another human-made book about what some people or groups thought of their religion. However, if God and the Spirit-filled human authors are the real authors (which I contend they are!), then the Bible is God’s Word, perfect and trustworthy in all its assertions and must, therefore, be heeded!
The constant attack on the authorship of the Bible is serious and must not be seen as irrelevant. When the authorship of the Bible as presented in the Bible is dismissed, then there is no source that a person can trust when it comes to the most important matters of life, such as God, salvation, and how to live one’s life.