Sect. 5. That then which is to be the establishment of the Souls of Believers, I shall labor to prove and evince, is plainly this, namely, that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, do abundantly, and uncontrollably manifest themselves to be the Word of the living God; so that merely on the account of their own proposal of themselves unto us, in the Name and Majesty of God, as such, without the contribution of help or assistance from Tradition, Church, or anything else without themselves, we are obliged upon the penalty of eternal damnation (as are all by whom by any means they come, or are brought) to receive them, with that subjection due to the Word of God. The Authority of God shining in them, they afford unto us all the divine evidence of themselves, which God is willing to grant unto us, or can be granted us, or is any way needful for us. So then, the Authority of the written Word, in its self and unto us, is from its self, as the Word of God, and the eviction of that Authority unto us, is by its self.

Eviction: “conclusive evidence”

John Owen, Of the Divine Originall, Authority, self-evidencing Light, and Power of the Scriptures: With an Answer to that Enquiry, How we know the Scripture’s to be the Word of God. Also A Vindication of the Purity and Integrity of the Hebrew and Greek Texts of the Old and New Testaments; in some Considerations on the Prolegomena (Oxford: Printed by Henry Hall, Printer to the University for Tho: Robinson, 1658), 34-35.

Francis Turretin (1623-1687) Codifier of theological orthodoxy.

“By the original texts, we do not mean the autographs written by the hand of Moses, or of the prophets and of the apostles, which certainly do not know exist. We mean their apographs which are so called because they set forth to us the word of God in the very words of those who wrote under the immediate inspiration of the Holy Spirit.” Francis Turretin, Institutes of Elenctic Theology, 106.

“the autographs and also the accurate and faithful copies may be the standard of all other copies of the same writing and of it translations. If anything is found in them different from the authentic writings, either autographs or apographs, it is unworthy of the name authentic and should be discarded as spurious and adulterated, the discordance itself being a sufficient reason for its rejection.” Turretin, Institutes, 113.

William Whitaker (1548-1595) Whitaker is the theological link to John Calvin and most quoted theologian by the Westminster Divines.

“We proceeded to break the force of this portion also of Bellarmine’s defense, and to show that the Greek original (apografh) in the New Testament is purer than the Latin edition.” William Whitaker, A Disputation of Holy Scripture Against the papists especially Bellarmine and Stapleton, 193.

Whitaker held that the Greek edition in his possession “is no other than the inspired archetypical [the original pattern] Scripture of the New Testament, commended by the apostles and evangelists to the Christian church.” Whitaker, Disputation, 142.

“The state of the controversy, therefore is this: Whether we should believe that these Scriptures which we now have are sacred and canonical merely on account of the church’s testimony or rather on account of the internal persuasion of the Holy Spirit, which, as it makes the Scripture canonical and authentic in itself, make is also to appear such to us, and without which the testimony of the church is dumb and inefficacious.” Whitaker, Disputation, 280.

Of the Hebrew text Whitaker wrote, “We must hold, therefore, that we have now those very ancient Scriptures which Moses, and the other prophets published, although we have not perhaps, precisely the same forms and shapes of the letters.” Whitaker, Disputation, 117.

Andrew Willet (1562-1621) Prolific Hebrew exegete

“so that it appeareth to be an unreasonable opinion to prefer a translation (Latin) full of corruptions before the pure Originals (apographa).” Andrew Willet, Hexapla in Leviticum, that is, a six-fold commentary upon the third book of Moses, called Leviticus, 1631, 101

Sect. 13. Thus far have we proceeded. The Scripture, the Written Word hath its infallible Truth in its self; John 17 from whence it hath is Verity, thence it hath its Authority; for its Authority is founded upon its Truth. Its Authority in its self, is its Authority in respect to us; nor hath it any whit more in its self, then de jure it hath towards and over them to whom it comes; That de facto some do not submit themselves unto it, is their sin and rebellion. This Truth and consequently this Authority, is evidenced and made known to us, by the public Testimony which is given unto it by the Holy Ghost speaking in it, with divine Light and Power, to the minds, souls and consciences of men: being therein by its self proposed unto us, We being enlightened by the Holy Ghost, (which in the condition wherein we are, is necessary for the Apprehension of any spiritual thing of truth in a spiritual manner)we receive it, and religiously subject our souls unto it, as the Word and Will, and judge of all: And if this be not at the bottom and foundation of faith, I here publicly Profess, that for ought I know, I have no faith at all.

John Owen, Of the Divine Original, Authority, self-evidencing Light, and Power of the Scriptures: With an Answer to that Enquiry, How we know the Scripture’s to be the Word of God. Also A Vindication of the Purity and Integrity of the Hebrew and Greek Texts of the Old and New Testaments; in some Considerations on the Prolegomena (Oxford: Printed by Henry Hall, Printer to the University for Tho: Robinson, 1658), 99-100.

But least any man think, that by arguments, which us reason by a natural light to be found, without the singular grace of the Spirit this may be wrought in the minds of the wicked, as either to obey the truth, or to leave off to reproach it, first he must remember that the arguments or testimonies are of two sorts which shew the certainty of the Christian religion, and maintain the authority of the Scripture. For there is but one only testimony, which is appropriated unto them alone who are regenerated by the Spirit of Christ, and unto them alone is known, the force of which the testimony is so great, that it doth not only abundantly testify and seal in our minds the truth of the doctrine of the Prophets and Apostles, but it also forcibly inclineth and moveth our hearts to the embracing and following of it. Other testimonies whatsoever may be brought, they are understood indeed both of the godly and the wicked, and do compel their consciences to confess, that this religion rather than others is pleasing to God, and that it came from him. But unless that one other come also, which is know of the godly alone, these testimonies will never bring to pass that man shall embrace the truth, although it be known to them. The arguments which shew the truth and certainty of the Scripture are these.

1. Purity and perfections of doctrine. For we have the pure and perfect doctrines of the Gospel, so also the Law. Now other sects have not both the tables of the Law perfect. The first many have in part. The second but in some part also, and stained with many lies.
2. The Gospel itself. Because it yieldeth sure consolation to men’s consciences, shewing the only way of escaping sin and death. The nature of man was not created to destruction. Wherefore that doctrine, which sheweth delivery, without violating the justice of God, is undoubtedly true and certain.
3. The antiquity of this doctrine. Because it is found to be most ancient, party by conference. For we confer this with other doctrines, we shall find it to be pure and most true, as delivered by God, from which men afterwards fell away. Other sects have sprung up at other times, and again have perished. This hath continued, though it hath been mightily expunged by her enemies. (Continued)

Zacharias Ursinus, The Sum of the Christian Religion: Wherein are debated and resolved the Questions of whatsoever points of moment, which have been or are controversed in Divinity. Translated into English by Henry Parrie, out of the last and best Latin Editions (Oxford: Printed at Joseph Barnes and are to be sold in Pauls Churchyard at the sign of the Tigers head, 1587), 20-21.

Of the truth and accomplishment of the holy scriptures

The truth of the holy Scriptures dependeth upon the truth of God who is the author of them. He that doubteth the truth of them, either does not believe that they were uttered by the instance of the Holy Spirit, or else if he doubts not of that, he does not believe that God cannot lie. Or if he does believe that also, he takes him mutable as man, so that the same to which he would have to say tomorrow changing his mind, he would none of it. All which opinions be far from them that be of the number of true believers. For they do doubt nothing at all, but that the holy Scriptures be of God, and that God can never lie, neither be changed. They do say with the Apostle: “Let God rather be true, and every man a liar.” And with the Prophet: “The word of God is tried by fire, cleansed seven times.” They know the saying, “I am GOD, and am not changed. “And that also of Isa, “Like as the dew and the snow cometh from the heaven and returneth not thither again but moiseneth the earth, so is the word that goeth out of my mouth, it returneth not unto me void, but doeth whatsoever I will, and doth prosper in those matters whereunto I sent it. ” Wherefore they that be persuaded of the truth of God are persuaded also of the certainty and truth of the saying of God, which he set forth to us in holy scriptures.

Wolfgang Musculus, Common Places of the Christian Religion. Translated out of the Latin into English by John Man of Merton College (London: Imprinted at Henry Bynneman, 1578), 387-388.

Of the King James Version, editors Robert Alter and Frank Kermode in The Literary Guide to the Bible write, “Here is a miscellany of documents containing ancient stories, poems, laws, prophecies, which most of us cannot even read in the original languages, and which are a best, if we are English speakers, in an English that was already archaic when the King James (or “Authorized”) Version was published in 1611, and may now often seem distant and exotic: ‘that old tongue,’ as Edmund Wilson one vividly expressed it, ‘with its clang and flavor.’ Yet, as Wilson went on to say, ‘we have been living with it all our lives.’ In short, the language as well as the message it conveys symbolizes for us a past, strange and yet familiar, which we feel we somehow must understand if we are to understand ourselves.”

Later in the General Introduction we read, “We have as a rule used the King James Version in translation, and our reasons for doing so must be obvious: it is the version most English readers associate with the literary qualities of the Bible, and it is still arguably the version that best preserves the literary effects of the original languages.”

Robert Alter, Frank Kermode, eds., The Literary Guide to the Bible (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1987), 1, 7.