Doesn the Bible say all scripture is inspired?
2 Timothy 3:16 says all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. This passage, however, raises two questions. First, when Paul wrote these words what did he mean by “scripture?” We know he meant the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the scripture of the Israelites and their descendants, the Jews, because this is the scripture he quotes from in his letters. He couldn’t have meant the gospels, because they were not yet written. If they had been written, surely Paul would have referred to them in his letters, although not as “scripture.” Paul’s letters and the gospels were not read as “scripture” in churches until the middle of the second century, and their status as scripture was only authorized in the 4th century. These facts help us to understand that “scripture” is an historical concept. What is “scripture” for us is not the same as what was “scripture” for Paul and the
