Ian McNaughton comments on Steve Jones' book The Serpent's Promise: The Bible Retold as Science

What would you think if someone decided to re-write the Bible? A mad idea? Well, Steve Jones, Emeritus Professor of Genetics at University College London, has made such an attempt in his book, The Serpent's Promise: The Bible Retold as Science! This is an attempt to partially rewrite the Bible from the point of view of secular rationalism. In this attempt Mr Jones attempts to scrutinize the Bible from the point of view of a scientist, adding, "They (scientists) have gained insight into the physical world rather more dependable than those of the Scriptures" and suggests that, "now may be the time for the natural to supplant the supernatural as man begins to make sense of the universe he inhabits." Is he correct or is he misguided?

The Word of God, the Bible, has been about for thousands of years - the Old Testament was begun at least 3,500 years ago and the New Testament is nearly 2,000 years old. It was written by about 40 different authors and contains 66 books - 39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament. It was written in Hebrew, (some) Aramaic and Greek. It is the book that the Christian Church is built on and it speaks of God's Son Jesus Christ. The Old Testament contains the New and the New Testament explains the Old. Thus we are able to understand both and trust our eternal destiny to its revealed truth.

The Bible comes to us through divine revelation and was transmitted to us by divine inspiration (the Bible says that, 'holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit'). Christians believe that it is preserved by divine intervention and can be clearly understood with the help of the Holy Spirit. Thus, they can accept the six day Creation account in Genesis as well as the miraculous crossing of the Red Sea by the Israelites and the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead on the third day.

To reject the Bible as reliable leaves one relying on the options of philosophers or mystics or rationalistic scientists. But can they be more reliable than God's Word? We are faced with a choice of accepting the mind of God or the mind of men and a choice between revealed religion and human knowledge. Evangelical Christians claim the Bible is wholly true and reveals what God wants them to hear and believe. The Bible's revelation is ultimately about God and his Son. Whatever the Bible says, whether that teaching has to do with doctrine, history, science, geography, geology or any other discipline or knowledge it is accurate and correct and contains no errors. J I Packer put it this way, "What the Bible says, God says, without error" as God cannot lie.

The Old and New Testaments are constantly under attack and their reliability and accuracy are often contested by critics like Mr Jones. But if the detractors want to disregard the two Bible testaments then they must also discount other ancient writings by Plato, Aristotle, and Homer. This is because the Old and New Testament documents are better-preserved and more numerous than any other ancient writings. Mr Jones' new 'Bible' brings no hope to those who search for God and the forgiveness of sins. On the contrary, Mr Jones wants men to reject God and Jesus Christ and to embrace the atheistic ideas of men. However, it is best to trust God whose word is truth. Jesus clears up any misunderstanding as to what truth really is when he says, God's Word (the Bible) is truth. The Bible is unique (just as Christ is unique) and it is to be understood as being the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, but not the Apocryphal books which form no part of the Biblical canon. The Bible is complete and no addition can be made nor needs to be made to it. It's authority rests on God Himself for He is it's source and originator.