539 - Inerrancy and Common Sense

Inerrancy and Common Sense
By Roger R. Nicole and J. Ramsey Michaels, eds.
Grand Rapids, Baker, 1980. 203 pp. $5.95 (paper).

A contribution from the faculty of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, this volume addresses the current conservative/evangelical discussion on inerrancy as a description of biblical authority. The authors try both to defend the use of the term, as well as to define it in a way that avoids some of the extreme interpretations of American fundamentalism.

The essays deal with the relationship between inerrancy and other concerns: historical use of the concept (Richard Lovelace); textual criticism (Douglas Stuart); analogy of faith (R.C. Sproul); Genesis and the antiquity of humanity (John Jefferson Davis); and preaching (James I. Packer). Particularly noteworthy are the chapters by Michaels on "inerrancy" vs. "verbal inspiration" to illustrate the concept of biblical authority (he argues for the latter). Gordon D. Fee's article on hermeneutical questions, e.g., cultural relativity and sensus

540 - Inerrancy and Common Sense

plenior, and Nicole's contribution on the nature of inerrancy are also important.

Those who witness the current debate from the outside will benefit from the measured way the authors argue their particular positions. Those more directly involved might appreciate the book's irenic spirit.

David Allan Hubbard
Fuller Theological Seminary
Pasadena, Ca.