What do you call a book that has inspired countless generations to know and love God? As the Bible is read more, it reveals our human condition, as well as God’s character of love and grace, justice and mercy. To read the Bible is to be challenged and encouraged, for it is the sword of God, the Holy Spirit. In the following notes we hear His words and those of others who have responded to the challenge and encouragement of His Word. —Editors.

“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth. . . . For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.”

Psalm 33:6-9.

“Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.”

Agur, son of Jakeh (Prov. 30:5).

“The Holy Scriptures are our letters from home.”

Augustine of Hippo.

“Apply yourself wholly to the Scriptures, and apply the Scriptures wholly to yourself.”

Johann A. Bengel.

“Don’t fall into the trap of studying the Bible without doing what it says.”

Francis Chan.

“The more I have read the Bible and studied the life of Jesus, the more I have become convinced that Christianity spreads best not through force but through fascination.”

Shane Claiborne.

“I’ve read the last page of the Bible. It’s all going to turn out all right.”

Billy Graham.

“The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.”

Isaiah (Isa. 40:8).

“Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

Jesus Christ (Matt. 4:4).

“The Bible is very easy to understand. But we Christians are a bunch of scheming swindlers. We pretend to be unable to understand it because we know very well that the minute we understand, we are obliged to act accordingly.”

Søren KierkEgaard.

“Scripture cannot be set aside.”

JOHN 10:35.

“God’s word is not chained.”

Apostle Paul (2 Tim. 2:9).

“The sword of the Spirit . . . is the word of God.”

Apostle Paul (Eph. 6:17).

“The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.”

Apostle Paul (Heb. 1:3).

“By God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water.”

Apostle Peter (2 Peter 3:5).

“The word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

Apostle Paul (Heb. 4:12).

“Most people are bothered by those passages of Scripture they do not understand, but the passages that bother me are those I do understand.”

Mark Twain.

“Let me be: ‘a man of the book.’”

John Wesley.

“Nothing less than a whole Bible can make a whole Christian.”

A. W. Tozer.

“Whoever will prayerfully study the Bible, desiring to know the truth, that he may obey it, will receive divine enlightenment. He will understand the Scriptures. ‘If any man willeth to do His will, he shall know of the teaching.’ John 7:17, R.V.”

Ellen G. White (The Desire of Ages, p. 459). (Bible texts credited to R.V. are from The Holy Bible, Revised Version. Oxford University Press, 1911.)

“The Bible isn’t magic, but it is corrective. . . . It is a relationship book. When I confront God’s Word, I am confronted; when I read God’s Word, it reads me; when I see God’s presence, He seeks me.”

Mike Yaconelli.

“I read the paper every day and the Bible every day; that way I know what both sides are up to.”

Zig Zigler.