How can Scripture maintain its meaning across copies and translations?

Scripture can maintain its meaning across copies and translations primarily through divine intervention. This perspective holds that God, in His sovereignty, safeguards the integrity and essential truth of His Word throughout history, ensuring that even as it is copied, translated, and interpreted by various people across cultures and eras, it retains its core message and significance. This belief is rooted in the faith that the Scriptures are inspired and that God oversees their transmission to prevent any loss of their intended meaning.

The idea of divine intervention suggests that, regardless of the potential for human error in the copying or translating process, God actively preserves His message. This viewpoint underscores the belief that Scripture is not merely a human document but is divinely inspired and, therefore, resilient to misinterpretations or alterations that would fundamentally change its theological essence.

While historical traditions and scholarly interpretations do play roles in how Scripture is understood and taught, they do not inherently provide the same assurance of consistency in meaning as the belief in divine oversight does. Rewriting Scripture each generation implies a necessity for human adjustment, which could lead to variations that might dilute its original intent. Therefore, the reliance on divine intervention is seen as crucial for maintaining the Bible's consistent message across time and cultures.