Psalm 19:7
The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
Psalm 19 unfolds God’s revelation to mankind—from general revelation in the cosmos to special revelation through His Word. We first learn that the heavens (outer space) and the firmament (skies) are declaring God’s glory and His artistic, creative work. Not only do the created things reveal God’s character—His power, beauty, creativity, goodness—but the rhythms those things go through also reveal Him. “Day unto Day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.” God is made known in His creation, both through the objects He created and the times, seasons, and days He wove into the fabric of His universe. This revelation is not intangible to anyone; all can see it and understand that this world has a grand Designer. “There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.” God’s character is plainly revealed in His world.
Is this revelation enough? No. In verse 7, David moves from creation to God’s written Word. While we can understand something about God through His world, it cannot teach us the fullness of God’s character. It starts us on the journey toward God, but it can only take us part of the way. How is one brought fully into relationship with God? Through God’s law. “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul.” Though God is clearly seen in His general revelation—in creation—He is only truly known through His Word. Notice that the writer is not converted until he encounters the law of God. It is the law of the LORD that saves the soul. Without it, God can only be faintly perceived, not known. The law saves; it converts our souls.
So, in terms of our discussion about clarity, we understand that God’s law makes the way of salvation plain. By reading it, we are led toward conversion and salvation. Succinctly, the written Word of God clearly tells us how we are to be saved.
But salvation yields growth in wisdom. “The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.” “Testimony,” like “law,” indicates God’s revealed word. He testifies of His character, His works, His will, His ways, and we are those who hear His testimony. His testimony is His witness to us about Himself. What do we learn about His testimonies? They are sure. Steadfast. Immovable. True. And we, as we hear that testimony, come to know the truth. We become wise.
Notice the progression. God is seen in His world, then He is known through His law, which first saves us (“converting the soul”) then leads us on toward godliness (“making wise the simple”). On conversion, we are simple, unlearned in God’s ways. “The ‘simple’ person is not merely one who lacks intellectual ability, but one who lacks sound judgment, who is prone to making mistakes, and who is easily led astray. God’s Word is so understandable, so clear, that even this kind of person is made wise by it.”[1] God’s testimonies about Himself—read in His written Word—make us wise. They teach us what to believe and how to live.
Is this wisdom hidden away in mysteries and riddles? No, for even the simple man is able to understand the Scriptures. Wisdom is available for any who will pick up God’s Word, read it, and believe it. And as we are made wise, we are able to make God-honoring decisions and live God-honoring lives. Simply put, God’s Word clearly tells us how we are to live.
Psalm 119:105
Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.
The psalmist here describes God’s word as a lamp and as a light. Light reveals the way things really are. If I want to navigate my bedroom at night, I’m greatly helped if I have a little light. Without it, I cannot see where to step and am much more prone to walk into my bedframe rather than around it. But with even a small lamp, I can avoid dangerous obstacles and save my toes from a brutal bruising. Driving in the dark without headlights is difficult and dangerous, but we frequently travel with them without a worry. Light gives guidance and discernment, so we know where to go (and where not to go).
Likewise, God’s word is a light. It both illuminates our immediate path (“a lamp to my feet”) and leads us through life (“a light to my path”). I believe this points to the all-encompassing revelation that’s ours through the Bible. It illuminates right in front of us and on ahead. It directs us in the moment-by-moment decisions of life and gives us wisdom for the long-term choices.
In everything, it shows things as they really are. It plainly tells us what is and is not true. Inversely, when we are unfamiliar with Scripture, we lack discernment and are unable to know the truth from lies. Winding mountain roads are precarious without light, but with it, we know the way to go and can travel safely on them. In the same way, life is precarious without the truth, but with God’s word, we know the way to go and can travel safely through it. And the more we know the Word, the safer we are on life’s journey.
What does this have to do with the clarity of Scripture? Quite a bit, actually. Just as the inky blackness of an unlit room leaves us aimlessly groping, life without the light of God’s word is confused and misguided. But, like a little lamp breaks the shadows, a little light from God’s word illuminates our darkened minds and teaches us the truth. It shows us things as they are. It reveals the hidden and demystifies the mysterious. Light does not lead us into uncertainty, but into certainty. The very concept of light is one of truth revealed, of reality unveiled.
So we conclude that understanding the Bible does not consist of uncovering veiled meanings and breaking cryptic code. Scripture is not the plain made complex, but the complex made plain. It is the unknown made known, the unclear made clear. It is light, showing us the truth and leading us in it.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Scripture, as we’ve already discussed, is written by God. He inspired it. But it is not a worthless book; it is profitable. It teaches us what to believe (doctrine), confronts us when we sin (reproof), guides us on our way (correction), and teaches us how to live God-honoring lives (instruction in righteousness). What’s the end of this process? Christians are made complete. The Bible is not a collection of aimless divine trivia, but is intended to have a specific end—transformed lives. Scripture instructs and guides us in righteous living, toward a specific goal—Christlikeness.
Within this context we understand that the Bible must be clear if it is to have its intended effect. If we don’t understand it, we cannot obey it. A book that can only be understood by certain intellectuals or spiritual elites can certainly not have the transformative effect it was designed to have. Only a clear word can lead us in righteousness.
The Bible is that clear word. It equips believers to live God-honoring lives by making God’s will plain. What God desires can be easily understood, and through believing and applying the Scriptures, the believer is lead to spiritual completeness.
Summation
Does the Bible teach its own clarity? I hope that through this brief study you can say with me that it does. What God expects from His people is clear in His revealed Word, and as we read that Word we better understand His will for our lives. Our beliefs are shaped by the clear teachings of the Bible, and our obedience is informed and empowered by the equally clear commands. Without Scripture we would wander aimlessly, but with it, we have a sure and steady light that leads us to holiness and, ultimately, leads us to God.
[1] Wayne A. Grudem, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2008), 106.