Biblical theology forms an organic whole. This means not only that one can approach any part of the subject by beginning at any other point of the subject (though some vantage points are certainly more helpful than others), but that to treat some element of biblical theology as if it existed in splendid isolation seriously distorts the whole picture.

On few subjects is this more obviously true than with regard to one’s doctrine of Scripture. In this skeptical age it is doubtful if an articulate and coherent understanding of the nature of Scripture and how to interpret it can long be sustained where there is not at the same time a grasp of the biblical view of God, of human beings, of sin, of redemption, and of the rush of history toward its ultimate goal.

Thou hast made summer and winter,
day and night;
each of these revolutions serves our welfare and is full of thy care and kindness.
Thy bounty is seen
in the relations that train us,
the laws that defend us,
the homes that shelter us,
the food that builds us,
the raiment that comforts us,
the continuance of our health, members,
senses, understanding, memory, affection, will.

But as stars fade before the rising sun,
thou hast eclipsed all these benefits
in the wisdom and grace that purposed redemption by Jesus thy Son.