Ok, that was a bit misleading. I am not suggesting JI Packer is infallible, rather in this interview with the best-selling author of Knowing God from last week’s Washington Post he speaks about the infallibility of scripture and a few other things as well. Packer’s comments on infallibility confused me at first.
Q: On a radio program, you explained why different Bible translations have different endings to the Gospel of Mark. How does this jibe with the inerrancy of God’s word?
A: The inerrancy of Scripture applies to the material as prepared for publication. I’m saying that quite deliberately because I want to allow the editor in. In some Old Testament books, it’s very evident that an editor has been at work. That’s quite all right. It’s part of the process.
Hunh? “The inerrancy of Scripture applies to the material as prepared for publication”? That sounded to me as though he was suggesting that Zondervan or Crossway
Q: But some people believe that every word written and every “i” dotted came strictly from the hand of God to the author. At the other extreme, atheists and liberal Christians say, “No one knows what’s true in the Bible because it’s been changed so much.” How do you see this?
A: I’m saying that an editorial process that is preparing the material for publication counts as part of the inspiring process whereby God, in his sovereignty, gave every word. Some people ask for trouble by not allowing for the reality of editorial processes. The editorial process is very important for preparing the work for public consumption. It’s part of the inspired process.
There are a couple of things that I note in this second answer. The first is that he is now speaking of “inspiration” of the text rather than “inerrancy.” Judging from his earlier answer it seems that he is using the terms interchangeably. (I am not familiar enough with his work to know his precise usage.) I myself would make distinctions, or at least a distinction in how many use the term “inerrancy,” much in the way that the questioner suggestions, every jot and tittle being moved by the very hand of God.
