Recommended Books for the Inerrancy Debate


Explaining Biblical Inerrancy: The Chicago Statements on Biblical Inerrancy, Hermeneutics, and Application with Official ICBI Commentary by the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy (ICBI), R.C. Sproul, and Norman L. Geisler (Bastion Books, 2013).  When asking “What does it mean to say the Bible is Inerrant?” this book offers the gold standard! You can download a free copy of the PDF version of the book and you can also order the softcover printed book through http://bastionbooks.com/explaining-biblical-inerrancy

Preserving Orthodoxy: Maintaining Continuity with the Historic Christian Faith on Scripture by Norm Geisler (Bastion Books, 2017). http://bastionbooks.com/preserving-orthodoxy-scripture/. This was the last book Norm wrote.

Vital Issues in the Inerrancy Debate by Farnell, Holden, Geisler, Roach, Fernandes. (Wipf&Stock, 2016). https://wipfandstock.com/vital-issues-in-the-inerrancy-debate.html. Most of the chapters of this book are taken from articles published in defendinginerrancy.com between 2013 and 2016! You can read a review of the book here. If you’re interested in buying this book in bulk, let us know ahead of time and we can get a coupon code for %40 off from the publisher.

Defending Inerrancy: Affirming the Accuracy of Scripture for a New Generation by Norm Geisler and Bill Roach (Baker, 2011). Available at cbd.com, amazon.com, and Baker.

Inerrancy. Edited by Norman L. Geisler (Zondervan, 1980). This book contains several scholarly papers by several authors that were circulated among the members of the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy, read and discussed at the first council, and then published by the ICBI. It could be the most important book ever published on the inerrancy debate.

The Canonical Gospels and Greco-Roman Biography by F. David Farnell (The Master’s Seminary Journal, 2019). This reviews Michael Licona’s book Why Are There Differences in the Gospels? Digital copies available for free at https://www.tms.edu/msj/. Print copies may be ordered through http://bastionbooks.com/farnell-review/

Inerrancy in the Wesleyan Tradition by Vic Reasoner. Inerrancy underpinned the preaching in the Great Awakenings and was the de facto view the evangelical movement, regardless of one’s position in the Arminian-Calvinism spectrum. You may order print copies of this book from FWP or Amazon. Vic has given his permission for you to download the PDF version of the book for free from here and here. If you want to order softcover printed copies in bulk, let either Vic or us know and Vic just might send several to you for free! Also read more by Dr. Reasoner here.

The Big Book of Bible Difficulties by Norman Geisler and Thomas Howe (Baker, 2008). Formerly titled When Critics Ask (Victor, 1992).

A Popular Handbook of Archaeology and the Bible by Joseph Holden and Norm Geisler (Harvest House, 2013).

Biblical Errancy An Analysis of its Philosophical Roots, Revised, Second Edition. Edited by Norman L. Geisler (Bastion Books, 2013). http://bastionbooks.com/biblical-errancy-an-analysis-of-its-philosophical-roots/

Biblical Inerrancy: The Historical Evidence by Norman L. Geisler (Bastion Books, 2013). The first edition of this book was published under the title of Decide for Yourself: How History Views the Bible by Zondervan in 1982 and republished by Wipf and Stock (2004). http://bastionbooks.com/biblical-inerrancy-the-historical-evidence/

Systematic Theology by Norman Geisler arguably has the best chapters on bibliology of any systematic theology written so far. http://bastionbooks.com/systematic-theology/

Hermeneutics, inerrancy, and the Bible: [papers from ICBI Summit II] 1984 by Earl Radmacher (Editor), Robert Preus (Editor)

Inerrancy and the Church by John D. Hannah (Editor)(1984)

“Fundamentalism” and the Word of God by J.I. Packer (Eerdmans, 1958)

Beyond the Battle for the Bible by J.I. Packer (Cornerstone Books, 1980)

God has Spoken: Revelation and the Bible, 3rd edition, by J.I. Packer (Baker, 1965, 1979, 1993)

Honouring the Written Word of God – J.I. Packer

Lindsell, Harold. The Battle for the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1976.

Lindsell, Harold. The Bible in the Balance. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1979.

What You Should Know about Inerrancy – Charles C. Ryrie



Review of Michael Licona’s Why Are There Differences in the Gospels? by Lydia McGrew (Global Journal of Classic Theology, 2019). Digital copies in 8.5”x11” PDF format may be downloaded freely from https://defendinginerrancy.com/mcgrew-review/. Printed copies may be ordered through http://bastionbooks.com/mcgrew-review.

This review was expanded by Lydia into The Mirror or the Mask.

The Mirror or the Mask: Liberating the Gospels from Literary Devices by Lydia McGrew (DeWard Publishing, 2019). Available at Amazon.com. Starting without any a priori commitments to biblical inerrancy, Lydia argues that the assertions of several esteemed biblical scholars are jeopardizing the historical reliability of the Gospels. Although she is definitely not an inerrantist as of 2020, her arguments here in this book are in harmony with some of the most contested articles of the Chicago Statements—Article XVIII of the CSBI and Articles XIII, XIV, and XVI of the CSBH. Also consider Lydia’s book Hidden in Plain View: Undesigned Coincidences in the Gospels and Acts (Deward, 2017).