What of the N.T. writers? Peter was a prophet (II Pet. 3: 2), and Paul was a prophet

(Rom. 16: 24).

N.T. prophets are greater than those who were before them

(Luke 7: 28).  Moreover, the apostle is always placed higher than the prophet

(I Cor. 12: 28; Eph. 2: 20; 4: 11), so that if inspiration is associated with prophetic

office, much more is it to be associated with the apostolic gift. The apostles spoke "as

though God did beseech" by them (II Cor. 5: 20). Their words were received, not as the

words of men, but as the words of God (I Thess. 2: 13); the new covenant message given

through the apostles is in every way "more excellent" than the old covenant message of

Moses. These apostles were led into "all truth" by the Holy Ghost (John 16: 13); and

Paul asserts that the revelation of the mystery, made known by himself as the prisoner of

the Lord, "completes" the word of God (Col. 1: 25). Luke declares that he received

perfect understanding "from above" (Luke 1: 3), as the words "from the very first" should

be translated, and the Book of the Revelation declares itself a prophecy, with solemn

warning (Rev. 1: 3; 22: 18, 19).

We may speak of Shakespeare, of Beethoven, or of Michael Angelo as being

"inspired", for their thoughts were indeed raised above the common level of mankind, but

we search in vain throughout the writings of Shakespeare for such an expression as

"Thus saith the Lord".

To repeat, and to conclude, we do not contend so much for the inspiration of the men,

who wrote as for the fact that in what they wrote; in the Bible; we possess an inspired

Book, and we would ever press upon ourselves and our hearers the fact that: