Although some view the Bible as an allegory, we believe a literal interpretation is the only interpretation that does justice to the facts. There are several reasons for accepting the Bible literally.

The Bible purports to be the Word of God. Over and over we I find such phrases as "the Word of the Lord came unto Moses," "God spoke," "thus saith the Lord."

When God spoke, it was in real-life situations, not in some never-never land. The Bible views itself as a non-fiction book. When the writers cite other persons or events in Scripture, they cite them as real, not imaginary or allegorical.

For example, Jesus referred to Jonah (Matthew 12:39ff) as a sign of His resurrection. The writer to the Hebrews cites many great Old Testament men and women of faith (Hebrews 11) as examples to the believer. Nowhere is the story of Abraham or Samson looked at in any way but factual. Thus, the Bible itself gives a witness that it should be taken at face value. Scripture interprets Scripture literally.

The nature of God, as revealed in the Bible, makes it clear that He has the ability to communicate with people. Since God created mankind for the purpose of establishing a relationship, it naturally follows that He would use an understandable method. Consequently, we do not need to look for some strange hidden meaning to What the Scripture says for it is very plain.

An example of this would be God's judgment on the wicked whose end God has made clear: "... when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from Heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. And these will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power" (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 NASB).

It also is important to realize that the Bible is aimed at mankind. The people were given the responsibility to heed what God had revealed, and they were expected to take God at His word: "You shall follow the Lord your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him and cling to Him". (Deuteronomy 13:4 NASB),

Any message from a so-called prophet had to be tested against what God had objectively and literally said: "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every Spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God" (I John 4:1, 2 NASB).

There is no double talk or weasel wording in Scripture. The message is clear, and God expects mankind to act responsibly on what He has revealed. The excuse so many people use that the Bible can be understood so many ways and that everyone has his own interpretation just is not true. The issue has been made very clear: "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but He who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him" (John 3:36 NASB.

ADDITIONAL REFERENCE SOURCES

Bernard Ramm, Protestant Biblical Interpretation, Baker Book House, 1970
L. Berkhof, Principles of Biblical Interpretation, Baker Book House, 1950