Inspiration

“Of thirteen hundred and forty-three books… written on the subject of Luther… not one is like this one… Some may think that I should have given my authorities and references; but as the book was (made) for plain readers… the mention of which would have interrupted the narrative and been of no service.

“The selections in this volume have all been freshly translated from Luther’s own German or Latin, with the exception of the extracts taken from the sixteenth century translation of the Commentary on the Galatians.

“…why go to such lengths in defining the concept of inspiration and explaining its various implications? Because the number of men who, especially during the last century, and in the last decades with renewed force, have denied and are denying the truth of the inspiration of the Scriptures, has been on the increase and also because the element of doubt in conservative circles, fostered by the idea that a subjective certainty alone would serve as a defense, has caused some uneasiness.