In 'verbal inspiration' what is signified by the word 'verbal'? Some confusion exists in my mind because a common use of the word is to mean 'oral' e.g. in a workplace you have verbal warning and a written warning. I'm guessing that when talking about the inspiration of the bible, it means simply 'textual' and 'written'? Please correct me if I've got that wrong.

If so, isn't it obvious? The only case I can think of where it would usefully clarify things is if someone thought the revelation of the bible consists in only the events it records rather than as the bible itself. Am I missing something?

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Paul
No denomination, affiliated with FIEC
"Deliver me from worldly dispositions, for I am born from above and destined for glory" - Valley of Vision
"They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation" - Peter

Verbal should not ever mean "oral." That is a clear misuse by many as you describe in your example above. No lawyer, for example, will ever use the term "verbal" in a contract, because it means "with/of/by words" and has no distinction with writing.

With respect to the Scriptures then, "verbal" means that the very words of the Bible are inspired, not just the "concepts" as many modern day attackers of Scripture assert. In this case verbal refers to writing, because the object (the Bible) is written, not spoken.

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Fred Greco
Senior Pastor, Christ Church PCA (Katy, TX)
Christ Church Blog

"The heart is the main thing in true religion...It is the hinge and turning-point in the condition of man's soul. If the heart is alive to God and quickened by the Spirit, the man is a living Christian. If the heart is dead and has not the Spirit, the man is dead before God." (J.C. Ryle)