Belgic Confession, Article 05: The Authority of Scripture
This excerpt from Article 5 of the Belgic Confession articulates the Reformed doctrine of Scripture's authority, emphasizing that the Bible's canonical status rests not on ecclesiastical approval but on the internal testimony of the Holy Spirit and the self-authenticating nature of Scripture itself. The article presents a foundational Reformed principle: that believers receive Scripture as authoritative for faith because God's Spirit witnesses to its divine origin and because Scripture's fulfilled prophecies demonstrate its truth. This text is essential for understanding how Protestant Reformed theology establishes the foundation for all doctrine and practice in Scripture alone.
Article 5: The Authority of Scripture We receive all these books and these only as holy and canonical, for the regulating, founding, and establishing of our faith.And we believe without a doubt all things contained in them—not so much because the church receives and approves them as such but above all because the Holy Spirit testifies in our hearts that they are from God, and also because they prove themselves to be from God.For even the blind themselves are able to see that the things...