John 21:25

And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen.

The Bible is a very long book. When printed on normal paper in a normal font, a Bible is as big as a large dictionary. Thus, many Bibles are printed on thinner paper and/or in a small font. They would be quite expensive if it weren’t for the extraordinary efforts of many saints to keep them affordable.

Still, every book in the Bible is brief compared to what it could have been. This is especially true of the gospels. Each page is a significant accomplishment. There was no paper back then. John either wrote on papyrus (made from the pith of the papyrus plant), on parchment (animal skin), or on vellum (premium parchment made from calf skin). It was difficult in any case.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papyrus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parchment

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vellum

The brevity issue can affect how we interpret some passages. The constraints of brevity should not be ignored when considering how the Bible is inspired.

If one interpretation implies serious omissions, while another implies that the text is nearly comprehensive, the second should be favored (all else being equal).

This is the Bible exegesis version of Occam’s razor.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Occams-razor

John wrote his gospel late in life. His use of the name “Tiberias” for the Sea of Galilee indicates a date after AD 70. Apparently, the other gospels preceded that date by many years and, presumably, John was familiar with them. Anyone who knew John would want him to see what the others had written.

Consider the implication. For John to see one of the other gospels or epistles, someone had to make a copy by hand. Clicking a button to forward something was still a couple of thousand years away.

That copying is one of the most important things the early Christians did. Where would we be without their holy labor?

And don’t miss the prophetic nature of John’s final words. I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

Now that many things, including the DEEP, exist electronically, we have infinitely more “room” for writings about Jesus. If every electronic copy of all the works was printed out, it would get crowded.

These Monday—Friday DEEPs are written by Mike Slay. The Saturday DEEPs are written by Matt Richardson. To subscribe to all the DEEPs click here:

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The weekly study guides, which include the Monday–Friday devotionals plus related questions for discussion or meditation, are available for download here:

https://www.ailbe.org/resources/itemlist/category/91-deep-studies

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ESV stands for the English Standard Version. © Copyright 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved. NIV stands for The Holy Bible, New International Version®. © Copyright 1973 by International Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. KJV stands for the King James Version.