A Disputation on Holy Scripture (Whitaker)

Roman Catholic vs. Protestant debates over biblical authority are more heated today than they've been in decades. In this charged climate, Whitaker's monumental 700-page masterpiece stands as the Reformation's most comprehensive and devastating critique of Rome's position on Scripture. With umatched clarity and precision, this scholarly tour de force systematically dismantles Rome's arguments while establishing the Protestant position that Scripture alone is the final authority for Christian faith and practice.

In this monumental work, William Whitaker addresses six significant areas where Rome had deviated from the truly catholic doctrine of Sola Scriptura. Interacting largely with two of Rome’s most formidable defenders, Whitaker answers questions regarding the number of canonical books, the authentic translations of Scripture, the authority of Scripture, the perspicuity of Scripture, the proper interpretation of Scripture, and the perfection of Scripture. Whitaker’s A Disputation on Holy Scripture was an important rejoinder for Protestants in the sixteenth century and stands as a worthy guide to God’s Word today. 

Contents

Analysis of the Disputation
Preface by the Editor
Epistle Dedicatory to Lord Burghley
Preface to the Controversies 

Question the First: The Number of the Canonical Books of Scripture
Question the Second: The Authentic Edition and Versions of the Scriptures
Question the Third: The Authority of Scripture
Question the Fourth: The Perspicuity of Scripture
Question the Fifth: The Interpretation of Scripture
Question the Sixth: The Perfection of Scripture, against Human Traditions

To the Christian Reader 
Index 

Endorsement

“Since the Reformation only a few godly servants of the truth have invested the time and effort necessary to produce for God’s people a full-orbed defense of Scriptural sufficiency against those who would subject Scripture to external authorities. William Whitaker was one of those servants, and his work should be carefully studied by all concerned shepherds of Christ’s flock.”
—Dr. James White, Director, Alpha and Omega Ministries 

“Whitaker’s Disputation on Holy Scripture is one of the most eminent treatments, both polemical and positive, of the authority and interpretation of Scripture written during the post-Reformation era. In its polemic, the Disputation offers a detailed refutation of Roman Catholic argumentation, specifically that of Cardinal Bellarmine, against Protestant assumptions concerning the integrity and authority of Scripture. In its positive statements, the Disputation provides one of the clearest and most precise explanations of the Protestant understanding of the interpretation of Scripture. Although written as a defense of the Reformed faith of the English church, the Disputation was respected and used as a source of doctrinal argument not only by the English but also by the Continental Reformed and the Lutherans, being drawn on extensively by the eminent Lutheran theologian Johann Gerhard.”
—Richard A. Muller, scholar in residence for Reformation and post-Reformation studies, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary.

About the Author

William Whitaker (1548–1595) was Regius Professor of Divinity and master of St. John’s at the University of Cambridge. He was an ardent defender of the Reformed doctrines of grace and an admired defender of Protestantism against the errors of Roman Catholicism. Described as “the pride and ornament of Cambridge,” few English divines were held in higher esteem by their contemporaries. Even Robert Bellarmine, the Roman Catholic scholar, was so impressed by Whitaker’s genius that he hung Whitaker’s portrait in his study.