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Desiring Certainty: The Making of Biblical Inerrancy
Discover how biblical inerrancy became a core belief for evangelicals.
In an era of cultural upheaval and religious uncertainty, evangelicals have increasingly turned to biblical inerrancy as their anchor—but at what cost? Desiring Certainty reveals how the quest for certainty has reshaped evangelical faith, replacing trust in God with assent to propositions.
Pastor and scholar Jason A. Hentschel traces seventy-five years of evangelical history, examining how a doctrine meant to unite believers has instead created endless battles over interpretation. He offers compelling insights into how that doctrine was forged by influential evangelical leaders and James Packer, the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy, the Evangelical Theological Society, and more. Most importantly, he shows how even the most careful hermeneutical methods have failed to deliver certainty, leaving evangelicals trapped between their desire for objective truth and the undeniable reality of interpretive pluralism.
As Hentschel surveys the past, he also illuminates a way forward. As an alternative to biblical inerrancy, he explores the more promising concept of community-centered biblical authority. In lieu of intellectual certainty, he urges believers to define faith in terms of trust. Whether you're evangelical, ex-evangelical, or simply curious about the forces shaping evangelicalism today, Desiring Certainty offers essential insights into how the pursuit of an errorless Bible has paradoxically masked the God it was meant to reveal.
In an era of cultural upheaval and religious uncertainty, evangelicals have increasingly turned to biblical inerrancy as their anchor—but at what cost? Desiring Certainty reveals how the quest for certainty has reshaped evangelical faith, replacing trust in God with assent to propositions.
Pastor and scholar Jason A. Hentschel traces seventy-five years of evangelical history, examining how a doctrine meant to unite believers has instead created endless battles over interpretation. He offers compelling insights into how that doctrine was forged by influential evangelical leaders and James Packer, the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy, the Evangelical Theological Society, and more. Most importantly, he shows how even the most careful hermeneutical methods have failed to deliver certainty, leaving evangelicals trapped between their desire for objective truth and the undeniable reality of interpretive pluralism.
As Hentschel surveys the past, he also illuminates a way forward. As an alternative to biblical inerrancy, he explores the more promising concept of community-centered biblical authority. In lieu of intellectual certainty, he urges believers to define faith in terms of trust. Whether you're evangelical, ex-evangelical, or simply curious about the forces shaping evangelicalism today, Desiring Certainty offers essential insights into how the pursuit of an errorless Bible has paradoxically masked the God it was meant to reveal.
272 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 29, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 30, 2026
A very informative book on the rise of the inerrancy movement. It examines the history and philosophical underpinnings and offers valid critiques. It’s a tad academic, but it was based on the author’s dissertation which makes sense. I was already rethinking my position and found this book helpful. The Bible shouldn’t be weaponized nor used as a means to exert power and control over what Christians believe especially if you affirm the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
October 1, 2026
This was an excellent history of inerrancy. The Bible may be inerrant but I’ve yet to meet an inerrant reader.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
An appropriately critical but also quite sensitive account of the ways the doctrine of inerrancy has evolved in modern American evangelical Christianity - and of the desires that animated the preachers and theologians who promoted it.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews