Sola Scriptura #1, Peter, the Rock, and the Church, the Prophecy of Isaiah, and much more about Authority

In this post, following my earlier introduction to the issue of Sola Scriptura, we will begin our dive right into a detailed exploration of the Protestant doctrine and practice of Sola Scriptura, taking a look at what both sides of this debate have to say and treating this whole controversy with Christian respect and justice. In this post, I will prove that the doctrine of Sola Scriptura is not itself faithful to Scripture and thus, according to the Protestant understanding of Scripture, it should be rejected as heresy and should not be espoused. Also, I will affirm, explain, and defend the true Catholic position that Our Lord Jesus Christ established a Church, the Mystical Body of Christ, who are led by the shepherds appointed by Christ, the Apostles and their successors, teaching the truths of the deposit of faith with the authority of Jesus Christ Himself, guided by the Holy Ghost. In this post and in many future posts, we will be tackling the doctrine of Sola Scriptura and the issue of Church/Biblical authority in general from many angles, especially including what Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition, and the testimony of the early Church Fathers all have to say about these issues. We will focus on Scriptural verses for many posts, mainly out of the need to meet on a common ground of authority with our Protestant brethren. And so, let us get right into this important debate.

First, let us refresh our memories in regards to the definition of Sola Scriptura. In an article published by Ligonier Ministries, an international Christian discipleship founded by Reformed/Presbyterian theologian and author R.C. Sproul, fellow Reformed theologian John MacArthur writes:

"The Reformation principle of sola Scriptura has to do with the sufficiency of Scripture as our supreme authority in all spiritual matters. Sola Scriptura simply means that all truth necessary for our salvation and spiritual life is taught either explicitly or implicitly in Scripture."

So, for purposes of this discussion, I will work under the Protestant paradigm of Sola Scriptura, considering some of the Scriptural justification that is offered for this doctrine. In the same article I just quoted, Pastor MacArthur backs up his assertion with several Bible verses which we will now consider here.

First, John MacArthur argues that 2nd Peter 1:19 proves that "Scripture is the highest and supreme authority on any matter on which it speaks." Let's take a look at this verse in the context of the whole passage and see if it offers support for John's assertion. The verse itself reads: "And we have the more firm prophetical word: whereunto you do well to attend, as to a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts." So, following MacArthur's line of argumentation, when Saint Peter describes the prophetical word delivered by the Apostles as "more firm," is he trying to convey to us that Scripture alone, interpreted by the individual believer, is the sole source of authoritative Christian truth? No, that was not the goal of the Apostle Peter.

In this passage of his epistle, Peter was making a comparison between the teachings of the faith delivered to us by Christ, which are infinitely trustworthy, and the false "artificial fables" which were offered by people and groups like the Gnostic heretics, who were prevalent in those early years, or the pagan oracles we read about in Scripture. The "prophetic word" Saint Peter describes as "a lamp shining in a dark place" and "more sure" is not a reference to the books of the New Testament per se. In reality and as is made evident by the context of the passage, the author is describing the fulfillment of prophecy in Our Lord Jesus Christ which is trustworthy because Our Lord is truly the Son of God and Saint Peter and his fellow Apostles were witnesses to His power and glory.

Verses 20 and 21 make an interesting point about the prophecies in the Old Testament Scriptures and the interpretation of these prophecies. The text itself says:

"First of all you must understand this, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, because no prophecy ever came by the impulse of man, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God."

What are these verses saying and how are we to understand them? Saint Peter, when he compares the mere natural to the natural moved and influenced by the supernatural, is illustrating the truth that all Biblical prophecy and teaching comes from the Holy Spirit who works through secondary human causalities. We know that everything the Old Testament prophets declared on the authority of God, moved by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, was true and binding on their hearers. To disobey this teaching authority was to commit grave sin and to endanger one's soul, separating yourself from the truth of the Spirit revealed to the people of God through these men. 

In addition to this, Saint Peter tells us that the prophecies made by the ancient prophets are not mere human declarations, nor are they the personal ideas and opinions of these men. Rather, the holy prophets of God were inspired by the working of the Holy Spirit to teach the truth of God's Revelation to man with a complete and binding authority which is derived from the infinite trustworthiness of God who cannot deceive or be deceived. Indeed, as Paul wrote in 1st Thessalonians 2:13:

"Therefore, we also give thanks to God without ceasing: because, that when you had received of us the word of the hearing of God, you received it not as the word of men, but (as it is indeed) the word of God, who worketh in you that have believed."

In the New Covenant people of God, the Apostles whom Christ appointed (including Paul) were given the special authority from God Himself to teach and to defend the deposit of faith that Christ revealed and entrusted to the Church. Now, at this point in our discussion, we must begin to apply all that we have covered to the doctrine of Sola Scriptura and see if this Protestant belief holds water by being in line with their own sole source of revelation and authority.

I must point out first that Protestants, when affirming the practice of Sola Scriptura, are acting out of good faith, though misguided. When they rightly assert the great value and importance of both reading Scripture and following with all passion and devotion the teachings it conveys to us, no Catholic takes issue with them. However, they stray from the truth, indeed, the truth as revealed in the very texts of Scripture, when they affirm and commend the belief and practice of Sola Scriptura in the Christian life.

Now, I will prove that Saint Peter, in the passages we have looked at, was not teaching the doctrine of Sola Scriptura, nor was he affirming anything related to the various applications Protestants and Protestant communities and denominations make concerning the belief of Sola Scriptura.

As I have shown before and as is so very evident from the whole teaching of Scripture, neither Saint Peter nor any of the New Testament writers referred to or even implicitly indicated the doctrine/practice of Sola Scriptura. When Saint Peter compares the untrustworthy legends fabricated by certain false prophets to the declarations of the true prophets of the Old Testament, there is absolutely no indication that he is suggesting anything close to Sola Scriptura. He is making a true statement that Our Lord's revelation is to be trusted in completely for it is the fulfillment of all the prophesies made to God's people in the Old Covenant. Saint Peter is surely not aware of the practice of Sola Scriptura for 1) Our Lord did not tell the Apostles to write anything down but, being the true Word of God, delivered the deposit of faith to them by the authoritative spoken word and 2) Saint Peter would not and does not see the sharp contrast or competition between the Church and God's Divine Revelation that many Protestants and traditions would describe.

If Saint Peter (or any of the New Testament Christians) were alive today, with Bibles everywhere and easily accessible and with the complete and definite Canon of Scripture (which had not been established for the first three centuries of the Church), he would not believe in or practice the doctrine of Sola Scriptura for, like all the New Testament authors, he believed that neither Our Lord's teachings nor the Apostolic doctrines and practices were restricted to the written word alone, nor did he subscribe to the radically individualistic, subjective/relativistic leaning, and man-made doctrine of Sola Scriptura which asserted that each man has the right to determine the truths of the faith by himself, sitting down with his Bible.



Nowhere in either the New Testament Church nor in all of the early Church Fathers do we see a practice like this. Well, I might add, all/most of the great heretics who challenged the Church and shook the faith of many relied on their own personal interpretation of Scripture (take Arius, Tertullian, Pelagius, Nestorius, Huss, Luther, Calvin, and all the rest) apart from the Tradition held by the Church since the beginning and the teaching authority of the Church which was given to Her by Our Lord Jesus Christ. Because many Protestants are concerned with the idea of a binding Tradition delivered to us by Our Lord and adhered to firmly by the Catholic Church, I will be devoting many other posts to explaining and defending this reality, showing its firm Biblical and Patristic roots.

Throughout his epistles and throughout his declarations in other New Testament writings, we see that Saint Peter 1) did not subscribe to the idea of Sola Scriptura, 2) did not believe in personal interpretation of Scripture to determine the teachings and practices commanded by Our Lord Jesus Christ and His authorities, and 3) believed firmly in the One Church established by Our Lord, composed of those people being sanctified and saved, but also given the authority to teach and to defend the deposit of faith. Now, let's take a look at some verses from Scripture that attest to these statements I have made.

First of all, in the opening sentences of both his first and second epistles, Peter calls himself by the name Our Lord gave Him in Matthew 16:18, namely, 'Cephas' or 'Rock' which translates into English as 'Peter'. We know that Our Lord, in the sixteenth chapter of Matthew's Gospel, was doing something very important which involved Simon Peter. In fact, when Christ first called Peter to be His Apostle in John 1:42, He declared prophetically, "Then he took Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, "Your name is Simon son of John, but you will be called Cephas." (This is the same as Peter and means 'Rock.')" This statement reaches its fulfillment in Matthew Chapter 16 where Our Lord Jesus Christ says to Simon Peter:
  

"And Jesus came into the quarters of Caesarea Philippi: and he asked his disciples, saying: Whom do men say that the Son of man is? But they said: Some John the Baptist, and other some Elias, and others Jeremias, or one of the prophets. Jesus saith to them: But whom do you say that I am? Simon Peter answered and said: Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answering, said to him: Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona [Peter's original name by birth]: because flesh and blood hath not revealed it to thee, but my Father who is in heaven. And I say to thee: That thou art Peter [petros in the Greek of Matthew's account, meaning "a stone or a boulder" according to the famous Biblical lexicon Strong's Concordance which also explains, concerning the word petros, that its usage means and refers to "Peter, a Greek name meaning rock." Much more on this in future posts.] and upon this rock [a pun is being made here which is somewhat lost in the Greek translation of Scripture because 'Rock' in the Greek language is a feminine noun and thus, to describe Simon Peter as 'Rock' involves changing the ending to avoid referring to a male with a female noun/ending. Protestants make a big deal about nothing over these semantics and they totally ignore the fact that Our Lord was almost assuredly speaking Aramaic and not Greek and that both petros and petra are referring to Simon Peter, illustrating the mission Our Lord was calling him to] I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose upon earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven."

Now, it should be evident to any scholar of Sacred Scripture or of the ancient Judaeo-Christian faith that this one, simple verse is absolutely jammed-pack with amazing Biblical and covenantal prophecies being spoken of and fulfilled by Our Lord, profound insight into the concept of vocational calling by God and the Holy Spirit, and the majestic reality of God delivering a share in the power of His own almighty authority to teach and to declare the truths of the holy faith.

Unfortunately, many (or all) Protestants try to lower the greatness of what is occurring in this verse and passage and attempt to explain away the implications of this verse (and several others regarding Church authority). Perfectly illustrating the heretical, man-made idea of private interpretation of Scripture to determine what is true and what to believe in and practice, Protestants (well-meaning though they may be) miss several profound and awesome things about this verse, reading it in light of their preconceived notions about the nature of authority, Scripture, and the church in general, submitting the teachings of Our Lord and all of the other New Testament authors to their personal, subjective interpretive lens. No matter how sincere they might be in reading the Bible with honesty and sincerity, they miss what is going on in this verse and in many, many other verses of Scripture.

For any number of verses in the New Testament, one can easily find dozens of interpretations, applications, and "truths of the faith" stated by any number of people who assume that Christ and the Apostles taught Sola Scriptura or that it is a valid teaching, even though developed by men in the 16th century, and should be practiced by the individual Christian person. Fortunately, we know that none of this bears any sort of semblance to the testimony of Sacred Scripture, to the Fathers of the early Church, or to the basic, logical understanding of the reality of sacred truth from God and the need for authority to convey, teach, and defend the deposit of faith, the Divine Revelation delivered by Our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, having said this, let us return to the passage at hand.

In the whole of Matthew 16, in relation to what takes place in verse 18, there are several indications that something very important and epic is happening here. First of all, looming in the background of this passage (literally) is the fact that Our Lord and His Apostles are in "the quarters of Caesarea Philippi" (Matthew 16:13). "How is this significant?" one might ask. Well, according to Bibleplaces.com, this place was located "25 miles north of the Sea of Galilee and at the base of Mt. Hermon." The website goes on to say that "Caesarea Philippi is the location of one of the largest springs feeding the Jordan River. This abundant water supply has made the area very fertile and attractive for religious worship.  Numerous temples were built at this city in the Hellenistic and Roman periods... Apparently known as Baal Hermon and Baal Gad in the Old Testament period, this site later was named Panias after the Greek god Pan who was worshiped here. There is no record of Jesus entering the city, but the great confession and the transfiguration both occurred in the vicinity of the city (Matt 16:13), then known as Caesarea Philippi... The spring emerged from the large cave which became the center of pagan worship.  Beginning in the 3rd century B.C., sacrifices were cast into the cave as offerings to the god Pan... Adjacent to the sacred cave is a rocky escarpment with a series of hewn niches.  We know that statues of the deity were placed in these niches by depictions of such on coins of the city."

 

So, as we can now see, the geographical and cultural/historical context of the Matthew 16 discourse is set around the pagan, idolatrous, and ancient rocky cavern in Caesarea Philippi. Also, I might add, it would take a journey of about 2-3 days to make the journey on foot to this location, a route approximately 47.9 kilometers or roughly 30 miles long, depending on where you were on the coast of the Sea of Galilee. See the map above to get a basic idea of the geography involved here.

As is evident from the great testimony of Scripture, Our Lord Jesus Christ, being the Logos, the Word Made Flesh, and the true and eternal Son of God is infinitely wise and powerful, fulfilling all prophecy and carrying out everything with profound purpose, amazing meaning, and incredible significance. Our Lord says or does absolutely nothing without imbuing it with immense power and awe-inspiring correlation to the powers and wonders of the Triune God and His epic saga that is His-story. It is for this reason why we will dedicate many, many posts on this blog to the treasure trove of infinite truth and wisdom that is the words of Our Lord in the Gospels. While addressing the issue of Sola Scriptura, I must emphasize time and time again the fact that the Catholic Church throughout the centuries has defended, promoted, preached, and taught the teachings of Our Lord Jesus Christ and His Apostles, against all heresies and for the salvation of the whole world. When declaring, like all of the Fathers of the early Church and the wise and holy Doctors of the Church, that Sacred Scripture is the Word of God delivered by the Word Himself, Incarnate by the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Holy Ghost, that it is infallible, full of indescribable depths of meaning and power, and for every man, we Catholics and the Catholic Church are supporting the teachings about Sacred Scripture that have always been adhered to and practiced by the people of God which is the Church He established, the Mystical Body of Christ which sanctifies and is given the authority of God Himself, guided by the Holy Ghost.

Now, having quickly examined the nature of the teachings and sayings of Our Lord and how everything in Sacred Scripture is full of literal and typological meaning, both of which overlap and make up the true, good, and beautiful purpose of God and His covenant and relationship with the world He so loves, let us dive in and apply of these great and unchanging truths to the declaration of promise and power He gives to the Apostle Simon Peter.

Imagine the scene: Our Lord and the Apostles are standing near or right up against the rocky side of the cliff, right next to the cave where so many pagan, evil things were done, acts of unbelief and hatred against the One True God and Lord of the Universe. It is here that Christ poses the greatest question we can and must ask ourselves to His Apostles: "But who do you say that I am (Matthew 16:15)?" Then, filled with the power of the Holy Ghost who inspires from on high, Simon declares, "Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God (Matthew 16:16)." This is the answer we must all have, namely, a recognition that Our Lord Jesus is the Messiah, the Mediator between God and man, the Son of God, truly and fully human and Divine. This is true faith, hope, and charity, modeled by Simon Peter as an example for all good and faithful servants of Our Lord Jesus Christ. And to think, Peter made this great proclamation with a depraved and hellish cavern looming with open jaws in the background. Truly, this gives us an example of holiness and fidelity to Our Lord, shown through the man Simon Peter who was called to something great.

However, the awesomeness and majesty of this event does not end here. Our Lord, in the next few verses, makes a promise to Simon the Apostle which fulfills the great prophecies of old, made by God to the people through the prophets in the Old Covenant:

"And Jesus answering, said to him: Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona: because flesh and blood hath not revealed it to thee, but my Father who is in heaven. And I say to thee: That thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose upon earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven."

So much greatness is contained in these few declarations of Our Lord. Let us diligently take the time to delve into and mine this treasure.

First, notice that Jesus describes Simon as "Blessed." The trusted Christian Bible study tool, Strong's Concordance, which I used earlier, explains that this term (makarios) can mean "happy, blessed, to be envied." This indicates to us that this word conveys the idea and indeed the reality of being given a gift, a grace, in this context from Our Lord God Himself from whom every good gift comes to us here on Earth (James 1:17). And so, we see that Simon the Apostle is receiving a calling and a gift from God, something special which is not given to all men because it is a grace freely given. Hence, Strong's Concordance describes the usage of this word as follows:

"Makários ("blessed") describes a believer in enviable ("fortunate") position from receiving God's provisions (favor) – which (literally) extend ("make long, large") His grace (benefits). This happens with receiving (obeying) the Lord's inbirthings of faith. Hence, faith (4102 /pístis) and 3107 (makários) are closely associated (Romans 4:5-7,14:22,23; Revelation 14:12,13)."

So, as we can see, something very powerful and holy is happening here, something more than Christ just telling Peter that he is nice to say that He is the Son of God and something much more powerful than a pat on the back in return for Simon Peter's proclamation. We must try to understand the effects of this grace, this gift, and what Christ is calling Simon (whose name was changed to 'Peter', meaning 'Rock') to do. Also, before we move on, I must put forth the Scriptural and historical fact that whenever someone's name was changed, wherever it might be in those ancient times or in the tribes and clans of the centuries, it always indicated a vocation, a call made to someone, indicating a state of new being they have entered into and which resides in them as an enduring mark of character. Indeed, take anyone: Abram who became Abraham, Jacob who was named Israel, Saul becoming known as Paul, and the list just goes on and on. Every single time this act occurred, whether it was directly carried out and declared by God or by a secondary cause He worked through, the covenantal promise made to these men and women were signs and marks of a new life and mission they were to live in and carry out with faith, hope, and charity towards God and their fellow man. 

And as all things are, it is entirely centered around the promise of the Messiah in the Old Covenant and the fulfillment of this in Our Lord Jesus Christ and in His Body which is the Church. In fact, in future posts, we shall see that Our Lady, the Mother of God, the New Eve, is prophesied about by the ancient prophets and is united by a bond of charity to Her Son, the Savior of the world. We shall see it all: The promise of the Holy Ghost, the promise of grace, the promise of the holy works of God called the Sacraments, the promise of the Church (the Mystical Body of Christ), the promise of shepherds to teach and to guide the faithful, the promise of Divine protection and assistance to man, the promise of becoming sons and daughters of the Most High, and most importantly, the center of all things, the coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the one and true Savior of humanity who would draw all men to Himself (John 12:32).

In God's great and unchanging plan for the salvation of the human race, He saw fit to ordain Simon Peter as the shepherd and steward of His Kingdom on Earth, the Church Militant who are striving to enter by the narrow way, carrying their crosses in the footsteps of Our Lord and Savior, and remaining faithful to each and every teaching that Our Lord made to the world.

So, getting deeper and deeper into this amazing discourse, we see that Our Lord fulfills His promise to Simon, having created the covenantal promise and bond in John 1:42 and having given a promise of fulfilling and completing it through a supernatural blessing and commission. Christ declares with authority to Simon that he is to be 'the Rock' upon which His Church would be founded and protected. We must keep in mind that all of these amazing promises are being made by Our Lord to the Apostle Simon Peter in front of the dark, yawning, evil cave dedicated in ancient times to the false gods of ruin and indeed, of demonic Hell.

At this point, let us once again consider the surrounding environment and apply it in an amazing and profound way to the promise of Our Lord to Peter. Notice that the false, pagan, and corrupt gods (who, as we know from the Old Testament and from the personal testimony of exorcists and theologians, were seen as none other than the twisted manifestations of the demons who sought the ruin of all souls) are contrasted in a powerful way to One True God, the God of Abraham and Isaac, the almighty and omniscient First Mover, Source of all being, Giver, Judge, and Supreme Lord and Sovereign of the whole Universe. Such a distinction and contrast could not be more powerful in testifying to the Son of God, Our Lord Jesus Christ. Also, building on this, we know that the evil temple (in a sense, a vilified and corrupt church) built to the pagan god Pan was constructed on a massive bedrock of rock and stone. In an infinitely more real and mighty way, Our Lord promises to build the Church on the foundation of the true Rock, Simon Peter, in fulfillment of prophecy and in a promise of Divine power and authority. It's a simple yet epic contrast: false gods/One True God 'I AM' and false foundational rock/the Rock that is Simon Peter.

This promise of a solid foundation built on the Apostle and bishop Simon Peter is further illustrated in the teachings of Our Lord in Matthew 7:24-27:

"Every one therefore that heareth these my words, and doth them, shall be likened to a wise man that built his house upon a rock, and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and they beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded on a rock and every one that heareth these my words, and doth them not, shall be like a foolish man that built his house upon the sand, and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and they beat upon that house, and it fell, and great was the fall thereof."

Though not referring to either the Church or Peter explicitly, both chapters of Matthew's Gospel, 7 and 16, go hand in hand in regards to their powerful illustration of what Christ intended to do, namely, establish His Church on a firm and resolute foundation, a mighty rock.

Our Lord then declares to Peter that "the gates of hell" shall not prevail against the Church. Like this whole passage and indeed all the words and actions of Christ, there is great meaning and significance in this proclamation. As I have said before, the vast cavern in the background of this event was dedicated to the pagan god Pan and many wicked, depraved things were done in this place. It is very interesting and important to the cultural/geographical context of this passage in Matthew's Gospel that Our Lord and the Apostles were speaking right near this dark and evil place. Indeed, as is evident from a considerable amount of research, scholarship, and archaeology, caves, caverns, and deep fissures and pools in the rock were seen as leading down to the underworld. It is in places like this that the depraved pagan people offered heinous sacrifices to their false gods, believing that they could receive them through the so-called portals of the caves in the rock.

This all weaves together in the words of Christ to Peter, namely, that "the gates of Hell" (or Hades), the powers of sin, apostasy, corruption, schism, and heresy would never dissolve the true Church established by God Himself on the Rock of Simon Peter the Apostle. As with so many passages in Scripture, there is the totally literal meaning of the text and also the deeper typological, archetypal, and prophetical/fulfillment way of understanding the words and actions of God in the world. Such a truth is perfectly illustrated in Matthew Chapter 16 with Our Lord God and His Apostle and Rock Simon Peter, contrasted with the fake, weak, false gods and their alleged and abandoned "foundation" destined for destruction. It is not the pagan temples nor the false churches that will endure until the end of time but the one true Church established by Our Lord on Peter, the Rock.

Now, having examined all of these great revelations of Our Lord to Peter, there is still yet something very powerful and wonderful to happen: The fulfillment of the prophecy made by the Lord God to His good and faithful prophet Isaiah. Let us explore and understand this incomprehensible yet completely real and true prophecy and its fulfillment by Our Lord in His promise and work towards the man Simon Peter.

In Isaiah 22:15-16, God makes a covenant, a promise, an exchange of persons, an act of faithfulness and supernatural charity, with His servant and prophet Isaiah:

"Thus saith the Lord God of hosts: Go, get thee in to him that dwelleth in the tabernacle, to Sobna who is over the temple: and thou shalt say to him: What dost thou here, or as if thou wert somebody here? for thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre here, thou hast hewed out a monument carefully in a high place, a dwelling for thyself in a rock."

In these two verses, God was declaring His wrath on the unfaithfulness and wickedness of the man named Sobna who had been involved in the debauchery against the command of the Lord God as we read in verses 12 and 13 of this passage. This evil man had constructed a false temple on a false foundation, claiming authority and power over and in opposition to God, who is Power and Might Himself and had definite authority on Earth, His Kingdom on Earth, dedicated to Him and His Heavenly Kingdom. Just like the false, pagan temple of Pan constructed on the false foundation of stone in Caesarea Philippi, Sobna had, as we read in Isaiah, set himself up in the place of God and God's kingdom and people. Truly, the gates of Hell were at work over and against God's people, striving for their victory and conquest of sin and darkness.

Moving on in this passage from Isaiah, let us look at verses 19 through 23:

"And I will drive thee out From thy station, and depose thee from thy ministry. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Helcias, and I will clothe him with thy robe, and will strengthen him with thy girdle, and will give thy power into his hand: and he shall be as a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah. And I will lay the key of the house of David upon his shoulder: and he shall open, and none shall shut: and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten him as a peg in a sure place, and he shall be for a throne of glory to the house of his father."

Now we come to the great fulfillment of this prophecy made in the Old Covenant through Isaiah. In order to refresh our memories and to better see the great plan, providence, and power of God made manifest, let us take another look at Matthew 16:19, "And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose upon earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven."

Putting these two passages together, the one from Isaiah 22 and from Matthew 16, one ought to get chills, awed by the fulfillment of prophecy and the power and work of the Lord God in establishing the Church on Simon Peter. It gets even more amazing and full of might and significance when Our Lord, perfectly fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah 22:22, gives Simon Peter the keys, not any old keys, but the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. This is undoubtedly and unequivocally a reference to authority: Authority to teach, to declare and defend truth, and to lead and guide as one appointed by God and given authority from God Himself to carry out this mighty mission. The context of both passages are referencing in clear and powerful terms the fact that the Lord God, the true King and Ruler of all things, chooses to establish a living and solid authority on Earth, built on an appointed steward and shepherd, Eliakim in the prophecy of Isaiah, and the Apostle Simon Peter in the Church established by Our Lord on the foundation that is the Rock, Peter himself, in the New and everlasting Covenant family and Kingdom of God on Earth. The context is so clearly about authority to lead, guide, and teach the people of God. Now, to back up this point, let's examine what the power of the keys meant both in Judaism/the Old Covenant people and in the Church Christ established/the New Covenant family.

To help us out with this, Biblegateway.com has some very useful material and information for us to work with and provide (or at least begin to provide) the start of our investigation into what the keys and the power of the keys all mean and how this ties into a foundation of truth and a living, God-ordained authority. Here's what this website for Biblical study and exegesis has to say:

"Many ancient peoples thought of the realms of spiritual destiny as entered by doors, and of the gods and angelic beings or the demons as having the keys to those realms. Among the holders of such keys were Shamash (Babylonia), Dike (Greece), Janus (Rome), Aion-Kronos (Mithraism) and Helios (Neo-Platonic period). The underworld, too, had key-keepers: Nedu (Babylonia), Pluto, Aiacos, Persephone and Selena-Hecate (Greece), Anubis (magic lit.) and Isis (mystery religions)." This bit of information illustrates the fact we have posited already, namely, that the evil and false foundations, gods, and authorities are overcome, conquered, and completely surpassed by Our Lord and His Church, teaching with true authority and guided by the Holy Spirit. This corresponds perfectly with what we saw in Isaiah 22 when the wicked foundation, rock, and man-made authority was thrown down by the Lord God who, in its place, created a new foundation and rock, ordaining and calling the righteous man Eliakim to take up an office and power with a mission. In the prophecy, we see that the Lord did several things for this man Eliakim: Clothing him with the robe, girdle, and power from the usurper Sobna who was full of pride and all kinds of wickedness.

Before we continue our investigation into the awesome power and function of the keys given to Eliakim and then fulfilled in Peter, let us quickly take a look at what Strong's Concordance has to say about the threefold realities of the robe, the girdle, and the power mentioned in Isaiah 22:21. Obviously, the text of Sacred Scripture has something more in mind than the basic, human facts that people need to wear clothes and that some people have power, whatever that may mean to the individual reader.

Strong's Concordance, when listing references the word 'tunic' has in other places of Scripture, says that it can describe "a holy linen tunic, of high priest" and indeed "Shebna's official tunic." The context clearly indicates a teaching and leading authority established by God. That is why Strong's also gives the phrase "God sets up" as a translation/definition of the name and word Eliakim. As is evident from Isaiah 22, Eliakim was given the office and power of the deposed and self-made Sobna. In fact, Strong's describes the definition and meaning of 'Sobna' as "secretary and majordomo of Hezekiah." Clearly, this is all about man-made authority versus the authority given by God to a certain man and office of authority ordained by God to teach and to use the power of the keys to bind and loose.

In regards to the girdle mentioned in Isaiah, Strong's notes the following: "girdle, of high priest, Exodus 28:4, 39; Exodus 39:29; Leviticus 8:7; Leviticus 16:4; of priests, Exodus 28:40; Exodus 29:9; Leviticus 8:13; of high official, Isaiah 22:21." Once again, the context is clearly that of the authority given by God to teach and to lead to certain men holding a certain office.

Now, we come to the important mention of the delegation of authority, obviously that of a king to his faithful steward. In the words of the book of Isaiah itself, "[I, God] will hand your authority over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the people of Judah." The text is crystal clear: God is giving someone, as a king to a steward, the authority to teach and to guide in the Kingdom. Indeed, this steward exercises the role of father over those he is leading, a title given all through the Old and New Testaments to certain men to designate and manifest their role and mission received from God in their ministry to His people and indeed, His family.

And so, let us begin to tie in the reality and concept of authority in with that of the keys and the power of the keys. Biblegateway.com helps us out with some explanations:

"Judges 3:25 refers to the key to the doors of King Eglon’s private quarters; in this case alone is the word “key” used non-fig. Isaiah 22:22 refers to the investing of Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, with the authority of comptroller of David’s household: “I [Yahweh] will lay the key of the house of David on his shoulder; what he opens no man shall shut and what he shuts no man shall open” (NEB). Of this crucial verse, Bright comments most significantly for an understanding of NT usage: “The key, carried slung from the shoulder, was the symbol of the major-domo’s authority to admit or deny access to the king...” (Peake, in loc.). Consistent with Isaianic usage, the rabbinics refer to the giving of keys as a symbol of the granting of authority."

Throughout the New Testament, the motif and indeed the reality of the keys and the power they represent are brought up time and again. We must understand the fact that Scripture used symbolic imagery and realities to describe many things and how the many and different things tie into these realities, such as the keys and the rock or foundation. Indeed, Ephesians 2:20 draws on this idea, describing "the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the Cornerstone." All educated Biblical scholars and readers must understand this basic fact, namely, that the same metaphor and symbolic reality and figure may be used to describe more than one entity, person, function, office, or action. This method is used throughout the books of the Bible. Take terms and realities like light, a lion, fire, death, a rock, a foundation, ect. In their haste to ignore the clear teachings of Our Lord, the prophecy (Isaiah 22) and its fulfillment (Matthew 16), and the helpful testimony of the early Fathers, Protestants try to discredit the plain teaching, fearing its consequences, of Scripture. Despite what is evident and what we have seen, they very wrongly assert that we Catholics are being the man-centered ones just because of the fact that we follow the plain teaching of Scripture! We must understand how Our Lord and the entirety of Scripture used and understood the concepts we have been laboring over in this post. Once they clear out their own biases and examine the Scriptures and the helpful testimony of the early Church Fathers, we are able to have a fruitful discussion and, how it usually goes once all emotion and prejudice is replaced with clear understanding and the truths of the faith, the way begins to be made straight and the separated sons and daughters of Our Lord and His Church realize where the fullness of truth, grace, and the Spirit are found.



And so, just by an examination of these two passages, the one from Isaiah and the one from Matthew, we begin to have a basic outline for the realities that the keys represent: That of the exercise of authority. It is clearly not a one-and-done thing but an enduring office and ministry, a covenant between God and man, and a promise of an authority guided by the Holy Spirit to teach, to bind and loose using the power of the keys. In fact, the evangelical Christian Biblical scholar F.F. Bruce, who has done great work in the realms of Biblical scholarship and history, writes:

"The keys of a royal or noble establishment were entrusted to the chief steward... So in the new community which Jesus was about to build, Peter would be, so to speak, chief steward."

In addition to this, R.T. France, a New Testament scholar, wrote in his book published by the respected company Zondervan the following:

"The terms [he is referring to 'binding' and 'loosing'] thus refer to a teaching function, and more specifically one of making halakhic pronouncements [see here for an in-depth exploration of this reality] which are to be 'binding' on the people of God."

M. Eugene Boring, a Christian Biblical professor, wrote in another book published by Zondervan:

"The 'kingdom of heaven' is represented by authoritative teaching, the promulgation of authoritative Halakha that lets heaven's power rule in earthly things... Peter's role as holder of the keys is fulfilled now, on earth, as chief teacher of the church... The keeper of the keys has authority within the house as administrator and teacher (cf. Isa 22:20-25, which may have influenced Matthew here). The language of binding and loosing is rabbinic terminology for authoritative teaching, for having the authority to interpret the Torah and apply it to particular cases, declaring what is permitted and what is not permitted. Jesus, who has taught with authority (7:29) and has given his authority to his disciples (10:1, 8), here gives the primary disciple the authority to teach in his name -- to make authoritative decisions pertaining to Christian life as he applies the teaching of Jesus to concrete situations in the life of the church."

Reformed scholar Eduard Schweizer tells us the following in his own work:

"In Jewish interpretation, the key of David refers to the teachers of the Law (exiled in Babylon); according to Matthew 23:13, the 'keys of the Kingdom of heaven' are in the hands of the teachers of the Law. A contrast is here drawn between them and Peter. He is thus not the gatekeeper of heaven, but the steward of the Kingdom of heaven upon earth. His function is described in more detail as 'binding and loosing' ....the saying must from the very outset have referred to an authority like that of the teachers of the Law. In this context, 'binding" and 'loosing' refer to the magisterium to declare a commandment binding or not binding... For Matthew, however, there is only one correct interpretation of the Law, that of Jesus. This is accessible to the community through the tradition of Peter... Probably we are dealing here mostly with teaching authority, and always with the understanding that God must ratify what Petrine tradition declares permitted or forbidden in the community."

And so, having examined this wealth of information and Scriptural facts, let us make some basic but important conclusions:

1) To proclaim the faith and to plant His reign, Christ sends His apostles and their successors. He gives them a share in His own mission. From Him, they receive the power to act in His Person.

2) The Bishops, established by the Holy Spirit, succeed the Apostles. They are "the visible source and foundation of unity in their own particular Churches." See Acts 6:6, Ephesians 2:19-20, 1st Timothy 3:1, Acts 1:20-26, 2nd Timothy 1:6, and 2nd Timothy 3:14 for some verses which illustrate the reality of Apostolic succession.

  

3) The Lord made St. Peter the visible foundation of His Church. He entrusted the keys of the Church to him. The bishop of the Church of Rome, successor to St. Peter, oversees the bishops and the flock throughout the whole world, teaching and guiding them with the God-given authority from on high. In addition to all of the information we covered in this post, consider the following verses: Revelation 3:7, Galatians 1:18, Acts 2:14-36, Luke 22:31-32, Acts 15, Matthew 10:2-4, John 21:15-17, Acts 1:15-26, Acts 5:3-11, Acts 8:9-25, Acts 10:9-43, and Matthew 23:1-3.

4) The "binding" and "loosing" refers to the Magisterium (the teaching authority of the early community, which Jesus was establishing through His Apostles in His Church) to declare a commandment or teaching binding or not binding, forbidden or allowed, and God in heaven will ratify, seal, or confirm that decision made on earth. See the following verses: Luke 10:16, 1st Timothy 3:15, Hebrews 13:17, Matthew 28:18-20, Ephesians 3:10, John 11:47-52, Matthew 23:1-3, 1st John 4:6, Ephesians 2:19-20, Matthew 18:15-18, Acts 15:30-31, Acts 16:4, John 14:16-18, John 14:25, John 16:13, 1st Peter 5:2-3, 2nd Peter 2:1-2, 2nd Peter 3:16, Ephesians 4:11-16, and Galatians 1:8.

At this point in our conversation, as we are nearing the end of this long but important post, I need to make several remarks and comments about some different things.

First, I can understand how hard it might be for our separated Protestant brethren who truly love Our Lord Jesus Christ but lean on their own understanding, claiming to be personally led by the Holy Spirit to believe this and that. Misreading references in the New Testament to the power and work of the Holy Spirit in the Church, our Protestant friends wrongly posit the subjective notion of personal interpretation of Scripture as the means of religious truth and the means by which the truths of the faith are established and sealed as true and binding. As we have seen and shall see in the near future, such an idea is not at all faithful to the teachings of Our Lord, His Apostles, the entire New Testament, the Fathers and Doctors of the Church throughout the ages, and the sense and practice of the faithful since the beginning.

This subjective and relativistic idea has its origins in the thought and writings of men like Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin but are taken to an even greater extreme by evangelicals today in places such as America where it truly manifests the inherent wrongness and unbiblical nature of this doctrine and practice. Yes, the Catholic Church affirms, the Holy Spirit is at work in the world and in the hearts of every believer but, there is absolutely no justification for Sola Scriptura on these or even similar grounds. It is an undeniably true fact that the Holy Spirit is not the Author of schism, heresy, disunity, or falsehood but is the Author of life, of truth, and of obedience. And so, as should be so clear by the nature, essence, and history of Protestantism, we must renounce all of the heresies it has brought into the world and indeed, into the very bosom and ark of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. 

We must affirm what is right and correct in the Protestant churches, denominations, and beliefs but always point out to them that whatever truth, goodness, and beauty they have, it is only and always derived from the Church Our Lord Jesus Christ founded to save and to teach all men. She is the Mystical Body of Christ which all men must belong to in order to be saved for indeed, all grace and truth comes from Her on account of the fact that Our Lord established Her as His Body and "the pillar and foundation of truth" (1st Timothy 3:15). 

For the early Christians, there was no New Testament Scripture because the Canon of Scripture had not yet been declared as definite, nor did all of the individual books of the New Testament exist for several decades. Also, no one in either the Apostolic or post-Apostolic period of the Church adhered to anything close to resembling the Protestant doctrine of Sola Scriptura or the private interpretation of Scripture. 

The unanimous teaching of the New Testament and the early Church Fathers gives us a simple but powerful declaration about the relationship between Divine Revelation and authority: Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God possessing all authority, came to Earth to save humanity from their sins and to establish the Mystical Body of Christ composed of those who have received sanctifying grace and who are journeying towards the Kingdom of Heaven. This Church which Christ established had and will forever have the ability to teach with authority, led by the guiding protection of the Holy Spirit, to declare and defend the truths of the faith. Our Lord never wrote anything down nor did He command for anything to be written down in regards to His authoritative teachings. Rather, He said quite simply but powerfully:

"All power is given to me in heaven and in earth. Going therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world (Matthew 28:18-20)."

The teachings of Our Lord did not become authoritative or binding, demanding the full assent of supernatural faith, when they were restricted to the written word. Rather, His teachings were and will always bear the completeness of every authority, demanding the full assent of faith whenever and wherever they were and are preached.

Also, nowhere in Scripture does it teach that everything Our Lord delivered in His Divine Revelation to the world is contained in the Scriptures alone. Nowhere does the New Testament teach that the New Testament contains everything the Christian needs to know nor does the text even imply it. Our Protestant friends and Protestant apologists will often pick out verses which talk about the reliability of Scripture, the importance of Scripture, the fact that Scripture is God-breathed and is the Word of God, that it is a sword, that it equips the believer, and that its teachings are true. However, the Catholic Church not only reluctantly but firmly believes and defends all of these true statements as revealed by God to man. After all, the Church Christ established has the God-given authority to teach and to teach with authority, binding and loosing as we have seen, exercising the great gift and power of the keys.

To summarize, think of it like a three-legged stool. If even one leg is missing on such a stool, it cannot ever hope to stand and fulfill the purpose it was made and crafted for. In the same way, the Divine Revelation of God which comes to us through Our Lord Jesus Christ makes up two of the three legs on our stool: Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition, the written and unwritten teachings of Our Lord Jesus Christ who taught all things with infinite authority. Also, the third leg of the stool is needed, namely, the teaching authority of the Church which Christ delegated to Her. It is built on the Apostles and their successors, the bishops of the Church, united under the bishop of Rome, the successor of Simon Peter who held and conveyed the office of being Rock and bearing the keys. This is what it means to be Apostolic. This is what it means to teach with authority: Following what we know Our Lord Jesus Christ did, taught, and instituted in History.

At this point in our conversation and really at any given point in the entire conversation, our Protestant friends could attempt to make an argument that, in the end, is only based on a lack of faith in the words and actions of Our Lord and the Apostles, an argument based on a natural, human approach to the Church, reducing all authority to just "opinions," or an argument based on what they feel about Scripture. All of these assertions, though understandable, are nevertheless extremely flawed, unscriptural, unreasonable, and express a lack of understanding history, though not necessarily an expression of bad intent or willful ignorance.

Seeing all of this, a Protestant might ask why we need the Catholic Church, saying that it might be okay and all, but all that really matters is just having faith and reading the Bible for yourself. This statement, however, is itself not faithful to Scripture as we have seen and will see in future posts. Also, it has several grave errors and dilemmas that cannot be dealt with under the Protestant interpretive/soteriological (meaning, that which has to do with salvation) paradigm. Here are some important and pressing questions to consider for now: 

  

1) If Sola Scriptura is true, how is one to understand and separate dogma (a teaching which must be believed in with the whole assent of faith) from mere opinion? 

2) In our salvation, is faith alone all that is required? If so, what is one to do with verses like James 2:14-26, Matthew 25:31-46, Matthew 7:21-23, John 5:29, Luke 10:25-28, Romans 2:13, Romans 2:5-11, Ezekiel 33:13-14, Romans 1:4-6, Romans 6:16, Romans 16:26, Ezekiel 18:26-30, 1st Corinthians 13:2-3, Ephesians 5:4-7, 1st John 3:21-24, 2nd Corinthians 5:10, Luke 8:13, Philippians 2:12-13, 1st John 3:7, James 1:4, Matthew 19:16-21, Matthew 5:19-20, Hebrews 10:26-29, 2nd Peter 1:5-11, 1st Corinthians 4:4-5, 1st Cor. 9:27, Galatians 5:6, 2nd Timothy 2:11-12, Romans 3:25, 1st John 5:2-4, 2nd Peter 2:20-21, John 3:5, Matthew 18:32-35, Romans 11:22, Luke 13:6-9, Hebrews 6:4-8, Romans 8:13, Romans 7:6, Matthew 8:34, Revelation 21:7-8, Matthew 10:22, Romans 6:16, Matthew 12:36, 2nd Corinthians 3:3, and many, many more verses about true contrition, the Holy Sacraments Our Lord gave us, the love of God in our hearts, how grace actually involves an inward change when we are adopted as sons and daughters of God, and how good works as a result of faith actually work in us to make us grow in holiness of life, in righteousness, and in fellowship with God. Plus, we haven't even began to look at what the earliest Church believed and taught. When we do, however, we shall see the absolute non-existence of this doctrine of Sola Fide. The doctrine of salvation by faith alone (Latin: Sola Fide) is, as the highly respected and learned Anglican scholar of Church history and doctrine Alister McGrath described "a theological novum." This very tenuous issue of salvation will be dealt with thoroughly in future posts, explaining the forever true belief and practice of the Church.

3) Can one verse be presented from the words of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Gospels that teaches the doctrine/practice of Sola Scriptura?

4) Can one verse be shown from the entirety of either the New Testament or the Fathers of the early Church which teaches that the Church Our Lord established here on Earth is a) Composed of people who believe in salvation by faith alone, i.e. it is invisible, b) Lacks a foundational teaching authority, and c) Is not made up of a hierarchy (a sacred order) of Bishops, Presbyters (Priests/ministers of Our Lord), and Deacons (those who minister and assist the bishops and priests)?

To conclude this post, I affirm (with my Protestant brethren) that all of Scripture is God-breathed and useful in the life of the Christian, that Our Lord's words in the Gospels must be believed in and practiced, that the Apostles' teachings must be believed in and practiced, and that "Every best gift, and every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no change, nor shadow of alteration." And so, echoing the heartfelt and true desire and command of Our Lord Jesus Christ, I pray and wish, "Holy Father, keep them in thy name whom thou has given me; that they may be one, as we also are."