DEI VERBUM

CHAPTER 1: REVELATION ITSELF

1.1 God chose to reveal himself to make known to us the hidden purpose of his will
1.2 By this revelation then, the deepest truth about God and the salvation of man shines out for
our sake in Christ, who is both the mediator and the fullness of all revelation.
1.3 The divine revelation started in the first parents, then to Abraham to make a great nation, to
the patriarchs and then to Moses and the prophets
1.4 Jesus Christ, therefore, the Word made flesh, was sent as "a man to men,” who speaks the
words of God. Jesus is the one that perfects the revelation.
1.5 Moreover He confirmed with divine testimony what revelation proclaimed, that God is with
us to free us from the darkness of sin and death, and to raise us up to life eternal.
1.6 Through divine revelation, God chose to show forth and communicate Himself and the
eternal decisions of His will regarding the salvation of men.
1.7 God, the beginning and end of all things, can be known with certainty from created reality
by the light of human reason; but teaches that it is through His revelation that those
religious truths which are by their nature accessible to human reason can be known by all
men with ease, with solid certitude and with no trace of error, even in this present state of
the human race.

CHAPTER 2: HANDING ON DIVINE REVELATION

2.1 Christ the Lord commissioned the Apostles to preach to all men that Gospel which is the
source of all saving truth and moral teaching, (1) and to impart to them heavenly gifts.
2.2 The commission was fulfilled, too, by those Apostles and apostolic men who under the
inspiration of the same Holy Spirit committed the message of salvation to writing.
2.3 In order to keep the Gospel forever whole and alive within the Church, the Apostles left
bishops as their successors; "the authority to teach in their own place."(3) This sacred
tradition, therefore, and Sacred Scripture of both the Old and New Testaments are like a
mirror in which the pilgrim Church on earth looks at God.
2.4 And so the apostolic preaching, which is expressed in a special way in the inspired books,
was to be preserved by an unending succession of preachers until the end of time.
2.5 The Apostles warn the faithful to hold fast to the traditions which they have learned either
by word of mouth or by letter and to fight in defense of the faith handed on once and for all
2.6 Now what was handed on by the Apostles includes everything which contributes toward the
holiness of life and increase in faith of the peoples of God; and so the Church, in her
teaching, life and worship, perpetuates and hands on to all generations all that she herself
is, all that she believes.
2.7 This tradition which comes from the Apostles develop in the Church with the help of the
Holy Spirit.
2.8 For there is a growth in the understanding of the realities and the words which have been
handed down. This happens through the contemplation and study made by believers, who
treasure these things in their hearts
2.9 the Church constantly moves forward toward the fullness of divine truth until the words of
God reach their complete fulfillment in her.
2.10 There exists a close connection and communication between sacred tradition and Sacred
Scripture. Sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture form one sacred deposit of the word of
God, committed to the Church.
 2.11 The task of authentically interpreting the word of God, whether written or handed on has
been entrusted exclusively to the living teaching office of the Church, whose authority is
exercised in the name of Jesus Christ.

CHAPTER 3: SACRED SCRIPTURE, ITS INSPIRATION AND DIVINE INTERPRETATION

3.1 Those divinely revealed realities which are contained and presented in Sacred Scripture
have been committed to writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
3.2 For holy mother Church, relying on the belief of the Apostles holds that the books of both
the Old and New Testaments in their entirety, with all their parts, are sacred and canonical.
3.3 In composing the sacred books, God chose men and while employed by Him they made use
of their powers and abilities, so that with Him acting in them and through them, they, as
true authors, consigned to writing everything and only those things which He wanted.
3.4 Therefore "all Scripture is divinely inspired and has its use for teaching the truth and
refuting error, for reformation of manners and discipline in right living, so that the man who
belongs to God may be efficient and equipped for good work of every kind"
3.5 The interpreter of Sacred Scripture, in order to see clearly what God wanted to
communicate to us, should carefully investigate what meaning the sacred writers really
intended, and what God wanted to manifest by means of their words.
3.6 To search out the intention of the sacred writers, attention should be given, among other
things, to "literary forms."
3.7 It is the task of exegetes to work according to these rules toward a better understanding
and explanation of the meaning of Sacred Scripture, so that through preparatory study the
judgment of the Church may mature.
3.8 In Sacred Scripture, therefore, while the truth and holiness of God always remains intact,
the marvelous "condescension" of eternal wisdom is clearly shown,
CHAPTER 4: OLD TESTAMENT
4.1 In carefully planning and preparing the salvation of the whole human race, God chose for
Himself a people to whom He would entrust His promises. First He entered into a covenant
with Abraham (see Gen. 15:18) and, through Moses, with the people of Israel.
4.2 The principal purpose to which the plan of the old covenant was directed was to prepare
for the coming of Christ, the redeemer of all and of the messianic kingdom, to announce
this coming by prophecy and to indicate its meaning through various types.
4.3 God, the inspirer and author of both Testaments, wisely arranged that the New Testament
be hidden in the Old and the Old be made manifest in the New.
CHAPTER 5: NEW TESTAMENT
5.1 Christ established the kingdom of God on earth, manifested His Father and Himself by
deeds and words, and completed His work by His death, resurrection and glorious
Ascension and by the sending of the Holy Spirit.
5.2 Now the writings of the New Testament stand as a perpetual and divine witness to these
realities.
5.3 The Church has always and everywhere held and continues to hold that the four Gospels
are of apostolic origin.
5.4 Indeed, after the Ascension of the Lord the Apostles handed on to their hearers what He
had said and done.
5.5 The sacred authors wrote the four Gospels, selecting some things from the many which had
been handed on by word of mouth or in writing, reducing some of them to a synthesis,
explaining some things in view of the situation of their churches and preserving the form of
proclamation but always in such fashion that they told us the honest truth about Jesus.
 5.6 Besides the four Gospels, the canon of the New Testament also contains the epistles of St.
Paul and other apostolic writings, composed under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

CHAPTER 6: SACRED SCRIPTURE IN THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH

6.1 The Church has always venerated the divine Scriptures just as she venerates the body of the
Lord. Therefore, like the Christian religion itself, all the preaching of the Church must be
nourished and regulated by Sacred Scripture.
6.2 Easy access to Sacred Scripture should be provided for all the Christian faithful. That is why
the Church from the very beginning accepted as her own that very ancient Greek
translation of the Old Testament which is called the septuagint; and she has always given a
place of honor to other Eastern translations and Latin ones especially the Latin translation
known as the vulgate.
6.3 the Church by her authority and with maternal concern sees to it that suitable and correct
translations are made into different languages, especially from the original texts of the
sacred books.
6.4 Therefore, she also encourages the study of the holy Fathers of both East and West and of
sacred liturgies.
6.5 Catholic exegetes and other students of sacred theology, working diligently together and
using appropriate means, should devote their energies, under the watchful care of the
sacred teaching office of the Church, to an exploration and exposition of the divine writings.
6.6 Sacred theology rests on the written word of God, together with sacred tradition, as its
primary and perpetual foundation.
6.7 Therefore, all the clergy must hold fast to the Sacred Scriptures through diligent sacred
reading and careful study, especially the priests of Christ and others, such as deacons and
catechists who are legitimately active in the ministry of the word.
6.8 It devolves on sacred bishops "who have the apostolic teaching" to give the faithful
entrusted to them suitable instruction in the right use of the divine books, especially the
New Testament and above all the Gospels.
6.9 Editions of the Sacred Scriptures, provided with suitable footnotes, should be prepared also
for the use of non-Christians and adapted to their situation.
6.10 In this way, therefore, through the reading and study of the sacred books "the word of God
may spread rapidly and be glorified" and the treasure of revelation, entrusted to the
Church, may more and more fill the hearts of men.