Sometimes it was revealed to the OT authors, at least in outline, who they were writing about and who they were writing for (1 Peter 1:10-12). But other times (e.g. Nehemiah's journal) they almost certainly weren't aware that all they were writing was intended to point to Jesus (John 5:39-40), that it was all for teaching an audience in the distant future (Rom. 15:4), all for making us wise for salvation in Christ Jesus (2 Tim. 3:15). They had their own intention in writing but, when we look at the whole of Scripture, the beautiful tapestry of the canon and the explicit statements about Scripture, we find that there is also a divine intention and a divine referent - Christ. A friend has drawn my attention to a helpful quote from Kevin Vanhoozer: The prophets did not fully understand what they were talking about, but God did. It is not the sense, then, that is “fuller” but the “referent” ( referens plenior ) and the intended audience (1 Cor 10v11). The sense of Scripture is
In December 1860, in a long magazine article scathing of evangelicals in the Church of England, the anonymous critic makes one notable concession: "But the Evangelical party is redeemed by the working of its parishes. It is to its credit that it is foremost in united schemes of charity. It is to its credit, to some extent, that foreign missions have so increased and spread. But that which saves it from wreck,which atones for its arbitrary social maxims, which partly conceals its obnoxious polemic organisation, is the fact that the Evangelical clergy as a body, are indefatigable in ministerial duties, and devoted, heart and soul, to the manifold labours of Christian love. The school, the savings bank, the refuge, all the engines of parochial usefulness, find in them, for the most part, hearty supporters and friends... "It is not necessary to dwell long on the subject; it is patent and easily appreciated. But when the history of the Evangelical party is written, it will be told