This article considers the frequent cry for application of the Scriptures without the hard work of studying them. It shows from history that the doctrine of perspicuity makes interpretation hard rather than easy.

This essay evaluates how the claims for the clarity of Scripture have been presented in Protestant hermeneutics. The author is interested in the various characterizations of perspicuity by Protestants and the means employed in its defence, and the value of an affirmation of claritas Scripturae.