 The principle that the Bible should be interpreted in the same way as other texts was not the commonplace in Herder’s day that it has become since, but nor was it entirely new with him. In adopting it he was self-consciously following the lead of several recent Bible scholars—in particular, Ernesti, Michaelis, and Semler. However, his secularism is more consistent and radical than theirs, in particular because it foreswears not only any reliance on a divine inspiration of the interpreter but also any assumption that the Bible, as the word of God, must be true and consistent throughout. (For further details, see Section 6 of the  Supplementary Discussion.)