Which text served as the primary model for Puritan writing and moral instruction?

• A. The Koran
• B. The Bible
• C. Homeric Epics
• D. Legal codes of Elizabethan England

Answer: (B)

Scripture, especially the Bible, functioned as the main model for Puritan writing and moral instruction. Puritans treated the Bible as the ultimate authority for belief and daily conduct, so their sermons, journals, and devotional tracts adopt biblical cadence, plain, direct language, and a clear, exhortative aim to shape character and community life. This emphasis on scriptural authority and content gave Puritan prose its distinctive didactic tone and covenantal focus, using biblical stories, commands, and warnings as the template for teaching virtue and discipline. The other options don’t fit this pattern: the Koran reflects a different religious tradition, Homeric epics belong to classical antiquity, and Elizabethan legal codes represent governance rather than the Bible-centered moral pedagogy that guides Puritan writing.