The IMMEDIATE PURPOSES of God's revelation are subservient to its OVERARCHING PURPOSE

It seems clear that those who were used by God in the writing of the Old Testament Scriptures did not do so with the primary thought in mind that their words, centuries down the road, would be a source of encouragement for Jews and Gentiles, united in the one body of Christ. But God’s intent in the writing of Scripture is here expressed in plain words: The immediate purposes of the prophetic ministry, while used as means to bring the Scriptures into existence, are subservient to God’s overarching purpose, which is providing the body with its chief means of encouragement and guidance. What was written “before” or in “earlier times” was written not just for those who lived then—a greater purpose was in sight, as it was written “for our instruction."

James R. White (Scripture Alone)