The opponents of christianity often use them in their attempts to discredit christianity. To be a christian is to be a follower of jesus christ. Other translations are indicated by standard letters, such as kjv king james version, niv new international version, and tyndale william tyndales translation. What about the apparent discrepancies in the bible. Abradale press, 1965 this is an adaptation of an article originally written by former interim president and current member of the board of directors frank zindler. Contradictions in the resurrection account bob seidensticker. Aug 12, 2010 unless otherwise stated, bible passages quoted in this chapter are from the new king james version nkjv. Apr 24, 2012 is it true that the bible contradicts itself. So what would happen if, in the same sentence, i said, dear lord, between you and me, the holy ghost is kind of a jerkoff, but im calling on your name. Jesus was born in bethlehem and jesus was not born in bethlehem. Bible difficulties, or apparent bible contradictions, exist. Book of revelation explained a testimony of jesus christ.
Of course the orthodox sought to repel all these claims. Modern scholars find inconsistencies in the old testament and torah. So, for example, if a verse in the new testament referred back to a verse in the old testament, there was an arc drawn between the two chapters they were in the vertical lines at the bottom represent the number of verses in that chapter. Of course, if the bible does contain inaccuracies, it. Genesis god creates light and separates light from darkness, and day from night, on the first day. Here, lenny responds to several objecions and shows why the approach of these skeptics fails.
Its remarkable how many critics refer to their list of contradictions when they reject the bible, but have never read the bible itself. No matter if youre christian, jewish, islamic or atheist, we can all agree on one point. While some passages might seem to show the bible contradicting itself, they can usually be understood correctly by applying one or more of the following principles. This name indicates the meaning of revelation it uncovers matters that had been hidden and discloses events that would happen long after it was written.
Thats because the bible is a collection of writings from different authors writing at different times. Joseph jensen wrote, no better explanation has as yet been found of. Study, on alleged discrepancies of the bible, in the. Taming bible discrepancies christian research institute.
To be fully god means freedom from finite forms and from helplessness, and to be full man means the absence of divinity. Demolishing supposed bible contradictions volume 1. See, for example, haley, alleged discrepancies of the bible, p. My purpose is to expose a large number of the contradictions and discrepancies in the christian bibles to disprove fundamentalist claims that every word in the bible is true. I dont know how else to respect the bible and what i read there but by arriving at a conclusion like this. The biggest contradiction in the bible christianity. If written by a perfect being, then it must not contradict itself, as a collection of books written by different men at different times over many centuries would be expected to contradict each other. T he bible has many seeming contradictions within its pages. To do so, one would first have to not read the book, which is the practice of most christians. What is incredible about the bible is not its divine authorship.
In 2009, graphic designer andy marlow used harrisons work as his inspiration to created a similar visual for sam harris reason project. However, it is actually 66 books that were written over a period of about 1600 and by at least 40 different men. Contradictions, theyll say, are two sentences of the form a and nota. Bible contradictions the alleged inaccuracies and errors that fill todays bible translations are a major intellectual barrier for many skeptics. When you hold the bible, you might think of it as one book.
Clemens professor of biblical studies at eastern university in st. The book of revelation in the bible is one of the more difficult books of the bible to understand. Revealing the hidden contradictions in the bible and why we dont know about them 2010, by bart ehrman, publ. The book of mormon teaches that little children are not capable of sin because they do not have a sinful nature moroni 8.
The ethical problem of human sacrifice is explained both by archer in his book, and by john haley in his alleged discrepancies of the bible. This book is essential for your personal library because it explains questionable passages, helps answer skeptics questions, and contains valuable resource material. In attempting to explain some of the bibles alleged errors, i am standing. Many times skeptics will present a list of socall contradictions such as whether god repents, the time of jesus death, and when peter denied him. This time, though, he only included arcs representing contradictions in the bible. Moreover, it is not just that the early documents are silent about so much of jesus that came to be recorded in the gospels, but that they view him in a substantially different way as a basically supernatural personage only obscurely on earth as a man at some unspecified period in the past, emptied then of all his supernatural attributes phil.
The contradictions between the book of mormon and the bible constitute a most serious obstacle to accepting the book of mormon as latterday scripture supplemental to the bible. This book also includes translation problems, additions and subtractions that have been made to the bible, and problems with themorality of the book in general. Alleged discrepancies in the bible what do the scriptures say. Ham wrote in the foreword, many people today buy into the assertion that the bible is full of contradictions, but they havent bothered to look into the claim for themselves. This is similar to inerrantism, the idea that the bible contains no errors. Our treatment of the discrepancies of the bible bear an intimate relation to our moral character. This website could just as well have been called against fundamentalism. We can literally read the text in the bible without ever reading the word of god. Besides being philosophical and ethical, christianity rests on historical timespace events. Revealing the hidden contradictions in the bible and. Alleged bible contradictions explained dehoff publications. We can come to the bible like many do, with aggression and anger and a manipulative attitude, and find things to discredit or disprove the bible. Remember that the bible is a series of books, books that make up the old testament and books that make up the new testament. Since the bible is actually many books of different genres by several different authors, the critics assumption leads her astray if it is used to create contradictions.
Ham wrote in the foreword, many people today buy into the assertion that the bible is full of contradictions, but they havent bothered to. Bible contradictions answered biblical errors mistakes difficulties discrepancies countered page 3. When people criticize the bible, they often point to contradictions. But, surely says the critic, such stories cannot be taken seriously in. Alleged discrepancies of the bible ebook by john haley. Sometimes these attacks undermine the faith of christians who either dont understand the issues or dont have the resources to deal with them. A testimony of jesus christ is a commentary that explains some of the mysteries of revelation. In some ways, that makes it easier to approach the bible. Contradictions in the bible identified verse by verse. These discrepancies have been translated out in some bible versions. This essay, drawn from the investigating the bible email newsletter, addresses a tough question about the bibles reliability. The protestant bible, of which the niv is one version, is seven books shorter than the bible used by roman catholics. Alleged discrepancies of the bible slowly take you through some of the more complicated verses and ideas found within the bible. Isaac asimov all scripture is given by inspiration of god, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.
For instance, the words of the torah, or the first five books of the old testament, have traditionally been believed to be by the hand of moses, and the new testament gospels have been attributed to the four evangelists. With this in mind, let us have a look at the bible on several subjects. All 66 books of the bible in easy, onesentence summaries. Jesus and the hidden contradictions of the gospels. For each book of the bible, know your bible provides data on the author and time frame, a tenword synopsis, a longer 50100 word summary, thoughts on what makes the book unique or unusual, a listing of key verses. In fairness to those who believe in the bible, i make no assumptions that any of these contradictions are true. Yes, there are verses that appear to contradict each other. Jun 10, 2009 just as christians challenge cults to abandon belief in their scriptures a priori, blind allegiance to the bible is foolish. The contradictions were given without explanation of them. An incredible interactive chart of biblical contradictions. Yet he didnt make the light producing objects the sun and the stars until the fourth day 1.
Jun 03, 2019 the story of jesus stands or falls on the trustworthiness of the gospels. The story of jesus stands or falls on the trustworthiness of the gospels. In alleged discrepancies of the bible, john haley directly addresses questions surrounding common misunderstandings of scripture. Identified verse by verse and explained using the most uptodate scholarly information about the bible, its texts, and the men who wrote them by dr. Contradictions between the book of mormon and the bible. Bible contradictions explained come reason ministries.
Although the 66 books of the bible were written by diverse human. Number discrepancies in old testament history gospel way. And, just like star wars, the awesomeness within the pages of the bible leads to plenty of continuity errors. But one can also come to the bible with a yearning and a desire for a pure heart. Bulgarian, dutch, french, indonesian, italian, spanish t he bible has many seeming contradictions within its pages. For example, the four gospels give four differing accounts as to what was written on the sign that hung on the cross. Origen was in the habit of carefully reading and explaining the books of the heathen to his. All bible quotes from the authorized king james version of the bible new york.
A third version of the list exists in the apocryphal book 1 esdras. If we read the bible at face value, without a preconceived bias for finding errors, we will find it to be a coherent, consistent, and relatively easytounderstand book. Its important to point out right off the bat that each of the gospel writers had a particular intention and focus. Keep in mind, however, that what constitutes a valid problem is to some extent a matter of opinion.
One of the ways each book does this is by recounting jesus genealogy. How to understand some difficult bible passages gracelife ministries. Articles we live in a day when consistency of thought is demeaned by many people, and individuals maintain that contradiction is the hallmark of truth, particularly in religious matters. Aug 19, 20 a few years ago, computer science whiz chris harrison created a beautiful visualization linking up every cross reference in the bible. However, a closer reading reveals some differences in the details. Through their individual gospelsmatthew, mark, luke, and johnfocused on particular elements of christs.
How do we answer supposed bible contradictions and difficulties. Haleys an examination of the alleged discrepancies of the bible. How can man be justified by faith and not by faith. The contradictions in the bible arent contradictions, for the bible does not reflect the perfectly consistent mind of god, but the diversity of time and place of the writers. In a similar fashion, the apparent contradictions of the bible give an opportunity to an unfair mind and a skeptic for explaining away the bible and hiding from themselves the evidence which they might otherwise see. Introduction to bible difficulties and bible contradictions. Contradictions in the bible identified verse by verse and. Bart ehrman is the author of more than a dozen books, including misquoting. These lists are meant to identify possible problems in the bible, especially those that are inherent in a literalist or fundamentalist interpretation. There are a few discrepancies in our bible that cause some people to question its inerrancy, and consequently, whether or not it is truly gods word. Does the bible contain errors, contradictions, or discrepancies. The question of internal consistency in the bible also involves the attribution of authorship to its books. Skeptics often charge that the bibles historical books hopelessly contradict each other.
The companion volume to this book is demolishing supposed bible contradictions volume 2. Apologists have many criticisms about identifying contradictions, and in many cases they go out of their way to add things to the bible in order to explain them away. The disciples asked him why do you speak to them in parables. In one of your articles you claim that the apocrypha contradict the scripture. Or how to hold your nose and write at the same timewhen you read the first three gospels, you are likely to observe countless similarities. In genesis chapter 2 the order of creation seems to be different to that in chapter 1 with the animals being created 2. Over against such a body of presuppositions, criticism, some generations later, began to allege certain errors and discrepancies in the bible. Bible difficulties and seeming contradictions concordia. But the bible is replete with contradictions and inconsistencies. If written by a perfect being, then it must not contradict itself, as a collection of books written by different men at different times over many centuries would be. If the bible is inspired word for word, as you assert, how do you explain errors and.
What should we make of the discrepancies found in the bible. You may disagree that these are, in fact, genuine biblical problems, but it is the authors opinion that a perfect and omnipotent god. Latorre spent many hours in libraries and bookstores sifting through more than 200 books and hundreds of articles on science, bible textual criticism, and theology. If the bible is the word of god, how can you explain the contradictions of the bible. We are told that biblical stories are fine for children, and perhaps they even contain some moral value. Identified verse by verse and explained using the most uptodate scholarly information about the bible, its texts, and the men who wrote them. Let me point out one factor you may be overlooking, and then perhaps comment on a couple of your questions. The sabbath day remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Audio download options are there contradictions in the bible. Number discrepancies in old testament history the bible is often attacked by critics, especially regarding books of old testament history, because of obvious discrepancies between numbers given in some bible accounts as compared to parallel passages in other accounts. Properly read, the bible is the most potent force for atheism ever conceived. Thats why skeptics pay so much attention to the gospels apparent contradictions. Analysis of the original languages of the bible hebrew for the old testament and greek for the new testament can solve many apparent issues.
Bible contradictions a matter of translation and context some bible contradictions appear contradictory solely because of the intricacies of bible translation. Kent hovind explains the truth about these so called contradictions. He did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything mark 4. Many people have the impression that the bible is simply an outdated book of fairytales and contradictions. Overall a very informative and useful book with an author who is well versed on the subject and has solid credentials. Bulgarian, dutch, french, indonesian, italian, spanish.
Lets take some examples, starting with the book of sirach which teaches that almsgiving makes atonement for sin. An examination of the alleged discrepancies of the bible jubilee. Discrepancies, biblical international standard bible. Hidden between the thou shalt nots and endless passages on who begat whom are stories of giant sex, rather well endowed egyptians and holy murderous bears.
Helpfully, this visual also included text explaining what the contradictions were and where they could be found. Its no different from any other human book with the usual errors and mistakes. A list of over 700 inconsistencies in the bible from. Thanks for the question, but i disagree with your conclusion. Know your bible is a concise, easytounderstand guide to gods wordgiving you a helpful and memorable overview of all 66 books. Alleged bible contradictions explained by george w. Whilst i agree with your assessment of books with shown glaring discrepancies, i have found much value in the study of books like yovheliym jubilees, yashar jasher, 4 ezra 2 esdras, 2 baruch, and 1 enoch. In marks gospel, jesus is not interested in teaching about himself.
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