Christian Bible Contradictions
v1.0
by GWGA


Losing Faith In Faith: From Preacher To Atheist, by Dan Barker -- Chapter 23

PAUL SAID, "God is not the author of confusion," (I Corinthians 14:33), yet
never has a book produced more confusion than the bible! There are hundreds
of denominations and sects, all using the "inspired Scriptures" to prove
their conflicting doctrines.

Why do trained theologians differ? Why do educated translators disagree over
Greek and Hebrew meanings? Why all the confusion? Shouldn't a document that
was "divinely inspired" by an omniscient and omnipotent deity be as clear as
possible?

"If the trumpet give an uncertain sound," Paul wrote in I Corinthians 14:8,
"who shall prepare himself to the battle? So likewise ye, except ye utter by
the tongue words easy to be understood, how shall it be known what is spoken?
for ye shall speak into the air." Exactly! Paul should have practiced what he
preached. For almost two millennia, the bible has been producing a most
"uncertain sound."

The problem is not with human limitations, as some claim. The problem is the
bible itself. People who are free of theological bias notice that the bible
contains hundreds of discrepancies. Should it surprise us when such a
literary and moral mish-mash, taken seriously, causes so much discord?
Here is a brief sampling of biblical contradictions.

--
Should we kill?

- Exodus 20:13 "Thou shalt not kill."
- Leviticus 24:17 "And he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death."
    * vs. *
- Exodus 32:27 "Thus sayeth the Lord God of Israel, Put every man his sword
  by his side, . . . and slay every man his brother, . . . companion, . . .
  neighbor."
- I Samuel 6:19 " . . . and the people lamented because the Lord had smitten
  many of the people with a great slaughter."
- I Samuel 15:2,3,7,8 "Thus saith the Lord . . . Now go and smite Amalek,
  and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both
  man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass. . . . And
  Saul smote the Amalekites . . . and utterly destroyed all the people with
  the edge of the sword."
- Numbers 15:36 "And all the congregation brought him without the camp, and
  stoned him with stones, and he died; as the Lord commanded Moses."
- Hosea 13:16 "they shall fall by the sword: their infants shall be dashed
  in pieces, and their women with children shall be ripped up."

--
Should we tell lies?

- Exodus 20:16 "Thou shalt not bear false witness."
- Proverbs 12:22 "Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord."
    * vs. *
- I Kings 22:23 "The Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all
  these thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil concerning thee."
- II Thessalonians 2:11 "And for this cause God shall send them strong
  delusion, that they should believe a lie."

Also, compare Joshua 2:4-6 with James 2:25.

--
Should we steal?

- Exodus 20:15 "Thou shalt not steal."
- Leviticus 19:13 "Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbor, neither rob him."
    * vs. *
- Exodus 3:22 "And ye shall spoil the Egyptians."
- Exodus 12:35-36 "And they spoiled [plundered, NRSV] the Egyptians."
- Luke 19:29-34 "[Jesus] sent two of his disciples, Saying, Go ye into
  the village . . . ye shall find a colt tied, whereon yet never man sat:
  loose him, and bring him hither. And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose
  him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him. . . .
  And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said unto them, Why
  loose ye the colt? And they said, The Lord hath need of him."

(I was taught as a child that when you take something without asking for it,
that is stealing.)

--
Shall we keep the sabbath?

- Exodus 20:8 "Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy."
- Exodus 31:15 "Whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely
  be put to death."
- Numbers 15:32,36 "And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness,
  they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day. . . . And all
  the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him with stones,
  and he died; as the Lord commanded Moses."
    * vs. *
- Isaiah 1:13 "The new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot
  away with; it is iniquity."
- John 5:16 "And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus and sought to slay him,
  because he had done these things on the sabbath day."
- Colossians 2:16 "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in
  respect of an holy-day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days."

--
Shall we make graven images?

- Exodus 20:4 "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness
  of anything that is in heaven . . . earth . . . water."
- Leviticus 26:1 "Ye shall make ye no idols nor graven image, neither rear
  you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone."
- Deuteronomy 27:15 "Cursed be the man that maketh any graven or molten image."
    * vs. *
- Exodus 25:18 "And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, of beaten work shalt
  thou make them."
- I Kings 7:15,16,23,25 "For he [Solomon] cast two pillars of brass . . . and
  two chapiters of molten brass . . . And he made a molten sea . . . it stood
  upon twelve oxen . . . [and so on]"

--
Are we saved through works?

- Ephesians 2:8,9 "For by grace are ye saved through faith . . . not of works."
- Romans 3:20,28 "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be
  justified in his sight."
- Galatians 2:16 "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law,
  but by the faith of Jesus Christ."
    * vs. *
- James 2:24 "Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by
  faith only."
- Matthew 19:16-21 "And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master,
  what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? And he [Jesus]
  said unto him . . . keep the commandments. . . . The young man saith unto
  him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? Jesus
  said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give
  to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven."

The common defense here is that "we are saved by faith and works." But Paul
said "not of works."

--
Should good works be seen?

- Matthew 5:16 "Let your light so shine before men that they may see your
  good works."
- I Peter 2:12 "Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that
. . . they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in
  the day of visitation."
    * vs. *
- Matthew 6:1-4 "Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen
  of them . . . that thine alms may be in secret."
- Matthew 23:3,5 "Do not ye after their [Pharisees'] works. . . . all their
  works they do for to be seen of men."

--
Should we own slaves?

- Leviticus 25:45-46 "Moreover of the children of the strangers that do
  sojourn among you, of them shall ye buy, . . . and they shall be your
  possession . . . they shall be your bondmen forever."
- Genesis 9:25 "And he [Noah] said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants
  shall he be unto his brethren."
- Exodus 21:2,7 "If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve:
  and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing. . . . And if a man
  sell his daughter to be a maidservant, she shall not go out as the manservants
  do."
- Joel 3:8 "And I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the
  children of Judah, and they shall sell them to the Sabeans, to a people far
  off: for the Lord hath spoken it."
- Luke 12:47-48 [Jesus speaking] "And that servant, which knew his lord's
  will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be
  beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy
  of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes."
- Colossians 3:22 "Servants, obey in all things your masters."
    * vs. *
- Isaiah 58:6 "Undo the heavy burdens . . . let the oppressed go free, . . .
  break every yoke."
- Matthew 23:10 "Neither be ye called Masters: for one is your Master, even
  Christ."

Pro-slavery bible verses were cited by many churches in the South during
the Civil War, and were used by some theologians in the Dutch Reformed Church
to justify apartheid in South Africa. There are more pro-slavery verses than
cited here.

--
Does God change his mind?

- Malachi 3:6 "For I am the Lord; I change not."
- Numbers 23:19 "God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of
  man, that he should repent."
- Ezekiel 24:14 "I the Lord have spoken it: it shall come to pass, and I
  will do it; I will not go back, neither will I spare, neither will I repent."
- James 1:17 " . . . the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness,
  neither shadow of turning."
    * vs. *
- Exodus 32:14 "And the Lord repented of the evil which he thought to do
  unto his people."
- Genesis 6:6,7 "And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the
  earth . . . And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created
  from the face of the earth . . . for it repenteth me that I have made him."
- Jonah 3:10 ". . . and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he
  would do unto them; and he did it not."

See also II Kings 20:1-7, Numbers 16:20-35, Numbers 16:44-50.

See Genesis 18:23-33, where Abraham gets God to change his mind about the
minimum number of righteous people in Sodom required to avoid destruction,
bargaining down from fifty to ten. (An omniscient God must have known that
he was playing with Abraham's hopes for mercy--he destroyed the city anyway.)

--
Are we punished for our parents' sins?

- Isaiah 14:21 "Prepare slaughter for his children for the iniquity of
  their  fathers;  that they do not rise, nor possess the land, nor
  fill the face of the world with cities."
- Exodus 20:5 "For I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the
  iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth
  generation." (Repeated in Deuteronomy 5:9)
- Exodus 34:6-7 " . . . The Lord God, merciful and gracious, . . . that
  will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers
  upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and
  to the fourth generation."
- I Corinthians 15:22 "For as in Adam all die, . . ."
    * vs. *
- Ezekiel 18:20 "The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father."
- Deuteronomy 24:16 "The fathers shall not be put to death for the
  children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers:
  every man shall be put to death for his own sin."

--
Is God good or evil?

- Psalm 145:9 "The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his
  works."
- Deuteronomy 32:4 "a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he."
    * vs. *
- Isaiah 45:7 "I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things."
- Lamentations 3:38 "Out of the mouth of the most High proceedeth not evil
  and good?"
- Jeremiah 18:11 "Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I frame evil against you, and
  devise a device against you."
- Ezekiel 20:25,26 "I gave them also statutes that were not good, and
  judgments whereby they should not live. And I polluted them in their own
  gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all that openeth the
  womb, that I might make them desolate, to the end that they might know
  that I am the Lord."
- Jeremiah 13:14  "And I will dash them one against another, even the fathers
  and the sons together, saith the Lord: I will not pity, nor spare, nor have
  mercy, but destroy them."

--
Does God tempt people?

- James 1:13 "Let no man say . . . I am tempted of God: for God cannot
  be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man."
    * vs. *
- Genesis 22:1 "And it came to pass after these things, that God did
  tempt Abraham."

--
Is God peaceable?

- Romans 15:33 "The God of peace."
- Isaiah 2:4 ". . . and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
  and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword
  against nation, neither shall they learn war any more."
    * vs. *
- Exodus 15:3 "The Lord is a man of war."
- Joel 3:9-10 "Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war
  draw near; let them come up: Beat your plowshares into swords, and your
  pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong."

--
Was Jesus peaceable?

- John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you."
- Acts 10:36 "The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching
  peace by Jesus Christ."
- Luke 2:14 " . . . on earth peace, good will toward men."
    * vs. *
- Matthew 10:34 "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not
  to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against
  his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law
  against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own
  household."
- Luke 22:36 "Then said he unto them, . . . he that hath no sword, let
  him sell his garment, and buy one."

--
Was Jesus trustworthy?

- John 8:14 "Though I bear record of myself, yet my record is true."
    * vs. *
- John 5:31 "If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true."

"Record" and "witness" in the above verses are the same Greek word (martyria).

--
Shall we call people names?

- Matthew 5:22 [Jesus speaking] "Whosoever shall say "Thou fool," shall be in
  danger of
  hellfire."
    * vs. *
- Matthew 23:17 [Jesus speaking] "Ye fools and blind."
- Psalm 14:1 "The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God."

--
Has anyone seen God?

- John 1:18 "No man hath seen God at any time."
- Exodus 33:20 "Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see
  me, and live."
- John 6:46 "Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of
  God [Jesus], he hath seen the Father."
- I John 1:18 "No man hath seen God at any time."
- Timothy 6:16 "Whom no man hath seen nor can see."

    * vs. *
- Genesis 32:30 "For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved."
- Exodus 33:11 "And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man
  speaketh unto his friend."
- Isaiah 6:1 "In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting
  upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple."
- Job 42:5 "I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye
  seeth thee."
- Exodus 33:23 "And I will take away my hand, and thou shalt see my backparts."

--
How many Gods are there?

- Deuteronomy 6:4 "The Lord our God is one Lord."
    * vs. *
- Genesis 1:26 "And God said, Let us make man in our image."
- Genesis 3:22 "And the Lord God said, Behold, the man has become as one
  of us, to know good and evil."
- I John 5:7 "And there are three that bear witness in heaven, the Father,
  the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one."

It does no good to claim that "Let us" is the magisterial "we." Such usage
implies inclusivity of all authorities under a king's leadership. Invoking
the Trinity solves nothing because such an idea is more contradictory than
the problem it attempts to solve.

--
Are we all sinners?

- Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
- Romans 3:10 "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one."
- Psalm 14:3 "There is none that doeth good, no, not one."
- I King 8:46  "If they sin against thee, (for there  is  no  man  that
  sinneth  not,)  and  thou be angry with them, and deliver them to
  the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land of
  the enemy, far or near."
- II Chronicles 6:36 "If they sin against thee, (for there is  no  man  which
  sinneth  not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them over
  before their enemies, and they carry them away  captives  unto  a
  land far off or near."
- Ecclesiastes 7:20 "For there is not a just  man  upon  earth,  that  doeth
  good, and sinneth not."
- I John 1:8-10 "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and
  the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to
  forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  If we say
  that we have not sinned, we make him a  liar, and his word is not in us."
   * vs. *
- Job 1:1 "There was a man . . . who name was Job; and that man was perfect and
  upright."
- Genesis 7:1 "And the Lord said unto Noah, "Come thou and all thy house into
  the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.""
- Luke 1:6 "And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the
  commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless."
- I John 3:9 "Whosoever is born of God doth not commit  sin;  for  his
  seed  remaineth  in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of
  God."

--
How old was Ahaziah?

- II Kings 8:26 "Two and twenty years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign."
     * vs. *
- II Chronicles 22:2 "Forty and two years old was Ahaziah when he began to
  reign."

--
Should we swear an oath?

- Numbers 30:2 "If a man vow a vow unto the Lord, or swear an oath . . . he
  shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth."
- Genesis 21:22-24,31 " . . . swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not
  deal falsely with me . . . And Abraham said, I will swear. . . . Wherefore
  he called that place Beersheba ["well of the oath"]; because there they
  sware both of them."
- Hebrews 6:13-17 "For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could
  swear by no greater, he swear by himself . . . for men verily swear by the
  greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.
  Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise
  the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath."

See also Genesis 22:15-19, Genesis 31:53, and Judges 11:30-39.

     * vs. *
- Matthew 5:34-37 "But I say unto you, swear not at all; neither by heaven
  . . . nor by the earth . . . . Neither shalt thou swear by thy head . . . .
  But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more
  than these cometh of evil."
- James 5:12 ". . . swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth,
  neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay;
  lest ye fall into condemnation."

--
When was Jesus crucified?

- Mark 15:25 "And it was the third hour, and they crucified him."
     * vs. *
- John 19:14-15 "And about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews,
  Behold your King! But they cried out . . . crucify him."

It is an ad hoc defense to claim that there are two methods of reckoning
time here. It has never been shown that this is the case.

--
Shall we obey the law?

- I Peter 2:13 "Submit yourself to every ordinance of man . . . to the
  king, as supreme; Or unto governors."
- Matthew 22:21 "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's."

See also Romans 13:1,7 and Titus 3:1.
     * vs. *
- Acts 5:29 "We ought to obey God rather then men."

--
How many animals on the ark?

- Genesis 6:19 "And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort
  shalt thou bring into the ark."
- Genesis 7:8-9 "Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of
  fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth, There went in two
  and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded
  Noah."
- Genesis 7:15 "And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all
  flesh, wherein is the breath of life."
     * vs. *
- Genesis 7:2 "Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens,
  the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the
  male and his female."

--
Were women and men created equal?

- Genesis 1:27 "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God
  created he him; male and female created he them."
     * vs. *
- Genesis 2:18,23 "And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man
  should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. . . . And Adam
  said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be
  called Woman, because she was taken out of Man."

--
Were trees created before humans?

- Genesis 1:12-31 "And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding
  seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself,
  after his kind: . . . And the evening and the morning were the third day.
  . . . And God said, Let us make man in our image . . . And the evening and
  the morning were the sixth day."
     * vs. *
- Genesis 2:5-9 "And every plant of the field before it was in the earth,
  and every herb of the field before it grew: for the Lord God had not caused
  it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. . .
  And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground . . . And the Lord God
  planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had
  formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that
  is pleasant to the sight, and good for food."

--
Did Michal have children?

- II Samuel 6:23 "Therefore Michal the daughter of Saul had no child unto
  the day of her death."
     * vs. *
- II Samuel 21:8 "But the king took the two sons of Rizpah . . . and the
  five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul."

--
How many stalls did Solomon have?

- I Kings 4:26 "And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his
  chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen."
     * vs. *
- II Chronicles 9:25 "And Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses
  and chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen."

--
Did Paul's men hear a voice?

- Acts 9:7 "And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless,
  hearing a voice, but seeing no man."
     * vs. *
- Acts 22:9 "And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were
  afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me."

In both verses "hear" is akouo and "voice" is  phone. The fact that phone
is in two different cases is irrelevant since case flexibility is common
throughout the New Testament. For example, Matthew 26:65 and Mark 14:64
tell the same story using different declensions for "blasphemy," which
is not considered contradictory.

--
Is God omnipotent?

- Jeremiah 32:27 "Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there
  anything too hard for me?
- Matthew 19:26 "But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this
  is impossible; but with God all things are possible."
     * vs. *
- Judges 1:19 "And the Lord was with Judah; and he drave out the inhabitants
  of the mountain; but could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley,
  because they had chariots of iron."

--
Does God live in light?

- I Timothy 6:15-16 " . . . the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only
  hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach . . ."
- James 1:17 " . . . the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness,
  neither shadow of turning."
- John 12:35 "Then Jesus saith unto them, . . . he that walketh in darkness
  knoweth not wither he goeth."
- Job 18:18 "He [the wicked] shall be driven from light into darkness, and
  chased out of the world."
- Daniel 2:22 "He [God] knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light
  dwelleth with him."

See also Psalm 143:3, II Corinthians 6:14, and Hebrews 12:18-22.

     * vs. *
- I Kings 8:12 "Then spake Solomon, The Lord said that he would dwell in the
  thick darkness." (Repeated in II Chronicles 6:1)
- II Samuel 22:12 "And he made darkness pavilions round about him, dark
  waters, and thick clouds of the skies."
- Psalm 18:11 "He made darkness his secret place; his pavilion round about
  him were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies."
- Psalm 97:1-2 "The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice . . . clouds and
  darkness are round about him."

--
Does God accept human sacrifice?

- Deuteronomy 12:31 "Thou shalt not do so unto the Lord thy God: for every
  abomination to the Lord, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods;
  for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to
  their gods."
     * vs. *
- Genesis 22:2 "And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom
  thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for
  a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of."
- Exodus 22:29 "For thou shalt not delay to offer the first of thy ripe
  fruits, and of thy liquors; the firstborn of thy sons shalt thou give
  unto me."
- Judges 11:30-39 "And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said, If
  thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hand, Then
  it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet
  me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the
  Lord's, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering. So Jephthah passed over
  unto the children of Ammon . . . and the Lord delivered them into his hands.
  . . . And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his
  daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: . . . And
  it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her
  father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed."
- II Samuel 21:8-14 "But the king [David] took the two sons of Rizpah
  . . . and the five sons of Michal . . . and he delivered them into the
  hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them in the hill before the Lord:
  and they fell all seven together, and were put to death in the days of
  harvest . . . And after that God was intreated for the land."
- Hebrews 10:10-12 " . . . we are sanctified through the offering of the
  body of Jesus Christ . . . But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice
  for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God."
- I Corinthians 5:7 " . . . For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us."

--
Who was Joseph's father?

- Matthew 1:16 "And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born
  Jesus."
     * vs. *
- Luke 3:23 "And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being
(as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli."

***************************Starting here, I edited...***************************

--
What is wisdom's worth?

- Proverbs 4:7  "Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and
  with all thy getting get understanding."
     * vs. *
- Ecclesiastes 1:18  "For in much wisdom is  much  grief:  and  he  that  in-
  creaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow."
- I Corinthians 1:19: "For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
  and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent."

--
Here is the order in the first (Genesis 1), the Priestly tradition:

Day 1: Sky, Earth, light
Day 2: Water, both in ocean basins and above the sky(!)
Day 3: Plants
Day 4: Sun, Moon, stars (as calendrical and navigational aids)
Day 5: Sea monsters (whales), fish, birds, land animals,
creepy-crawlies (reptiles, insects, etc.)
Day 6: Humans (apparently both sexes at the same time)
Day 7: Nothing (the Gods took the first day off anyone ever did)

    Note that there are "days", "evenings", and "mornings" before
the Sun was created. Here, the Deity is referred to as "Elohim", which
is a plural, thus the literal translation, "the Gods." In this tale,
the Gods seem satisfied with what they have done, saying after each
step that "it was good."

The second one (Genesis 2), the Yahwist tradition, goes:

Earth and heavens (misty)
Adam, the first man (on a desolate Earth)
Plants
Animals
Eve, the first woman (from Adam's rib)

--
What is the destiny of the righteous?

- Psalms 92:12: "The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree."
     * vs. *
- Isaiah 57:1: "The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart."

--
How long would David's land be in famine?

- II Samuel 24:13: "So God came to David, and told him, and said unto him, shall
  seven years of famine come unto thee in thy land? Or will thou flee three
  months before thine enemies, while they pursue thee?"
     * vs. *
- I Chronicles 21:11:  So God came to David, and said unto him, Thus saith the
  Lord, "Choose thee. Either three years of famine or three months to be
  destroyed before thy foes, while that the sword of thine enemies overtaketh
  thee;

--
Who moved David to number Israel?

- II Samuel 24: "And again the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel,
  and he moved David against them to say, Go, number Isreal and Judah."
     * vs. *
- I Chronicles 21: "And Satan stood up against Isreal, and provoked David to
  number Israel."

--
Can any man enter heaven?

- II Kings 2:11 "And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven."

- John 3:13 "No man hath ascended up to heaven but he that came down from
  heaven, ... the Son of Man."

--
Who was at the Empty Tomb?

- Matthew 28:1 "In the end of the sabbath, as it began to  dawn  toward
  the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary
  to see the sepulchre."
     * vs. *
- Mark 16:1 "And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary
  the  mother  of  James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that
  they might come and anoint him."
     * vs. *
- John 20:1 "The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene  early,
  when  it  was  yet  dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone
  taken away from the sepulchre."

Who went to the tomb ? Matthew-2  Marys;  Mark-2  Marys and Salome; Luke-at
least 5 women; John-Mary Magdalene, What was seen? Matthew-Earthquake with angel
sitting outside on the recently-moved stone; Mark-Stone already moved  and  a
young  man  sitting  inside;  Luke-Stone already moved with two men standing
inside;  John-Stone moved. No one seen on 1st visit, but two angels sitting
inside after two earlier visits.  When did the woman/women leave to  go to  the
tomb  ?  Matthew-Towards dawn; Mark-Very  early;  Luke - At  early dawn; John -
Still dark (NB. John  states  it  was  still dark when Mary arrived at the
tomb).  What did man/men/angel/angels say?  Matthew - Jesus  was risen and
disciples to go to Galilee; Mark - As  Matthew; Luke - Jesus had risen: John -
Asks why Mary is crying.  What do the women/woman do next?    Matthew - they run
away but meet Jesus who  repeats  angel's  instruction; Mark - They flee and
say nothing to anyone.  This obviously contradicts the  other three in which
the women do go and tell the disciples (original Mark ended at 16:7); Luke -
They go and  tell  disciples;  John - Mary meets Jesus and they talk.  What  is
1st  conversation  with  the  risen  Jesus?  Matthew - Women on way from tomb;
Luke-The two  disciples on road to Emmaus; John-Mary Magdalene.

--
Is Jesus equal to or lesser than God?

- John 10:30 "I and my Father are one."

- John 14:28 "Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come
  again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said,
  I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I."

--
Which was created first?  Beast or Man?

- Genesis 1:25-26 "And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and
  cattle  after  their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after
  his kind: and God saw that it was good.  And God said, Let us make man in our
  image,  after  our likeness:  and  let them have dominion over the fish of the
  sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and  over  all the
  earth,  and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."
     * vs. *
- Genesis 2:18-19 "And the Lord God said, It is  not  good  that  the  man
  should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.  And out of the ground
  the Lord God formed  every  beast of  the  field,  and every fowl of the air;
  and brought them un to Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever
  Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof."

--
How was Mary impregnated?

- Acts 2:30 "Therefore being a prophet, and  knowing  that  God  had
  sworn  with  an  oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the
  flesh, he would raise up  Christ  to  sit  on  his throne."
     * vs. *
- Matthew 1:18 "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as
  his  mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was
  found with child of the Holy Ghost."

--
Where was the fowl created from?

- Genesis 1:20-21 "And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the
  moving  creature  that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the
  open firmament of heaven.  And God created great whales, and every living
  creature that  moveth,  which  the  waters brought forth abundantly, after
  their kind, and every winged fowl after his  kind:  and  God saw that it was
  good."

- Genesis 2:19 "And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the
  field,  and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he
  would call them: and whatsoever  Adam  called every living creature, that was
  the name thereof."

--
Is the Earth supported?

- Job 26:7 "He stretcheth out the north over the empty  place,  and hangeth the
  earth upon nothing."
     * vs. *
- Job 38:4 "Where wast thou when I  laid  the  foundations  of  the
  earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding."

--
How orderly were things created?

#1: Step-by-step. The only discrepancy is that there is no Sun or Moon
or stars on the first three "days".
     * vs. *
#2: God fixes things up as he goes. The first man is lonely, and is
not satisfied with animals. God finally creates a woman for him.

(Funny thing that an omniscient god would forget things)

--
How satisfied with creation was he?

#1: God says "it was good" after each of his labors, and rests on the
seventh day, evidently very satisfied.
     * vs. *
#2: God has to fix up his creation as he goes, and he would certainly
not be very satisfied with the disobedience of that primordial couple.

(Again, funny thing that an omniscient god would forget things)

--
What was Moses's personality like?

- Numbers 12:3 "Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were
  upon the fact of the earth."
     * vs. *
- Num.31:14, 17, 18 "And Moses was wroth...And Moses said unto them, "Have ye
  saved all the women alive? ... Now therefore kill every male among the little
  ones, and kill every woman, ... But all the women children ... keep alive for
  yourselves."

--
What happened to Judas?

- Acts 1:18 "Now this man (Judas) purchased a field with the reward of
  iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his
  bowels gushed out."
     * vs. *
- Matthew 27:5-7: "And he (Judas) cast down the pieces of silver in the temple,
  and departed, and went and hanged himself.  And the chief priests...bought
  with them the potter's field."

--
Was Jesus' first sermon on a plain or a mountain?

- Matthew 5:1,2 "And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when
  he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught
  them, saying...."
     * vs. *
- Luke 6:17,20 "And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the
  company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people...came to hear him..
  And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples and said..."

--
What were Jesus' last words?

- Matthew 27:46,50 "And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice,
  saying, "Eli, eli, lama sabachthani?" that is to say, "My God, my God, why
  hast thou forsaken me?"  ...Jesus, when he cried again with a loud voice,
  yielded up the ghost."
     * vs. *
- Luke 23:46 "And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, "Father, unto
  thy hands I commend my spirit:" and having said thus, he gave up the ghost."
     * vs. *
- John 19:30 "When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, "It is
  finished:" and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost."

--
What is the genealogy of Jesus?

In two places in the New Testament the genealogy of Jesus son of Mary (PBUH)
is mentioned. Matthew 1:6-16 and Luke 3:23-31. Each gives the ancestors of
Joseph the CLAIMED husband of Mary and Step father of Jesus(PBUH). The first
one starts from Abraham(verse 2) all the way down to Jesus. The second
one from Jesus all the way back to Adam. The only common name to these two
lists between David and Jesus is JOSEPH, How can this be true?  and also
How can Jesus have a genealogy when all Muslims and most Christians believe
that Jesus had/has no father?

Jesus was physically descended from David - Romans 1:1-3.  The genealogy in Matt
  1:1-16 only relates to Joseph who had nothing to do with the conception.  The
  genealogy in Luke 3:23-38  again only  mentions  Joseph and therefore physical
  Davidic descent  must  be  shown through Mary - Jesus' only  contact  with
  humanity  if virgin born. However, Luke 1:36 says Mary was  related to
  Elizabeth who was of the Aaronic line (Luke 1:5) and therefore not the Davidic
  line, so with  virgin  birth, Davidic descent, a strict prerequisite for
  messiahship is prevented. In sum, Jesus couldn't be the Christ.

--
What was Jesus' prediction regarding Peter's denial?

- Matthew 26:34 "Before the cock crow"

- Mark 14:30 "Before the cock crow twice"

--
How many times did the cock crow?  And where was Jesus at the time?

- Mark 14:72 "And the second time the cock crew. And Peter called to
  mind  the  word  that  Jesus  said unto him, Before the cock crow
  twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. And when he thought thereon, he
  wept."
     * vs. *
- Matthew 26:74-75 "Then began he to curse and to swear,  saying,  I  know
  not the man. And immediately the cock crew. And Peter remembered the word of
  Jesus,  which  said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.
  And he went out, and wept bitterly."
     * vs. *
- Luke 22:60-1 "And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest.  And
  immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew. And the Lord turned, and
  looked upon Peter. And  Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said
  unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice."
     * vs. *
- John 13:38 "Jesus answered him, Wilt thou lay down thy life for my sake?
  Verily,  verily, I say unto thee, The cock shall not crow, still thou hast
  denied me thrice."
     * vs. *
- John 18:27 "Peter then denied again: and immediately the cock crew."

--
Who killed Saul?

- I Samuel 31:4-6 "Then said Saul unto his armourbearer, Draw  thy  sword, and
  thrust  me  through therewith; lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me
  through, and abuse me. But his  armourbearer  would not;  for  he  was  sore
  afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword, and fell upon it. And when his
  armourbearer saw that Saul  was  dead,  he fell likewise upon his sword, and
  died with him. So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armourbearer, and all
  his men, that same day together."
  * vs. *
- II Samuel 1:15 "And David called one of the young  men,  and  said,  Go near,
  and fall upon him. And he smote him that he died."

--
How many beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount?

- Matthew 5:3-11 "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the  kingdom of
  heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be  comforted.  Blessed
  are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.  Blessed are  they  which  do
  hunger  and  th irst  after righteousness: for they shall be filled.  Blessed
  are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart:
  for they shall see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers: for they  shall  be
  called the children of God.  Blessed are they which are  persecuted  for
  righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are ye,
  when men shall  revile  you,  and  persecute you, and shall say all manner of
  evil against you falsely, for my sake."
     * vs. *
- Luke 6:20-23 "And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples,  and  said, Blessed
  be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God.  Blessed are ye that hunger now:
  for ye shall be filled.  Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh.
  Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when  they shall  separate  you
  from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil,
  for the Son of man's sake.  Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for,
  behold, your  reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their
  fathers unto the prophets."

--
Who bought Potter's field?

- Acts 1:18-19 "Now this man purchased a field with the reward of  iniquity;
  and  falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels
  gushed out.  And it was known unto all the  dwellers  at Jerusalem; insomuch
  as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The
  field of blood."
  * vs. *
- Matthew 27:6-8 "And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is
  not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of
  blood.  And  they  took  counsel,  and  bought  with  them  the potter's
  field, to bury strangers in.  Wherefore that field was called, The field  of
  blood, unto this day."

--
Who bears guilt?

- Galatians 6:2 "Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law  of
  Christ."
  * vs. *
- Galatians 6:5 "For every man shall bear his own burden."

--
Do you answer a fool?

- Proverbs 26:4 "Answer not a fool according to  his  folly,  lest  thou
  also be like unto him."
  * vs. *
- Proverbs 26:5 "Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he  be  wise
  in his own conceit."

--
How old whas Jehoiachin when he began to reign?

- II Kings 24:8 "Jehoiachin was eighteen years  old  when  he  began  to reign,
  and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. And his mother's name was Nehushta,
  the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem."
  * vs. *
- Chronicles 36:9 "Jehoiachin was eight years old when he began to  reign, and
  he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem: and he did that which was
  evil in the sight of the Lord."

--
Where was Jesus three days after his baptism?

- Mark 1:12 "And immediately the spirit driveth him into the wilderness."
  * vs. *
- John 1:35 "Again the next day after John stood,  and  two  of  his disciples;"

--
Who judges whom?

- I Corinthians 3:15 "The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he
  himself is not subject to any man's judgment:"
  * vs. *
- I Corinthians 4:5 "Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait
  till the Lord comes.  He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and
  will expose the motives of men's hearts.  At that time each will receive his
  praise from God."

--
Whom did they see at the tomb?

- Matthew 28:2-5 "And, behold, there was  a  great  earthquake:  for  the
  angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back
  the stone from the door, and sat upon it.  His countenance was like
  lightning, and  his  raiment white as snow:  And for fear of him the keepers
  did shake,  and  became as dead men.  And the angel answered and said unto
  the  women,  Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.
     * vs. *
- Mark 16:5 "And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a  young  man sitting  on
  the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted."
     * vs. *
- Luke 24:4 "And it came  to  pass,  as  they  were  much  perplexed thereabout,
  behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:"
  * vs. *
- John 20:12  And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at  the head,  and
  the  other  at  the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sometimes, the bible is confusing on purpose:

- Matthew 12:30 "He that is not with me is  against  me;  and  he  that
gathereth not with me scattereth abroad." (default is against)

- Mark 9:40 "For he that is not against us is on our part." (default is for)

- Luke 9:50 "And Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not: for he that is not against
  us is for us."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The bible is incorrect in some statements.  Here are a few scientific facts that
the bible misconstrues:

Fact:  The bat is NOT a bird.

- Leviticus 11:13-19 "And these are they which ye shall have in  abomination
  among  the  fowls;  they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the
  eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray, And the vulture, and the kite after
  his kind; Every raven after his kind; And the owl, and the night hawk, and the
  cuckow, and the h awk after his kind, And the little owl, and the cormorant,
  and  the great owl, And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle, And the
  stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat."

- Deuteronomy 14:11-18 "Of all clean birds ye shall eat.  But these are they of
  which ye shall not eat: the  eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray, And the
  glede, and the kite, and the vulture after his kind, And every raven after his
  kind, And th e owl, and the night hawk, and the  cuckow,  and the hawk after
  his kind, The little owl, and the great owl, and the swan, And the pelican,
  and the gier  eagle,  and  the  cormorant, And the stork, and the heron after
  her kind, and  the lapwing, an d the bat."

--
Fact: Rabbits do NOT chew their cud.

- Leviticus 11:6  "And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but  divideth
  not the hoof; he is unclean unto you."

  'Gerah', the term which appears in the MT means (chewed) cud, and also perhaps
  grain, or berry (also a 20th of a sheckel, but I think that we can agree that
  that is irrelevant here). It does *not* mean dung, and there is a perfectly
  adequate Hebrew word for that, which could have been used. Furthermore, the
  phrase translated 'chew the cud' in the KJV is more exactly 'bring up the
  cud'. Rabbits do not bring up anything; they let it go all the way through,
  then eat it again.  The description given in Leviticus is inaccurate, and
  that's that.  Rabbits do eat their own dung; they do not bring anything up and
  chew on it.

--
Fact: Insects do NOT have four feet.

- Leviticus 11:21-23 "Yet these may ye eat of every  flying  creeping  thing
  that  goeth  upon  all four, which have legs above their feet, to leap withal
  upon the earth; Even these of them ye may eat; the  locust  after his kind,
  and  the  bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after his kind, and the
  grasshopper after his kind.  But all other flying creeping things, which have
  four feet, shall be an abomination unto you.

--
Fact: Snails do not melt.

- Psalms 58:8 "As a snail which melteth, let every one  of  them  pass away:
  like the untimely birth of a woman, that they may not see the sun."

--
Fact:  What?  We've never seen ringstraked(?) cattle!

- Genesis 30:39 "And the flocks conceived before the rods, and  brought forth
  cattle ringstraked, speckled, and spotted."

--
Fact:  These people knew the Earth was round.  They should also know that you
can't see all the sides of a sphere without moving.

- Isaiah 40:22 "It is he that sitteth upon the circle  of  the  earth, and  the
  inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a
  curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in."

- Matthew 4:8 "Again, the devil taketh him up into  an  exceeding  high
  mountain,  and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of
  them."

Astromical bodies are spherical, and you cannot see the entire exterior
surface from anyplace.  The kingdoms of Egypt, China, Greece, Crete,
sections of Asia Minor, India, Maya (in Mexico), Carthage (North
Africa), Rome (Italy), Korea, and other settlements from these
kingdoms of the world were widely distributed.

--
Fact: Snakes, while built low, do not eat dirt.

- Genesis 3:14 "And the Lord God said unto the  serpent,  Because  thou
  hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the
  field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust  shalt thou eat all the days of
  thy life"

Many of the bible's controdictions are in numbers:

--
Solomon's overseers

550 in I Kings 9:23
250 in II Chron 8:10
--
The mother of Abijah:

Maachah the daughter of Absalom  2 Chron 9:20
Michaiah the daughter of Uriel 2 Chron 13:2
--
When did Baasha die?

26th year of the reign of Asa I Kings 16:6-8
36th year of the reign of Asa I 2 Chron 16:1
--
How old was Ahaziah when he began to reign?

22 in 2 Kings 8:26
42 in 2 Chron 22:2
--
Who was Josiah's successor?

Jehoahaz - 2 Chron 36:1
Shallum - Jeremiah 22:11

--
Other times, they were incorrect on some words:

What was the color of the robe placed on Jesus during his trial?

scarlet - Matthew 27:28
purple John 19:2
--
What did they give him to drink?

vinegar - Matthew 27:34
wine with myrrh - Mark 15:23
--
God creates animals and then man - Gen 1:25-26
God creates man and then the animals - Gen 2:18-19
--
Arpachshad's son was Shelah - Gen 11:12
Arpachshad's grandson was Shelah - Luke 3:35-36
--
Terah's lifespan.

Acts 7:4 states Terah was dead when Abraham left Haran. According to Gen
11:26, Terah was 70 when  Abraham  was born and Abraham was 75 when he left
Haran.  Therefore he lived 70 years (ie. his age when Abraham  was  born)
plus 75  years (Abraham's age  when  he  left  Haran  - Terah was dead at
this time according to  Acts  7:4)  - 145 years in total. However, Gen
11:32 states he  lived 205 years.
--
God promises Abraham the land  of Canaan to live in - Gen 17:8
God did not allow Abraham to live in the promised land - Acts 7:5, Heb 11:8,9,13
--
Jacob's offspring in Egypt totalled 70 - Gen  46:26-27, Ex 1:5
Jacob's offspring in Egypt totalled  75 - Acts 7:14
--
Jacob was buried in a cave in  Machpelah's field that was bought from Ephron the
Hittite - Gen 50:13
Jacob was buried in a tomb at Shechem bought from the sons of Hamor - Acts 7:15-
16
--
The Hebrews dwelt in Egypt for 430 years - Ex 2:40
The Hebrews dwelt in Egypt for 400 years - Acts 7:6
--
God's plague kills 23,000 - Num 25:9
God's plague kills 24,000 - 1 Cor 10:8
--
The Hebrews' journeying - Mount Hor (where Aaron dies), Zalmonah, Punon - Num
33:37,38,41,42
The Hebrews' journeying - Beeroth  Benejaakan,  Moserah (where Aaron dies),
  Gudgodah, Jotbathah - Deut 10:6,7
--
Solomon's reign.
Acts 13:16-22 numbers the years from when  the  Hebrews left  Egypt  to  David
beginning  his  reign   as   40 (Wilderness) + 450 (Judges) + 40 (Saul)  =  530
years.  According to 1 Chron 29:27, David reigned 40 years,  so Solomon became
king (when David died) 530  +  40  years (of David's reign) = 570 years.
However, 1  Kings  6:1 states Solomon's 4th year of rule (when  he  began  the
Temple building) was 480 years after the  Hebrews  left Egypt, ie. he  began
his  rule  476  years  after  the Hebrews left. In sum,  there is a
contradiction  of  94 years.
--
Saul inquired of God, but God did not answer  him  -  1 Sam 28:6
Saul died because he did not seek guidance from God - 1 Chron 10:13,14
--
Jesse had seven children - 1 Sam 16:10-13
Jesse had eight children - 1 Chron 2:13-15
--
David slays Goliath - 1 Sam 17:4,7,50
Elhanan slays Goliath - 2 Sam 21:19
--
Joram his son, Ahaziah his son, Joash his son,  Amaziah his son, Azariah his
son, Jotham  his  son  -  1 Chron 3:11,12
Joram the father of Uzziah, and Uzziah  the  father  of Jotham - Matt 1:8,9
--
Asa removes the high places - 2 Chron 14:2
Asa did not remove the high places - 1 Kings 15:11-14
--
Uzzah dies at the threshing-floor of Nacon -  2 Samuel 6:6
Uzzah dies at the threshing-floor of Chidon -  1 Chron 13:9
--
David takes 1700 horsemen - 2 Sam 8:4
David takes 7000 horsemen - 1 Chron 18:4
--
David destroys 700 chariots - 2 Sam 10:18
David destroys 7000 chariots - 1 Chron 19:18
--
Joab's numbering of  the  army.  1,100,00  soldiers in Israel; 470,000 soldiers
in Judah - 1 Chron 21:5
Joab's numbering of the  army.    800,000  soldiers in Israel;  500,000 in Judah
- 2 Sam 24:9
--
David buys the land for the altar from Ornan for 600 shekels of gold - 1 Chron
21:24-25
David buys the land for the altar from Araunah for 50 shekels - 2 Sam 24:24
--
The Temple pillars were 18 cubits - 1 Kings 7:15
The Temple pillars were 35 cubits - 2 Chron 3:15
--
The molten sea held 2000 baths - 1 Kings 7:23,26
The molten sea held 3000 baths - 2 Chron 4:2,5
--
The wicked will die prematurely    and  will  suffer  -Psalm 55:23, Proverbs
10:27, Job 18:5,11,18,19
The wicked lifespan is long and they enjoy life - Psalm 73:3-5,12, Job 21:7-9
--
Man is to be holy - Leviticus 11:44, 19:2, 20:7
Only God is holy - Revelation 15:4
--
Drinking alcohol is acceptable - Deuteronomy  14:26, John 2:7-11,  1 Timothy
5:23
Drinking alcohol is not  acceptable - Proverbs  20:1, 23:31-34, Hosea 20:1
--
The captain takes 5 men of the king's council - 2 Kings 25:19
The captain takes 7 men of the king's council - Jeremiah 52:25
--
Baasha dies and his son Ela begins his reign over Israel - this was in the 26th
year of king Asa of Judah - 1 Kings 16:6,8
In the 36th year of Asa's reign, Baasha attacks Judah 2 Chron 16:1
NB. 2 Chron has Baasha still fighting 10 years after  1 Kings says he died!
--
The infancy narratives....

According to  Luke  2:21-39, Jesus is taken to the Jerusalem Temple eight days
after he is born; the family then go up to Nazareth.  In Matthew  2:14-23, after
being born the family  flee  in  Egypt and stay there until Herod dies; even on
returning, they avoid Judea and go up to Nazareth.
--
Jesus began ministry after John the Baptist is imprisoned - Mark 1:14,15,17.
Jesus's began ministry whilst John was free and before imprisoned - John 1:28-
29, 3:25-30
--
Jesus baptised - John 3:22
Jesus did not baptise - John 4:2
--
The exorcism of Legion - being 2 men - Matt 8:28
The exorcism of Legion - being 1 man - Mark 5:1,2
--
The healing on leaving Jericho was 1 blind man - Mark 10:46,47
The healing on leaving Jericho was 2 blind men - Matt 20:29,30
--
Respect for parents taught - Exodus  20:12, Leviticus 19:3, Deuteronomy 5:16,
Ephesians 6:1-2
Disrespect and rejection of parents taught - Matt 8:21-22, 10:37, 19:29, 23:9,
Luke 12:51,53, 14:26
--
People choose not to come to Jesus - John 5:40
People can only come to Jesus if God wills it - John 6:44
--
Jesus judges - John 5:22,27, 9:39, 2 Corinthians 5:10
Jesus does not judge - John 8:15, 12:47
--
Christians to hate their brothers - Luke 14:26
Whoever hates their brother cannot have eternal life - 1 John 3:15
--
Jesus refuses to give signs -  Matthew  12:38,39, Mark 8:12, Luke 11:29
Jesus did give signs - John 3:2, 20:30, Acts 2:22
--
One of the disciples was lost - John 17:12
None of the disciple were lost - John 18:9
--
Jesus refers to David eating the consecrated  bread  in the time of Abithar -
Mark 2:25,26
In fact David ate the consecrated bread in the time  of Ahimelech - 1 Sam 21:1-6
--
Disciples being sent out not to wear sandals -  Matthew 10:9,10
Disciples being sent out to wear sandals - Mark 6:8,9
--
No man can retain the spirit after death - Eccles 8:8
Peter restores spirit of Tabitha after death  -  Acts 9:37,40
--
Believers not to worry about providing for family  -Luke 14:26,33, 18:29,30
Believers must provide for family - 1 Timothy 5:8
--
The law/commandments to remain for ever - Matthew 5:17-19, Luke 16:17
The law has ended - Romans 7:4, Eph 2:15, Col 2:14
--
Simon and Andrew's home was in Capernaum - Mark 1:21,29
Simon and Andrew's home was in the same place as Philip's - Bethsaida - John
1:44
--
God has given all things into Jesus' hands - John 3:35
God has not given all things into Jesus' hands  -  Matt 20:23, John 5:19
--
The anointing and entry into Jerusalem...

Matthew and Mark detail how Jesus rode  into  Jerusalem in Matt 20:1-13, Mark
11:1-11. It was after  this  that he was anointed at Bethany -  Matt 26:6-16,
Mark  14:3-11. But in John he is anointed    (12:1-8)  and  it  is after this
that he rides into Jerusalem (12:12-15).
--
The Last Supper.
The Synoptics make it clear this was the Passover  meal - Matt 26:19, Mark
14:16, Luke 22:13. However in  John, the meal was held on the  day  before  the
Passover  - 13:29, and after the meal the Passover  had  still  not begun -
18:28, and after the  trial,  it  was  the  day ("Preparation") for the
Passover. The Passover  was  on the day after Jesus  was  crucified  (ie.
because  the Passover fell on the Saturday sabbath, it is  therefore
called a 'high day') - John 19:31.
--
Peter is warned he  will  deny  Jesus  after  the  last supper and having left
the upper room - Matt  26:20-34, Mark 14:17-30
Peter is warned he will  deny  Jesus  during  the  last supper before leaving
the upper room -  Luke  22:33-39, John 13:37-38/ 18:1
--
Jesus' trial before the sanhedrin was at night  and  in morning he was taken  to
Pilate  -  Matthew  26:57-68, 27:1-2
Jesus' trial before the sanhedrin and  being  taken  to Pilate  was in the
morning - Luke 22:66-71, 23:1
--
Simon of Cyrene carries Jesus' cross - Matthew 27:32
Jesus carries his cross - John 19:17,18
--
Both robbers revile Jesus - Matt 27:44
Only one robber reviles Jesus  and the other believes -Luke 23:41-43
--
Jesus tells the believing robber he will be with him in paradise that day - Luke
23:43
Jesus was in the grave following his death and did  not ascend to  heaven - Acts
2:24,31, John 20:17
--
The confirmation Jesus is dead.
In Mark 15:43-45, Joseph of Arimathea asks  Pilate  for Jesus' body, and Pilate
is unaware  of  whether  he  is dead; only after sending a centurion and
receiving this confirmation does he allow Joseph  to  take  the  body.
However  in  John   19:31-33,38,      Pilate   actually authorises the leg-
breaking to  ensure  they  have  all died and then authorises Joseph to remove
the body.  NB. Mark 15:42 states it was evening, ie.  the  sabbath had already
begun (the Jewish 'day' beginning at  6pm), when Joseph asks for the body.
However,  burial was not allowed on this day,  showing the fictitiousness of the
story.
--
The time  between  the  resurrection  and  ascension  ?
Matthew-At least the time to reach Galilee (60-70 miles north); Luke-clearly one
day only (see 24:13,33,36,50 - it is made very clear that Jesus  rose,  made
all  his appearances and ascended back to  heaven  on  the  same day); John-at
least a week accepting  John  20  as  the original end to the Gospel,  but  with
the    John  21 appendix this means it was even longer as  this  has  a
Galilean appearance; Acts-40 days.  An attempt to  reconcile  John's  visit  of
just  Mary Magdalene whilst still dark with  the  Synoptics  where there are
several women and it is daytime, is by saying John's was an earlier one, ie. the
one in the Synoptics was a second one. However this cannot be so  as    John
has Mary Magdalene seeing the empty tomb (20:1) and  in the Synoptics  when the
women go to the tomb  they  ask about who  would  roll  the  stone  away  (Mark
16:3).  However Mary Magdalene was with them  (Mark  16:1)  and she had already
seen that the stone had been moved away and therefore they would already know
this from her 1st visit.
    Furthermore, Luke makes any appearance at,  or  journey to Galilee
absolutely impossible as it  has  everything happening in the area of Jerusalem
with  the  disciples being told to  stay  there  until  Pentecost,  and  the
conclusion being Jesus' ascension from nearby Bethany.  This is made clear - in
Luke the first appearance is to the  two  travelling  to  Emmaus  (10  miles
West   of Jerusalem) and 24:13 states this was "that  very  day"; the two then
go "that  same  hour"  to  the  eleven  in Jerusalem (24:33); Jesus then appears
whilst  they  are still explaning what they had seen (24:36). Jesus  then
tells  them  to  stay in Jerusalem until Pentecost (24:49).
    As Luke 24:51 has the ascension on the same day as  the resurrection this
prevents any Galilean appearances  by Jesus to the eleven as in Matt and John.
Luke's account makes nonsense of Matt having Jesus tell the women to instruct
the disciples to go up to Galilee (Matt 28:10) if he was going to see them
himself  later that day (as in Luke and  John),  and  furthermore  see them in
Jerusalem. Also, Luke makes it clear  that  the eleven were told to stay in
Jerusalem from the  day  of the  resurrection  to  Pentecost,  but  Matt  has
them travelling up to Galilee (28:16) as does John (21:1ff).
    Important to note is Mark  16:7,  ie.  that  the  women 'said nothing to
anyone' - all three Gospels contradict this by them telling the  disciples
which  then  leads into their accounts. Because  of  Mark  16:7,  this  is
really made impossible.
--
    Luke also has Jesus appearing to "the  eleven"  on  the same day  as  the
resurrection  (24:33-36),  but  John states Thomas was missing on this
appearance and it was a week later that Jesus actually appeared to all eleven
- - with Thomas then being present (20:24,26).
--
The chronology of Paul's life.
                Acts
(1)Paul converted on the way to Damascus (9:1-8).
(2)He goes to  Ananias  in  Damascus  and  stays  there 'several days' (9:20).
(3)After  'some  time'*,  Paul  goes  to Jerusalem (9:23,26) and meets the
apostles there (9:27).
(4)Paul preaches in Jerusalem, but due  to  threats  to kill him, he is sent to
Tarsus (9:30).
(5)Relief to  Jerusalem  and  Judea  taken  by  Paul  & Barnabas (2nd visit)
(11:30)
(6)Paul goes to Jerusalem (3rd time)  (12:25)**
(7)Paul  goes  to   Jerusalem   (3rd   or   4th   time) (15:1ff).(vii)
               Galatians.
(1)Paul is converted (1:16).
(2)He does not go to Jerusalem, but  to Arabia and then Damascus (1:17)
(3)After 3 years, Paul goes to Jerusalem, meeting  only Cephas and James there
(1:18-19) staying only 15 days.
(4)He then goes to the regions  of  Syria  and  Cilicia (1:21).
(5)14 years later, Paul goes to Jerusalem with Barnabas and Titus (2:1).
(6)Paul confronts Cephas at Antioch   (2:11).
(7)No further information.

* The 'some time' in Acts 9:19 is not clear as  to  how long this was; different
  translations render this 'some time passed' (Jerusalem),  'after  a  number
  of  days' (Moffatt); the literal Greek is "'many' with  the  view of being
  sufficient"; however it  is  rendered,  it  is difficult to reconcile this
  with the three years of Gal 1:18.
** It is  not  clear  whether  12:25  is  a  return  to Jerusalem, or a return
   to Antioch  from  Jerusalem;  if the former, and the Acts 15 visit  is  the
   Gal 2:1-10 one, then in Acts it would be the fourth visit,  whilst Paul
   states it was only the second.  Paul's method of counting in  Gal.  is  not
   absolutely clear, ie. whether his 14 years in Gal 2:1 is 14  years after his
   starting point in Gal (ie. his conversion) or 14 years after the first
   Jerusalem visit 3 years after his  conversion  which  he  had  mentioned
   immediately beforehand  (ie.  a  total  of  17  years   after   his
   conversion).

--
    Numerous others problems arise when trying to reconcile the two accounts,
eg.  Acts has Paul in  Jerusalem  and Judea  in his early life (21:17 then
22:3)  and  as  a persecutor of  the  church  there  (7:58,  9:1-2,13,21,
26:10) which makes Paul's comment that  (Gal  1:22)  he was not known by sight
by the churches  in  Judea  even after his time in Jerusalem, Syria and Cilicia
(1:17- 21) appear impossible.  Furthermore  when  Paul  has  a dispute with
Peter at Antioch about Gentile  fellowship in Gal 2, why does he not remind him
of what was agreed at the Acts 15 conference on this very subject ?
--
Abraham was justified by faith - Rom  4:1-5
Abraham was justified by works - James 2:22-24
--
Elijah and Moses appear many centuries after they  died-Mark 9:2-4
Only God is immortal - 1 Tim 6:15-16
--
Jesus to be buried for three days and   nights  -  Matt 12:40
Jesus  buried  for  one  day  and  two  nights  -  Mark 15:42,43, John 20:1
(These texts show the burial   did not take place until Friday  night  and  the
tomb  was empty  before Sunday morning). Jesus is  NOT  dead  for "three days
and three nigh ts"  whether  present-day  or Jewish time-reckoning is used.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

In summary:

The Bible presents an interesting picture of God, ie. a god  who never changes (Malachi 3:6) but actually does frequently  change his mind and even regrets what  he's  done  ("repents")  -  Gen 6:6,7, Ex 32:l4, l Sam l5:35, 2 Sam 24:l6, l  Chron  21:l5,  Jer l8:8,l0, 26:3,l3,l9, 42:l0, Ezek 24:l4, Joel 2:l3,    Amos 7:3.  Although  it is to be noted that Numbers 23:l9 and l Samuel 15:2 say that God never repents.....  It states God is "spirit", ie. non-physical (John 4:24) and yet he is always called 'him' or 'he' as if he had a   male body, but it also says that although spirit, he has feet (Psalm l8:9), arms (Jer 27:5), wings (Psa  36:7),  hands  (Job  27:ll),  eyes (Deut  8:3), a  mouth (Isa  l:20),  ears    (2    Chron  6:40), nostrils  (Ex l5:8)   and legs (Gen 3:8). He also uses  a  razor - -  Isa  7:20.  He  also  occasionally  roars (Joel  3:l6)   and sometimes  he  even  whistles (Isa 5:26)  !!!  Although  he has never been seen (John l:l8),   he   has actually been seen  (Isa 6:l), and he even revealed his rear to Moses (Exodus 33:21-22)..

Christians argue that it  is  through  Adam's  sin  that    evil exists  and furthermore it is because of his transgression  that all  humans  must die; this is clearly taught by Paul  in    Rom 5:12,17,18  and  is    the  central theology  of  Christianity; however, this wholly  contradicts  2 Kings 14:6, Ezekiel  18:20, Jeremiah  31:30 that state  a  person  will NOT  suffer  for  an ancestor's wrongdoing.  If the God of the Bible is truly God, then there is  a dilemma; for God to be God, he has to be omnipotent, responsible for  the creation  of everything; this  includes  evil;  if  he  did  not create evil, then he was  not  wholly  creative,  and  therefore cannot be God. In  fact the    Bible  does  actually  say  God commits evil, eg. Exodus 32:l4, 2 Sam 24:l6,   1  Chron  21:l5, Jer l8:8, 26:3,l3,l9,  Jonah 3:l0. Furthermore  he sends  lying spirits (l Kings 22:23, 2  Chronicles  l8:22)  and  deliberately deceives people (2 Thessalonians 2:ll). And not only this,    he admits to being responsible for the  creation  of    evil    and misery  -  Isaiah 45:7, and that he has deliberately made people so he can destroy  them - Proverbs l6:4. Christians blame the devil for evil, but    the  devil  and  his desire for power (that supposedly resulted  in  his  fall)  must have come from God in the first place if he created  everything; there is also the "awkward" point that he is hardly mentioned in the Old Testament - just Job 1:6-12, 2:1-7 where he is called "a son of God" (!), in 1 Chron 21:1 where  he  incites  the  census (although 2 Sam 24:1 says God did this !), and  Zechariah  where he is only a prosecuting attorney (3:1-3).  It is also argued that man  has free will  to choose;  firstly, what about those who have never heard the Christian gospel (and some might feel they are fortunate !), or are incapable (ie. the mentally- ill/retarded) or die in infancy; secondly,  considering man's eternal destiny depends upon this, one would have  thought God would have  made  as  better  job of  it  it,  ie.  a  less contradictory and a clearer Bible (that doesn't even mention God is a Trinity !), and  not  literally  thousands  of  sects  (all saying  different  things)  making  up  the  Christian   church; thirdly, if man chooses  through  this  supposed  free  will  to reject the gospel, but then spends eternity in  hell  for  this, where is the free will here ?

God is hardly consistent - He condemns  killing  (Exodus  20:l3) but orders it  (Exodus  32:27);  he encourages wisdom  (Proverbs 4:7) but condemns it  (l Corinthians  l:l9);  he  protects  the righteous  (Proverbs    12:21)    but does    not    (Hebrews ll:36-37); he cuts off the wicked (Proverbs l0:27) but does  not (Job 21:7-9); he commands respect for parents (Exodus 20:l2) but encourages  hatred  for  them  (Luke  l6:9);  he  blesses  peace (Matthew 5:9) but brings war (Matthew l0:34, Revelation l9:ll).  It continues by saying God will  keep  the  earth  (Ecclesiastes l:4), but will destroy it  (2  Peter 3:l0);  is  invisible  and unseen (John l:l8,  l Timothy 6:l5-l6) but has been seen  (Amos 9:l,  Deuteronomy  5:24);  he lives in dazzling light (l Timothy 6:l5-l6), but lives in darkness  (l Kings 8:l2)......

Christians maintain that God cares for the    world,    he    is personally involved in it, he has sent his prophets, he has even taken  on  human form himself and lived  and  died  as  a  human being, he has sent his Holy Spirit, his  Word  (the  Bible)  and manifests himself through his church; however, how is it that so much suffering prevails in the world ?  The Bible has  Jesus comparing    humans'    compassion    with God's;  he supposedly pointed out that  even  a  human    being 'evil  as  they  are' would not let  their  child starve    or suffer  (Matthew  7:9-13)  so (therefore) we can look forward to much more more from  God.  This  is the real nonsense; no  human being would allow the suffering that  goes on in the world today to continue  if  they could  stop   it,    but    a  supposedly caring, loving, omnipotent god does nothing...  What is one supposed to make of a  deity  that  allows  so  much suffering  to  go  on  which  even  a  mere    frail      feeble inconsistent 'evil'  human would stop if they could ? 


---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Accuracy of the Gospels



On examination of passages arising in the four Gospels, it can be seen that the narrative is composed to suit the theological viewpoint of the evangelist. When comparing a narrative with its parallel in another Gospel, or when a narrative only appears in one Gospel, it becomes obvious that the evangelists had their own beliefs and attitudes, and these sometimes become obvious. It is clear that the authors of the Gospels shaped, remoulded, selected and adapted the material available to them to suit their purpose. From this it can be seen that the evangelists selected and adapted the material available to them, so they could write with a special purpose and objective in mind.

Matt's author, using Mark as a source, wanted to show Jesus' mission was to the Jews, as their own messiah, but the author of Luke, also using Mark as a source, wanted to picture Jesus in a way that his Hellenistic readers would understand and relate to. The author of John, possibly using Mark or a Ur- Markus, as a source, or the source of Mark for some of his information, wrote from a highly individual viewpoint and in this Gospel, the writer's personal interpretation and authorship becomes most apparent.

Before the resurrection in Matt however, Jesus is shown as being solely for the Jews; Jesus is pictured as the Jewish messiah, the descendent of Abraham and the Son of David; his life fulfilled the OT prophesies and expectations. On occasions the OT texts are wrestled from their context and used very artificially in Matt. Whilst pro-Jewish, the author writes against certain Jewish groups which he felt particular hostility towards. In Luke, Jesus is the saviour of the world - to Jew, Samaritan and Gentile. Luke's author makes it clear that from the very beginning, not only Israel, but the world was blessed by Jesus' appearance on earth. (2:l4,32). In Luke, Jesus' coming was vital in world history and history, both past and present had to be shaped around the years of Jesus' life on earth. Jesus' coming in Luke influences history as is shown by Jesus' comment in Luke l6:l6 that the law and prophets were only 'until John'. From this point a new phase in history begins.

Luke's author was clearly sympathetic to the poor and outcast; he includes material that teaches this and which is only found in Luke, eg. the woes against the wealthy (6:24,25), the story of Lazarus and the Rich man (Luke l6); there is one case where Luke is detailing the same material as Matt, but a clear change is made to uphold his view towards the poor - "Blessed are the poor in spirit....Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness..." (Matt 5:3,6) but in Luke this is "Blessed are you poor....Blessed are you that hunger now..." Here, as can be clearly seen, the evangelist has deliberately changed the wording to suit either his spiritual theology (Matt) or his social theology (Luke). In Luke there is the call by Jesus to care for the outcast with the promise of reward for doing this (l4:12-l4), and there is also Jesus' teaching that the despised classes (in this case a tax collector) were more sincere and pleasing to God than the so-called religious teachers (l8:l0-l4).

It has been argued that the Gospels contain 'pillar passages', ie. statements that conflicted with early church theology and belief which created problems for the early church, but despite this, the fact that these were included shows that the evangelists faithfully recorded these and that they wrote a reliable account of Jesus' life. One such passage is Mark 3:21 where it is stated that Jesus' family went out to 'seize him' because of the accusations of insanity. At first sight this does appear that the author has included something that puts Jesus' family in a bad light and it certainly clashes with the church's belief that Jesus' family later became members of the church (eg. Acts l:l4) and were later held in high esteem. However, some commentators believe this is not necessarily connected with mental instability, and furthermore, the author may have had in mind the 'prophesy' of Isa 53:3 that the servant would be despised and rejected of men; indeed Jesus does remind the disciples that he would suffer contempt (9:l2). In Mark there is the statement that Jesus could not work miracles because of unbelief (6:5) and indeed Matt (l3:58) modifies this, and Luke omits it altogether, but this is not necessarily a passage that reduces Jesus' stature; Mark repeatedly emphasises the need to believe in Jesus for his power to be able to manifest itself - eg. Mark 5:34, l0:52.

Because some passages were included in the Gospels and these may have embarrassed the church does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that the evangelists recorded an accurate historical account of Jesus' life; this is particularly so in view of the situation in the early church which was not uniform and was very fluid.

The principal motive of each evangelist in producing a 'Gospel' was for the preaching of the early church; the Gospels were not intended to be for general and public circulation and reading. It is clear that they did write as theologians and not historians and therefore they cannot be viewed as trustworthy (ie. reliable and accurate) historians.

In John, hostility against Judaism reaches a peak; by the end of the first century, Christianity was no longer deemed to be just a schism in Judaism.

By this time there was an official cursing of the Christians ('Minim') in the synagogues. The Gospel of John therefore coincides with the mutual feeling between the Jews and early Christians at the time of being written. In John, the Jews are pictured as slow, dull-witted, aggressive and hypocritical, deviating from the original faith. They are prepared to murder (l2:l0-ll) and are pictured as ignorant of God's word (5:38-40), without God's love (5:42), accused by Moses (5:45), potential murderers (8:40), children of the devil who was a murderer and liar (8:44) and they are even reported as making several attempts to kill Jesus (8:59, l0:31). The author puts words into their mouths which could not have been spoken; the statement of 'We have no king but Caesar' by the chief priests (l9:l5) would have been a denial of all Jewish theology and history apart from the fact that a Jewish leader making this statement would soon encounter the fury of the nationalist Zealots. The author comes very close to preventing Jesus from being a Jew himself when he writes of Jesus speaking to the Jews of 'your father Abraham' (8:56), 'your law' (l0:34). He continues his polemic in having the Jews even asking for leg-breaking after Jesus had died (l9:31) which results in Pilate instructing this even though it conflicts with Mark which describes Pilate as being unaware of Jesus' death (l5:44-45). John also writes about the expulsion of Christians from the synagogues and the possibility of executions (9:22, l6:2), which did not exist in the time that Jesus supposedly lived, but did exist in the closing years of the first century when the Gospel was written (ie. the official cursing of the 'Minim' inserted into the synagogue service under Rabbi Gamaliel, ca. 85 CE).

Another indication that the evangelists have composed stories about Jesus without historical foundation is their interpretation of what they considered to be Old Testament 'prophesies'. Because the author of John understood the Hebrew parallelism of Psa 22:l8 as two completely separate actions, he has the soldiers carrying out two separate actions (l9:23-24). The other evangelists who did not misunderstand this, only have one action in the disposal of Jesus' clothes (Matt 27:35, Mark l5:24, Luke 23:34). In the same way, the author of Matt misunderstood the parallelism of Zech 9:9 and had two animals involved in Jesus' entry into Jerusalem (21:2-7) when in fact there is only one animal being spoken about. The other evangelists do not make this mistake and therefore only have one animal - Mark l:2-7, Luke l9:30-35, John l2:l4-l5-16

These examples show that the evangelists, rather than being historians, were only interested in the theology of what they were writing about. In these two cases they have deliberately introduced details to 'agree' what they felt to be an OT prophecy. One commentator admits that the whole of Jesus' trial is based on O.T. prophesy; therefore rather than the Christian statement that the life of Jesus 'fulfilled' O.T. prophesies (although in reality few are actual 'prophesies'), the very reverse is true - Jesus' earthly life was built up on these 'prophesies'. John gives the picture of the Logos in full control of every situation with his power being considerably greater than the Synoptics, eg. whilst the Synoptics record resurrections of people who had only just died (eg. Matt 9:l8), Jesus resurrects a man who had been dead for four days (ll:l7), the blind man healed was not like the man who had once seen in the Synoptics (Mark 8:24), but had been blind from birth (9:l), Jesus carries his own cross (l9:l7) and does need not this to be carried for him as in the Synoptics (eg. Matt 27:32). Again, the theological view of John's author completely overshadows any desire to present a historical account; his account is to show that Jesus was the Son of God and historical facts are not relevant. In the same way, the author of Matt is keen to show that Jesus was the Jewish Messiah, while the authors of Luke and Mark are more concerned with portraying a Jesus who would be acceptable to Gentiles. Mark, almost certainly the first Gospel, includes a number of errors which not only show that the author was not an eyewitness to the events he so vividly describes (and also, was not based on anyone else's account who was an eyewitness), but also that details such as features of the Jewish religion, geography and chronology were only secondary to his purposes. Mark (1:2) has a quotation from Malachi 3:l and Isaiah 40:3, but he attributes both to Isaiah (furthermore he interfered with the poetry by changing the location of the wilderness), there is a chronological error in naming Abiathar as the high priest (2:26), Herod is called a king when he was in fact a tetrach and this is followed by an error about Philip's wife (6:l4,l7), he attributed a custom of the strict Pharisees to all the Jews (7:3), his mention of Dalmanutha in 8:10 indicates he was not very familiar with Palestine, there is a reference by Jesus to women divorcing their husbands, a custom not possible in Palestine (l0:12), together with an error over the timing of the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread (l4:l,12). On occasions, the author seems to be confused about Palestinian life.

The errors contained within Mark were 'corrected' by the authors of Matthew and Luke, and sometimes by later copyists, particularly when they involved important theological points. It was the same situation with each of the four evangelists; each one had a particular motive, each one had a specific theological belief and each one had a certain group of people in mind for whom their Gospel was intended.

On occasions, the reason for relating a story not found in the other three Gospels, or for making a drastic change in it is not altogether clear. All four Gospels have the story of Jesus being anointed by a woman; Matt (26:6-l3) and Mark (l4:2-ll) have this after the entry into Jerusalem, but John has this before, while Luke has it long before the arrival in Jerusalem during the early ministry (Luke 7:36-50). Whilst Luke has the woman anointing Jesus' feet as does John (l2:3), Matt and Mark have the woman anointing Jesus' head. Other minor differences occur, eg. Jesus tells Peter of his denials after leaving the room where the last supper was eaten, on the way to Gethsemane in Matt (26:30-35) and Mark (l4:26-31), but in Luke (22:33-34/39) and John (l3:37-38/l8:l), Jesus tells him before leaving.

In Luke, Jesus is assaulted before the questioning by the Sanhedrin and the questioning takes place the following morning (22:63-71), but in Matt (26:57-68/27:l) and Mark (l4:53-65/l5:l) the assault is immediately after the questioning and this all takes place before the morning. Presumably there was a reason for the differences which occur in all four Gospels, but they have been lost in time. Differences such as these may arise because of the evangelist wishing to convey a particular point which is not obvious, or they may simply arise because of the way the material/tradition was transmitted and reached the evangelist.

When certain passages are examined, it can be seen what the evangelist had in mind and furthermore, what he personally viewed as important. The author of Matt wanted to show that Jesus' mission was to the Jews. In l5:21-28, Jesus' objection to healing the Gentile woman's daughter is much more obvious than in Mark (in Mark, the only time Jesus is called 'Lord' is by this woman - 7:28; here Mark has used the story, which in Matt is anti-Gentile, to show that it was a Gentile who recognised who Jesus was). Matt also adds that Jesus said that he had only come 'to the lost sheep of the house of Israel'. The author of Luke, not only pro-Gentile, but endeavouring to portray Jesus as humane, omits the whole story.

Jesus instructed his disciples not to go anywhere near Gentiles or Samaritans, but to go to 'the lost sheep of the house of Israel' in Matt l0:5-6, but Mark does not include this (6:7ff) and nor does Luke (9:lff). Luke contradicts this by saying that Jesus wanted to enter Samaria. but was prevented from doing so by the inhabitants (9:52-53); also in Luke, Jesus heals a Samaritan (l7:ll-l6), and Jesus' mission to the Samaritans, which is precluded in Matt, goes even further in John when Jesus goes into Samaria and many are converted there (4:4,5,39-42). It is generally accepted that the seventy disciples sent out in Luke l0:l was a Gentile mission. Not only did the authors of Matt and Luke correct the errors in Mark, and the author of John reinterpret the oral and written material that was the basis for the Synoptic Gospel account, they also clearly made considerable changes to Mark. Although some corrections and changes are to make the account more authentic, the principal cause for the changes is clearly theological. This can be traced in all four Gospels, from beginning to end.

Matt begins with a genealogy tracing Jesus back to Abraham through David (l:l-16) - to show Jesus as the Jewish Messiah, but Luke has this going back to Adam (3:23-38) to show Jesus' coming was to save all mankind and not just Israel. This fact is announced just after the birth in Luke also - 2:28,32. The author of Mark begins his Gospel very abruptly, whilst the author of John begins his Gospel by stating that Jesus was the pre-existent Logos, and it is this portrayal that runs throughout John. To the end of the Gospels, the personal theological belief, manner and motivation of each author still manifests itself; in Mark the resurrection narrative ends as abruptly as the Gospel begins; the resurrection appearances are not detailed possibly because the whole message of Mark is faith (Mark 16:9-20 is generally acceprted to be a later addition to avoid the abrupt ending).

In Matt, the last appearance by Jesus to the disciples is on a mountain; this may be an attempt to connect Jesus' departure with Moses' (NB. In Matt, Jesus teaches about the law on a mountain - 5:l,l7-42, which recalls Moses receiving the law on the mountain; in the Lukan parallel, Jesus did not teach on a mountain, but rather 'he came down and stood on a level place' and this did not relate to the law - 6:l7-49; this in itself is an example of how the evangelists adapted material to illustate a theological point). The author of Matt endeavoured to show that Jesus did not come to 'end' Judaism, but was a fulfilment of it. In Luke, Jesus' departure is in the area of Jerusalem where the disciples are to remain, ie. where it all began.

In John the emphasis was to instil faith in those who already believed but felt distanced from Jesus by being second or third-generation Christians (20:29,31). What has to be borne in mind is the fact that the evangelists were not only producing their narratives from isolated disconnected sayings and stories, many of which had survived down to their time only through oral tradition, their narratives were also related to the Jesus they believed in, pictured through their own personal experience; their account was also shaped for the people for whom it was intended. The Gospels would also reflect the evangelists' own culture and background. They also had to deal with factors which had only emerged during their time, eg. why Jesus had not returned, why Judaism had rejected its Messiah, how Christianity could be related to Judaism, how Christianity could show that Jesus was the one foretold in the Old Testament, and as the church became distanced from the time that Jesus supposedly lived, the rising importance of the disciples/apostles.

The evangelists cannot therefore be viewed as trustworthy historians as they saw historical information only as a basis for the 'Good News' they were attempting to declare. This information only served as a background for the story they wanted to tell. As the Gospels are not biographies of Jesus' life, but rather, compositions for preaching and/or to satisfy the need of a particular Christian community, their value as "historical" documents is 'nil'.

The source of Matthew and Luke, although there is still disagreement over this, appears to have been a mixture of,

(a)the Q document; in fact the authors of Matthew and Luke may not have used the same document, ie. due to difference in time and area, one evangelist may have seen a different (eg. expanded) Q document; the term 'Q' is also used to denote oral as well as written tradition, and,

(b)Mark; it appears they most probably used the canonical Mark, and not an earlier edition, and,

(c)their own sources. Both Gospels mainly follow the order in Mark.

In the case of Luke, more than one-third is material not found in Mark, but almost one-third of Mark is not found in Luke. The non-Markan material is principally inserted into two places in Luke, ie. 6:20-8:3 (the small insertion) and 9:51-l8:l4 (the large insertion) although there is non-Markan material found in the sections that do repeat Mark (eg. Luke 3:23-4:l3, 4:l6-30).

In the case of Matthew, half of Matthew is not found in Mark, whilst over a half of this material is found in Luke; the remainder appears to be Matthew's author's own material.

This leads to numerous questions, eg. did the authors write, but then expand on them when coming across Mark (Kummel considers this unlikely with Luke due to the Markan omissions), or whether their special material was actually found in Q, but because the other evangelist chose not to use it, this results in it appearing to be material only available to them. It is also argued that the special material in some cases was not written, but oral tradition; some have gone as far as suggesting that the material found in only one Gospel, without parallel in another could even be the author's own thoughts, ie. they composed stories that they believed would teach the readers about a subject they considered important, eg. Luke's story of Lazarus and the Rich Man (Luke l6).

A brief examination of both Matt and Luke will show that the authors were sympathetic to certain ideas, and introduced these into their Gospels, either by simply rephrasing or rearranging the material, or by using stories that supported their particular ideas. Matthew's author clearly wished to show that Jesus' mission was only to the Jews (l0:5,6, l5:24); in the case of the Canaanite woman (l5:22-28), Jesus' hostility is far greater in Matt, than in Mark (7:24-30), but Luke's author chose to omit this altogether. In Matt the Gentile mission was really only authorised after the resurrection (28:l9); it is at this point where the pro-Jewish line is concluded; after the crucifixion the Jews are pictured as being particularly hostile - eg. approaching Pilate to authorise a guard on the tomb (27:62-66) and the Jews bribing guards to say the disciples had stolen the body (28:ll-l5); the historicity of both incidents has been questioned.

Before the resurrection in Matt however, Jesus is shown as being solely for the Jews; Jesus is pictured as the Jewish messiah, the descendent of Abraham and the Son of David; his life fulfilled the OT prophesies and expectations. On occasions the OT texts are wrestled from their context and used very artificially in Matt. Whilst pro-Jewish, the author writes against certain Jewish groups which he felt particular hostility towards. In Luke, Jesus is the saviour of the world - to Jew, Samaritan and Gentile. Luke's author makes it clear that from the very beginning, not only Israel, but the world was blessed by Jesus' appearance on earth. (2:l4,32). In Luke, Jesus' coming was vital in world history and history, both past and present had to be shaped around the years of Jesus' life on earth. Jesus' coming in Luke influences history as is shown by Jesus' comment in Luke l6:l6 that the law and prophets were only 'until John'. From this point a new phase in history begins.

Luke's author was clearly sympathetic to the poor and outcast; he includes material that teaches this and which is only found in Luke, eg. the woes against the wealthy (6:24,25), the story of Lazarus and the Rich man (Luke l6); there is one case where Luke is detailing the same material as Matt, but a clear change is made to uphold his view towards the poor - "Blessed are the poor in spirit....Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness..." (Matt 5:3,6) but in Luke this is "Blessed are you poor....Blessed are you that hunger now..." (6:20,21). Here, one of the evangelists has deliberately changed the wording to suit either his spiritual theology (Matt) or his social theology (Luke). In Luke there is the call by Jesus to care for the outcast with the promise of reward for doing this (l4:12-l4) and there is also Jesus' teaching that the despised classes (in this case a tax collector) were more sincere and pleasing to God than the so-called religious teachers (l8:l0-l4). 

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The Christian God


All forms of life destroyed because of one imperfect species - Gen 6:5,7, 7:23

Human sacrifice commanded by God - Leviticus 27:28,29. Under inspiration of God's Spirit, Jephthah agrees to sacrifice daughter as a thanksgiving - Judges 11;29-40. God sends ten plagues on Egypt because Pharaoh won't release the Hebrews, but he deliberately hardens Pharaoh's heart so he refuses to release the Hebrews in the first place, making these plagues necessary - God admits this is so he can perform 'his wonders' (Exodus 11:9), ie. wholesale mass slaughter of life in Egypt - Exodus 7:3-4,13-14, 10:1,20.

God sanctions slavery and a man selling his daughter - Exodus 21:2-6,7.

Death demanded for heresy - Deuteronomy 13:1,2,5,14,15. God says that if a man strikes 'his slave', male or female, and they do not die immediately, the man shall not be punished because 'the slave is his money (ie. property)' - Exodus 21:20-21.

God orders people to slaughter their own relatives because they rejected Moses' religion; 3000 killed. Moses tells the killers that God would bless them for doing this by making them ordained for his service - Exodus 32:27-29.

A person to kill their own family for a difference of religion - Deuteronomy 13:6-10.

God demands death for anyone not circumcised - Gen 17:9-14. God demands the sick are to be driven out of the community - Numbers 5:1-4.

God burns people to death for complaining- Numbers 11:1

God kills 24,000 people by a plague because one of them brought a Midianite woman to his tent - Num 25:6-9. The curses of God upon the Hebrews (eg. eating their own children) - Lev 26:14-39, Deut 28:15-68. God arranges the Midianite slaughter - Judges 7:2,9,22. (Note: Numbers 31:l-l8 states that God instructed the mass slaughter of Midianites, and the Lord "slew every male", alongwith their rulers (31:7), and the Midianite women and children and animals were captured; Moses then demanded all the males, including babies and the women were to be slaughtered, but the young girls could be "kept alive for yourselves" (31:18). This story records the extermination of the Midianites, but later on, God AGAIN instructs the slaugher of the Midianites (Judges 6:16), It is the same with the Amalekites - they are "ALL destroyed" in 1 Samuel 15:8, but they are destroyed yet again in 1 Samuel 27:8-9 and everyone - men and women - are killed; however, they are killed (- for the 3rd time!) in 1 Samuel 30:1,l6ff except for 400 young men. At long last, they are are finally killed off in 1 Chronicles 4:43 when the 'remnant' were destroyed. NB. most of the Pentateuchal battles were ordered by Moses but he was only God's mouthpiece (Num 12:6-8). He also has an important role in the N.T - Matt 17:1-4, Heb 3:2,5, 11:23-29, Rev 15:3).

The Spirit of God comes upon Samson and he murders over a thousand people - Judges 14:19, 15:14-15. The Psalmist praises God for his 'steadfast love' but then details his slaughtering in the past - Psalm 136:10-21.

God deliberately deludes people so they will not be saved - 2 Thess 2:11-12. A girl not found to be a virgin was to be killed - Deut 22:13-21 (Note the same did not apply to men !).

God kills an innocent baby for its father's wrongdoing - - ignoring the father's pleas - 2 Samuel 12:15-20 God kills 70,000 men - 2 Samuel 24:15

God has a friendly meeting with his arch enemy Satan - whom he doesn't even recognise - Job 1:6-7, and they have a wager (Job 1:8-12) over how much suffering it would take before righteous Job will reject God. Job then has his whole family killed and livelihood ruined (1:13-19) and then is afflicted by a loathsome plague (2:7-8).
 
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The Historicity of Jesus


The church has failed to show any proof that the Gospels were in existence before 125 CE. This is demonstrated if one looks at the second century Christian writings:-

The author of 1 Clement, an anonymous letter, usually dated as ca. 96 CE, and attributed to Clement writing from Rome to the church at Corinth, does not appear to be aware of any written Gospels. On two occasions he refers to what Jesus had said; in chap. l3, he repeats the words of Jesus, very similiar to those in the Gospels, although they are not quotations. In chap 46 he brings together two unconnected Markan statements (9:21 and l4:21) and he appears to be quoting loose sayings that were circulat- ing, but not in a fixed form; this view is strengthened by the fact that he never refers to Gospel stories, or sayings, when it would be very appropriate, applicable and would support the argument he is making; instead he quotes or refers to the O.T.

Ignatius, ca. ll0 AD, mentions the Gospel although it again appears he is referring to the Gospel message, rather than written documents. He gives much more information about Jesus' life, but as he refers to things not found in any of the four canonical Gospels, eg. the story of Jesus speaking after the resurrection, (Smyrn. 3) which is apparently from the apocryphal Gospel according to the Hebrews and not from the canonical Gospels, and he describes the Bethlehem star in a way that is not found in Matthew (the only canonical Gospel to mention this), it is not clear what written Gospel was available to him. He refers to other N.T. writings, but there is no clear indication he knew of any written Gospels.....In his letter to the Philippians he uses terms found in Matt and Luke although it is noteworthy that the author of l John, facing the same Docetic problem as Ignatius, but at an earlier time, clearly did not have the biographical information about Jesus, which was available to Ignatius.

The Epistle of Barnabas ca. l30 CE, uses OT references to support its contents when NT ones would have been far more appropriate. It refers to a passage in Matt 20:l6b and 22:l4 and surprisingly for this early date calls it 'Scripture'; this is quite unique. However, 20:l6b appears to have been an interpolation and if it was a loose saying, it is more likely the author is using Matthew's source, rather than Matthew itself. The author chose to use the apocryphal Enoch when writing about the end (instead of Mark l3), and in referring to the crucifixion he refers to the Psalms, not the Gospels. The Epistle (chap. 7) has a saying attributed to Jesus not found in the Gospels.

Polycarp, ca. l30 CE, apparently knew Matt and/or Luke and improves upon Clement's "quotations", but apparently didn't know of John's Gospel. Papias, ca. l40 CE, mentions Matthew and Mark in written form, but not Luke or John and he also made use of non-canonical apocryphal literature indicating that Matt and Mark were not seen a sole source of the gospel message.

Justin Martyr, in the middle of the second century, refers to written Gospels which were deemed as authoritative as the O.T, but he does not name them, nor state their number so it is not known what he was referring to. He too, used non-canonical material. It was only by ca. l70 CE that Tatian was using all four Gospels for his Diatessaron harmony and about a decade later Irenaeus was arguing for acceptance of the four canonical Gospels, and only those.

Therefore it appears that the writings that give Jesus a historical place only appeared in the closing years of the first century and even these took quite some time to be established anbd accepted. Therefore with regard to Jesus of Nazareth being some kind of historical person, surely one is justified in asking why there appears to be so little said by this figure that is original; for example, a good deal of the Sermon of the Mount goes back to the Old Test or lst cent BCE apocryphal writings, eg. the Book of the Secrets of Enoch. Secondly, why there is the astounding silence over biographical - or chronological - details about Jesus' life until ca. 90 CE. Paul, in the period before this time, never invokes his words when they would be invaluable in supporting his argument, and this is not only with Paul, but elsewhere, eg. l Peter. The authors of Romans l3:l-3 and l Peter 2:l3-l4 certainly couldn't have been aware of the story of Jesus appearing before Pilate in view of what they say. This silence continued over into the end of the lst century; in fact when the author of 1 Clement wrote, he seems to suffer from the same problem as Paul and others - total ignorance about Jesus and the Gospels; obviously as is so clearly demonstrated, Christians always used scripture or suchlike to support any argument they were making, so is it somewhat bizarre that Clement does not do this. In chap. 3-6 he lists Abel, Joseph, Moses and David as examples of people who suffered through jealousy - but surely Jesus would have been the ideal example of this - Matt 27:l8/Mark 15:l0 ??? When he speaks about people preaching repentence in 7-8, he uses Ezekiel and Isaiah as examples - but again surely Jesus would have been the ideal example to use - Luke 13:3,Matt l8:3 ? In 9-l2 he lists examples of faith - but yet again they're all Old Test and fails to give any Gospel example that would be more fitting.

In l6 he refers to Jesus' humility and one would expect a reference to his humble birth in a stable,but instead he quotes from the Old Test again (Isa 53). In chap l7 he speaks about those dressed in animal skins who announce the coming of Christ. Surely John the Baptist (Matt 3:4) ? however he lists the Old Test prophets Elijah and Ezekiel. And so it goes on...... It is very clear that although the Gospels emerged in the last decade of the lst century AD, they took a long long time to be circulated and/or accepted which is strange if they are accurate reports of Jesus' life. With regard to the eyewitness testimony for Jesus' existence, there is certainly a problem. It is amazing that anything up to 70(100 ?),000 people saw Jesus, but no one made an eye- witness record of it. Mark was obviously not an eyewitness due to his host of errors concerning chronological, historical, geographical and theological matters in lst. cent Palestine; Matt and Luke have to use Mark as their base (which they obviously wouldn't have needed to do if they were eyewitnesses) and in John (Which even the church only hesitantly accepted into the canon) reports things that couldn't have happened eg. Jesus' speech about drinking blood to a Jewish audience in John 6; it has to be rejected if the Synoptics are accepted as it conflicts with them, eg. his dating of the Temple-clearing and the last supper etc in relation to the Passover. He also reports situations eg. expulsions from the synagogue (l6:2) that didn't occur until after 90 CE (ie. Rabbi Gamaliel II's official cursing prayer of the 'Minim' in ca. 90 CE). In the case of Paul, he gives virtually no detail about Jesus' earthly life, other than he was a descendent of David, was crucified and was raised by God. If Romans, a genuinely Pauline letter, and the longest, is examined to discern Paul's reference to Jesus' earthly life, the silence becomes most apparent:-

(l)Jesus was a Jew/descended from David (l:3, l5:8,12);

(2)Jesus was human (8:3);

(3)His blood was shed (3:25, 5:9);

(4)Jesus suffered/died/was crucified (5:6,8,10,l5, 6:3,4,5,6,8, 8:l7, l4:l5);

(5)Jesus rose from the dead (l:4, 4:24,25, 6:4,5,9,l0, 8:ll,34, l0:7,9, l4:9):

As can be seen, the same few details are repeated over and over again; in the letters that are genuinely accepted as being written by Paul there is no specific reference to the parents of Jesus, and certainly not a virgin birth; his place of birth or the area in which his ministry took place is not mentioned either; 'Of Nazareth' is never used; the details Paul supplies give no indication whatsoever of the time or place of Jesus' earthly existence. Paul never refers to Jesus' Roman trial, and in fact he does not appear to even know who crucified Jesus - in l Cor 2:8 he refers to the death of Christ by 'rulers of the age' - this hardly fits a tinpot prefect called Pilate; this term really denotes supernatural spirits - 2 Cor 4:4, Col 2:l5 *. Paul never refers to Jerusalem as the place of Jesus' execution and never mentions John the Baptist, nor Judas, nor Peter's denials (This would have been quite pertinent in combatting Cephas/Peter at Antioch - Gal 2:ll-l7. Paul's position was apparently being threatened by Peter and despite calling him a hypocrite, he does not allude to his three denials of Jesus, as recorded in the Gospels, eg. Mark l4:30 par). The only chronological reference to Jesus in the Pauline corpus is in l Tim 6:13 and this letter is widely accepted as post-Pauline. Furthermore it appears to be a non-Pauline insertion from a baptismal creed.

(* Although some argue that Paul's reference in l Thess 2:l4-l5 shows he knew that the Jews crucified Christ (this of course is incoorect - the Romans did), this reference is clearly to God's vengeance on the Jews and the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 CE - therefore it has to be an interpolation as l Thess was written ca. 55 CE; however insistence that Paul wrote this statement originally would preclude Paul being the author as it would have to be after 70AD, but Paul died before this date.

Paul also fails to mention any of the miracles Jesus is reported to have accomplished in the Gospels; Paul suggests that miracles might be expected wherever a Christian mission went, for he includes the working of them among 'the gifts of the Spirit' (l Cor 12:l0,28) and himself claimed to have won converts by 'the power of signs and wonders' (Rom l5:l9). Among the signs of a true apostle, he lists 'signs and wonders and mighty works' (2 Cor 12:12); the striking feature is that he fails to mention that Jesus is reported as having done on an extensive scale in his earthly life. Another striking feature is that whilst the Synoptic Gospels portray Jesus as an ethical teacher, there is no suggestion of this in Paul's letters; Paul is certainly not indifferent to ethical problems and on several occasions his letters contain a sizeable amount of ethical instruction. On only one occasion does he represent Jesus as having made an ethical injunction and this is in l Cor 7:l0 when Paul discusses the subject of divorce. The Gospel 'parallel' to this is Mark l0:ll-l2 (Matt is simply following Mark), but there is a difficulty even here as some reject this is authentic as Jesus refers to women divorcing their husbands - something that was not possible in Palestine.

Some say the statement was assigned to Jesus through Paul quoting a Christian prophet (himself ?) through whom the risen Lord was speaking and it was then utilised by the author of Mark who placed it in the mouth of Jesus whilst on earth, but was careless in not realising that its context was Gentile rather than Palestinian. It is clear from such early Christian writings as the Didache that as late as the end of the first century Christian prophets were viewed as being channels of communication for the risen Lord.

Paul was content to suffer weakness, insults, humiliation, persecution and hardship (2 Cor l2:l0) adding that he entreated the readers by the 'meekness and gentleness of Christ' (2 Cor l0:l). He stated that he imitated Christ (l Cor ll:l) and that his whole existence was 'to know nothing....except Jesus Christ and him crucified' (l Cor 2:2) and then goes on to say he was with his readers in 'weakness, much fear and trembling' (l Cor 2:3). If this is Paul's 'imitation' of Christ, then it is a far cry from the Jesus of the Gospels and particularly the picture of Jesus portrayed in John. It appears Paul thought Jesus led a humble inconspicuous life that went completely unnoticed by the world.

Other situations arise in Paul's writing that suggest knew very little about Jesus' supposed earthly life. He clearly was unaware of Jesus' command not to go to the Gentiles (Matt l0:5) in Rom ll:l3, and in Rom 8:26 he states 'for we do not know how to pray as we ought' suggesting he knew nothing of Jesus instructions of how to pray in Matt 5:7-l3, Luke ll:l4; the instructions regarding baptism by Jesus in Matt 28:l9 were also apparently unknown to Paul (l Cor l:l7).

The person of Paul was that of someone who believed that God was now revealing secrets or mysteries; these term arise frequently in Paul's letters, eg. l Cor 2:7, l3:2, l4:2,, l5:51, with 'revealed' or similiar arising frequently also, eg. Rom l:l7,l8, 8:l8, l6:25, l Cor 2:l0,l3, 3:l3, 2 Cor 12:l. Paul believed that he had seen the risen Jesus (l Cor l5:8) and he had spoken directly to him (2 Cor l2:8-9); he had experienced ecstatic states (2 Cor l2:l-4, l Cor l4:l8) and God was now revealing previously-hidden information (1 Cor 2:l0,12-13, 7:40). A question therefore arises, did Paul's rather scant knowledge about Jesus arise through his belief that the risen Lord was now communicating with and through him, alongwith other Christian prophets, or from information gleaned from earthly companions and eyewitnesses of the earthly Jesus. One passage in which Paul clearly refers to a historical event in Jesus' earthly life, ie. the last supper, is 1 Cor 11:23-26. However even this passage begins "For I received from the Lord...." and again, suggests this information was transmitted directly from the risen Christ, rather than from the apostles.

An inevitable question arises, ie. why this should be as Paul had met the apostles (Acts 9:27, Gal 1:18-19, 2:2,9) and would have been given this information by them - that is of course if these "apostles" had in fact accompanied the earthly Jesus rather than being as Paul, ie. Christians receiving information direct from the risen Lord, but that is what the situation appears to have been.

Reference to Jesus' resurrection, rather than his earthly life appears in l Cor l5:3-8, when Paul lists the resurrection appearances (apparently in chronological order); these bear no resemblance to the Gospels and reference to an appearance to 'all the 12' whilst Matt report Judas' suicide again suggests lack of information; his mention of an appearance to five hundred brethren at one time (l5:6) is quite extraordinary as it would be inexplicable for the Gospel writers to have omitted this event if they had known of it. The empty tomb, nor Jerusalem itself is ever mentioned by Paul; his several visits to Jerusalem, recorded in both Acts and Gal. surely would have brought him into contact with the empty tomb; the failure to mention the empty tomb, which surely would have had great significance for Paul due to his preoccupation with Jesus' death and resurrection, may have been due, unlike the Gospels reporting a physical resurrection, to a belief in Jesus being raised as a spirit (l Cor l5:44,45,50). The l Cor l5:3-8 passage does not link Jesus to any specific historical time; it simply reports that he died, was buried, was raised, and had appeared to a number of people alive in Paul's time. There is no suggestion whatsoever that these appearances occurred immediately after his death/resurrection. Whilst the Gospels have Jesus appearing as a resurrected physical human being to his apostles and Acts having Jesus appearing in a totally different form to Paul (ie. after his ascension), there is no such suggestion here; Paul does not differenciate in any way between the earlier appearances in l Cor l5:3-7 and the one to him (l5:8). It appears from this that he believed all those listed in l5:3-7 had experienced the same vision as he had done - they are certainly not made to be companions of Jesus in his earthly life and Paul appears to think of the others who are listed as experiencing a supernatural vision as he had done. The reason for Jesus now appearing was apparently because of the approaching end which was imminent (l Cor 7:29, l5:23-24, l Thess 4:14-17, etc, etc).

Examples of Paul's failure to invoke Jesus' words are:-

Rom 2:l,l4:l3/Matt 7:l, Luke 6:37

Rom l2:l4,l7/Matt 5:44, Luke 6:38

Rom l3:9,Gal 5:l4/Matt 22:39-40, Mark l2:31, Luke l0:27

Rom l3:6/Mark l2:l7

Rom l4:l4/Mark 7:l8-l9

l Cor 6:7/Matt 5:39-40

l Cor l5:35-55*/Mark l2:25

l Thess 4:9/John l5:l7

(* In l Cor l5, Paul uses the O.T. rather than Jesus' statements in the Gospels ie. l5:45 (Gen 2:7), l5:54 (Isa 25:8) and l5:55 (Hos l3:l4).

Paul argues that the 'spirits of this age' will be put down at Christ's second coming (l Cor l5:24-25) - he appears to be ignorant of the fact that spirits were overcome by Jesus in his earthly life (eg. Mark 3:ll) and furthermore this was when Satan himself was judged and cast out (John 12:31).

Furthermore there seems to be no pagan evidence for Jesus' existence either. Reference to his existence doesn't occur until well into the second century and even then the writers seem to be merely repeating Christian statements about Jesus (eg. Tacitus in 120 CE). What is really striking is that thee same ignorance about Jesus' earthly life is found in most other N.T writings, eg. in l Pet, readers are told to love one another, have unswerving faith and put away malice - but the writer never quotes Jesus' words in the Sermon on the Mount - instead he quotes the Old Testament.

With regard to Paul and the origins for Jesus, it does seem that Jesus' 'teachings' overall were borrowed from the O.T. and occasionally elsewhere. It does also seem that messages received 'from the risen Lord' by Christian prophets in trance were fed back into Jesus' earthly life. The Didache, a Christian writing of ca. lst century (probably from Syria) writes of Christian prophets; "Welcome them as the Lord...Every missioner who comes to you should be welcomed as the Lord....While a prophet is uttering words in a trance, you are on no account to subject him to any tests or verifications - this is the sin that shall never be forgiven.......They exhibit the manner and conduct of the Lord.....".

Here it can be seen these prophets were treated with the same respect as Jesus himself; what they said was treated as coming direct from Jesus and was not to be questioned. Furthermore this feature is found elsewhere, eg. B.E.Beck (Senior Tutor and Methodist minister, New Testament Studies, Wesley House, Cambridge), in his Reading the New Testament Today, "....Sayings attributed to Jesus in the gospels were used by Christians without acknowledgement, but the possibility cannot be ruled out that the reverse process has occurred - maxims in general use, from whatever source, have been mistakenly attributed to Jesus, eg. Matt 6:34, 7:6. Apparently Christian prophets spoke in the name of the risen Lord, that is, on his behalf. Were such sayings treasured as those of the earthly Jesus ? Was any real distinction made between them when both were felt to express the mind of the Lord who had now risen and was still acting through his church ?............

If the distinction was not sharply drawn, what was to prevent a saying of the Lord, delivered through a prop- het, being attributed to the Lord in his earthly minis- try ?...". Much the same thing is said by Ernest Best (Professor of Divinity and Biblical criticism, Univers- ity of Glasgow) in his book, 1 and 2 Thessalonians. As Paul and indeed other N.T. writers say little or nothing about Jesus' earthly life and Paul's knowledge of him appears to have come directly through revelations and ecstatic states (See 2 Cor ll:1, Gal l:12); at the end of the day it appears that Paul and a few others* believed there were getting messages from the crucified and now-risen Christ who had lived on earth 'sometime in the past' and was now revealing himself as the close of the age dawned (See l Cor 7:29, l0:11). * Note how the post-resurrection appearances listed in l Cor l5:5-8 (which flatly contradicts the Gospels) does not differentiate between the appearances to those listed in l5:5-7 and the one to Paul, but in fact the Gospels and Acts have Jesus' appearances to some of those in l5:5-7 in a physical body and before his ascension, but to Paul it was a wholly different experience, ie. a blinding vision (eg. Acts 9:3-5), but the way in which the l Cor l5 list is worded certainly suggests that Paul believed the others who had seen the risen Lord experienced it in the same way he did - ie. by direct revelation. He seems to know nothing of any idea that they had ever seen the earthly Jesus.

It is necessary to comment on the argument that proposes that as Josephus and Tacitus, both non-Christians, refer to Jesus, this surely proves he was a historical personage.

These references are very brief fleeting statements concerning a Jesus by (1)Josephus (XVIII, 3.3), ca. 95 CE and (2)Tacitus (anals. xv, 44) ca. 120 CE. However with regard to these, it must be asked, (1)Josephus. (i)Why do no Christians up to the 4th cent. refer to Josephus' priceless remark that 'Jesus was the Christ' ? (ii)Why does the Christian apologist Origen (l85-254 AD) state categorically that Josephus did NOT believe that Jesus was the Christ in view of the statement that calls Jesus by this very title ? (iii)How could a strict Pharasaic Jew make such a statement ? (iv)Why is it written in the same style as Luke ? Surely this suggests rather than being written by Josephus it was taken from this Gospel ? (v)Why does it look like an insertion in the narrative and appears to interrupt the flow, not following on from what is said before and not leading into what is said afterwards ? (vi)Why doesn't Josephus say more about Jesus if he did really believe 'he was the Christ' ? (vii)How it is that a whole host of eminent Christian theologians/scholars who firmly believe in Jesus' historicity reject the passage ?

(viii)Why should this be genuine when other copies of Josephus's Antiquities have been discovered that are heavily interpolated with Christian references ? (ix)The very fact that it does appear to be a Christian interpolation surely suggests there was a problem, as why should Christians feel there was a need to even do this ?

(2)Tacitus. It is never clear why this is even referred to; this was written nearly a century after Jesus' supposed existence - it is hardly 'contemporary'. As Christians go on about this Jesus character, it is interesting to see rather than what Christians say about him, what the Bible says. and this is it........... The Jesus of the Gospels is hardly the character that Christians like to present, eg. he used violence - John 2:15 (and apparently encouraged it; before his arrest he told his disciples to buy a sword; this was used immediately afterwards - - Luke 23:36,49-50; if he was the omniscient Son of God, he would have known this was to happen).

His purpose was to break up families - Matthew 10:34-35, Luke 12:51-53. He taught the gospel was not available for certain races - Matthew 10:5-8, 15:24. He was ignorant of the Scriptures he quoted - Mark 2:26 (In fact the priest was Ahimelech, not Abiathar - see 1 Samuel 21:1,6). He was cruel to animals - Matthew 8:1-4 ('the offering' Jesus commanded was a bird being sacrificed - Leviticus 14:2-5), 8:28-34. He treated his mother with contempt - John 2:4. He suffered fits of temper, not justified by the situation - - Matt 21:18-19, 23:13-33 (In the John 7 outburst, in John 7:37, the Greek is 'to screech like a raven'). He was hypocritical - Matthew 5:22 (Compare his action in Matthew 23:17); Matthew 6:14 (Compare Matthew 10:14-15); Matthew 7:1 (Compare John 5:30, 8:26). He lacked sympathy for other people's suffering - Matthew 8:21-22. He rejected his own family - Matthew 12:46-50, Mark 3:32-35. He had contempt for other religions and their adherents - Matthew 12:30, 23:2-33, John 8:44,55. He deliberately taught in a way so people would not understand him (and therefore be saved from going to eternal hellfire) - Mark 4:9-12. He encouraged people to desert their families - Matthew 19:29, Mark 10:29. He taught people to hate* their families - Luke 14:26 (*The Greek here means 'active ill-will' or 'persecuting spirit'). He taught that suffering was to show God's glory - - John 9:1-3. He ignored a woman pleading for his help: only after she asked him three times did he condescend to help - Matthew 15:22-28. He taught that ill-health and human suffering was the result of sin, or for the purpose of glorifying God - Mark 2:5,11,12, John 5:8-14.

And furthermore, he clearly seemed to have thought that his second coming/the end of the world, ie. the final judgement (etc, etc) was only a short time away, eg. he told the high priest that he would see his return - Mark 14:61-62, he told three disciples that they would see his return - Matt 16;28, he told the disciples he would return before they had preached throughout Palestine - Matt 10:23.

Furthermore, when Jesus told his disciples about the end of the world (Mark 13:3-27), he told them that the generation living at that very time (ca. 30 AD) would still be alive when "all these things", (ie. the Second Coming, the Final Judgement, the end of the world, etc, etc) took place (Mark 13:30). Despite saying all this, only seconds later he then told the disciples that no one - including himself - knew when the end would come (13:3)

Also, he foretold that he would be buried for 3 days and 3 nights in Matthew 12:40 - but Friday evening (Mark 15:42-46) to before Sunday daybreak (John 20:1-2) is NOT 3 days and 3 nights ! Mark 15:42 states he was buried AFTER sundown on the Friday, ie. this in Jewish reckoning was in fact now Saturday - - the sabbath (also burial on the sabbath was something quite impossible to have happened!).

The Gospels repeately say how Jesus' death etc 'fulfilled' the Old Test scriptures (eg. Luke 24:27), but nowhere in the Old Test does it say the messiah is to be killed, buried and resurrected after 3 days.

With regard to the end of the world etc, Jesus stated that there would be an "abominating sacrilege" (Matthew 24:15, Mark 13:14) which would cause a tribulation (Matt 24:16-28, Mark 13:15-23) and IMMEDIATELY after this (Matthew 24:29), he would return to usher in the Final Judgement (Matthew 24:29-31). Now Luke has in the parallel passage, the "abominating sacrilege" as the Fall of Jerusalem (Luke 21:20); as can be seen by Luke 21:21-23, the author of Luke does equate "the abominating sacrilege" of Matthew and Mark as Jerusalem's destruction). However, Jerusalem's destruction (particularly as described in Luke) occurred in 70 AD - therefore isn't Jesus' return (which remember, was supposed to occur "Immediately" afterwards), somewhat overdue ?


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Virgin Birth

Christians have always argued for Jesus' virgin birth, but also argue he was descended from David. This overlooks that if virgin born, Jesus' 'father' Joseph, albeit descended from David, would have had no connection with his conception, and his only human connection would have been through/by/with Mary; however she was of the Aaronic line (ie. she was related to Elizabeth who was of this descent - Luke l:6, l:36). As Aaron was of the tribe of Levi, but David was of Judah, then Jesus, if virgin born, could not therefore be of Davidic descent and could not be the messiah which demanded Davidic descent. Furthermore, this would contradict all the N.T statements that Jesus was a descendent of David - Matt 1:1, 12:23, 15:22, Mark 10:47, Rom 1:3, Rev 5:5. NB. Jesus didn't take on 'David's line' through Joseph being his 'adoptive father' as Rom 1:3 makes it quite clear that Jesus was of David's 'seed' (semen). So there is a problem; Jesus was either of David's line - but that means he wasn't virgin born (ie. Joseph having to have been responsible for his conception), or he was virgin born, but that precludes him being of the Davidic line (because only Mary was involved in his humanity and she was not of the Davidic line) - so he couldn't have been the Messiah/Christ as the N.T teaches.

NB. The virgin-birth story is only found in 2 of the 27 N.T writings, and in Luke, the style of writing indicates the part that relates the infancy was written quite separately, and added to the main story that begins in 3:1 (Note how 3:1 opens as a commencement here). Even the Catholic Jerusalem Bible admits that Matt most likely had its virgin birth story added to it also. In fact Luke conflicts sharply with Matthew, eg. (i) Luke has the birth in the time of the governor Quirinius (2:2,3-7), whilst Matt has it in the time of Herod, but the rule of these two never coincided or overlapped. There is no substance in the argument that the Ramsay Inscription regarding Quirinius as dummvir 'proves' he was governor in Herod's time, (ii) Matthew states that the family fled from Judea immediately to Egypt (2:4-14) and stayed there; Luke has the family calmly going to Jerusalem in Judea after the birth and then up to Galilee (2:21-22,39).

The only reason that Matt's author seems to have the story is because he misunderstood Isa 7:14 that he read as messianic (which it isn't) and referring to a virgin birth (which it doesn't). This is simply the story of Isaiah saying to king Ahaz that by the time that a young girl had conceived and her baby was born, the present threat from Syria would be over (7:14-17). There is NOTHING messianic about it at all. In this, the child was to be called Emmanuel meaning 'God with us', but the name 'Jesus' (in fact the Greek for the Hebrew Jehoshua) means 'Yahweh is salvation', so Jesus was therefore not called by the name Emmanuel and therefore did not fulfil this 'prophesy'; however Matt's author misunder - -stood this and therefore couldn't have been the apostle of that name as he was not a Palestinian Jew (nor an eyewitness as he had to use Mark to write his Gospel). Isa 8:3-4 says how Isaiah went and then impregnated his wife and the prophesy is again made saying that before the child could even talk, Syria would by smashed by Assyria.

Therefore it appears Isa 7:14 relates to Isaiah's own wife/child and does not have any messianic connotations. In fact there is nothing miraculous in Isaiah's saying; he is only saying a woman would conceive. He does NOT say that a girl who would give birth would still be a virgin at/after the conception. The author of Matthew was using the Septuagint 'LXX' - the Greek version of the Hebrew Bible compiled in the 2nd century BCE for the Greek-speaking Jews of the Diaspora. However, it is not a good translation in some parts, eg. in the case of Daniel, the Jews would not use it. The Hebrew word in Isa 7:14 for the woman/'virgin' is "almah" and means NOT a virgin, but a young woman; it is in the LXX that it is rendered 'virgin' and there is the additional fact that in the Greek the root doesn't even necessarily mean a girl who has not had sex, but "denotes fullness or the like - fully developed". The word actually used here has nothing to do with the virgin state. As the Gospel writers used the LXX, they could not have been Pales - -tinian Jews (ie. the apostles) or they would have obviously used the Hebrew text and not made such errors. Matt makes other errors, eg. in 27:9-10 he says he is quoting Jeremiah, but in fact he's quoting Zechariah 11:12-13. There are other examples of this.

It is very apparent that the Gospel writers were NOT Pal- estinian Jews and in the case of Mark's author there has to be doubt whether he had even set foot in Palestine in view of the historical, chronological, geographical and theological errors he makes about first cent. Palestine. But this is where it continues to be manifestly absurd. Jesus was supposedly a true Jew - a direct descendent of Abraham through David (Matthew 1), the Jewish Messiah, the Son of David (Matt 21:9), the 'lion of the tribe of Judah' (Rev 5:5) and yet whenever he quoted the Old Test- ament, he quoted the GREEK LXX version ! Furthermore, in some cases the Hebrew original of the LXX text he is quoting would not support the argument he is making, ie. because of the LXX's inaccuracies. In Mark 7:1-23 Jesus does this, but although it seems the LXX would support the point Jesus is making to the Pharisees, the Hebrew original would not. So we are asked to believe that Jesus - a true Hebrew Jew - chose to use the Greek translation of the Old Testament, and furthermore, was unaware of the fact that he was using a passage that in reality was defective and the original would say something completely different, and be quite inappropriate for his argument, but also, accord- ing to the Gospels, he floored his orthodox Jewish oppo- nents with this - a mistranslation of their own scriptures - - and they didn't challenge this!!! The fact is, therefore, Jesus could not have spoken what the Gospels reports, and such sayings are put into his mouth by the Gospel writers who being ignorant of Hebrew made their handiwork obvious. The same applies with James (supposedly Jesus' brother) in Acts 15 - he uses the LXX to support his argument, although again, the Hebrew original says something quite different and would not support his argument, and yet all the Jews in the audience didn't comment on this !!!