THE BIBLE STUDY PROJECT
The broad range of Bible knowledge
topically arranged.
* Messianic Bible Studies *

"Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away." Matthew 24:35

Previous Study
ISRAEL
Part 1: Who Is Israel?
Who Are the Jews?

New Study
ISRAEL
Part 2: The Chosenness of Israel

An Earlier Study
God the Tri-unity

- FOUNDATION STUDY -
EVIDENCE UPON EVIDENCE:
THE BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD

by Norman Manzon

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Dear Reader,

A quick note before we begin:

All studies on this site are packed with Scripture, or objective facts, or both. Many are quite extensive. Lord willing, there will be a multitude of studies covering all areas of systematic theology, the goal of which is to address and arrange all Bible subjects topically in a formal, systematic arrangement; and some areas of evangelical biblical theology, which deals with the progression of God's revelation to man in individual Bible books and in the entire chronological spread of the total Bible text. I've also begun with a major study on this page, "Evidence Upon Evidence: The Bible Is the Word of God," that falls under the category of Christian apologetics, which is that field of argumentation that defends Christian doctrine in general.

The Bible Study Project is a presentation of messianic Bible studies. The great majority of studies abroad are wanting in understanding of the Jewish mindset and culture of the writers of the Hebrew Scriptures, of Jesus, the apostles, the New Testament writers, and the great number of Jews to whom some of the New Testament books were written. This want of understanding often results in misunderstandings of the text or the critical missing of major points. A messianic Bible study is one which strives to include the understanding of the Jewish mindset and culture, and illuminate words and actions thereby. It also strives to include an appropriate focus on God's interactions with, and intentions for, the nation of Israel. Lord willing, this site will be replete with messianic Bible studies.

Blessings to you in God's Word,
Norman Manzon

* * *
EVIDENCE UPON EVIDENCE:
THE BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD

INTRODUCTION

If there is no authoritative word from God, then, for all intents and purposes, we are but flotsam and jetsam cast about without known purpose or direction on a vast and turbulent sea. But if there is an authoritative word from God, then it stands to reason that, by listening to it, we will gain insight into the nature and reason for our existence and how we stand in relationship to God and all else.

In this study, I present evidence far beyond the threshold of proof that the Bible is the Word of God. Attorneys have studied the Bible to disprove it, and have come away believers! If you are not (yet) convinced that the Bible is the Word of God, I implore you to give these evidences serious consideration as the consequences for believing or disbelieving the Bible could not be more profound. Your eternal destiny and the quality of your earthly life are at stake. If you do know that the Bible is the Word of God, these evidences will strengthen your faith and increase your ability to launch a strong defense against attacks on your faith, and to logically present a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you (1 Peter 3:15).

It is because the authorship of the Bible is such a critical and fundamental issue that I have piled evidence on top of evidence that it is the Word of God. I will present evidence from within the Bible itself and from the natural and sociological sciences.

The Christian may wonder if I push faith aside by appealing to evidences, an intellectual consideration. That is not the case. God appealed to evidences to convince Job to trust Him (Job 38-40). Furthermore, to the intellectual we must be as the intellectual. Paul said, And to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; ...to those who are without law, as without law... that I might win those who are without law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, that I may by all means save some (1 Corinthians 9:20-22); and in Colossians 4:5-6, Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of every opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned, as it were, with salt, so that you may know how you should respond to each person.

The study is extensive, but - How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time!

Happy dining!

DEFINING TERMS

If I am to prove that the Bible is the Word of God, I must first define what I mean by “the Bible,” “God” and “the Word of God.”

The Bible. I define “the Bible” as that compilation of sixty-six books that comprises the Protestant Bible, is included in the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Bibles, and includes all of the thirty-nine books held sacred by Jews.

God. I define “God” as the one true God of the Bible who eternally exists as three divine Persons in one Supreme Being. He is divine spirit, is everywhere present (omnipresent), knows all things past, present, and future (omniscient), and is all powerful (omnipotent). God has other attributes, but the ones I have noted include all of the attributes necessary for Him to have authored the Bible.

The Word of God. One of the biblical uses of “the Word of God” is in reference to the total content of the Bible itself. As such, “the Word of God” is the total message that God spoke to chosen men who, under His initiative, power and superintendence, wrote that message in the sixty-six books of the Bible infallibly (with unfailing accuracy) and inerrantly (without error).

I. THE TESTIMONY OF THE BIBLE ITSELF

Dr. Charles Ryrie said, "The Bible,... like any other witness, has the right to testify on its own behalf."¹ If the Bible declared that it was not the Word of God, then the matter would be settled out of hand. If it made no declaration at all, then its lack of testimony would lend no strength to any claim that it is the Word of God. But the Bible repeatedly and emphatically claims that it is the Word of God and that it contains, in its narrative, actual statements made by God. It even goes so far as to tell us how God conveyed the biblical narrative to us. These claims are repeated strongly and unwaveringly and need to be examined and reckoned with.

If you believe that the Bible has been authored by God, the scriptures that declare God’s authorship will serve as affirmation to you. If you do not (yet) believe that the Bible has been authored by God, you can be sure that I will not say to you, “Believe that the Bible is the Word of God because it says that it is, and the Word of God can be trusted.” To do so would be a begging of the question as the matter in question would be presented as a presupposition. If you are in the latter category, then accept these scriptures as the testimony of the defendant in your court of judgment. Then consider the evidence that will follow.

Here’s the Bible’s affirmation to believers and testimony to all:

A. The Bible Claims it is the Word of God

1. The Bible Refers to Various of its Sections as the Word of God
Some examples are as follows:
a. Sections of the Old Testament
1) The Law of Moses
In Deuteronomy 1:6, Moses said, The LORD our God spoke to us at Horeb, saying, "You have stayed long enough at this mountain [Sinai].” The words spoken to Moses by God at Horeb, which were concluded by this declaration, constitute the Law of Moses, which comprises a major portion of the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. Jesus referred to the Law of Moses as the commandment of God and the word of God (Matthew 15:3 and 6, respectively). He also quoted the Law of Moses three times when the devil tempted Him. In Matthew 4:4, He quoted Deuteronomy 8:3; in 4:7, He quoted Deuteronomy 6:16; and in 4:10, He quoted Deuteronomy 6:13.

2) The Entire Old Testament
Jesus held the entire Old Testament to be the Word of God. He spoke of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Berechiah [not the prophet Zechariah] (Matthew 23:35). Abel was killed in Genesis (4:8), the first book of the Old Testament, and Zechariah was killed in 2 Chronicles (24:20-22), the last book of the Old Testament according to the Jewish arrangement. Thus, by this declaration, Jesus declared the entire Old Testament to be the Word of God.

b. Sections of the New Testament
1) All of Paul’s Letters
In 2 Peter 3:15-16, Peter referred to all of Paul’s letters as Scripture: ...just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction. Paul wrote thirteen of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament. Peter called them Scripture.

2) The Book of Revelation
John declared the Book of Revelation to be the Word of God: The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must shortly take place; and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John (Revelation 1:1).

2. The Bible Claims that it Is, in its Entirety, the Word of God
In light of all the Old Testament scriptures quoted in the Book of Hebrews, and all the New Testament teachings alluded to in it (Hebrews 4:2, for example), it is clear that the phrase, the word of God in Hebrews 4:12 (For the word of God is living and active....) refers to the entire Bible. Paul wrote to Timothy, All Scripture is inspired by God (2 Tim. 3:16). Peter referred to the Bible as the Word of the Lord in 1 Peter 1:23-25: You have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and abiding word of God. For, "All flesh is as grass, and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls off, but the word of our God abides forever." (Isa. 40:6, 8).

John recognized the entire Bible as the Word of God: I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God shall add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away from his part in the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book (Revelation 22:18-19). This book refers to the Book of Revelation, if not the entire Bible, and its dire warnings can only be predicated upon John’s belief that the Book of Revelation is the Word of God (He declared that it is prophecy); but inasmuch as the Book of Revelation alludes to hundreds of Old Testament prophecies and to the core teachings and prophecies of the New Testament, it is clear that John recognized the entire Bible to be the Word of God.

B. The Bible Claims to Contain Ver Batim Statements Made by God

It stands to reason that, if the Bible is the Word of God, it would likely contain actual statements made by God. If all such statements were compiled, they would fill a large volume; but here are some examples:

1. From the Old Testament
In Genesis 1, the words God said appear eleven times and are followed by the words that the writer claims God said (Genesis 1:3, 6, 9, 11, 14-15, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 29-30). Exodus 9:1 declares, The LORD said to Moses, "Go to Pharaoh....” In Joshua 1:1, The LORD spoke to Joshua...saying,.... In 1 Chronicles 17:3, [T]he word of God came to Nathan, saying,....

Exodus 24 refers to the Law of Moses as All the words which the LORD has spoken, (vv. 3, 7) and all the words of the LORD (v. 4). In fact, God is said not only to have spoken the Ten Commandments (Exodus 24:1) (which appear in Exodus 20:2-17), but to have written them(32:16).

In numerous instances the prophets professed to record actual declarations made by God: Thus says the LORD... (Isaiah 56:1). Thus says the LORD of hosts... (Jeremiah 56: 9). Then the word of the LORD came to me saying... (Ezekiel 12:1). Bible teacher Winkey Pratney writes, “‘The LORD spoke’ appears 560 times in the first five books of the Bible and at least 3800 times in the whole of the Old Testament!”²

2. From the New Testament
The New Testament contains numerous statements purported to have been made by God. For example, the four Gospels are filled with the words of Jesus, which He Himself recognized as divine: Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words shall not pass away (Matthew 24:35). In Acts 9:11 we read, ...the Lord said to [Ananias].... In 2 Corinthians 12:9, Paul testifies, And He has said to me.... In Revelation 1:8, John writes, as the oracle of God, “I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

C. The Bible Claims to Tell Us How God Conveyed His Word to Us

We are told in 2 Timothy 3:16, All Scripture is inspired by God. The Greek word translated inspired is Theopneustos, which means “God-breathed” and emphasizes the exhalation of God. Inspiration, then, is really outspiration, the “outbreathing” of God. God “outbreathed” the Bible through human writers.

2 Peter 1:20-21 makes the concept and process of inspiration even clearer: [N]o prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. Prophecy refers to the ability to receive direct revelation. God inspired some of His prophets to write down their revelation(s) as Scripture. God also inspired some of His compilers of records and researchers to write down the results of their labors as Scripture (See Luke 1:1-4, for example). What Peter says about the prophecy of Scripture - that men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God - applies, as well, to the compiled records and research results of Scripture because God inspired the writing of them also.

But what does men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God mean? The Greek word for moved is the same word used in Acts 27:15 and 17 to refer to a ship being borne along the water by powerful winds. A prophet was one whom God moved upon in such a way that God’s Word was both heard and delivered by that prophet infallibly and inerrantly. We can therefore conclude that all who wrote the Scriptures - whether prophets, compilers or researchers - were borne along by the Holy Spirit of God as they wrote their revelations, compilations or research results. God “outbreathed” the powerful Word-bearing wind of His Spirit into the sails of His chosen vessels to bear them along in the writing of His Word.

So we see that the Bible not only declares that it is the Word of God, but explains how God delivered it to us.

Five more points need to be made about inspiration that serve the purpose of this study:
1. Inspiration applies only to the writing of Scripture, not the inerrant hearing of a word from God. The biblical term for inerrant hearing from God is revelation, though not all uses of revelation in the Scriptures have this meaning. Not all inspiration was preceded by revelation (Luke 1:1-4), but most inspiration was. An example of Scripture writing that was preceded by revelation is: Then the LORD said to Moses, "Write down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel” (Exodus 34:27). So under the inspiration of God, Moses wrote the entire Law that God revealed to him - a major part of the Old Testament.

So, whether the human author compiled materials through strictly human means or whether he received revelation from God, God inspired him to write down what he compiled or received for the sake of producing an infallible and inerrant record.

2. Inspiration includes superintendence. God did not simply move His writers to write: He superintended their writing so that they wrote exactly what He wanted them to write. He gave them free reign to write in their own styles and vocabularies, but His superintendence assured that they wrote exactly what He wanted them to write and not one concept or word more.

3. On certain occasions, biblical inspiration was accompanied by excited emotional or mental states; but inspiration is not, in itself, an emotional or mental state. It is solely the outbreathing of God upon His chosen writers to write exactly what He wanted them to write.

When we use the word inspiration colloquially, in every day speech - and I will be using it colloquially later in this study - we do refer to an elevated, excited, and even euphoric emotional state that often precedes or accompanies an insight into the natural world, an invention, the creation of a work of art, etc.; but it is important to remember that the Bible's use of the word is solely in reference to the writing of the sixty-six books of the Bible, that it carries in its meaning the sense of being superintended by God, and that the canon of Scripture is closed (Hebrews 1:1-2; Revelation 22:18-19). People may sense the presence of God as they paint, write music or preach the gospel, but their works or words must never be reckoned to be on a par with Scripture as an authoritative, supervised, infallible, inerrant word or work from God.

4. 2 Timothy 3:16 says, ALL Scripture is inspired by God. Inasmuch as God outbreathed all of the Scriptures, all of the Scriptures are inspired to the fullest degree. Therefore, all Scriptures are equally inspired: the despondent words of Solomon in Ecclesiastes as much as the words of Jesus in the Gospels. This does not mean that God wants us to be despondent, but that He moved and superintended Solomon to record his despondency infallibly and inerrantly.

5. Inasmuch as inspiration refers to the Lord’s direct work in and through the writers of the Scriptures, it is only the original writings that were inspired. Inspiration did not extend to copies of the original writings, nor does it extend to any translation or any other work. (Nevertheless, the Scriptures that we have today are accurate, as will be explained below.)

To sum up, the Bible’s testimony to its own divine origin is consistent, strong, unwavering and certain.

II. EVIDENCES

Some of the evidences that follow cannot stand on their own as proof of divine authorship, but do add to the weight of evidence presented. Others, however, lend much weight to the claim that the Bible is the Word of God, while yet others are sufficient in themselves to stand as powerful proof that the Bible is the Word of God. We will now examine them one at a time.

A. The Bible Stands Alone in its Uniqueness

1. The Bible is Unique in the Way it was Written
No other book was ever written as the Bible was written. It was written over a period of 1600 years in three different languages (Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek) by about forty different men employed in at least eleven different occupations (kings, priests, prophets, soldiers, statesmen, shepherds, fishermen, a tax collector, a tent maker, a doctor, a farmer) and in at least six different countries (Israel, Babylon, Egypt, Greece, Rome, Arabia) spanning three continents (Asia, Africa and Europe). There are many compilations of books in the world, but the Bible is no mere compilation. It is a fully integrated unit of sixty-six books combining to form one Book. Consider the likelihood of the production of such a book over a period of 1600 years. One might think that only God could superintend such a project.

2. The Bible is Unique in its Subject Matter
The Bible is unique in much of its subject matter, particularly in its declarations concerning the fundamental issues of existence and life.

a. The Bible Alone Declares How the Universe Came to Be
According to Dr. Henry Morris, “There are only three creationist ‘religions’ in the world - Christianity, Islam and Judaism - and all three base their belief in creation on the record of Genesis [1:1-2:25]. Without exception,” writes Dr. Morris, “all the other religions and philosophies of the world have based their beliefs concerning origins on some form of evolutionism. That is, they all begin with the universe (space, time, matter) already in existence.... Only Genesis even attempts to tell us how the universe itself came to be.”³

b. The Bible Alone Declares the Existence of Only One God
During the entire span of time in which the Bible was written, and throughout the lands in which it was written, the nations surrounding Israel worshiped pantheons of gods. Yet, the Bible declares the existence of but one God.

1) In the Old Testament:
Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one (Deuteronomy 6:4).

2) In the New Testament:
[W]e know...that there is no God but one (1 Corinthians 9:4).

c. The Bible Alone Declares a Loving God
Paul declared that the so-called gods of the Gentile pantheons were actually demons: [T]he things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, and not to God (1 Corinthians 10:20).

The Bible makes it plain, however, that God is not a monster given over to lusts and jealousies and treacheries as were the pagan gods, some of whom required child sacrifice of their worshipers. On the contrary, this one God sacrificed His own Son, not only for His worshipers, but for the whole world:

1) In the Old Testament:
Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted. But he was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all to fall upon Him (Isaiah 53:4-6).

2) In the New Testament:
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16).

d. The Bible Alone Identifies Sin as a Condition of the Human Spirit
Some religions identify evil in the deeds of men, but only the Bible identifies evil as an inherent (though not original) condition of the human spirit. Paul wrote, Are we [Jews] better than they [the Gentiles]? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written, "there is none righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:9-10). For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders (Matthew 15:19).

e. The Bible Alone Declares that Deliverance from Sin Is a Work of God
Whereas some other religions and holy books prescribe certain disciplines for the overcoming of evil, only the Bible declares that deliverance from the power of sin is a work of God.

1) In the Old Testament
And he [a seraph sent from the Lord] touched my mouth with it [a burning coal] and said, "Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away, and your sin is forgiven” (Isaiah 6:7).

2) In the New Testament
He [the Father] saved us...by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior (Titus 3:5-6). Notice how all three Persons of the Godhead are active in the work of salvation.

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me (Galatians 2:20).

f. The Bible Alone Declares that One’s Favor with God Is Predicated on Faith in God, Not on Good or Penitential Deeds
I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written [in Habakkuk 2:4], "But the righteous man shall live by faith” (Romans 1:16-17). For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast (Ephesians 2:8-9).

In the midst of a pagan world with its wicked gods who required human sacrifice, what or who caused a book to be written that offers a reconciled, loving relationship with the one God on the basis of the sacrifice of His own Son? It is reasonable to believe that, if there were such a loving, sacrificial God, that He would let us know by means of a permanent written record how we might avail ourselves of the means that He provided for our salvation.

B. The Bible is Consistent in its Central Theme
and Continuous in its Development

The central theme of the Bible is the love of God. This love can be seen in that the angels, the very first created beings, were created with the capacity to experience the joy of God’s wonders. God said to Job, Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth!....When the morning stars [angels] sang together, and all the sons of God [angels] shouted for joy (Job 38:4-7)? God’s love can be seen, as well, when He created Adam and Eve and entrusted them with a beautiful, perfect, pristine environment to enjoy (Genesis 1 and 2, especially 2:28-31). It can be seen in the fact that, though His children rebelled against Him (Genesis 2:16-17; 3:1-7) and, indeed, all have sinned (Romans 3:23), He sacrificed His own beloved Son to rescue them from the power and eternal penalty of sin, For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16). God’s love can be seen by His creation of the wonderful eternal abode into which He will escort all who love him (John 14:1-3; Revelation 21:1 - 22:5).

From the beginning of the Bible to the end we see the theme of God’s love develop and come to fruition for time and eternity. Is it reasonable to believe that forty or more men spread over a period of 1600 years and six countries on three continents could conceive, compose and compile a sixty-six book unit that is perfectly consistent in theme and seamless in the development of that theme from the first book to the last? It is far more reasonable to believe that there was One overarching Mind in charge of the entire project.

C. The Bible Contains No Contradiction

One would expect that, if the Bible were authored by God, it would contain no contradiction; and indeed that is the case. There may seem to be contradictions, but in every such case it is because the text is not properly understood for some reason, whether it be lack of understanding of the culture or because it is not studied in context or because of poor translation or some other reason, but there actually are no contradictions. Here are some examples of apparent, but not actual, contradictions:

1. Apparent Contradiction Due to Lack of Understanding of the Culture
Matthew 27:5 says, [Judas] went away and hanged himself. Acts 1:18 says, ...and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out.

An apparent contradiction, but not an actual one. There are at least two possible explanations: 1) A natural explanation: Judas hanged himself over a cliff and the branch to which the rope was tied, or the rope itself, broke.
2) A cultural explanation, as quoted from Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum's Messianic Christology, Appendix 8, "The Death of Judas Iscariot," pp. 153-154: "Judas committed suicide [by hanging, NM] at the end of the first night of Passover, before the first day of Passover [the Jewish day begins and ends at sundown, NM] when the morning Passover sacrifice would be offered.... According to Jewish law, if there was a dead body in Jerusalem, then the city was to be considered defiled and the morning sacrifice could not be offered. However, Jewish law goes on to say that if the corpse is taken and cast into the Valley of Hinnom... then the city is cleansed and the Passover can be offered up.... When Judas hanged himself within the walls of Jerusalem, he caused the city to become defiled, thus preventing the morning sacrifice from proceeding.... Judas' body would have been taken and thrown over the wall into the Valley of Hinnom, thereby cleansing the city. The fall of Judas' body is what is being described in Acts 1:18."

2. Apparent Contradiction Because of Poor Translation
The King James Version of Exodus 20:13 reads, Thou shalt not kill, but the very next chapter commands, And he who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death (21:15).

An apparent contradiction; but there are several Hebrew words that can be translated kill. The one used in 20:13 should have been translated, murder. In fact, most recent translations translate it that way: You shall not murder. So, under the Mosaic Law murder was forbidden, but capital punishment was commanded for one who struck a parent. No contradiction.

3. Apparent Contradiction Because Studied Out of Context
In 2 Corinthians 11:8, Paul wrote, I robbed other churches. In Philippians 4:9, he wrote, The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things. Did Paul exhort the Philippians to be church robbers? If he did, that would be contradictory to his exhortation to the Ephesians, Let him who steals steal no longer (Ephesians 4:28).

Let’s look at the statement in context: I robbed other churches, taking wages from them to serve you. No, he didn’t really rob other churches. He received wages from them which enabled him to serve the Corinthians from whom he didn’t receive wages. No contradiction.

At times, the immediate context suffices to clarify a statement, as in this case. At other times, the broader context of a few paragraphs must be considered, or an entire book, or the entire Bible. In any case, considering a scripture in context will often resolve an apparent contradiction.

It is not reasonable to think that the sixty-six volumes of the Bible, so varied in authorship, time, place of composition, etc., would contain no contradiction - unless their composition was superintended by God.

D. The Bible Does Not Contradict the Proven Facts of Science

At the very least, the minimum test that a book must pass to possibly be the Word of God is its consistency with proven natural facts. Any book that fails this test could not possibly be the Word of God inasmuch as any reasonable conception of God must include the premise that only truth proceeds from God’s lips. In fact, the Bible itself declares, [I]t is impossible for God to lie... (Hebrews 6:18). I think you’ll see from these amazing examples that the Bible passes this test far more than minimally!

1. From Anthropology
Genesis 10, often referred to as the Table of Nations, delineates, in detail, the lines of descent of the earth’s first nations proceeding from Noah and his three sons. According to Unger’s Bible Handbook, Young’s Analytical Concordance (page 25) declares that Dr. William F. Albright, former director of the American School of Oriental Research in Jerusalem, called the Table of Nations “an astonishingly accurate document.”⁴ Its accuracy is truly astonishing in light of the fact that it was written by Noah’s son, Shem (Genesis 11:10), about 2300 B.C. and was included in the Pentateuch (the Five Books of Moses) about 1450-1400 B.C. No ancient fable here, but a reliable anthropological document.

2. From History
Joshua’s conquest of Jericho took place about 1400 B.C. According to Halley’s Bible Handbook,⁵ Dr. John Garstang, director of the British School of Archaeology in Jerusalem and of the Department of Antiquities of the Palestine Government, excavated the ruins of Jericho between 1929 and 1936. Let’s see how the Book of Joshua (authored by Joshua about 1400-1370 B.C.) matches up with Dr. Garstang’s findings.
a. Dr. Garstang found that Jericho’s wall consisted of an inner and an outer wall linked together by houses built across the top. Joshua 2:15 says that Rahab’s house was on the city wall.
b. Dr. Garstang determined that the city was destroyed around 1400 B.C., and confirmed that the walls fell down flat - not partially, but flat - an amazing phenomenon for a wall of such thickness. Joshua 6:20 states, the wall fell down flat.
c. Dr. Garstang found “great layers of charcoal and ashes and wall ruins reddened by fire” and that “houses along the outer wall were burnt to the ground.” Joshua 6:24 says that the Israelites burned the city with fire, and all that was in it.
d. Under the ashes and fallen walls, Dr. Garstang found storerooms in which there was “an abundance of foodstuffs, wheat, barley, dates, lentils, and such, turned to charcoal by intense heat, untouched and uneaten: evidence that the conquerors refrained from the food.” Joshua 6:18 declares that before the conquest, Joshua warned the Israelites, [K]eep yourselves from the things under the ban. (See Leviticus 27:28).

The conquest of Jericho took place 3,400 years ago. The Bible describes it in detail with unfailing and absolute accuracy! A Hebrew myth? Not at all. Simply more evidence that the Bible was authored by God.

There are many examples of the Bible’s accuracy concerning scientific phenomena. Dr. John Morris of the Creation Research Institute lists thirty-nine of them from six areas of science.⁶ Perhaps the most astounding example is the following:

3. From Chemistry or Nuclear Physics
2 Peter 3:10-13 declares, But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed [melt in the King James] with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed [dissolved in the King James] in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, on account of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.

The literal sense of the passage is that there will be a literal burning of the present heavens and earth. Scripture refers to three heavens: the heaven where God dwells and the two naturally observable heavens, the starry heavens (outer space) and the atmospheric heavens, where the birds fly and the clouds hover. This passage must refer to at least the starry and the atmospheric heavens. Note the passages, the elements will be destroyed with intense heat and the elements will melt with intense heat. Both Strong’s and Young’s Concordances give two of the meanings of the word translated elements as “element[s]” and “rudiment[s].” In other words, the most fundamental particles of the entire physical universe (if not of the heaven in which God dwells, as well) will be destroyed, will melt, with intense heat. Note the word intense.

Fisherman Peter never studied chemistry or nuclear physics; yet, in about 64 A.D., he wrote, in the most apocalyptic of tones, that the most fundamental of physical particles will one day be destroyed, melted with intense heat. According to Strong’s, two of the meanings of the Greek word translated melt in verse 10 are “break up” and “dissolve.” (Strong’s gives the meaning of the different Greek word translated melt in verse 12 as simply “melt.”⁷)

Dr. Morris writes, "Possibly this will be a global atomic fission reaction [note the word dissolved in II Peter 3:11], or else simply a vast explosive disintegration involving transformation of the chemical energy of the elements into heat, light and sound energy. What remains after the global fiery disintegration will be other forms of energy so that, although God’s principle of conservation still holds, the solid earth will seem to have fled away" (Revelation 20:11).⁸

Dr. Morris associates this conflagration with Revelation 3:20, which is after the Millennium and before the Great White Throne Judgment. Others consider it a pre-millennial phenomenon. In any case, we catch the point that Dr. Morris is making. Whether the passage refers to atomic fission (as it seems to many Bible scholars) or the explosive transformation of all chemical energy into other forms of energy, Peter speaks of an explosion of a magnitude that would have been unthinkable in the early part of the twentieth century, let alone two thousand years ago. This Scripture was scoffed at early in the twentieth century for that very reason; but since then, mankind has beheld such spectacles as exploding stars (through the use of telescopes) and nuclear holocausts - and the lips of scoffers have been sealed!

The Bible’s amazing accuracy in all scientific phenomena that it touches on must be recognized as nothing less than the signature of God. How could it be otherwise?

4. From Biology
In Genesis 3, we read that the serpent tempted Adam and Eve to disobey God by eating the forbidden fruit, and thereby brought about the Fall of the human race. Because of this, God cursed the serpent, and one of the aspects of that curse was, "You shall go upon your belly" (verse 14). The biological implication of this is that the serpent had, until that time, either stood on legs, or upright on its tail.

To many, the story is but a fairy tale or myth; but consider this article from the Israel Today newspaper of August 8, 2008:

E. On Matters of Science that are Unobserved or Unobservable,
the Bible Offers the Most Plausible Explanation

Not only is the Bible accurate in its scientific presuppositions and declarations, but it offers the most plausible explanation in those matters that are unproven or unprovable by direct observation. The most glaring example involves the most fundamental, central and critical of all scientific issues: the origin of the universe and natural life.

Dr. Henry Morris says, “It is axiomatic that there are only two possible basic models of the origins of the universe, of the earth, of animate life, of human life and of all the basic systems of the cosmos. These are, in simplest terms, evolution or creation.”⁹

The two are mutually exclusive, and it must be one or the other as there is no other possibility. A third possibility that some entertain is that the universe existed from eternity past - but this is an impossibility. The Second Law of Thermodynamics states that all the energy in the universe is coming to a place of balance, or rest, as when the heat from a glass of water flows into a cold object placed in it. The heat flows until the water and the object are the same temperature; then, heat flow from the water into the object ceases. Now, energy still moves from location to location in the universe, on both microcosmic and macrocosmic scales - but if the universe had existed from eternity past, energy flow would have ceased an eternity ago. Therefore, the universe could not possibly have existed from eternity past. It had to have a beginning, and "there are only two possible basic models.... evolution or creation."

Nothing has done more in the last century and a half to destroy people’s faith in the Bible than the so-called theory of evolution except, perhaps, the skepticism concerning the Bible that arose in some German seminaries in the middle of the nineteenth century. (Some German theologians declared that the Bible was not a divine book at all, but a mere fabrication of man.) Evolution, propounded by Charles Darwin in 1865 in regard to the origins of life, has been extrapolated to include the very origins of the universe itself. It holds that, by means of continuing natural processes unguided by any divine Person, the universe simply popped into existence from the absolute vacuum of empty, endless space and evolved into all of its present forms, inanimate and animate. These twin doctrines, born of hell, have ruined the faith of hundreds of millions of people and of entire denominations and nations. Having robbed life of its Creator, they set the stage for the devaluation of life and the multiple holocausts that characterized the twentieth century even unto the murder of a million and a half unborn babies a year in the United States since 1973.

Let us now pick the evolutionary fantasy to pieces and observe the logic of believing the Bible’s creation account.

Please continue "Evidence" on the final page. Thank you.

FOOTNOTES

1. Ryrie, Dr. Charles C., Basic Theology, Victor Books, Wheaton, Illinois, 1986, p. 67.
2. Pratney, Winkey, "The Holy Bible - Wholly True," Pretty Good Printing, Last Days Ministries, Lindale, TX., 1985.
3. Morris, Dr. Henry M., The Defender’s Study Bible, World Publishing, Inc., Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1995, p. 1498.
4. Unger, Dr. Merrill F., Unger’s Bible Handbook, The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, 1966, p. 52.
5. Halley, Henry H., Halley’s Bible Handbook, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1959, pp.160-161.
6. Morris, Dr. Henry M., op. cit., pp.1523-1525.
7. The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible. 1996.
8. Morris, Dr. Henry M., op. cit., p. 1407.
9. Ibid., p.1496.

Evidence Upon Evidence: The Bible Is the Word of God - a messianic Bible study.
© Norman Manzon 1999. (Subsequent minor additions or revisions.)
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