Bible contradictions

[JimHR]

Bible Contradiction:

In the Old Testament God teaches His people to kill their enemies without mercy, over and over and over again, and they even obey Him and do it. His people, under His commands, became experts even at stoning to death their own children. It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood?

But then, in the New Testament Scriptures, Jesus (God) comes along and tells His followers, very clearly, that they are supposed to forgive and love their enemies, and not kill them. And all of the sudden, we are supposed to save the killing for Jesus. He even tells His people that they are not to stone another person for their sin unless they are without sin themselves. Well, that eliminates almost everyone on earth from the stone throwing game accept for a very few people like Noah and Job, who were righteous. But, that also then means that the stonings that were done in the Old Testament should never have been done either, because those people were not without sin. And this whole thing kind of just self-destructs.

So, ladies and gentlemen, shall we kill our enemies or shall we forgive and love them? Or shall we love and forgive them while we kill them? Or shall we not kill them at all? Or shall we kill them without mercy as God has commanded? Or shall we kill them with forgiveness, love, and kindness? This is kind of important stuff.

Certainly, I cannot be the only one on this earth who has ever thought about this.

What is the answer?

Thank You…

I think this is a good answer:

"The God of the New Testament is the same as the God of the Old Testament. The Bible says that He never changes. He is just as merciful in the Old Testament as He is in the New Testament. Read Nehemiah 9 for a summary of how God mercifully forgave Israel, again and again, after they repeatedly sinned and turned their back on Him. The psalms often speak of God’s mercy poured out on sinners.

He is also just as wrath-filled in the New Testament as He is in the Old. He killed a husband and wife in the Book of Acts, simply because they told one lie. Jesus warned that He was to be feared because He has the power to cast the body and soul into hell. The apostle Paul said that he persuaded men to come to the Savior because he knew the "terror of the Lord." Read the dreadful judgments of the New Testament’s Book of Revelation. That will put the "fear of God" in you, which incidentally is "the beginning of wisdom."

Perhaps the most fearful display of His wrath is seen in the cross of Jesus Christ. His fury so came upon the Messiah that it seems God enshrouded the face of Jesus in darkness so that creation couldn’t gaze upon His unspeakable agony. Whether we like it or not, our God is a consuming fire of holiness (Hebrews 12:29). He isn’t going to change, so we had better ...before the Day of Judgment. If we repent, God, in His mercy, will forgive us and grant us eternal life in heaven with Him."

SetiAlpha if you think you have rationalized your question--answer me this: Did those events occur? If they did occur then it only adds credibility to the Bible. If you can't answer than how can you find out?

 

[JimHR]

As far as bible contradictions. They are there and they are numerous...in the extreme! To deny them is just fooling yourself!

Unless denying them is just fooling yourself.

 

[spidergoat]

Why did Jesus tell his followers to steal an ass for him, when that plainly violates a commandment?

 

[navigator]

Does anybody here really think that they could understand God enough to claim he contradicted himself?

I doubt it would be possible to compile a book of this nature, written over thousands of years with many different authors, and have no contradictions.

 

[SetiAlpha6]

JimHR,

1. The Old Testament God tells us to, personally kill our own enemies, even our own friends, relatives, and children, without mercy. Children watched their own dad or mom throw the first stone of many stones that were to pummel their body until they were dead. That is supposed to be the holy and righteous thing to do.

2. But, the New Testament God tells us not to, personally kill our own enemies, our own friends, relatives, and children. He tells us, instead, to love and forgive and have mercy on them. That is supposed to be the holy and righteous thing to do.

So, which of these two "truths" is the TRUTH?

Whether or not God changes (this does not matter), shall we, you and I, personally kill our enemies, our own friends, relatives, and children, without mercy, or shall we instead not kill them and forgive them, love them, and have mercy on them? What is the TRUTH!

I vote for option 2, and with every fiber of my being I reject option 1! IMO option 1 is immoral and wicked!

It looked like you avoided addressing this directly. Please take an honest look at this issue again.

Best Wishes!

 

[mikenostic]

Why did Jesus tell his followers to steal an ass for him, when that plainly violates a commandment?

Dude, it's a moot point trying to get that question answered. I've seen it asked in several different ways since I started posting here, and other than a weak 'was it justified?' statement, it has pretty much went unanswered.

I doubt it would be possible to compile a book of this nature, written over thousands of years with many different authors, and have no contradictions.

Even after God is supposedly omnipotent, perfect, and can transcend time? Shouldn't he make sure that the author of a NT book writes down scripture consistent with a book written by an author hundreds of years before?

 

[nova900]

The apostle Paul said that he persuaded men to come to the Savior because he knew the "terror of the Lord." Read the dreadful judgments of the New Testament’s Book of Revelation. That will put the "fear of God" in you, which incidentally is "the beginning of wisdom."

Perhaps the most fearful display of His wrath is seen in the cross of Jesus Christ. His fury so came upon the Messiah that it seems God enshrouded the face of Jesus in darkness so that creation couldn’t gaze upon His unspeakable agony. Whether we like it or not, our God is a consuming fire of holiness (Hebrews 12:29). He isn’t going to change, so we had better ...before the Day of Judgment. If we repent, God, in His mercy, will forgive us and grant us eternal life in heaven with Him."

It's rather disturbing that people can think this is Gods' nature,but your honesty is to be commended...you haven't tried to conveniantly bypass the dark violent side of Yahweh.
So we have a choice as far as the biblical God goes: Let your morals of right and wrong go down the toilet so you can save your own skin(soul).
Another comparison?---Follow Yahweh(Hitler) so you can avoid Hell(Auschwitz)

 

[SetiAlpha6]

If we repent, God, in His mercy, will forgive us and grant us eternal life in heaven with Him."

Am I supposed to repent because I am unwilling to kill my own children if they sin?

Your answer can only be yes!

By the way, according to the Bible and millions of Christians worldwide, a person can only repent if they are predestined to repent. Everyone else has been predestined to hell and there is absolutely nothing they can ever do to stop it. They have not been "chosen"! They are not the "elect"! They never even chose to be born, and according to the Bible, they were specifically created for eternal torment because that is the way the potter made them. God is sovereign! They were created for this purpose. Rejoice!

This essentially means that these "un-elect" people are being punished for all eternity for being exactly what God made them to be!

Hmmm... that brings us to yet another Bible contradiction. Do we really have a freewill choice or are we predestined? The Christian world is divided over this confusion not only between churches but even among individuals within individual churches.

Since God is not supposed to be the "author of confusion", God could not have written a book with so much confusion and contradition.

Thanks!

 

[IceAgeCivilizations]

It's sort of like if there was a guy high up in the military, who everybody liked, but turned out to be a traitor, what do you do?

 

[SetiAlpha6]

That's the perspective that most people can't deal with...
They feel the bible is judgmental and restrictive. They typically don't see how benifical following rules of behavior can be...they don't see how odeying could save one's life or save someone else...

They don't think pro-actively.

The Bible has many excellent rules of behavior and I have no problem obeying them or recommending them, but I will never kill my own children for making a temporary and correctable mistake. You would, only because you are commanded to do so by a book!

 

[Saquist]

That's good...but you're not Jewish and you don't live in a Jewish nation under God. What's more I don't live under a Jewish nation as an alien resident.

Why does this passage concern you since this is not the year 1070 BCE?

Additionally: Obviously as a christian and a gentile I'm not required to adhere to Jewish law. This has been explained to you before.

 

[mikenostic]

Recently I've seen people accuse Ice Age Civilizations of causing controversy in threads of evolution and genetics.

Yep, one line answers, some of which are obvious tangients to the topic, tends to get someone labeled as such.

Either we're all crazy or you don't understand the bible.

Given all the obvious contradictions in the bible, I don't think we want to try to understand it, at least not in the literal sense.
I don't understand the Koran either. Does that mean Allah is going to send me to hell without my 80 virgins?*

Now lets address crazy. I'm not crazy, nor diluted. I've faced every supposed contradiction with confidence and scriptural correction and reason.

I'm pretty sure we're not crazy either (at least in the sense in which you are speaking). And while you seem to be the most rational of the apologists, I'll have to disagree with on giving reasonable answers to all the contradictions.
"Was it justified?" is not a reasonable answer to the point I brought up in earlier posts when we were discussing Jesus and his two cronies STEALING the donkey from the farmer. Because, 1. it answers a question with a question and 2. it wasn't justified from any point you look at it.

Another question for you which has been asked multiple times and in different forms:

*What makes Christianity any more believable than any other religion?
NOTHING

Another unanswered question:
Why are Christians (and everyone supposedly) given only two choices:
a. accept Jesus Christ as your savior
b. burn in hell for eternity

As for the bible contradictions, it goes way beyond just the book having contradictions. Everyone expects a book that was written by man and man only to have contradictions, but if it was written by man with direct supervision from God (one who is perfect, all-knowing, and omnipotent) then there should be no contradictions. Where is your apology for that?
If God allowed these contradictions, then he's doing the people who are seeking him a great disservice.

Given his omnipotence, he did not have to have Jesus die on the cross for anyone's sins. His omnipotence could wipe out everyone's sins w/o Jr. ever stepping foot on the earth.

Now lets address you. You're stiring the pot in your frenzy. You're so busy stiring you can't tell that some of us here have already turned broiler off but you're steady stiring.

The question is...why aren't you listening?

Um, isn't 'stirring the pot' what this forum and this thread is for, to some extent? If we don't need to stir the pot, then let's all deactivate our sciforums memberships and go mow the lawn or something.

 

[IceAgeCivilizations]

He didn't end up killing him, the ram (lamb from God) was killed instead, as was Jesus, physically.

 

[mikenostic]

That's good...but you're not Jewish and you don't live in a Jewish nation under God. What's more I don't live under a Jewish nation as an alien resident.

Why does this passage concern you since this is not the year 1070 BCE?

Saquist,

I can't say for sure but I think what Seti is touching on is; why are the rules different now than they were back then?
If the rules changed, then that means that somebody made a mistake somewhere (God maybe?). As I mentioned in the above post, there was no reason God needed to send Jesus to the cross when God himself has the power to 'wish' away sins.

 

[Saquist]

I don't think we want to try to understand it, at least not in the literal sense.

then you have no right to level judgement upon something you don't understand. You are by the very definition in conflict with yourself.

Another unanswered question:
Why are Christians (and everyone supposedly) given only two choices:
a. accept Jesus Christ as your savior
b. burn in hell for eternity

If you have no intrest in understanding the bible then why the questions? Is this some sort of teasing or persecuting that you would pain something and someone we enjoy?

 

[mikenostic]

He didn't end up killing him, the ram (lamb from God) was killed instead, as was Jesus, physically.

Fair enough. But that isn't what I was getting at. It's not about who died, it's the act/principle of the matter. God caused the 'Noah's flood' to try to kill all the wicked people (which God himself created, or at the very least, men that were made wicked by the temptation of Satan which God willingly allows to roam the Earth or, isn't powerful enough to stop) to cover up his mistake. If creating man wasn't a mistake, then that flood would not have been necessary. God sent Jesus to die on the cross to cover up his mistake. Why else did the rules change so much from the OT to the NT?

And I find it very disturbing that a loving, merciful god needs a blood sacrifice.
IIRC most depictions of deities that require blood sacrifices are not benevolent. The Aztec's carried out human sacrifices, as did the Inca's. And what was Abraham ready to do with his son Isaac (hint: sacrifice him).
Disturbing.

 

[IceAgeCivilizations]

It ties back to what you were saying Saquist, when Jesus was born again, in a manner of speaking only, at age 30, His vision was then greatly increased, as it is when people are born again of the Spirit of God, certainly a parallel.

 

[SetiAlpha6]

You know that there is a Creator (the Bible says so), and you have a God-given conscience upon which you act daily, knowing that there is a Creator, and Jesus is the Sacrificial Lamb of God, so there you go.

I believe in a Creator because of evidence that I see in creation itself. Just as I imagine you do. But I must reject the Bible as a perfect source of information or truth about Him. And I have given some of my reasons for doing so in this forum.

I cannot talk to anyone else I personally know about these things without hurting the relationsip I have with them, so I have to come here to ask you guys for answers. Get in line, Ice! If I talk to my pastor about any of these things he will reject me as "unsaved", "evil", "the antichrist", "Satan". He will only accept me if I completely agree with him, and if I stop thinking. You are not supposed to lean on your own understanding, ya know. You are supposed to just kill each other without question.

So I am stuck with asking you guys for the answers!

 

[mikenostic]

then you have no right to level judgement upon something you don't understand. You are by the very definition in conflict with yourself.

Are you a psychiatrist?
Then you have no right to tell me I'm in conflict with anything.
If you want to keep our dialogue professional, then I suggest you keep those comments under a lid.
Instead of answering, "I don't know" to any of those questions like me, MW, SkinWalker and all the others have repeatedly asked you, you think your Dr. Freud and try to assess my mental stability. I will not stand for that. Answer the questions or don't post. Simple as that.

If you have no intrest in understanding the bible then why the questions? Is this some sort of teasing or persecuting that you would pain something and someone we enjoy?

This thread is called Bible Contradictions, not spirtual understanding of the bible. If you don't know the answer to my (and MW and Skinwalker, and Seti) then as I mentioned above, say 'I don't know' or don't post, and keep the psych evaluations to yourself.

 

[mikenostic]

Mike, I am asking you if my time here is futile.
If you have no intrest I implore you not waste both of our time with endless and pointless perspective that you're really not concerned with. That is your intrest level. If you have no intrest in understand then I must conclude that these questions have other alterior motives.

Funny, I could fire that question right back at you verbatim except conerning your answers instead of my motives.

IMO, the way that you, JimHR, John99 answer (or dodge answering) questions here, then I'd have to say your time here is futile.

Let's rehash this excerpt of our dialogue:

“ Another unanswered question:
Why are Christians (and everyone supposedly) given only two choices:
a. accept Jesus Christ as your savior
b. burn in hell for eternity ”

If you have no intrest in understanding the bible then why the questions? Is this some sort of teasing or persecuting that you would pain something and someone we enjoy?

^^^Here is a prime example of non-rational answers. I ask you why Christians are given two choices. Possible rational answers I would expect would be...
You know what, now that I think about it, I don't think I am going to get a rational answer from any the apologists.
If all you are going to say is 'you don't understand the bible', then I'd rather you not answer any questions at all. I KNOW other members here have made statements about vague answers like that before. I'm not the only one.