Is the bible (Old Testament) a collection of someones fables? (punishment, Earth)

[mormonman]

Originally Posted by Deut 13:1

And on what basis do you say that the Mr. Smith Translation is the most accurate? Please state where you earned your degree and how decent your Hebrew/Greek/Arabic are. Thanks in advance.

I'm going to earn my Undergraduate degree in Ancient Near Eastern Studies from BYU and I'll probably earn my Phd from there also. I'll just happen to study Greek, Hebrew, and Aribic, just wait 10 years. His translation was the best because he was a prophet of God. That's all for now because Ihave to go

[dawny0826]

Originally Posted by GodLovesUs

I am rediscovering the Old Testamant Bible and while reading through Genesis, Kings etc it seems to me that this book either has gone throught so many hands of translation that logical it doesn't make sense. God is just and treats us equally, but upon reading the old testament, it seems that He has favorites which to is ridiculous.

I am begining to believe that at least for the sections I am reading that men created it so that their judgement would not be question because they will use God as an excuse to punish people even though logically they are correct.

The story of Noah having to repopulate the earth is a bit unbelievable because why were the fish excluded in God's punishment. Well again it just doesn't make sense.

What are your opinions.

This was your original post.

In my opinion, which you asked for...you either believe the Bible to be the infallible Word of God or you do not. If you don't...that's your right....you are most certainly entitled to your beliefs.

But...I for one feel that if you're doubting God's Word...you're doubting God. And I'm sure that Satan does do cartwheels when we overanalyze the Bible and poke holes in it. He wants nothing more than for you to forget WHO God is and to steer you away from the message that God intends for you to receive from the Word.

I don't understand everything that's written in the Bible and so I pray each and every time that I open my Bible for spiritual guidance...that God will reveal to me WHAT I should be taking from his Word and HOW I should apply the Word to my life. I don't doubt or discount the validity of God's Word. I make mistakes...plenty of them but God doesn't.

I believe that the Bible IS the infallible Word of God. And I also feel that DOUBT isn't of God but is of the other guy. When we take the Word to MIND and pick it to pieces...it's easy to miss out on the SPIRITUAL growth and understanding that God intends for us to gain from reading His Word.

[cardero]

GodLovesUs writes: I am rediscovering the Old Testamant Bible and while reading through Genesis, Kings etc it seems to me that this book either has gone throught so many hands of translation that logical it doesn't make sense. God is just and treats us equally, but upon reading the old testament, it seems that He has favorites which to is ridiculous.

Common Misconceptions About GOD

12. GOD does not hold ONE entity higher than the other, every entity (spiritual, physical, animal, plant) is equal.

GodLovesUs writes: I am begining to believe that at least for the sections I am reading that men created it so that their judgement would not be question because they will use God as an excuse to punish people even though logically they are correct.

Common Misconceptions About GOD

1.GOD does not ask humans to do anything that GOD cannot DO him/herself.

9. GOD does not punish or judge or enact revenge.

11. GOD does not murder or take away lives.

GodLovesUs writes: What are your opinions.

I use these guidelines to compare what I know today to the validity of the inspired authors of the Bible. So either these scriptures were mistranslated, the events never happened or the specific authors were in contact with a different entity other than GOD or…I could be mistaken.

GodLovesUs writes: The story of Noah having to repopulate the earth is a bit unbelievable because why were the fish excluded in God's punishment. Well again it just doesn't make sense.

Yes but unfortunately fish will not be excluded in God’s next punishment. Let’s see how well those fish do with fire (and teriyaki sauce).

[Deut 13:1]

Originally Posted by mormonman

I'm going to earn my Undergraduate degree in Ancient Near Eastern Studies from BYU and I'll probably earn my Phd from there also. I'll just happen to study Greek, Hebrew, and Aribic, just wait 10 years. His translation was the best because he was a prophet of God. That's all for now because Ihave to go

Good, well until you can read Hebrew, we here at RF would appreicate you not attempt to discuss the accuracy of translations when you yourself don't even know the Hebrew alphabet. However, if we are in search of uneducated opinions on the accuracy of translation from Hebrew to English, I will put you at the top of the list if you insist on being heard. Don't take offense to this, I just resent being told by people what the bible really "says" when they have never read it.

[sojourner]

Originally Posted by mormonman

Because the KJV is the closest translation to the Joseph Smith Translation, and the KJV is the tranlation that the LDS Church uses. Considering that my religion is the only true religion and we use the KJV that would probably mean that the KJV is the most correct translation.

There's a big difference between evidence and wishful thinking. The most accurate translation to date, based upon comparison with and study of the earliest extant texts, is the New Revised Standard Version. Most reputable Bible scholars agree with this. The KJV translation was the best they could come up with 500 years ago...but then they didn't have access to many of the manuscripts we have now -- the Dead Sea Scrolls, just to name one source. They may come up with a better one in future. Your opinion of your religion doesn't change that fact.

The OT writings rely heavily upon myth and story. Remember, the Bible was passed down for a thousand or more years by oral tradition -- nothing written. Many of these are "campfire" stories. Allegory, metaphor -- these literary forms help to reveal God to us in a way that is as amorphous as the concept of God and the understanding of our own spirituality. There are also Law, poetry, prophecy and wisdom. Stop reading for factual content, and read, instead, for revelation -- how God has revealed hemself to humanity and through humanity.

[Jayhawker Soule]

Originally Posted by Deut 13:1

Good, well until you can read Hebrew, we here at RF would appreicate you not attempt to discuss the accuracy of translations when you yourself don't even know the Hebrew alphabet. ...

That is pompous nonsense.

[sojourner]

Also, remember that the OT was written within a very closed society. To the early OT writers, God was tied to the geographical area of Palestine. This is the story of a people, from the perspective of those same people. Jerusalem was the center of their universe, so that's where God lived. (Or, on the mountain, in earlier texts. God was a very provincial God to those writers. In order for us to "get beyond" perceived incongruencies in the stories, we need to understand the perspective of the writers and their audiences, as well as their reasons for writing, before we can extract truth from the scriptures.

[Deut 13:1]

Originally Posted by Jayhawker Soule

That is pompous nonsense.

Nonsense... I've said it before, and i'll say it again. One can BEGIN to understand Torah without knowledge of Hebrew, but you can't really comment on how accurate the TRANSLATION is if you don't even know the alphabet of the language its being translated from. Sure, you can cite people who know it, but you're still basing that knowledge on someone else, not yerself. and you know it.