can i trust the bible? truthful and accurate or just mythology?

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CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR OR JUST MYTHOLOGY? JUST MYTHOLOGY?

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Page 1: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE?

TRUTHFUL AND TRUTHFUL AND

ACCURATEACCURATE

OROR

JUST MYTHOLOGY?JUST MYTHOLOGY?

Page 2: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

CONFIRMATION BY HISTORICAL TEXT:Textual reliability:1 How many manuscripts are there?

THE MORE MANUSCRIPTS THE MORE ACCURACY

Page 3: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

2 What is the time interval between the original document and the manuscript we have?

The more manuscripts we have, with as short a time interval as possible:

THE MORE ACCURATE THE BOOK!!

TIME

TIME

TIME

Page 4: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

WORK WHEN WRITTEN

EARLIESTCOPY

TIME SPAN

NO. OF COPIES

Herodotus 488-428 BC AD900 1,300 8

Thucydides 460-400BC AD900 1,300 8

Tacitus AD100 AD1100 1000 20

Caesar’s Gallic Wars

58-50BC AD900 900 9 -10

Livy’s Roman History

59BC-AD17

AD900 900 20

Bible(New Testament)

AD40-100AD130 [AD350

Complete Bible]

300

5,000+ Greek

10,000 Latin

9,300 others

ALL THIS LITERATURE IS ACCEPTED AS RELIABLE BY ALL

HISTORIANS

ALL THIS LITERATURE IS ACCEPTED AS RELIABLE BY ALL

HISTORIANS

THE TEXTUAL THE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE BEHIND EVIDENCE BEHIND

THE BIBLE IS THE BIBLE IS OVERWHELMING!!OVERWHELMING!!

Page 5: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

MANUSCRIPT RELIABILITY SUPPORTED BY EARLY CHURCH SCHOLARS:

Quote: 'Suppose that the new testament had been destroyed, and every copy of it lost by the end of the third century, could it have it have been collected together again from the writing of the (Church) Fathers of the second and third centuries'? That question aroused my curiosity, and as I possessed all the existing works of the fathers of the second and third centuries, I commenced to search, and up to this time I have found the entire New Testament, except eleven verses.'

Sir David Dabrymple.

Page 6: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

CONFIRMATION BY ARCHAEOLOGY:Quote: ‘It may be stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted (refuted or contradicted) a biblical reference.‘

Nelson Glueck (Jewish Historian)In fact the Bible has been used to find sites of antiquity and has been found to be geographically and historically accurate.

[The Book of Morman which supposedly tells the story of two tribes on the continent of America – has never provided any help in archaeology or led to any artefacts or sites that could substantiate the truth and accuracy of the book].

Page 7: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

QUOTE: 'If one discards the Bible as being unreliable, then he must discard almost all literature of antiquity.'

'The Bible is trustworthy and historically reliable.'

Josh McDowell. Evidence that Demands a Verdict.

Page 8: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

THE BIBLE IS UNIQUE:Definition of unique - different from all others; having no like or equal.

1 Unique in its continuity:Written over 1,600 yearsWritten over 60 generationsWritten by 40+ authors from every walk of life i.e. Kings, peasants, fishermen, poets, statesmen, scholars etc.Written in different places.Written at different times i.e. peacetime and in war.Written during different moods.Written on three continents.Written in three languages.

Page 9: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

Its subject matter contains hundreds of controversial subjects and its authors wrote on these topics with harmony and continuity from Genesis to Revelation.IMAGINE ASKING 10 PEOPLE FROM ALL

DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS AND AGES TO WRITE A CHAPTER EACH, WITHOUT ANY

COLLABORATION, ON ‘THE MEANING OF LIFE’

WHAT WOULD YOU END UP WITH?

A CONGLOMERATION – WITH NO A CONGLOMERATION – WITH NO CONTINUITY.CONTINUITY.

Page 10: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

2 Unique in its circulation:This book outsells all other books!According to the British TIMES newspaper in 1996: "Forget modern British novelists and TV tie-ins, the Bible is the best-selling book every year. If sales of the Bible were included in best-seller lists, it would be a rare week when anything else would achieve a look in. It is wonderful, weird ... that in this godless age... this one book should go on selling, every month."

World sales of the Bible are more than 100 million every year.

Page 11: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

3 Unique in its translation:The Bible has been translated and paraphrased more than any other book in existence.

4 Unique in its survival:Survival through time - although written on material that perishes there are more manuscripts to the Bible than any other ancient literature.Survival through persecution - throughout history man has tried to destroy the Bible, to burn it, to ban it but it has always survived. The communist countries, although atheist, could not stop people reading the Bible as much as they tried.

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.words will never pass away.

Matt 24:35 NIVMatt 24:35 NIV

Page 12: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

Quote: ‘Voltaire, the noted French infidel (atheist) who died in 1778, said that in 100 years from his time Christianity would be swept from existence and passed into history. But what happened? Voltaire has passed into history; while the circulation of the Bible continues to increase in almost all parts of the world.'

Sidney Collett.

(WHEN VOLTAIRE DIED AND HIS HOUSE WAS SOLD IT BECAME A PRINTERS

PRODUCING THE BIBLE!).

R IPRIP

VOLTAIRE

Page 13: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

Survival through criticism - no other

book has been attacked and torn to pieces like

the Bible.

Quote: 'If this book had not been the book of God, men would have destroyed it long ago. Emperors and popes, kings and priests, princes and rulers have all tried their hand at it; they die and the book still lives.'

H. L. Hastings

Page 14: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

5 Unique in its teachings:Prophecy like no equal. Accurate history.Personalitiesthe Bible tells it like it is, it does not cover up the failings of men; as man tends to, if man writes anything.The uniqueness of the Bible does not prove that

the Bible is true, but it does prove that it is different from all other books; having no like or

equal.

IF YOU ARE SEARCHING FOR THE TRUTH, THEN WHY NOT READ THE ONE BOOK THAT HAS DRAWN MORE ATTENTION THAN ANY

OTHER?

Page 15: CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE? TRUTHFUL AND ACCURATE OR JUST MYTHOLOGY?

CAN I TRUST THE BIBLE?

TRUTHFUL AND TRUTHFUL AND

ACCURATEACCURATE

OROR

JUST MYTHOLOGY?JUST MYTHOLOGY?READ IT!

IT IS