The Bible

Origin of the Bible: Part 1 – Uniquely Authentic

How did we get the Bible? How do we know that it is God’s Word, and what does that really mean anyway? If the Bible has been copied and translated so many times, can we have any confidence in modern translations? How do we know that the right books got included, and have any been left out? Doesn’t the Bible have contradictions and other errors? What about other books that claim to be from God? These are the questions that skeptics ask. Yet, many Christians do not have satisfying answers.

Origin of the Bible: Part 2 – Translations

In terms of the number of manuscripts and the shortness of the time between the writing of a biblical book and its discovery, the Bible is more authentic than any ancient text by far. But the Bible’s uniqueness and authenticity do not – by themselves – prove that the Bible is true or that it is the Word of God. And what about the Bible’s translation? Can we trust that our modern English translations are faithful to the original?

Origin of the Bible: Part 3 – Accurate and Divine

We have seen that the Bible has been meticulously transmitted and accurately translated so that what we hold in our hands today is extremely faithful to the original texts. But how do we know that the original texts are true? And how do we validate the Bible’s claim that it is the Word of God?

The Bible vs. other Holy Books

The Bible claims to be written by God who moved men to pen His Word. We have seen that we have every reason to accept this claim. But we must eventually ask about other so-called holy books: non-biblical books that also claim to be inspired by God. In particular, what about the Quran or the book of Mormon? Are these also the Word of God?

The Canon

The books that comprise the Bible are referred to as the canon. But how do we know that the early Church got the canon correct?

Is Genesis Historic and Reliable?

Our feedback this week comes from Colin who believes that the Bible is “historized” fiction and not reliable in terms of science. Here are his comments in purple text along with my response.

More on the Bible’s Historicity

Our feedback this week is from Colin who had previously claimed that the Bible was not historically reliable. He continues his case here, along with my responses in purple. He made a lot of assertions and copied various internet links. But did he present any actual evidence for his claims?