the same way every other religion knows their book of choice is correct. It has survived for many years and they have a strong desire to believe (commonly called faith).
The bible can be interpretted however the reader wants to interpret it. Its all about what the reader wants to see in it. So in that way, one could say that some interpretations are correct and some are not.
I look at the bible as being written by men detailing their (biased) perceptions of a god and their experiences (or knowledge from the oral history of the time) of what happened. Because I percieve the bible this way, I do think it is true- just not accurate.
2006-10-25 14:42:52
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answer #1
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answered by the guru 4
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The bible was written by people as a response to their experience of the Divine. The first part of "Old Testament" or the Hebrew Scriptures were put into written form around 500 years before Jesus. This was during the Israelites exile in Babylon. At that time people did not think in terms of "fact" versus "fiction". Almost all teaching was done through story telling. The stories are metaphor. They are not "factual", but they contain great truths about human beings. Same thing with the New Testament.
Only some of Paul's letters were written in the same era that Jesus lived. The earliest gospel was Mark's and it would have been written 20-30 years after Jesus was killed. Again, the stories are people's reaction to seeing the Divine in Jesus. They were never intended to be taken literally. So we can say the Bible is "true" in the sense that we can learn from the stories but it was never intended to be factual.
2006-10-25 21:59:46
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answer #2
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answered by Anonymous
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If by "revised" you mean "re-translated", you are correct. The English language changes, so the Bible is re-translated from time to time to make is sound modern. If by "revised" you mean "rewritten", then you are incorrect.
Basically, we have hundreds of copies of the ancient Greek and Hebrew manuscripts, and we have letters from the early church elders that quote from various parts of the Bible. If the Bible had been altered in any major way, it should have been obvious by comparing the old to the new.
Other than a few minor changes in grammar, spelling, or a few obvious minor errors in copying numbers, there is no evidence that there have been any major mistakes or changes in the original Greek or Hebrew manuscripts.
The Bible is the most scrutinized book in the entire world. Many people, for various reasons, have tried to find errors in it. With hundreds of thousands of people trying to pick it apart over the years, if there had been any significant errors, someone would have found it by now. They haven't.
Read the article at the web-page below if you want a more in-depth explanation of why the Bible is the most reliable book in history.
2006-10-25 21:59:28
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answer #3
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answered by Randy G 7
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There is, compelling evidence that the Hebrew and Greek texts on which modern translations are based represent with remarkable fidelity the words of the original writers. The evidence consists of thousands of handwritten copies of Bible manuscripts—an estimated 6,000 of all or portions of the Hebrew Scriptures and some 5,000 of the Christian Scriptures in Greek—that have survived to our day.
Make no mistake, from a human standpoint the survival of the Bible was not a foregone conclusion. The communities that produced it suffered such difficult trials and bitter oppression that its survival to our day is truly remarkable. In the years before Christ, the Jews who produced the Hebrew Scriptures (the “Old Testament”) were a relatively small nation. They dwelt precariously amid powerful political states that were jostling with one another for supremacy. Israel had to fight for its life against a succession of nations, such as the Philistines, the Moabites, the Ammonites, and the Edomites. During a period when the Hebrews were divided into two kingdoms, the cruel Assyrian Empire virtually wiped out the northern kingdom, while the Babylonians destroyed the southern kingdom, taking the people into an exile from which only a remnant returned 70 years later.
There are even reports of attempted genocide against the Israelites. Back in the days of Moses, Pharaoh ordered the murder of all their newborn baby boys. If his order had been observed, the Hebrew people would have been annihilated. (Exodus 1:15-22) Much later, when the Jews came under Persian rule, their enemies plotted to get a law passed intended to exterminate them. (Esther 3:1-15) The failure of this scheme is still celebrated in the Jewish Festival of Purim.
Later still, when the Jews were subject to Syria, King Antiochus IV tried very hard to Hellenize the nation, forcing it to follow Greek customs and worship Greek gods. He too failed. Instead of being wiped out or assimilated, the Jews survived while, one after the other, most of the national groups around them disappeared from the world scene. And the Hebrew Scriptures of the Bible survived with them.
The Christians, who produced the second part of the Bible (the “New Testament”), were also an oppressed group. Their leader, Jesus, was killed like a common criminal. In the early days after his death, Jewish authorities in Palestine tried to suppress them. When Christianity spread to other lands, the Jews hounded them, trying to hinder their missionary work.—Acts 5:27, 28; 7:58-60; 11:19-21; 13:45; 14:19; 18:5, 6.
In the time of Nero, the initially tolerant attitude of the Roman authorities changed. Tacitus boasted of the “exquisite tortures” inflicted on Christians by that vicious emperor, and from his time on, being a Christian was a capital offense.2 In 303Â C.E., Emperor Diocletian acted directly against the Bible. In an effort to stamp out Christianity, he ordered that all Christian Bibles should be burned.3
These campaigns of oppression and genocide were a real threat to the Bible’s survival. If the Jews had gone the way of the Philistines and the Moabites or if the efforts of first the Jewish and then the Roman authorities to stamp out Christianity had succeeded, who would have written and preserved the Bible? Happily, the guardians of the Bible—first the Jews and then the Christians—were not wiped out, and the Bible survived.
2006-10-25 22:12:58
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answer #4
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answered by papavero 6
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Inspire means "to influence, move, or guide by divine or supernatural inspiration" In other words, saying that the Bible is God's word is the same as saying that the Bible is inspired by God. Just stating in the Bible that it is inspired by God does not make it so. Anyone can write a book and claim divine inspiration. The Bible does make that claim, but it also backs it up with truths that stand the test of time. No other book has been or could be written by 40 different writers in 3 different languages in several different countries over hundreds of years and yet be completely harmonious and without error or contradiction.
2006-10-25 21:58:35
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answer #5
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answered by K 5
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Research. Many upon many ancient text such as the Dead Sea Scrolls. There is many historical text that prove many of the people places and events of the Bible with many historical text that back up the Bible.
Just takes some time but if one is willing to look in to it they will find information.
Doesn't matter if you believe in God or not, there is great amounts of information out there on the history and the events told in the Bible. Anything that requires faith is up to you, that you will have to deal with yourself.
2006-10-25 22:03:52
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answer #6
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answered by Dead Man Walking 4
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The Bible is a collection of writtings by unknown people. How
do you know that it was correct before any revision ?
The old testament is especially rediculous. Somebody trying
to tell you what happened 60 million years ago ?
Dont be a parrot !
2006-10-25 21:42:33
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answer #7
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answered by Anonymous
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This question cannot be answered in a statement. Believing in God's Word is a matter of not only faith. True faith is acquired by knowledge. It is essential to study the Bible in order to acquire the faith needed to believe that the Bible is indeed God's Word, true and correct. Only you can choose to believe or not to believe, only once you have an accurate knowledge of the Scriptures.
2006-10-25 22:03:02
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answer #8
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answered by Beth 1
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Go to the library and see if it's in the fiction or non fiction section. Or if you're feeling really blessed, try flipping a coin. This is how I feel about many churches these days. They are usually quick to judge and point out when they think other churches are wrong. It's kind of like the punch line to a joke and most people still don't get it. Whatever makes you happy though. Many women turn to romance novels or women's magazines.
2006-10-25 21:53:25
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answer #9
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answered by Anonymous
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Only by faith. Read the Bible daily for yourself and see how it affects your life. I dare you.
But to get the best translation, you need to go back to the earliest manuscripts that are written in Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic. I don't know any of these languages, but my pastor was taught Greek and Hebrew in seminary school. Occasionally he may pull up something out of the earliest text. But the NIV is a good translation. There are many others that are good as well. But paraphrase Bibles are not as good, even though things are worded better. Fact is paraphrasing is not God's Word.
2006-10-25 21:42:11
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answer #10
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answered by rath_of_kahn_2000 2
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