On the one hand:
Titus 1:2
In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began.
Hebrews 6:18
It was impossible for God to lie.
But on the other;
Ezekiel 14:9
And if a prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the Lord have deceived that prophet.
2 Thessalonians 2:11
For this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie.
I'm confused. Which passage(s) is correct?
2006-12-27 03:31:45 · 33 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
God is the lie.
2006-12-27 03:49:00 · answer #1 · answered by iknowtruthismine 7 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Can't speak to the NT passages but the Verse from Ezekiel is talking about how God deals with the prophets of idols and those who seek their council into the ways of the One True God. As such individuals have chosen such a destruction path, God, as it were, greases the slippery slope in order to dissuade others from following.
What we, in the modern age, do not understand is that in the days of the prophets, when the messages from God were immediately available, to provide free will, God had to allow idolatry to 'work' to some extent.
2006-12-27 03:54:52 · answer #2 · answered by mzJakes 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
For the Ezekial verse, it is talking about idolatry:
"9: And if the prophet is enticed to utter a prophecy, I the LORD have enticed that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand against him and destroy him from among my people Israel. 10: They will bear their guilt—the prophet will be as guilty as the one who consults him." (NIV version)
For the Thess. verse:
"10: and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11: For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie 12: and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness."
I didn't see anywhere in the Thesaurus that Delusion was equivalent to Lie.
2006-12-27 03:48:26 · answer #3 · answered by Lixender 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Talking about someone taking stuff out of context - Who taught you to read?
Ezekiel 14:7-ll
For every one of the house of srael, or of the stranger that so-journeth in Israel, which separateth himself from me, and setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to a prophet to inquire of him concerning me; I the Lord will answer him by myself:
And I will set my face against that man, and will make him a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of my people; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the Lord have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel.
And they shall bear the punishment of their iniquity: the punishment of the prophet shall be even as the punishment of him that seeketh unto him.
That the house of Israel may go no more astray from me, neither be polluted any more with all their transgressions, but that they may be my people, and I may be their God, saith the Lord God.
God is prounouncing judgment on idolaters who consult a prophet and the situation in Judah is so desperate that even if 3 of the most righteous men in the history of God's people (Noah, Daniel and Job) were to intercede for Israel, they would be able to save only themselves.
God is going to let Nebuchadnezzer destroy Jerusalem for their sins of idolatry. In both cases mentioned God is telling man that He controls even our thoughts and He can make us believe whatever He wants.
Remember, God is the Potter and we are the clay. He can make good pots and bad pots. He can make a prophet say anything He wants him to say and He can make us think anything He wants us to think. THIS IS ALMIGHTY. THIS IS ALL POWERFUL. THIS IS THE GOD I SERVE!
2006-12-27 03:53:26 · answer #4 · answered by Jeancommunicates 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
God does not lie. Small passages like the ones you have listed go with entire chapters that explain what is being said. Also an understanding of how God works would help you out in these matters. Perhaps seek out a Pastor who has studied the bible. God bless.
2006-12-27 03:42:32 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
God doesn't lie. You didn't read the rest of that verse in 2 Thessalonians. It goes on to say that they will believe a lie because they did not love the truth so that they might be saved. They rejected the truth, they chose to be deceived, therefore God is just giving them what they wanted.
2006-12-27 03:38:06 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
Yes, the bible contradicts itself.
That's why when Christians say things like "and the bible doesn't even contradict itself, isn't amazing", I have this overwhelming urge to slap the sense back into them.
You're right about Titus 1:2, Hebrews 6:18 and 2 Thessalonians 2:11, but I believe in Ezekiel 14:9 it is more or less making a point. You're taking that one out of context.
I love all the people who just simply say "no god does not lie!" without taking the time to explain the contradiction.
2006-12-27 03:39:23 · answer #7 · answered by A 6 · 0⤊ 5⤋
God must lie. A Judeo-Christian God is omnipotent, meaning that to become a God, he has to have done everything (because this would determine his capability to do everything, thus making him omnipotent). God has to have lied. If he didn't, he wouldn't be omnipotent. On the same note, God has killed, sinned, raped, plundered, ate swordfish, picked his nose hairs in front of a live studio audience, told a joke that offended a Christian, birthed a son, raised a son, and killed a son, sent documents to court, laughed so hard milk came spewing out of his nose, organized his CD collection, hacked into the government's computer system, created the Internet, and answered this question. God has to do everything to be omnipotent. So how can he exist unless he exists solely within us? Very trippy sh*t here. very trippy.
2006-12-27 03:48:13 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
God cannot lie. And all of the quoted passages are true. When a person sets his heart to disobey God and deceive others, God sends them the fruit of the seeds they have sown. It is the law of sowing and reaping.
2006-12-27 03:36:16 · answer #9 · answered by higherground_pastor 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋
No God NEVER lies. what those passages are saying that if people believe what man says is that he will believe that God is a liar. Look further into those passages you will find the true meaning.
2006-12-27 03:35:38 · answer #10 · answered by audrey_halley2004 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
You are referring to a book written by man, therefore it is inherently flawed.
You must look towards more than one source of information to derrive the correct answer to anything.
2006-12-27 04:10:03 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋