How do you suppose Isaiah knew ( @ Isa. 40:22 ) that the earth was a circle?

Question

Do you suppose C. Columbus got his confidence from this?

How could an ancient "nipper of figs" figure out such an abstract?

Answer 1

He was a prophet of God, so why are you surprised?

Answer 2

Most Mappas Mundi from ancient times show the world as a circle, often with Jerusalem at the centre - figures - and extending out to the edge of the known world: down to the top of Africa; up to Scandinavia; Ireland and Arabia on east and west.

As exploration proceeded, the circle widened. Picturing it as a circle is hardly unusual - what other shape would they use?

But Earth is *not* a circle - it's a sphere. No evidence of knowledge of this appears in ancient Western maps until it was established to be.

CD

Answer 3

2 timothy 3:16 claims that the entire bible including isaiah's words are inspired of god.

like a secretary taking dictation for the boss, god gave the various bible writers the words to write. including knowledge of things that were not generally understood to be the case at the time..

like the saying 'skin of my teeth' found at Job 19:20.. A report in Scientific American of June, 1953, says: “Microscopic techniques now reveal tooth enamel to be not a dead shell but the hardest and strongest tissue in the body, a ‘superskin’. . . . Essentially the teeth consist of two types of hard tissue: the dentine or ivory core, and the enamel, or ‘skin’. . . . The enamel is produced by skin (epithelial) cells. . . . Enamel is unique among living matter in two respects; it has no cells or blood vessels. . . . Certainly enamel cannot reproduce itself, as living tissues usually do. But then, neither can some of the highly specialized cells of the body, such as the brain neurons. . . . We used radioactive isotopes of phosphorus, calcium, iodine and other elements to find out whether . . . a turnover took place in the enamel. The experiments proved that it did. . . . In short, the enamel is not as fixed or as dead as it seems. Like other hard tissues, it carries on a traffic with its environment, albeit without the aid of blood vessels or cells.”

so again, and MANY times, the bible proves itself even in the small things to be correct, and it MUST be inspired of god..

(sorry if that's a bit long winded..)

Answer 4

How do you figure the Greeks and the Aztecs knew this, too?

The Greeks measured shadows cast by sticks in the ground, and figured out the earth was curved relative to the sun.

The Aztecs were so good at astronomical observations, they figured out the earth had to be round.

Both of them knew within a few % exactly how large the Earth was, too.

Maybe Isiah knew about these kinds of observations. I'm sure the Greeks and Aztecs weren't the ONLY people to ever figure it out.

Answer 5

The sphericity of the earth was known in ancient times; the round shape of its shadow on the moon during a lunar eclipse was a giveaway. Eratosthenes even measured the earth's size in about 250 BC, so knowledge dates back a long time.

Answer 6

Contrary to popular belief, most ancient peoples (or at least, their leaders and shamans) were aware that the earth is a sphere. The ancient Greeks even estimated its size with astonishing accuracy.

Columbus did not "discover" that the earth is round. He and his contemporaries already knew about it. The opposition to his journey wasn't about whether the earth is round, but about how big around it is and how long the trip would take.

Answer 7

A "circle" is a flat two dimensional object like a round table top. So God had it wrong. Columbus and many others before him, deduced the earth was spherical.

Answer 8

Isaiah was an inspired writer.

So, he was told to write that, or it was approved.

But, you know, any flat horizon or ocean will show you the earth is round. So it not like you have to be a scientist to see it.

The early church based their beliefs on superstition and pagan ideas rather than giving open mindedness a chance.

Answer 9

Let alone Job saying this ball hangs on nothing!

Job 26:7
He stretches out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing.

Answer 10

Sphere, but horizons, shadows, etc. Simple observation and a functioning brain both quite ably contribute to a person's understanding of geography and planetary science.

Answer 11

A circle is flat. So he believed in a flat earth. Pretty progressive, amazing!