a question for jewish people...?

Question

what is your take on the stories of the old testament? do you believe them to be the factual word of god or do you think of them more as parables to teach people lessons?

fireball, i said jewish people, not methodists...

are you people missing the part of the question that was referring to jewish people?

geez!!! i'm asking jewish people. why can't you all let them answer this?

Answer 1

I am a Reform Jew and consider most of Genesis to be metaphor and parable. That doesn't mean that we can't learn from the lessons those stories teach us!
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Answer 2

They are the factual word of God, but sometimes God is less than literal.
There are some stories and words that are not to be taken at face value. That's why it is so important to read the Torah with the accumulated Rabbinic traditions and interpretations.
For instance, Solomon was a very great man. So when he let some of his wives worship idols, God thought he should have known better, and that it was equivalent in his case to bowing down to the idols himself. So the literal text says that King Solomon worshipped idols.
There are many, many examples like this throught the Torah.

Answer 3

EDIT
Here's a quote from Harold Wallce Rosenthal: (Administrative Aide to the then Sanator Jacob Jayits)

"Most Jews do not like to admit it, but our god is Lucifer!"
and another from Winston Churchill:
"The truth is incontrovertable. Panic may resent it, ignorance may deride it, malice may distort it, but there it is_"

To whomever didn't like my answer, it's just too bad but it happens to be the truth! If you can't live with it, that doesn't make it any less the truth!!! Very much the truth! and if you can't believe it, I just don't know where you've been! I and millions of others, don't hide under rocks or behind any religion in my search for the truth!

They used to believe it all to a "T" but since the death of Christ which they refused to accept as the Messiah, they have gotten further away from it all as they have now often forgotten even the basics that were yet known to their ancestors such as the fact that there would be a resurrection for all and opted instead to follow the course of Babylon the Great into believing that the soul goes on, which is clearly stated at Ezekiel 18:4 that it is just not the case... that the soul that is sinning, it itself will die... Furthermore, millions of them do believe in Jesus, (Yeshua) and (often in secret) as they don't want to be ridiculed by the others still in expectation of the Messiah! whom they admit was Jesus! You must have heard of this other smaller group calling themselves "Jews for Jesus" popping up here and there! As many are now unable to deny that it is now Armageddon that is close at hand and not just a "messiah" as they have enough of a brain to realize that this planet will absolutely self-destruct as they see all of the new testament's prophecies taking place before their very eyes which were predicted to announce the last days of this whole system of things!

Answer 4

They're true. I'm not Jewish, but my Lord is and the Old Testament and the New Testament are the actual Words of God.

Answer 5

There is not one answer for this. Some take them literally (but not "english literal", because nothing translates 100%, and one word can have multiple meanings when translated), some as parables..

Answer 6

I believe the entire OT to be the factual word of G-d, dictated by G-d to Moses, who wrote it all down.

Answer 7

The voice of the people is the voice of God.

Answer 8

theyre true