Why do Atheists interpret the Old Testament badly?

Question

Have you noticed that, they take verses and accommodate the interpretation the way they want it, without really study the real meaning!

I have noticed that their explanations about the OT are really out of context!

For example, "God is a murderer" is one of the things they usually interpret incorrectly.

I encourage you to study The Old Testament

Answer 1

Because they don't have the Spirit of God to guide them to understanding! That's it.

And how ironic! They spend their time on anti Christ sites to gather their steam, and then read the Bible to approach it in disfaith, and then deny it all: not knowing the weight of things; not able to rightly divide the word of God.

So they are getting more of what they have, something that God has done all this time. He gives people more of what they have. In this case it's a hardened heart.

Answer 2

I encourage you to think for a moment.

When you start interpreting something, you are inevitably going to be influenced by your own pre-conceived notions of truth and establishments, whether consciously or not. Even if you bring in other material and examine context (which is an IMMENSE study that many atheists/agnostics don't have time for, since there are so many other religions that are technically just as worthy of study), that does not mean you will end up with "truth."

I think it's rather presumptuous to mention "real meaning" and "interpretation" together.

Edit: There are some things that, if taken literally, make God out to be a rather nasty fellow. If we interpret them, however, it is hard to get an idea of what this God really is. We need a definition of God to discuss it (ignostic standpoint). Also, as others have mentioned, do note that some atheists/agnostics HAVE done serious study and now reject it, and that you probably also interpret things that help you out, to some extent.

Answer 3

It's funny how christians will take a single verse they like such as the leviticus thing against homosexuality and that's "in context." Taking any verse preaching love, or the ten commandments, etc. and it's always in context.... but you look only a couple verses above the anti-homosexual passage and you'll see it clearly says to kill disobedient children. You mention that and it's "out of context!" Mention the verse a couple lines down from the anti-homo passage where it says if you have sex with a woman on her period you should both be deported, and that's also "out of context!"

Mention the positive line A and it's great, mention negative line B and it's magically "out of context." What basis do christians have for this? They're making it up, it's a self defense mechanism and a fairly good one at that. Their morals aren't biblically derived so they shun the bad passages which they always claim are out of context no matter how in context they really are!

So what makes one simple passage "true" while the surrounding ones (even a couple lines away) are all "out of context!"? Nothing. It's hypocritical garbage.

Answer 4

If God is not a murderer, then I guess the Old Testament must be wrong (2nd Samuel) --

The ark of God was placed on a new cart and taken away from the house of Abinadab on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of Abinadab guided the cart, with Ahio walking before it, while David and all the Israelites made merry before the Lord with all their strength, with singing and with citharas, harps, tambourines, sistrums, and cymbals.

When they came to the threshing floor of Nodan, Uzzah reached out his hand to the ark of God to steady it, for the oxen were making it tip. But the Lord was angry with Uzzah; God struck him on that spot, and he died there before God. (2 Samuel 6:3-7 NAB)

Answer 5

lol. You don't seem to be aware of the fact that atheists are not interpreting the Bible incorrectly. They are stating exactly what they Bible says, and they are very well aware of exactly what it means. Most atheists have studied the Bible far more thoroughly than any believer. It's the believers who desperately re-interpret the Bible to make it seem like it says what they want it to say. Atheists have no reason to do that. Atheists don't put stock in anything the Bible says, so how does it benefit them to interpret it wrong? It's the believers who have to obey it, so it's they who try to change and warp the meanings to make it easier for themselves, or to suit their purposes. Like when Jesus *repeatedly* says that in order to get into Heaven you need to sell everything you have and give to the poor, atheists *know* that that's exactly what he means. It's the believers who will be falling all over themselves to try to claim that that's not what he MEANT. (Because they know it would really suck to have to sell everything you own and give to the poor, and they really don't want to do that, so they need to make up reasons why Jesus wasn't telling them to do so.)

Answer 6

maximum Jews are particularly secular so some distance as i will tell. I asked some different Jews (a number of them even orthodox) approximately who is going to heaven or hell in accordance to their faith and that all of them informed me that contemporary day Judaism is extra approximately custom, and how you reside your lifestyles, then issues like that. so some distance as i will tell, maximum do no longer fairly believe in lots of the classes from the previous testomony, noticeably no longer in a literal experience. Christians on the different hand nonetheless carry that the previous testomony is the word of God. the very comparable God from the hot testomony. whether or no longer they could carry on with the regulations, the difficult rules and help of slavery speaks volumes appropriate to the character of the being they worship.

Answer 7

OK, so tell me then how to interpret this one.

Lev 25:44-45 Both thy bondmen, and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, [shall be] of the heathen that are round about you; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids.
Moreover of the children of the strangers that do sojourn among you, of them shall ye buy, and of their families that [are] with you, which they begat in your land: and they shall be your possession.
- How would you interpret that one, expect that owning slaves is ok, because it certainly does not state that it is bad to own them.

How about this one?
Exodus 35:2 Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the LORD: whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to death.
- How do you interpret that one wrong? It is quite clear in it's statement. Anyone working on the severth day must be put to death, not sure how you can mistake that one.

The list can go on and on. And, how do we know that your interpretation is the correct one? You are just assuming so. Do you really believe in a God who supposedly wrote all that, only to leave it open to so much interpretation? Your God is obviously not good at writing, even though you believe he is all perfect.

Answer 8

Oh no, here he is again...

So how should people interpret it? Freely?

The point of writing something down is for other people to interpret it literally, not make their own idea out of it. Most of the Atheists I've seen interpreting verses, actually interpreted them *literally*.


And as for you; you can only understand what those verses mean if you understand how people's minds in that day and age worked. Which you obviously don't.

Answer 9

I have. Nine college level credit hours worth of it.

It makes a LOT more sense with a Jewish interpretation. The Christian interpretation is badly skewed... but this is of necessity, since the OT condemns the NT as being the Testament of a False Prophet named Yshua bar-Ysef.

Answer 10

"Have you noticed that, they take verses and accommodate the interpretation the way they want it, without really study the real meaning!"

Seems to be more of a christian thing actually.

Answer 11

Are you talking about Atheists or Christians? It doesn't appear that Christians know how to interpret the Bible any better than Atheists. Perhaps both groups should go to remedial classes together.