why is the Bible so hard to understand?

Answer 1

Consider the source....

Answer 2

The Bible is spiritually discerned. That means that, unless you have the Holy Spirit living inside you, you won't really be able to understand it. And the only way you get the Holy Spirit living inside you is by repenting of your sins and putting your faith in Christ. If you have done this, then the Bible will start making more and more sense to you as you grow as a Christian. If you haven't....well, that would explain why you have trouble understanding the Bible. I sincerely hope you have done this!

There are some passages that are harder to understand, though, even if you are a Christian. I have been saved for 10 years now, and I still have a hard time with the book of Hebrews. It is a book that requires lots of careful study and slow reading. Books and passages like that are called (the meat of the word" by the apostle Paul. It's rather like chewing on a touch piece of steak - it is still food, it's still good for you and tasty, it is just tougher than other food and requires more effort to eat it. Then there are other passages, like Ecclesiastes and the Psalms and parts of the Gospels, that are a bit easier to understand - the Filet Mignon, if you will, nice and tender and pretty easy to chew. (LOL here I am fresh from lunch time, and all I can talk about is food!)

Hope this helps, and please ignore all the snotty answers you will get.


PS - the King James isn't that hard to understand at all. It actually reads at a grade 6 level while the others read around a grade 9 level. Besides which, the new versions have doctrinal mistakes in them. They're not very good. Try the King James and use a dictionary for the older words. It is worth the extra effort, trust me.

Answer 3

The bible is not hard to understand if you use it in the correct way. Allow it to answers your questions and accept its answers as truth. Once you have decided to be honest and really want to put off all false teachings of man then it will make sense to you.
For example the basic teaching of the (Soul) ?
Today's religions for the most part teach that you have a soul and that its immortal.
The Bible teaches that you are a soul and souls die.
Ezekiel 18:4 Ecclesiastes 9:5,10 Ecclesiastes 3:19.
So you have a choice? either believe the bible or believe man.
2 Timothy 3:16 states that all scripture is inspired of God.
Man teaches that if you are good you will gain heavenly life?
Jesus said that the meek would inherit the earth. Mathew 5:5
So what is the truth? Jesus knew what his heavenly father promised the earth to some of mankind, or those who did his fathers will would live on earth forever. Psalms 37: 9-11,29.
So the key to understanding is in asking the questions and in your heart allowing the truth of the scriptures to answer you.

Answer 4

Start by getting an easier translation like The Living Bible or The New International Version. Then pray before and after you read for understanding and the ability to recieve God's word.

Answer 5

I can answer that in several ways. Let me start with one way and let's see where it goes!

The Historical reason-
You are reading about an ancient culture written from an ancient time. The people spoke an ancient foreign language. Some of hat the people did showed that they practiced ancient foreign traditions, which are not typically found in today's society. Even the worship of other gods is strange to us, because these people went all out and would build things in their name.

While traveling about, these ancient people could have their life ended by bandits and people who just liked to live in violent ways. One such bandit, for example, liked to attack people on the road, and then take the helpless, including babies, and cut them so that he could suck out the blood while they lay helpless in his arms.

We do not have that to the degree that they did back then ( at least in the US) , because law and the education of the people, along with the ability to communicate with each other over long distances instantly takes such a person into pursuit.

Values were different, to them, owning a slave wasn't immediately wrong, it was a sign that a slave owner was prosperous enough to own one. They didn't look at it like we do. That is an example that they did not hold our values. Our values were alien to them. They didn't think that owning slaves was wrong ( maybe only a few thought so ) , and so shouldn't be judged according to our values.

One of the reasons I think that people have such a hard time with the Bible is that they cannot recognize that God is superior to us. He is not 'just another guy', and so we shouldn't expect Him to be treated like 'just another guy'. Those from the US are taught that 'all men are created equal', well, God is not just one of us. We are not His equals. We ARE to bow down to someone. And that someone is God. Those who do not understand the Bible miss that, or rebel against the idea.

I hope this helped you.

Answer 6

First of all if you are not a christain you wont understand it because the Holy Spirit teaches you and if you are not a christian you dont have the Holy Spirit. Second of all...people decide to sit down and read the Bible...so they start at the beginning. We are living in the New Testament age so it is better to start with Matthew. Matthew, Mark, & Luke mostly deal with Christs birth and teachings. These are great. .John& Acts and farther are heavier teachings after Christ is in Heaven

Answer 7

Because over 2000 years ago, they did not use the same vocabulary we do now. I agree it's hard to understand.

If you want to understand it, look for the versions of the bibles that are easier to understand. If so, go into a book store and ask, "Do you have a version of the bible that is easy to understand?"

Also, the stories in it may seem completely ridiculous. It's up to your beliefs...

Answer 8

I asked a similar question yesterday, but the core was basically what you're asking.

I wish the Bible had been simplified to maybe one page, or a tablet, if you will, of what to do and what not to do. Instead there's all these allegories and parables and murdering and daughters sleeping with dads all mixed in.

I can understand why people need to go to college and major in the Bible to be able to explain it all.

Answer 9

Some of it was written a long time ago by several different people. Some of it was written more currently, but still a long time ago, and still by several people.

All those authors lived in a world we don't really understand completely, all with different ideas of what we should know about God.

Eventually, we found all these documents (at different times) from all these people who wrote a long time ago, and then we had some people put all those documents together. However, even this step was done a long time ago.

So as you can see, there are a lot of reasons we have trouble understanding the Bible in its entirety today. Firstly, it was written at different times, all a long time ago. Secondly, it was written by different people, and sometimes we don't know who wrote it.

Good luck!

Answer 10

The Bible isn't like regular literature. There is a spiritual side to it, and unless you are made spiritually alive by Christ, it would be very hard, if not made impossible to "get" what it says.
It has many levels, and this can confuse people very easily.

If you approach it with the belief that it IS the word of God, and with the straight purpose of learning, of really finding out what God has to say, I guarantee you will begin at some point to understand. He does honor our sincere efforts.

Answer 11

In chapter 1 the psalmist said :
1 Happy is the man that has not walked in the counsel of the wicked ones,
And in the way of sinners has not stood,
And in the seat of ridiculers has not sat.

2 But his delight is in the law of Jehovah,
And in his law he reads in an undertone day and night.

3 And he will certainly become like a tree planted by streams of water,
That gives its own fruit in its season
And the foliage of which does not wither,
And everything he does will succeed.

4 The wicked are not like that,
But are like the chaff that the wind drives away.

You could read it a hundred times but never understand it IF you do not believe it in your heart to be the word of God. All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work. If you do not believe that then you will never understand it. Satan is the god of this system of things and has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, that the illumination of the glorious good news about the Christ, who is the image of God, might not shine through.