If God is not the author of confusion, why is the Bible so confusing?

[Muffled]

Peace, Mark The Non-Apostle,

The Holy Qur'an reveals that the Jews altered the Scriptures from Their original state. So, the Bible has Truth in it, but falsehoods have been added to it. The Holy Qur'an says of itself that it guards and verifies the Bible. I'm not Muslim though.

Peace.
Yahyaa Waahid (my name)

I believe this is a misinterpretation of the Qu'ran.

I believe this to be false.

I beleive something is lost in the translation. What verse are you referring to?

 

[Benoni]

Because God hides his deepness from carnal earth man.

 

[Muffled]

God has all the power to maintain the Scripture in a way His will wishes. Qur'an is a "single account" witnessing can never be legitimate in terms of how a historical truth should be conveyed. In Jews tradition, you need at least 2 witnesses (2 accounts) to testify to make a legitimate claim.

I don't believe this is reasonable. The prophets all acted alone. The two witnesses thing is meant for a requirement of judgement in a court of law.

I believe a witness is legitimate if it comes from God.

 

[sandy whitelinger]

Do you find 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 confusing Christine? I sure do.

"Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church."

Gee, what's confusing about that? Seems pretty straightforward to me.

 

[sandy whitelinger]

Very true Koldo! This is the crux of the problem for me. There are rules/commandments/exhortations throughout the entire Bible, many of which contradict one another. How can the Bible be from God when it self-ascribes its authorship from God, who "is not the author of confusion," but is full of confusing instructions?

Kinda like Prohibition in America. Look at the rules at one point and you can drink. Check in later and you can't. Check in even later and you can. Really weird, huh!

 

[hexler]

This is the question that has haunted me since I was a child growing up in a conservative Baptist church, and I continue to struggle with it today. I would have a lot easier time believing the Bible if this verse wasn't in there.

It is because it comes from an ancient time. And there were many writers. Each writer added something, often the contributions were not interrelated.

 

[Benoni]

It is because it comes from an ancient time. And there were many writers. Each writer added something, often the contributions were not interrelated.

That is where you are wrong. God's Word is like this great big onion with many layers of hidden secrets only to be uncovered by those who have spiritual ears to hear. God does not reveal his deepness with carnal earthy men. Yes there were many writers in ancient times but that to did not stop God to hide these deep mysteries.

 

[Nakosis]

That is where you are wrong. God's Word is like this great big onion with many layers of hidden secrets only to be uncovered by those who have spiritual ears to hear. God does not reveal his deepness with carnal earthy men. Yes there were many writers in ancient times but that to did not stop God to hide these deep mysteries.

Interesting how creative a person can be in explaining why they can't otherwise justify their position.
If one is religious enough they'll buy into this thinking for a while, what they don't understand, they just have to wait until God reveals the correct understanding to them.

In reality I think this makes our own sub-conscious God. Something that bothers you, you keep mulling over. Your subconscious I think takes this and works out an explanation and you are not aware of this taking place. The thought bubbles into your conscious awareness and if one is a believer, assumes the source of this is God. So you get your answer from a divine source.

Atheists I'd assume can be affected by the same process influenced by whatever they believe is true. Or are they somehow more aware of this tricky business with the subconscious and because of it are more guarded. Logical methods used to question their own thinking?

The subconscious can provide dreams, feelings, visions... explanations all while we are unaware of its doing so. Is the subconscious our God? The Bible inspired by the subconscious of man?

Our self-awareness, morality and analytically reasoning. Whatever our "conscious" existence is, how much of the brain is actually evolved in that? How much of the activity of the brain is hidden from us by the veil of the subconscious.

Makes me feel like I am subjective to interpretations of reality I have no control over. No awareness of how this perception of reality comes about.

So if a person believes in God, don't blame the part of their brain that is consciously aware, blame their subconscious?

 

[Nakosis]

I've seen anywhere from 2% to 10% of the brain is used in consciousness. Then at least 90% of what the brain is doing, we aren't even aware of. Kind of threatening? to think this conscious self that I consider as lord and master of my body actually only controls at most, 10%.

"How much of your brain’s activity are you actually aware of? Do you know everything that it’s up to, or are there some brain processes going on outside of awareness? You may be surprised to learn that some neuroscientists, such as Michael Gazzaniga, estimate that as much as 98 percent or more of all brain activity is completely unconscious."
Conscious Thought | Being Human

 

[NulliuSINverba]

This is the question that has haunted me since I was a child growing up in a conservative Baptist church, and I continue to struggle with it today. I would have a lot easier time believing the Bible if this verse wasn't in there.

"For God is not a God of disorder but of peace--as in all the congregations of the Lord's people." ~ 1 Corinthians 14:33

Ahhhhhh! It's perhaps my all-time favorite verse in the entire Bible.

When you look at the staggering number of Christian denominations - disagreeing over practically every item of doctrine imaginable - how can it not prompt a soul-stirring chuckle?

...

It'll really warm the cockles of my heart if a passing theist would please see fit to declare that the translation I've cited is erroneous.

 

[NulliuSINverba]

Well I mean the bible doesn't, but supposedly one of Pauls letters (Timothy), says "All scripture is inspired" or something along those lines. I figured he was talking about the scriptures that had already been written and not every potential religious scripture.

What about the portions of the New Testament that openly quote Pre-Christian, pagan Greek writers? The author of the Book of Acts quoted the 6th century BC Cretan philosopher/poet Epimenides, and also apparently quoted the fifth line of Phaenomena by Aratus (who died 200-odd years before Christ). There are other examples as well.

Don't take my word for it. Read about it here. And here. And here. And here.

Q. - Were these cribbed lines of scripture also "inspired?"

If one wishes to assert that the entire Bible is "inspired by God" (whatever that means), they'd almost have to have been, right? Perhaps a better question would be: Were they inspired prior to being quoted by the authors of the Bible, or did they somehow become retroactively "inspired" when they were quoted?

I'm sure that there are Christian spinmeisters apologists out there that can (with a minimum of theological tap-dancing) handily set the record straight one way or the other.