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You are here: Experts > Religion/Spirituality > Theology > Bible Studies > You are a looser brother John: Can u please refute the scientific errors in Bible

Bible Studies - You are a looser brother John: Can u please refute the scientific errors in Bible

Expert: John of AllFaith (Pastor John) - 10/5/2009

Question
QUESTION: Hello John,

I have came across many scientific errors and contradictions in the Bible. Can you please refute them...

1. Proverbs 6:6-8, ants have no commander, no ruler and no overseer! This is absurdly false, because ants live in colonies and ranks of rulership and authority. And they have a queen.

2. Leviticus 11:20-23 - "All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be detestable to you." No insect with four legs exists. Insects have six legs and six feet.

3. Matthew 13:31-32 "He (Jesus) told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds," The mustard seed is not the smallest of all seeds. Others, such as the orchid seed, are smaller.

3. Leviticus 12:2-5, a female causes double the pollution when she's born than that of a boy. The mother remains unclean for 66 days after birth of a female instead of 33 days if she gives birth to a male.

Textual and Historical Contradictions:

2 Samuel 10:18 - David slew 700 and 40,000 horsemen and Shobach the commander.
1 Chronicles 19:18 - David slew 7000 chariots and 40,000 footmen.

2 Chronicles 9:25 - Solomon had 4000 stalls for horses and chariots.
1 Kings 4:26 - Solomon had 40,000 stalls for horses.

Ezra 2:5 - Arah had 775 sons.
Nehemiah 7:10 - Arah had 652 sons.

2 Samuel 24:13 - SEVEN YEARS OF FAMINE.
1 Chronicles 21:11-12 - THREE YEARS OF FAMINE.

How did Judas die?
Matthew 27:5 - Hanged himself.
Acts 1:18 - And falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all of his bowels gushed out.

2 Samuel 6:23 - MICHAL never had a child until she died.
2 Samuel 21:8 - MICHAL had 5 sons.

2 Kings 24:8 - Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he began to reign.
2 Chronicles 36:9 - Jehoiachin was 8 years old when he began to reign.

1 Kings 16:6-8 - 26th year of the reign of Asa, Baasha reigned over Israel.
2 Chronicles 16:1 - 36th year of the reign of Asa, Baasha reigned over Israel.

Who was Josiah's successor?
Jehoahaz - 2 Chronicle 36:1
Shallum - Jeremiah 22:11

"All scripture is given by inspiration of God." (2 Timothy 3:16)

"As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless...." (2 Samuel 22:31)

"And the words of the LORD are flawless...." (Psalm 12:6)

"As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless...." (Psalm 18:30)

"Every word of God is flawless...." (Proverbs 30:5)

These True Statements undoubtedly prove that the Bible is corrupt!

What is ur view...

ANSWER: Hi Nasar,

My view is that in the main these are silly arguments being raised by Muslims to attack Christianity and Judaism and I have no the interest in the topic nor the desire to go through and answer all of them when I doubt your sincerity. There are answers for them all.

Al Qur'an is a work of gross plagiarism. The Bible is 4000 - 2000 years old. If this is the best you can find for alleged errors in that length of time then I think the Bible is truly the amazing Word of the One God.

Shalom

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear John, I was not accepting this kind of childish answer from an expert like you. Seeing through all the answers in your post, I was confident that atleast you can answer my quetion in logical and better manner. Never in my question, I said anything about Quran or muslims. If Christainity is independent then why you are taking help of Quran and muslims to prove your illogical thinking. I just wanted to know about the scientific errors in the bible and how can we prove that the statements that I have produced/came accorss are scientifically true. You said in your last sentenec of the first para that there are answers for them all. So please answer it and if you cannot answer them then please say that Bible is not scientifically true. There are contradictions in the Bible. And if the bible is from God then there should be no contradictions and scientific errors whatever the reason. While replying either bring the answers for the scientific errors and contradictions in Bible or simply say, the Bible is corrupt and one cannot totally depend on Bible... And the last thing is that my name is not Nasar, its Nisar...

Answer
Hi Nisar

Sorry for getting your name wrong. Nasar is a common name and I glossed over it.

I have of late been inundated with Muslim posts (both here, through my websites and via e-mail) attacking Judaism and Christianity on the flimsiest of taquiya justifications (the Sharia Muslim belief that deceit is acceptable to revert people to their false religion of Islam or to gain power over them). The last sentence of your question implied to me that you are probably another of these false teachers who have no desire to gain accurate understanding. Also your statement that you "came across many scientific errors and contradictions in the Bible" is disingenuous because I've received this same list at least six or seven times in the last few months. You did not find these by a careful study of the Word (else you would have realized that none of these are really errors). You found them on a website, received them via e-mail, received them from a Muslim missionary or something similar. This also led to my not taking your question seriously.

As should be obvious from the following, answering this taquiya has taken a bit of time that I would otherwise have devoted to other topics. For a sincere person I would have no problem doing this, but I question your sincerity based on the wording of your questions. Now however I can save this and have it handy for the next time someone posts list, so it all works out ;-)

I do hope you will at least take the time to consider these answers. First is important general information on the Bible we now have. After that I address each of these verses and demonstrate that no contradictions exist in any of them.

First then, the Bible is not and was never intended to be a "scientific" book, thus there could be no scientific errors in it. Besides, the points you bring up are not based on science nor do any of these verses contradict science (science is a non-issue here).

Secondly, there are no original manuscripts known to exist of any book of the Bible (Hebrew scriptures nor Christian). What there are are a LOT of fragments and manuscripts. The most reliable of these are known as the "Textus Receptus" (the Received Texts) and the "Majority Texts". In the vast majority of cases these manuscripts are in full agreement (and where they differ are of no doctrinal consequence).

The new pseudo-bibles like the New International Version (NIV) are based on a completely different set of manuscripts that were, in some cases, literally discarded after having been rejected as tampered with or as containing scribal errors. The NIV and related texts are frauds meant to mislead the Church (and doing a very good job at it!).

The Torah (the first five books of the Bible) were written around 1450-1410 B.C.E. The oldest book in the Bible, Job, was written much earlier although its impossible to date it. The Jewish scribes did a truly amazing job at preserving their sacred texts. The Christian scribes were not as good and we know that the New Testament lacks the textual integrity of the Hebrew Scriptures regarding the original writings. However, with that acknowledged, the New Testament also has a very solid foundation -- the most solid of any other ancient text of its time period -- other than the older Tanach (or Hebrew Scriptures that are almost flawless).

Translations of these manuscripts into another language are human enterprises and no translation from one language to another is going to be perfect. Even were a perfect translation possible certain of the nuances would still be lost. There are a couple of excellent translations. The Authorized King James is probably the best IF one correctly understands the meaning of the words used in Old English, languages changes over time. But even it has its weaknesses in translation.

This is why serious Bible students refer to the original languages at times in order to clarify the meanings of the texts and the translations.

There are a few points in the transliteration, translation and scribal lineage of the copies of the copies of these ancient manuscripts where errors clearly occurred. This is proven by the very fact of the variances in the source materials. None of these errors that passed through Textus Receptus (the King James Version, the American Standard Version etc.) or the Majority Texts alter the meaning of the texts in any significant way however. We can have absolute confidence in the Masoretic texts for the Hebrew Scriptures (i.e. that the Tanach we have today is almost exactly as originally written) and in the New Testament texts, that they are consistent with that passed down by the Roman Catholic Church scribes as cannon (some changes were clearly made to the original autographs by these Catholic scribes and councils and some books and others writings accepted by the First Century Believers were discarded, for instance the Book of Enoch: Jude 1:14).

Some of these points of departure reflect differences in the source materials and others are based on incorrect interpretations and assumptions, while others were the result of unwise choices made by the translators themselves (for instance "almah" means maiden or girl rather than virgin, "staros" means stake rather than cross etc). Interestingly enough, none of this applies to the examples you have offered as evidence. In every case, the ones you cite reflect merely your lack of biblical knowledge.

Here we go...

1. Proverbs 6:6-8 is not a scientific treatise on ants (gazelles etc). It is an illustration of a point. Such metaphors are never intended to be dissected. One might say for instance, "Its as hot as Death valley today!" or "Its as cold as the North Pole!" That means its very hot or cold, not that its 125 degrees or whatever the present temperature of Death Valley might be. Read the context and it is clear what is being said here:

Proverbs 6:1 My son, if you have become collateral for your neighbor,
   if you have struck your hands in pledge for a stranger;
6:2 You are trapped by the words of your mouth.
   You are ensnared with the words of your mouth.
6:3 Do this now, my son, and deliver yourself,
   since you have come into the hand of your neighbor.
Go, humble yourself.
   Press your plea with your neighbor.
6:4 Give no sleep to your eyes,
   nor slumber to your eyelids.
6:5 Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter,
   like a bird from the snare of the fowler.
6:6 Go to the ant, you sluggard.
   Consider her ways, and be wise;
6:7 which having no chief, overseer, or ruler,
6:8 provides her bread in the summer,
   and gathers her food in the harvest.
6:9 How long will you sleep, sluggard?
   When will you arise out of your sleep?

In other words, don't be like the ant that mindlessly acts (of course they do not mindless act as such, they have a hierarchy etc. HOWEVER each ant in the hierarchy is acting by instinct so there is no "chief, Overseer, or ruler" over them. They all act according to instinct rather than rational thought. So even then, the metaphor is correct.

2. Leviticus 11:20-23: - Again, a figure of speech. Kosher laws forbid eating those insect that hunt on the ground. It doesn't mean they have four feet, only that they walk on the ground (as do four-footed mammals).

3. Matthew 13:31-32: Again, the Master was not giving a botany lesson. His point was that even a little faith is a powerful thing. He was not teaching a science class. We also are not given a description of what was going on. He may well have been holding a seed in his hand and saying, "Even this tiny amount of faith..."

You have an error here yourself. You have two number threes. See how easy it is to make a scribal mistake? If one copy and pastes it is easy to miss such things, just imagine working with a quill feather and bottle of ink and writing down word after word, chapter after chapter in some dark and damp monastery...

3. Leviticus 12:2-5, "a female causes double the pollution when she's born than that of a boy. The mother remains unclean for 66 days after birth of a female instead of 33 days if she gives birth to a male."

This verse is part of the Law of Moses intended to guide the Hebrews.

First, there is nothing here about females causing double the pollution. This is taquiya (intentional deceit and misdirection). It says, within its context:

12:1 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 12:2 "Speak to the children of Israel, saying, 'If a woman conceives, and bears a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her monthly period she shall be unclean.
12:3 In the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.
12:4 She shall continue in the blood of purification thirty-three days. She shall not touch any holy thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying are completed.
12:5 But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her period; and she shall continue in the blood of purification sixty-six days.

So then... If she has a boy:
SHE is ritually unclean for 7 days, and on the eighth day he is to be circumcised.
SHE continues with her ritual of purification for another 33 days.

IF she has a girl:
SHE is ritually unclean for 14 days, there is no "female circumcision" (a most barbaric mutilation practiced by Muslims still today) and she continues her ritual of purification for another 66 days.

So, the statement is incorrect on its face. She does not cause "double the pollution" (there is no pollution even mentioned) she merely has a longer period of self-purification than if she had given birth to a boy. This reflects views current at the times. Right or wrong most ancient cultures gave preference to males. Partly because they were more useful as field hands, warriors, heads of family, etc.

The circumcision of the boy as an offering to God was probably one reason in the minds of the ancient Hebrews, but this is a command of HaShem, not a human calculation. If God wishes to set such conditions that is His right as Creator and Lord. Like most ancient texts, the Bible does makes distinctions based on gender that modern people in the West find difficult to accept.

Compared to Islam however, where a woman can be raped or murdered for going outside alone, for looking at a man or being seen without her hijab... women had far more freedom and respect 4000 years ago under the Law of Moses than they do today under Sharia.

Under the commands of the New Testament we are told that in God's eyes there is neither male nor female (Gal 3:28)...

--- 2 Samuel 10:18 - David slew 700 and 40,000 horsemen and Shobach the commander.
--- 1 Chronicles 19:18 - David slew 7000 chariots and 40,000 footmen.

These are just two different forms of reckonings:

II Sam 10:18 And the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew the men of seven hundred chariots of the Syrians, and forty thousand horsemen, and smote Shobach the captain of their host, who died there.

I Chron. 19:18 But the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew of the Syrians seven thousand men which fought in chariots, and forty thousand footmen, and killed Shophach the captain of the host.

II Sam says he slew the "men of 700 chariots..."
I Chron says "7000 men who fought in the chariots"

This is not a contradiction. If there were 7000 men assigned to the chariots there would be around 700 leaders or officers of the chariots.

--- 2 Chronicles 9:25 - Solomon had 4000 stalls for horses and chariots.
--- 1 Kings 4:26 - Solomon had 40,000 stalls for horses.

These are two different time periods. At one time I owned three cars and a motor cycle, today I only own a pick up truck.

Not a contradiction.

--- Ezra 2:5 - Arah had 775 sons.
--- Nehemiah 7:10 - Arah had 652 sons.

Again, context is essential:

Ezra 2:1 Now these are the children of the province that went up out of the captivity...

Nehemiah 7:5 ....And I found a register of the genealogy of them which came up at the first, and found written therein...

The registry or ledger Nehemiah was working off of was inaccurate while Ezra gives us the correct listing. Why would this be? There are lots of possible reasons. Names were spelled differently, people had dual alliances, people had been added or lost between the writing of the registry and the giving of the numbers to Ezra... etc. The registry Nehemiah was working from was of human calculations, while Ezra received his knowledge from God.

Both lists agree that the total number was 42,360.

Again, not a contradiction.

--- 2 Samuel 24:13 - SEVEN YEARS OF FAMINE.
--- 1 Chronicles 21:11-12 - THREE YEARS OF FAMINE.

In context these are referring to two different things.

The seven years were followed by an additional three years:

II Samuel 21:1 Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David inquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites.

Again, not a contradiction.

--- Matthew 27:5 - Judas Hanged himself.
--- Acts 1:18 - And falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all of his bowels gushed out.

There is no contradiction here either.

He hung himself, his body went limp, he slipped out of the noose (or perhaps was cut down by a Roman guard) and fell to the ground below.

--- 2 Samuel 6:23 - MICHAL never had a child until she died.
--- 2 Samuel 21:8 - MICHAL had 5 sons.

Once again, no contradiction if one merely reads the texts:

II Sam 6:23 Therefore Michal the daughter of Saul had no child unto the day of her death.

21: 8 ... and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite...:

"... whom she brought up for Adriel..."

She raised them as her own but she herself had no kids. I have two sons but only one is of my seed.

No contradiction.

---- 2 Kings 24:8 - Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he began to reign.
---- 2 Chronicles 36:9 - Jehoiachin was 8 years old when he began to reign.

Jehoiachin reigned with his father Jehoiakim for ten years.

Jehoiakim began his reign when he was 25 years old and reigned for 11 years. He was 17 when his son Jehoiachin was born.
Beginning in the second year of Jehoiakim's reign he had his son Jehoiachin ruling with him (hence at age 8).
Jehoiachin reigned with his father for 10 years and then, beginning at age 18, he ruled alone. Father and son co-reigns are not without biblical precedent, for instance David and Solomon.

Again, no contradiction.

--- 1 Kings 16:6-8 - 26th year of the reign of Asa, Baasha reigned over Israel.
--- 2 Chronicles 16:1 - 36th year of the reign of Asa, Baasha reigned over Israel.

Neither says what you say:

...In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah began Elah the son of Baasha to reign over Israel

The son of Baasha regined

1 In the six and thirtieth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah, and built Ramah,

Doesn't say he began his reign then.

No contradiction.

--- Who was Josiah's successor?
--- Jehoahaz - 2 Chronicle 36:1
--- Shallum - Jeremiah 22:11

Same person. I Chron 3:15 The sons of Josiah: the firstborn Johanan, the second Jehoiakim, the third Zedekiah, the fourth Shallum. Many people in the Bible have more than one name. Abram: Abraham, Jacob: Israel, Daniel: Belteshazzar etc.

"My view" is that you have not presented a single contradiction here. You have merely indicated a lack of knowledge of God's inspired Word.

Islam is a false religion without ANY historic ties to the origins it claims. Al Qu'ran is plagiarized from the Bible and the Vedas.

Christianity and Judaism have clear ties to Abraham and the books of the Tanach and New Testament have demonstratively verifiable ancient roots leading back to the histories and periods they discuss.

As Jesus said: John 4:22 You worship that which you don't know. We worship that which we know; for salvation is from the Jews.

If you sincerely wish to worship the true God of Father Abraham reject Islam.

Shalom Y'rushalayim,

~ John of AllFaith
~ Ben Ruach HaKodesh

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