Can You Trust the Bible?
Summary
The discussion centers on whether the Bible can be considered a trustworthy source or merely a human creation. It presents seven reasons supporting the Bible's reliability:
1. The Bible is the world’s #1 bestseller, the most read and the most widely distributed book of all time. The Bible holds the record as the best-selling book, with over five billion copies distributed globally. Its translations cover languages spoken by over half of the world's population, demonstrating its widespread reach and influence.
2. The Bible is THE most influential book of all time. Regarded as the most influential book, its significance is mirrored in the impact of its central figure, Jesus Christ. This wide-ranging influence is acknowledged across various surveys and studies.
3. The Bible has been praised by world leaders and some of the most influential people. Historical leaders and influential individuals have praised the Bible. Figures like George Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln have acknowledged its importance and value, emphasizing its role in governance, education, and moral guidance.
4. The Bible — when correctly translated, interpreted, and understood — has never been proven to be in error in ANY statement that it makes. The Bible's accounts align with findings from astronomy, archaeology, and science, supporting its accuracy. Examples include the Bible's ancient understanding of the Earth's shape and its alignment with historical and archaeological findings, challenging skeptics and affirming its credibility.
5. The Bible has been THE book that most people turn to during tough and challenging times. Throughout history, individuals in challenging situations have found solace and strength in the Bible. Its enduring relevance and comforting nature highlight its role as a source of inspiration and guidance during tough times.
6. The Bible has stood the test of time, even having been written by about 40 people over 2,000 years. Despite being written over millennia by various authors from diverse backgrounds, the Bible maintains a coherent and unified message. This miraculous consistency across different books and authors underscores its unique nature and enduring relevance.
7. The Bible is the Word of the only true God, YHWH. The Bible is presented as the word of God, inspired and communicated through human authors. This divine connection is emphasized through its teachings, prophecies, and the guidance it offers to believers.
The text argues that the Bible's truth and reliability are supported by various forms of evidence, from historical accuracy to its profound impact on individuals and society. It challenges readers to consider not just the trustworthiness of the Bible but also their relationship with its divine author, suggesting a personal and introspective approach to faith and belief.
Full Transcript
Can you trust the Bible? Is it just the work of men, or is it the Word of God — as it claims to be? In this episode, I will share with you seven powerful reasons why you can absolutely trust the Bible. Let’s discuss.
The Bible is regarded by millions as the written Word of God. But with so many translations, versions, and conflicting interpretations and teachings, is the Bible itself true and reliable? And while it claims to have Divine Authority unlike any other book on this planet, can the Bible really back up that claim? In other words, is the Bible true just because it claims to be true?
Here now are the 7 Powerful Reasons Why You CAN Absolutely Trust the Bible:
1. The Bible is the world’s #1 bestseller, the most read and the most widely distributed book of all time.
According to Guinness World Records, the Bible is the best-selling book of all time with over five billion copies sold and distributed worldwide. The “Little Red Book,” Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-Tung, comes in second place (820 million copies sold), and Harry Potter comes in at third place (400 million copies sold).
According to United Bible Societies, they have translated the complete Bible into the languages of more than half of the world’s population. That’s almost 700 languages in all. YouVersion, the online Bible app for tablets and smartphones is offered in 2,062 versions in 1,372 languages.
2. The Bible is THE most influential book of all time.
According to surveys by the Folio Society, the Library of Congress, and Book-of-the Month Club, the Bible is the "most influential book in the world.” Is it a mere coincidence that many surveys also show that the most influential Person in history is Jesus Christ (or Yahshua the Messiah)?
3. The Bible has been praised by world leaders and some of the most influential people.
George Washington, first president of the U.S.: "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.”
Theodore Roosevelt, 26th president of the U.S.: “A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more than a college education.”
Abraham Lincoln, 16th president of the U.S.: “I believe the Bible is the best book God has ever given to man. All the good from the Savior of the world is communicated to us through this book.”
4. The Bible — when correctly translated, interpreted, and understood — has never been proven to be in error in ANY statement that it makes.
Let’s briefly look at some proofs from astronomy, archaeology, science, and Bible prophecy:
ONE: Proofs From Astronomy
During the Middle Ages, knowledge of the Bible was suppressed, and misguided church leaders believed and taught that the earth was flat. Yet, the prophet Isaiah in the Bible correctly understood that the earth was round, a sphere:
Isaiah 40:22 -- It is He [God or YHWH] who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.
Here is another very advanced scientific statement from the oldest book in the Bible:
Job 26:7 -- He stretches out the north over empty space; He hangs the earth on nothing.
This was written thousands of years before astronomer and physicist Isaac Newton discovered the invisible laws of gravity that showed the earth truly is suspended “on nothing.”
TWO: Proofs From Archeology
Sir William Ramsay, an English historian, at one time was very skeptical of the historicity of Luke and the historical record of Acts and set out to disprove it.
But after many years studying the historical and archeological evidence, Ramsay concluded that Luke indeed wrote the book of Acts in the first century, during the time of the apostles. Far from being a historical fraud, he said that there are “reasons for placing the author of Acts among the historians of the first rank” (St. Paul the Traveller and the Roman Citizen, 1925, p. 4).
Some critical scholars have also questioned the existence of the biblical patriarchs -- Abraham, Isaac and Jacob — until they clearly saw the archaeological evidence.
Genesis 37:28 says that Joseph’s brothers sold him as a slave for 20 shekels of silver. Clay tablets discovered in the region dating to the 18th and 19th centuries B.C., the time in which Joseph lived, show that the going price for slaves at that time was indeed 20 shekels.
Archeologist Nelson Glueck once said: “It may be stated categorically that no archeological discovery has ever [refuted or contradicted] a Biblical reference...” (Rivers in the Desert: A History of the Negev, 1959, p. 31).
THREE: Proofs From Science
For many people today, cohabitation (or “live-in” relationships) is a more physically pleasurable and emotionally satisfying substitute for marriage. Yet, scientific studies have shown otherwise:
“People who are cohabiting are less happy generally than the married and are less satisfied with their sex lives” (Linda Waite and Maggie Gallagher, The Case for Marriage, 2000, p. 74).
A systematic study found “higher reported levels of emotional and physical pleasure for married people than for cohabiting or single people” (Journal of Marriage and Family, February 2001).
On another topic, we know that “getting [habitually] angry is like taking a small dose of some slow-acting poison -- arsenic, for example -- every day of your life” (Redford Wiliams, M.D., and Virginia Williams, M.D. quoted by McMillen and Stern, p. 205).
The Bible reminds us not to be so easily angered. For example:
Proverbs 14:29 -- He who is slow to wrath has great understanding…
The Bible also teaches the health benefits of having a positive attitude:
Proverbs 17:22 -- A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones.
Many scientific studies prove that a cheerful and an optimistic outlook promotes better health.
FOUR: Proof From Bible Prophecy (“History Written in Advance”)
King Cyrus of Persia (also called “Cyrus the Great”) ascended to the throne in 559 B.C. In 538 B.C. he made a decree granting the Jewish exiles taken captive by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar II in 586 B.C. to return to their homeland and rebuild Jerusalem and its temple.
The interesting thing to note is that about 150 years before Cyrus came into the throne, God had already prophesied through Isaiah that He would use a ruler named Cyrus:
Isaiah 44:28 -- Who says of Cyrus, 'He is My shepherd, and he shall perform all My pleasure, saying to Jerusalem, "You shall be built," and to the temple, "Your foundation shall be laid."'
Isaiah 45:13 -- I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will direct all his ways; he shall build My city and let My exiles go free, not for price nor reward," says the LORD [YHWH] of hosts.
There are many other prophecies like this in the Bible, which came to pass in history. The great God Almighty alone can foretell the future and then bring it to pass exactly as He has spoken!
Sir William Herschel, German-born British astronomer and composer: “All human discoveries [astronomy, archeology, science, or prophecy (history in advance)] seem to be made only for the purpose of confirming more and more strongly the truths contained in the Sacred Scriptures.”
5. The Bible has been THE book that most people turn to during tough and challenging times.
Terry Anderson was a journalist who was kidnapped from the streets of Beirut, Lebanon, on March 16, 1985. He was held hostage for 2,454 days — almost seven years. On his first day of confinement, he asked his captors for a Bible to summon courage and strength for the ordeal.
More than any other book, the Bible is an encouraging, inspirational, and comforting book.
Robert E. Lee, American-Confederate general during the American Civil War: “In all my perplexities and distresses, the Bible has never failed to give me light and strength.”
6. The Bible has stood the test of time, even having been written by about 40 people over 2,000 years.
Imagine hiring 40 random people to co-author a book. Get some shepherds, some kings, some scholars, some prophets, some fishermen, a military general, a cupbearer, and a priest. Can they write a unified book together? Or to make it easier, hire only ministers or pastors. Do you think their book would make sense when read from beginning to end? Of course not!
But the Bible has survived the test of time. Despite being a compilation of 66 books, written by about 40 authors who lived many centuries apart, who came from three different continents and wrote in different languages — and most of them not knowing one another — their message about life, creation, God’s Master Plan, death, and resurrection, is remarkably similar and consistent. Their writings do not contradict one another. That is a MIRACLE!
You would expect a book like that to start off well, but then gradually fade away and be forgotten through the centuries. Yet, the Bible is now one of the oldest books in the world. People have tried to stamp it out though banning, burning, censorship, and confiscation. Yet, it has survived!
Psalms 12:6-7 — The words of the LORD are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. You shall keep them, O LORD, You shall preserve them from this generation forever.
Matthew 24:35 — Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.
7. The Bible is the Word of the only true God, YHWH.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 — All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
2 Peter 1:20-21 — ...knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
1 Thessalonians 2:13 — For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.
So those are the seven powerful reasons why we can absolutely trust the Bible. The Bible is true and reliable whether we look at astronomy, archeology, science, or Bible prophecy. The events narrated in the Bible actually took place. If they didn’t, how can we believe anything it says? If the God who claims to have inspired the Bible gave us a collection of myths and legends, how can we have confidence in anything He says?
In this world of fake news, fake teachers, and fake experts, it’s so comforting to know that we can trust in Something and Someone SOLID and CREDIBLE — like an anchor in the midst of the storm. So, no matter what others do, you have the power and responsibility to seek God and His Word, the Bible — the only reliable guide to human conduct. It is God’s Word to a humanity that has lost its way. It is our Maker’s Instruction Book, teaching us how we should live our lives.
So, can you trust the Bible? Absolutely — no question about it! But that’s not the real question. After seeing all the evidence for yourself, the real question now is not, can you trust the Bible?
But the more important question is: can the Author of the Bible trust YOU?
Until next time, this is Daniel Macaraeg, of BiblicalTruths.TV, reminding you to always be growing, to always be giving, and to always be grateful.
