Current Events > Have you ever read the Bible?

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No, but i will after the quran. Ive only read parts of the bible

yes, it was required reading the summer before 12th grade for Advanced Placement English because of its intertextual importance to literature and literary history.

I read Genesis then threw it out.

Yes, too many times when I was in Sunday School to the point where we had to memorize bible verse's as one of our curricular.

Yes, and it's something I think about frequently.

Just Bits and pieces. I was just curious, and that was enough. I read bits of the Mormon Bible a girl gave me, that was enough too.

Yes, it took me like 2-3 years after I decided to do it. Im not religious, nor did it convince me to be.

Read some for religious reasons, some for academic reasons, and some out of general interest (specific book translations with heavy annotations and commentary).

Not all of it, but many portions.

I read a good bit of it growing up since I attended a private religious school till 8th grade.

It has some good ideas in it about taking care of the poor and rich people not going to heaven imo

I read a little of the Old Testament at the dentist's office, as a kid, but that was about it.

Yeah same. Read the bible in private schools. Wrote essays, had quizzes & tests on the bible. I didnt understand christian denominations back then because how can we all be christian yet worship the same differently.

Id like to be the person with holy scripture collections in a book shelf one day. Read for spiritual guidance and personal development. Guess for my own academic reasons.

Yes. Cover to cover. Hebrew Bible and the Christian one

LightSnake posted...

Yes. Cover to cover. Hebrew Bible and the Christian one

Whats the context and story behind you encountering a hebrew bible? Were you raised in israel?

Jagus posted...

Whats the context and story behind you encountering a hebrew bible? Were you raised in israel?

i wasnt. Theres nothing special to it at all the Hebrew Bible is what many Jews call their scriptures and many dont like the term Old Testament

LightSnake posted...

i wasnt. Theres nothing special to it at all the Hebrew Bible is what many Jews call their scriptures and many dont like the term Old Testament

Oh, i thought you read the new testament in hebrew. I thought jews called it the tanakh or torah

Jagus posted...

Oh, i thought you read the new testament in hebrew. I thought jews called it the tanakh or torah

those are part of it

so what is the hebrew bible called in hebrew? I doubt it would be called the bible?

Just usually referred to by Which part is references

sorry, didn't know using "Old Testament" could be an issue, but after some thought, it makes sense why some people might not like it.

LightSnake posted...

Yes. Cover to cover. Hebrew Bible and the Christian one

Will you read the Quran next?

Yes, the whole thing, cover to cover.

LightSnake posted...

Just usually referred to by Which part is references

theres no name for the whole set?

Jagus posted...

so what is the hebrew bible called in hebrew? I doubt it would be called the bible?

Duh, because that's an English word. But in any case, the Hebrew term is Torah, but technically that's just the five books of Moses. Usually people mean Tanakh (kh is the gutteral sound), which is an acronym for Torah, Neviim (books of the prophets), and Ktovim (other writings).

Thank you, i knew the tanakh was an acronym

I've read some parts, I didn't go cover to cover like a psychopath though.

some of it. I've never read it all cover to cover. As a kid I once read a colorized comic book adaptation of the Bible. I'm sure it skipped a lot of stuff. But it was pretty large for what it was. Probably like maybe 200 pages at least. And covered all the major stories

Yes, I've read it.

If any other book had the same level of inconsistencies as this one it would be heavily trashed.

Also surprised there isn't a demand to ban it considering a lot of the subject matter that transpires.

Strider102 posted...

Yes, I've read it.

If any other book had the same level of inconsistencies as this one it would be heavily trashed.

Also surprised there isn't a demand to ban it considering a lot of the subject matter that transpires.

The Bible was originally written by a bunch of different people across a bunch of different generations. I think a lot of it wasn't originally meant to all be connected. Especially the old testament. And Jewish culture went through many changes over the course of the old testament being completed. So some stuff is based on different kinds of Jewish belief compared to other parts

For example the Jewish or Hebrew people originally had multiple gods. That's why there is a version of Genesis that mentions something about "we created the heavens and the earth" in the creation chapter

I believe at one point, the Jewish people had it in their beliefs that a team of gods created the universe. And that little "we" got for some reason left in.

I think by the time genesis was made, werent yaweh and el already fused into one being? I thought that was just using the royal we.

Jagus posted...

I think by the time genesis was made, werent yaweh and el already fused into one being? I thought that was just using the royal we.

Not sure but there is also mention of a Queen of Heaven. Implying they used to believe in a goddess who was probably married to Yaweh or El

I skipped straight to the end and read Revelations, but that is all I read.

Zikten posted...

Not sure but there is also mention of a Queen of Heaven. Implying they used to believe in a goddess who was probably married to Yaweh or El

Source/citation? Missed that part.

Zikten posted...

That's why there is a version of Genesis that mentions something about "we created the heavens and the earth" in the creation chapter

It isn't listed here:
https://www.biblestudytools.com/genesis/1-1-compare.html

Are you thinking of the Quran?
https://quran.com/qaf/38

Jagus posted...

Source/citation? Missed that part.

I checked Google and it said

The term "queen of heaven" in the Bible refers to a pagan goddess worshipped by some Israelites, a practice condemned by God in the book of Jeremiah. She is identified with goddesses like Ashtoreth (Astarte) or Ishtar, a goddess of love, fertility, and war. In contrast, some Christian traditions, such as the Catholic Church, use the title for Mary, the mother of Jesus, but this is based on church tradition and not a biblical account of worship.

I guess I was thinking of descriptions of pagan goddess worship. It might not have been in the Bible that I saw it, but maybe in something I read about Archeology in Israel

Maybe a bit when I was younger. Not interested at all now. Ive heard a lot about the worst, most contradictory and most nonsensical parts of it via youtube debates, but I know theres some good to gleam from it as well.

Its just even then, it just seems like such a boring read to anyone who doesnt believe in it.

Kami_no_Kami posted...

Maybe a bit when I was younger. Not interested at all now. Ive heard a lot about the worst, most contradictory and most nonsensical parts of it via youtube debates, but I know theres some good to gleam from it as well.

The new testament is more worthwhile. I kinda think that Christianity should not have ever cared about the old testament. Maybe it wasn't meant to originally but some people realized it would grow faster as a religion if it was linked to an older tradition. To give it more legitimacy

The very first two chapters in Genesis contradict each other. That's a powerful statement from the ancient editors that it should not be taken literally.

Christianity depended on the Old Testament because the only way Yeshua would have the authority or change things and make a New Covenant would be if he was the promised messiah. Without the old testament Yeshua would have just have been a heretic.

Jagus posted...

Christianity depended on the Old Testament because the only way Yeshua would have the authority or change things and make a New Covenant would be if he was the promised messiah. Without the old testament Yeshua would have just have been a heretic.

I mean yea that's the official explanation now. But I wonder if that's actually the truth or just a product of ancient early Christians making up some things. Jesus in the New Testament acts very different from Old Testament Yaweh

Also don't Jewish people literally think Jesus was a heretic? He doesn't actually fit the messiah prophecy in their view. The Jewish Messiah is supposed to be a warrior who defends the Jewish people with military might. Jesus was a man of peace. So he doesn't fit, to them

Seven times, I think. Six full translations, and once with just whatever was on hand.

Parts of it since I grew up in an Evangelical household. I've read enough to know that by and large Christianity in the US is fucked beyond recognition and a monstrosity.

Zikten posted...

I mean yea that's the official explanation now. But I wonder if that's actually the truth or just a product of ancient early Christians making up some things. Jesus in the New Testament acts very different from Old Testament Yaweh

I mean, its the truth of what they believed in. If Yeshua wasnt the messiah he wouldve just been a heretic or starting a new religion. Yeah Yeshua is super different from Yaweh, but he never had to be the same.

remember Yeshua didnt claim to be God. That was a calculation by Christian scholars

Zikten posted...

I mean yea that's the official explanation now. But I wonder if that's actually the truth or just a product of ancient early Christians making up some things. Jesus in the New Testament acts very different from Old Testament Yaweh

Also don't Jewish people literally think Jesus was a heretic? He doesn't actually fit the messiah prophecy in their view. The Jewish Messiah is supposed to be a warrior who defends the Jewish people with military might. Jesus was a man of peace. So he doesn't fit, to them

Yes, Jews do think hes a heretic. Some Jews though Yeshua was a heretic, some thought he was the messiah. If you go by the text Yeshua doesnt fit the prophecy, but thats never stopped humans from evolving lol

Zikten posted...

Also don't Jewish people literally think Jesus was a heretic? He doesn't actually fit the messiah prophecy in their view. The Jewish Messiah is supposed to be a warrior who defends the Jewish people with military might. Jesus was a man of peace. So he doesn't fit, to them

He was not a heretic for claiming to be the Messiah, since he met almost none of the qualifications and therefore didn't claim to be. He was heretic for claiming to be a prophet, since the time of prophets was over and therefore _by_definition_ only false prophets can exist after.

Zikten posted...

Not sure but there is also mention of a Queen of Heaven. Implying they used to believe in a goddess who was probably married to Yaweh or El

You're thinking of Asherah, most likely. She was probably believed to be the consort of Yahweh before the followers of Yahweh instituted monotheistic reforms. I rather enjoy learning about how ancient religions have evolved.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asherah

tankboy posted...

He was not a heretic for claiming to be the Messiah, since he met almost none of the qualifications and therefore didn't claim to be. He was heretic for claiming to be a prophet, since the time of prophets was over and therefore _by_definition_ only false prophets can exist after.

Really? Yeshua never claimed to be the messiah or annointed one? Didnt know that

About the first 3/4ths of Genesis, in English.

Too historically and culturally relevant not to. That, and speaking against Christianity without knowing what you're talking about makes people look stupid 100% of the time.