TRANSPONDER wrote: ↑Sun Sep 26, 2021 8:40 am … but whether they undermine the credibility of the Bible as an accurate record of events, forget about supposed dictation by God.I hate to labour the point, but contradictions/discrepancies with verified information as well as itself, is what does for Bible credibility. And when the claim to trust it without question s out the window, it’s Authority goes with it.
That’s why we need to get this out of the way before even getting to justifications and reasons for accepting the Bible is authoritative. And I expect it’s going to take awhile to discuss because this belief is so deep-seated in our culture.
The way I believe the Bible should be approached is like listening to witnesses in a courtroom. Each witness has their own perspective, style, personality, etc. When they give their account of an event, it is entirely possible it will contradict another testimony. It is up to the jury to piece together what is the truth. Just because there are discrepancies between the witnesses doesn’t mean everything is false.
The Bible was not written to be an encyclopedia of factual information that is authoritative on facts, dates, measurements, genealogies, etc. It is the underlying message under these facts that the author is trying to convey. I’m not saying facts presented are all false, but contradictions can occur, just like they can occur in a courtroom.
https://debatingchristianity.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=1051258#p1051258