For several years in the early 2000s, we featured two articles each week in our bulletin. The first addresses a variety of topics, and the second is a response to supposed Bible contradictions. Some promote skepticism about the Bible, which I am ok with, so long as it is sincere skepticism. The Skeptic’s Annotated Bible website has been a major source of these alleged errors.
The Skeptic’s Annotated Bible preface says that it will,
…help those who believe in the Bible to honestly reconsider that belief. It will help those who are unfamiliar with the Bible to resist the temptation to believe. And it will help those who have already rejected the Bible defend their position.1
An honest consideration of the Bible is reasonable and necessary. In contrast, blind faith in the Bible is a harmful delusion. Hebrews 11:1 tells us that Bible faith has both “substance” and “evidence.” Both believers and unbelievers need to look at the evidence for the Scriptures and then respond accordingly.
The Skeptic’s Annotated Bible author is not asking people to honestly investigate the Bible. He seeks to help those who have not read it to “resist” it, and to arm those who reject it, so they can “defend” their position. People may take two extreme approaches to the Bible, and both are equally wrong. Blind faith is not faith; rather it is based on emotion, not fact, and has caused many to turn away from the Bible. People display the same attitude on the other side of the coin, in the form of insincere skepticism. Belief or lack thereof should be based on evidence or lack thereof.
Thomas missed Jesus’ appearance to the apostle apostles after His resurrection. This led him to declare,
Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe. (John 20:25)
A week later, Jesus came to His disciples again, but Thomas was present this time. Jesus said to him,
Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing. (John 20:27)
Jesus did not rebuke Thomas for his failure to believe. He was a sincere skeptic and simply wanted to see the evidence. Unfortunately, he has been unfairly called “Doubting Thomas” for this episode. He sought evidence, and having seen it, affirmed, “My Lord and My God” (20:28). Jesus continued,
Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. (John 20:29)
Jesus will not, and need not show Himself raised from the dead to all, so that we might believe. We have the testimony of many witnesses who saw Him alive from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:3-8), including an apostle who was skeptical.
Skepticism itself is not the issue. It is not wrong to expect proof before we invest ourselves. Perhaps you have doubts with regard to the existence of God, the authenticity of the Bible, or Christianity. That’s fine. However, do not be satisfied to remain a skeptic. Do not make up your mind based upon an absence of evidence; seek the evidence, consider it, and if it is trustworthy, cease to be a skeptic and be a believer.
As much as I believe Skeptic’s Annotated Bible intends to draw people away from honest investigation of the Bible, I do appreciate the work which has gone into the site, and commend Mr. Wells for linking to some who have responded to his material. Our site at one time was among those linked, however sitewide changes to our website have resulted in the links being severed between us and the Skeptic’s Annotated Bible.2
There are difficult texts in the Bible, and at times, it seems to be contradictory. Rather than declare it to be so, as so many have done, we encourage you to explore the text in detail, including historical context, perspective of the writer, potential imagery, translation considerations, and more. It is easy to claim that a contradiction exists; it is quite another thing to step back and determine whether that is really so or not. Through nine years of responding to SAB, I have yet to see one true contradiction pointed out in the Bible.
Links: YouVersion | GROW magazine
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