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The Book That Reveals the Knowledge of GodKnowledge That Leads to Everlasting Life
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CAN YOU TRUST THE BIBLE?
10. (a) Why do some feel that the Bible is out-of-date? (b) What does 2 Timothy 3:16, 17 tell us about the Bible?
10 Perhaps you have noticed that many books offering advice become outdated in just a few years. What about the Bible? It is very old, and almost 2,000 years have passed since its last words were penned. Some therefore feel that it is not applicable to our modern age. But if the Bible is inspired of God, its advice should always be up-to-date despite its great age. The Scriptures should still be “beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work.”—2 Timothy 3:16, 17.
11-13. Why can we say that the Bible is practical for our day?
11 Close examination reveals that Bible principles apply just as much today as they did when they were first put down in writing. When it comes to human nature, for instance, the Bible reflects keen understanding that applies to every generation of mankind. We can easily see this in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, found in the book of Matthew, chapters 5 to 7. This sermon so impressed the late Indian leader Mohandas K. Gandhi that he reportedly told a British official: “When your country and mine shall get together on the teachings laid down by Christ in this Sermon on the Mount, we shall have solved the problems not only of our countries but those of the whole world.”
12 No wonder people are impressed by Jesus’ teachings! In the Sermon on the Mount, he showed us the way to true happiness. He explained how to settle disputes. Jesus provided instruction on how to pray. He pointed out the wisest attitude to have toward material needs and gave the Golden Rule for proper relationships with others. How to detect religious frauds and how to have a secure future were also among the points covered in this sermon.
13 In the Sermon on the Mount and throughout the rest of its pages, the Bible clearly tells us what to do and what to avoid in order to improve our lot in life. So practical is its counsel that one educator was moved to say: “Although being a high-school counselor with bachelor’s and master’s degrees and having read a large number of books on mental health and psychology, I discovered that the Bible’s counsel on such things as having a successful marriage, preventing juvenile delinquency and how to gain and keep friends is far superior to anything I had read or studied in college.” In addition to being practical and up-to-date, the Bible is dependable.
ACCURATE AND RELIABLE
14. What shows that the Bible is scientifically accurate?
14 Though the Bible is not a science textbook, it is scientifically accurate. For example, at a time when most people believed that the earth was flat, the prophet Isaiah referred to it as a “circle” (Hebrew, chugh, which here carries the idea of “sphere”). (Isaiah 40:22) The idea of a spherical earth was not widely accepted until thousands of years after Isaiah’s day. Furthermore, Job 26:7—written more than 3,000 years ago—states that God is “hanging the earth upon nothing.” Says one Bible scholar: “How Job knew the truth, demonstrated by astronomy, that the earth hangs self-poised in empty space, is a question not easily solved by those who deny the inspiration of Holy Scripture.”
15. How is confidence in the Bible strengthened by its style of reporting?
15 The style of reporting found in the Bible also strengthens our confidence in this age-old book. Unlike myths, the events covered in the Bible are linked to specific people and dates. (1 Kings 14:25; Isaiah 36:1; Luke 3:1, 2) And whereas ancient historians nearly always exaggerated the victories of their rulers and hid their defeats and mistakes, the Bible writers were candid and honest—even about their own serious sins.—Numbers 20:7-13; 2 Samuel 12:7-14; 24:10.
A BOOK OF PROPHECY
16. What is the strongest evidence that the Bible is inspired of God?
16 Fulfilled prophecy gives conclusive evidence that the Bible is inspired of God. The Bible contains many prophecies that have been fulfilled in detail. Obviously, mere humans could not be responsible for this. What, then, is behind these prophecies? The Bible itself says that “prophecy was at no time brought by man’s will, but men spoke from God as they were borne along by holy spirit,” or God’s active force. (2 Peter 1:21) Consider some examples.
17. What prophecies foretold the fall of Babylon, and how were these fulfilled?
17 The fall of Babylon. Isaiah and Jeremiah both foretold Babylon’s fall to the Medes and the Persians. Remarkably, Isaiah’s prophecy about this event was recorded some 200 years before Babylon was conquered! The following aspects of prophecy are now matters of historical record: the drying up of the Euphrates River by diverting its waters to an artificial lake (Isaiah 44:27; Jeremiah 50:38); a careless lack of security at Babylon’s river gates (Isaiah 45:1); and the conquest by a ruler named Cyrus.—Isaiah 44:28.
18. How was Bible prophecy fulfilled in the rise and fall of “the king of Greece”?
18 The rise and fall of “the king of Greece.” In a vision, Daniel saw a male goat strike down a ram, breaking its two horns. Then, the goat’s great horn was broken, and four horns came up in its place. (Daniel 8:1-8) To Daniel it was explained: “The ram that you saw possessing the two horns stands for the kings of Media and Persia. And the hairy he-goat stands for the king of Greece; and as for the great horn that was between its eyes, it stands for the first king. And that one having been broken, so that there were four that finally stood up instead of it, there are four kingdoms from his nation that will stand up, but not with his power.” (Daniel 8:20-22) True to this prophecy, some two centuries later, “the king of Greece,” Alexander the Great, overthrew the two-horned Medo-Persian Empire. Alexander died in 323 B.C.E. and was eventually replaced by four of his generals. However, none of these subsequent kingdoms matched the power of Alexander’s empire.
19. What prophecies were fulfilled in Jesus Christ?
19 The life of Jesus Christ. The Hebrew Scriptures contain scores of prophecies fulfilled in the birth, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus. For example, more than 700 years in advance, Micah foretold that the Messiah, or Christ, would be born in Bethlehem. (Micah 5:2; Luke 2:4-7) Micah’s contemporary Isaiah foretold that the Messiah would be struck and spit upon. (Isaiah 50:6; Matthew 26:67) Five hundred years in advance, Zechariah prophesied that the Messiah would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver. (Zechariah 11:12; Matthew 26:15) More than a thousand years beforehand, David foretold circumstances associated with the death of Jesus the Messiah. (Psalm 22:7, 8, 18; Matthew 27:35, 39-43) And some five centuries in advance, Daniel’s prophecy revealed when the Messiah would appear as well as the length of his ministry and the time of his death. (Daniel 9:24-27) This is just a sampling of the prophecies fulfilled in Jesus Christ. You will find it rewarding to read much more about him later.
20. The Bible’s perfect record of fulfilled prophecy should give us what confidence?
20 Many other long-range Bible prophecies have already been fulfilled. ‘But,’ you may ask, ‘how does this affect my life?’ Well, if someone told you the truth for many years, would you suddenly doubt him when he said something new? No! God has told the truth throughout the Bible. Should this not build your trust in what the Bible promises, such as its prophecies regarding a coming earthly paradise? Indeed, we can have the same confidence as did Paul, one of Jesus’ first-century disciples, who wrote that ‘God cannot lie.’ (Titus 1:2) Furthermore, when we read the Scriptures and apply their counsel, we are exercising wisdom that humans cannot achieve on their own, for the Bible is the book that reveals the knowledge of God that leads to everlasting life.
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The Book That Reveals the Knowledge of GodKnowledge That Leads to Everlasting Life
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