RECOMMENDED READINGS

“EvilBible.com is a non-profit web site which was developed to promote atheism by revealing the wicked truth about the Bible and religion.”

This is the mission statement of “Chris "Ali Baba" Thiefe” (As he calls himself) who is currently the Editor, Web-Site Designer, and author of most of the material found in this, over-confident, atheist web site.

Chris exudes overconfidence in every nook and cranny of his web site. He saturates his site with scriptures so as to give the impression of being a knowledgeable Bible scholar who has a deeper understanding of scriptures than any committed Christian would have. In fact he speaks as though he has what it takes to “demolish” Christianity in one fell swoop. Quite an ego…

The essence of his web site is the following: Christianity is stupid, it is based on a pack of lies and this is so evident that only the “not-so-smart” or the blind would not see it.

The truth is, that Chris is not a Bible scholar nor does he have much Bible understanding. In fact, his comprehension of various Bible topics is "very" superficial, to say the least.

Here is some evidence:

Let's first of all tackle his introduction: 

CHRIS: “This web site is designed to spread the vicious truth about the Bible.”

We would like to reword Chris’s statement as follows: “This web site is designed to spread vicious lies about the Bible.”

CHRIS: “For far too long priests and preachers have completely ignored the vicious criminal acts that the Bible promotes.” 

This is one of countless, and unfounded generalizations that Chris spews out in his web site. All Christian ministers go through in-depth studies of both the Old and New Testaments. The field of Biblical Apologetics is specifically dedicated to the area of “seeming” biblical problems or “alleged” Bible discrepancies. There are countless books and web sites that address these so-called biblical problems and do so with scholarly depth. He also fails to make a distinction between the Old and the New Testament. (A fatal mistake)

CHRIS: “The so called “God” of the Bible makes Osama Bin Laden look like a Boy Scout.  This God, according to the Bible, is directly responsible for many mass-murders, rapes, pillage, plunder, slavery, child abuse and killing, not to mention the killing of unborn children.” 

A vicious accusation from a human being who has reached such a level of insolence that one rarely sees on the face of the earth.

CHRIS: “For example, God kills 70,000 innocent people because David ordered a census of the people (1 Chronicles 21).”

Is that so.? You see, Chris, there are rules God abides by and one of them is that He does not punish the innocent for the sins of the wicked. God, for instance, was willing to spare Sodom, if there were only ten righteous ones in the city, but only a few were righteous and were asked to leave the city, (Lot’s family), so as to be spared (Genesis 18).

And let’s now read the promises God made to the righteous, God consistently abides by:

Ezekiel 18

 ¹ The word of the LORD came to me again, saying, ² “What do you mean when you use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying:

      ‘ The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
      And the children’s teeth are set on edge’?

³ “As I live,” says the Lord GOD, “you shall no longer use this proverb in Israel.
       ⁴ “ Behold, all souls are Mine;
      The soul of the father
      As well as the soul of the son is Mine;
      The soul who sins shall die.
       ⁵ But if a man is just
      And does what is lawful and right;
       ⁶ If he has not eaten on the mountains,
      Nor lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,
      Nor defiled his neighbor’s wife,
      Nor approached a woman during her impurity;
       ⁷ If he has not oppressed anyone,
      But has restored to the debtor his pledge;
      Has robbed no one by violence,
      But has given his bread to the hungry
      And covered the naked with clothing;
       ⁸ If he has not exacted usury
      Nor taken any increase,
      But has withdrawn his hand from iniquity
      And executed true judgment between man and man;
       ⁹ If he has walked in My statutes
      And kept My judgments faithfully—
      He is just;
      He shall surely live!”
      Says the Lord GOD.
       ¹⁰ “ If he begets a son who is a robber
      Or a shedder of blood,
      Who does any of these things
      ¹¹ And does none of those duties,
      But has eaten on the mountains
      Or defiled his neighbor’s wife;
      ¹² If he has oppressed the poor and needy,
      Robbed by violence,
      Not restored the pledge,
      Lifted his eyes to the idols,
      Or committed abomination;
      ¹³ If he has exacted usury
      Or taken increase—
      Shall he then live?
      He shall not live!
      If he has done any of these abominations,
     He shall surely die;
      His blood shall be upon him.
       ¹⁴ “ If, however, he begets a son
      Who sees all the sins which his father has done,
      And considers but does not do likewise;
       ¹⁵ Who has not eaten on the mountains,
      Nor lifted his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,
      Nor defiled his neighbor’s wife;
      ¹⁶ Has not oppressed anyone,
      Nor withheld a pledge,
      Nor robbed by violence,
      But has given his bread to the hungry
      And covered the naked with clothing;
      ¹⁷ Who has withdrawn his hand from the poor
      And not received usury or increase,
      But has executed My judgments
      And walked in My statutes—
      He shall not die for the iniquity of his father;
      He shall surely live!
      

Psalm 1

 ¹ Blessed is the man
         Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
         Nor stands in the path of sinners,
         Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
 ² But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
         And in His law he meditates day and night.
 ³ He shall be like a tree
         Planted by the rivers of water,
         That brings forth its fruit in its season,
         Whose leaf also shall not wither;
         And whatever he does shall prosper.
         
 ⁴ The ungodly are not so,
         But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
 ⁵ Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
         Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.          
 ⁶ For the LORD knows the way of the righteous,
         But the way of the ungodly shall perish.

This is the God of Christians and Jews, Chris. A God of justice toward the wicked and the arrogantly sinful.

Thus, did God really kill 70, 000 people from Israel who were “innocent”? Certainly they were innocent in regards to David’s sin, but were they innocent in regards to what the above scriptures list as being acts of wickedness? The people who were killed must have been the wicked and arrogant  ones who “deserved” to be killed. God simply used the occasion to clean the land of the wicked.

There is no unrighteousness with God.

CHRIS: “God also orders the destruction of 60 cities so that the Israelites can live there.  He orders the killing of all the men, women, and children of each city, and the looting of all of value (Deuteronomy 3).” 

God first of all ordered the destruction of the city and the people of Bashan, because they oozed in wickedness, and they were a moral stench before God, and since He owns all flesh He and only He has the right to dispose of that which He created. 

^{Ezekiel 18: 4} “ Behold, all souls are Mine;
      The soul of the father
      As well as the soul of the son is Mine;

He need not ask permission from anyone as to what to do with His creation, just as a pot maker need not ask for permission to smash and destroy seriously faulty and distorted pots. He especially doesn’t need Chris’s permission to do as He sees fit, and the fact that Chris and his atheistic cohort withdraw their approval and refuse to submit to His sovereignty has no relevance to the Almighty whatsoever. They are also welcome to choose to be “faulty and distorted pots,” if they so wish. Yet they have to be ready for the consequences.

CHRIS: “He orders another attack and the killing of “all the living creatures of the city: men and women, young, and old, as well as oxen sheep, and asses” (Joshua 6).”

What Chris does not understand is that the degree of destruction was reflective of the degree of degeneracy extant in any location doomed to destruction. When God orders even the animals killed he is making a statement, and the statement is that the location is so putrid that He even wants the animals killed. We should mention that in Canaan as well as Egypt, bestiality was commonplace. This demanded a thorough “cleansing” of everything.

Yet, Chris fails to mention that amidst that putrid city God saw something worth saving: a harlot and her family. Though a harlot, Rahab had some decency in her which God felt deserved preserving -- and He did.

^{Joshua 6: 22} But Joshua had said to the two men who had spied out the country, “Go into the harlot’s house, and from there bring out the woman and all that she has, as you swore to her.” ²³ And the young men who had been spies went in and brought out Rahab, her father, her mother, her brothers, and all that she had. So they brought out all her relatives and left them outside the camp of Israel.

Thus what God did was amply justified. It is not a manifestation of excessive punishment but rather necessary and total justice from a God alone who knows what all humans deserve.

CHRIS: “In Judges 21, He orders the murder of all the people of Jabesh-gilead, except for the virgin girls who were taken to be forcibly raped and married.”   When they wanted more virgins, God told them to hide alongside the road and when they saw a girl they liked, kidnap her and forcibly rape her and make her your wife!”

Wrong, Chris! What is described in this chapter is a ploy the children of Israel came up with to re-populate the tribe of Benjamin they had almost decimated. In this situation, you will not read any comment on the part of God whatsoever. As for the virgins being raped, where is the evidence, Chris? The Israelite men simply married them.

CHRIS: “Just about every other page in the Old Testament has God killing somebody!”

This is a vast generalization and a lie! No doubt there are many examples of God firmly and strongly dealing with wicked people and nations, but there are endless examples of mercy and forgiveness.  One need only check for oneself. Yet, the Old Testament makes one reality loud and clear: God will not take sin lightly and he will powerfully and terminally deal with the incorrigibly wicked.

CHRIS: “In 2 Kings 10:18-27, God orders the murder of all the worshipers of a different god in their very own church!”

Idolatrous Baal worshippers, Chris;  not “church goers!” They were distorted worshippers of demons who had degenerated to such a degree that they deserved nothing but death. They were a terminal cancer that had to be eradicated to save Israel from being affected likewise.

CHRIS: “In total God kills 371,186 people directly and orders another 1,862,265 people murdered.”

I have not done the calculations to validate Chris’s numbers but, even if true, God knows which tumors are terminal and which are not, and if He chooses to excise the terminal ones, as a Creator who own all things, he has the prerogative to do it.

Please now read a chapter I wrote a few years ago for my book, “What if God…? (See yellow box below)  It addresses a question closely related to the above examples as to the “seeming unjust” destruction of the Canaanites.

CHRIS: The God of the Bible also allows slavery, including selling your own daughter as a sex slave (Exodus 21:1-11).

The God of the Bible does not "allow" (Present tense) anyone to sell one's daughter as a sex slave. The God of the Bible "allowed" (Past tense) the giving of a daughter to another man at a price. The following is the passage Chris refers to:

^"7 “And if a man sells his daughter to be a female slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do. ⁸ If she does not please her master, who has betrothed her to himself, then he shall let her be redeemed."

Notice that we are talking about a relationship which was to turn into "betrothal" and that she could be taken back by her family, if the relationship was not working out. She was not to be sold to any foreigner: "He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has dealt deceitfully with her." If he betrothed her to his son he was to treat her as a daughter: " And if he has betrothed her to his son, he shall deal with her according to the custom of daughters. Furthermore, he was to treat her with dignity even if he married another wife: ^"If he takes another wife, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, and her marriage rights. ¹¹ And if he does not do these three for her, then she shall go out free, without paying money."

Now why would a father in Israel sell his daughter to another man? This was culturally allowed only if he could not provide for her, or if the transaction led to a better life for the young woman who was of marriageable age. The "selling" was nothing more that paying an amount to the father for giving away something valuable. In return the husband was to provide for the young woman either as a wife or as a daughter.

For a thorough discussion of the subject of slavery, I strongly suggest the following sites:

http://bibleapologetics.wordpress.com/slavery-in-the-bible-25/

http://www.comereason.org/soc_culture/soc060.asp

http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/368

http://www.godandscience.org/apologetics/slavery_bible.html

CHRIS: The God of the Bible also allows...child abuse (Judges 11:29-40 and Isaiah 13:16), and bashing babies against rocks (Hosea 13:16 & Psalms 137:9). 

 If the reader reads Judges 11 he/she will see that God is nowhere making any pronouncements whatsoever. This is simply the story of Jephthah who made a foolish promise and then went on to commit a heinous crime which clearly went against God's stated command that murder was not allowed and that the murder of children to satisfy a god was unacceptable.

Please read my article on the subject at the following: Jephthah's Daughter

As for Hosea 13:16, this is the punishment that would have befallen Israel for their obdurate wickedness. The Medes would have been allowed to come down and kill, plunder and destroy. The children would have been "dashed to pieces" according to several translations, not "bashed against rocks." Even so, God would have stood back and not intervened. Israel had rejected Him and He would have rejected them and left them in the hands a of a cruel and vicious foe. Israel was warned by prophets and refused to repent and because of their obstinate and rebellious hearts they would have been punished in a most gruesome way: total abandonment in the hands of the cruel Medes.

Please read my article on the subject at the following: Israel's Captivity, Judah's Captivity,

Psalm 137:9 (see below) is simply David's wish that the enemies present and future who did and would have participated in the destruction of Jerusalem and the killing and maiming of its people, would have been repaid in like manner, reflecting the "eye for an eye" principle of the Old Testament. God is not uttering any thing in these verses.

Psalm 137:5-10

CHRIS: This type of criminal behavior should shock any moral person.  Murder, rape, pillage, plunder, slavery, and child abuse can not be justified by saying that some god says it’s OK.  If more people would actually sit down and read the Bible there would be a lot more atheists like myself.

Here is Judge Chris,...full of himself, dares to stand in judgment of the Great Creator and by using his glaring biblical ignorance and an uncanny ability to distort facts, according to his distorted logic, finds God guilty of unspeakable crimes that were never committed.

Well, in reality, Chris, if more people were to really study their Bible carefully, they would simply laugh at your assertions, or would simply not even give you the time of day. The day when humanity will get to know the God of the Bible and His true motives will be the day when atheism will finally disappear for good. It is biblical ignorance, or simply a superficial knowledge of the Bible, that leads to the creation of people like Chris and several other biblical pseudo scholars which daily use their incomplete knowledge of Scripture to confuse the many.

CHRIS: Jesus also promoted the idea that all men should castrate themselves to go to heaven: "For there are eunuchs, that were so born from their mother's womb: and there are eunuchs, that were made eunuchs by men: and there are eunuchs, that made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it."  (Matthew 19:12 ASV)  I don't know why anyone would follow the teachings of someone who literally tells all men to cut off their privates.

In this statement Chris reaches the epitome of foolishness and it encapsulates his hatred for God and Christ and his capacity to distort scriptures to achieve his aims. Anyone with a bit of common sense and biblical understanding knows that Christ was talking about not getting married to serve God fully, not about cutting their private parts. (Castration refers to something else, by the way, Chris. Do some research). The principle also applied to women who have no private parts to cut off.

Paul was one such person who followed Christ's principle and remained unmarried to serve God without interference.

^{I Corinthians 7: 7} For I wish that all men were even as I myself. But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner and another in that. ⁸ But I say to the unmarried and to the widows: It is good for them if they remain even as I am; ⁹ but if they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

CHRIS: The God of the Bible also was a big fan of ritual human sacrifice and animal sacrifice.

"Ritual human sacrifice," Chris? Where is the proof? At least have the decency to be truthful.  Of course, why be truthful? Being a lofty atheist, you have no use for the Ten Commandments.

IS GOD CRUEL?

 BY, MICHAEL CAPUTO

ON AMAZON

NOW LET'S MOVE TO THE SUBJECT OF, "JESUS LIED."

Chris introduces the topic with the following:

“Jesus is quoted many times in the Bible saying that a believer can ask for anything through prayer and receive it.  He even goes so far as to say that mountains and trees can be thrown into the sea simply by praying for it.  This is clearly a lie, and can be proven to be a lie by any believer.” 

According to Chris, Jesus’ lies are essentially as follows:

1. He promised that if you have faith you can move mountains, (Matthew 21:21-22). No Christian has ever moved a mountain, thus Jesus lied.

2. He promised that Christians can ask for “anything” and that it would have been done for them. (Matthew 7:7-8, Matthew 18:19-20, John 15:7, John 16:23). Christians have prayed and received no answer, thus Jesus lied.

He then concludes with the following:

“If you honestly and truthfully read these quotes, without adding to them, it is very easy to see that Jesus is not saying that God will think about your prayers.  He says God will grant all your prayers.  Clearly, God doesn’t grant all prayers and this proves that Jesus was a habitual liar.”

The conclusion, according to “Brilliant Chris” is evident: Jesus lied, thus he was not God; thus, following Him is a self-delusion. Chris must feel quite lofty to believe that he can find Jesus Christ to be a liar and to believe that he can demolish Christianity that easily. The reality is, as we will soon show, Chris is biblically ignorant and “abysmally” wrong in his conclusions.

Let’s start with Matthew 21:21-22

^"So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. ²² And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”  (Matthew 21:21-22 (NKJV)

Notice that Jesus was first of all talking to his disciples who later became his apostles. Jesus was telling them that if they had “total faith” they could have moved mountains. Of course, any one with a bit of common sense understands that moving mountains is of no benefit to anyone. Yet they, if filled with faith, could have done wonders – and they did.

The gospels tell us that His “disciples” were able to cast out demons, and to heal the sick.

^“And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them” (Mark 6:13).

Later, once the disciples became Apostles, they did great wonders that brought about the conversion of multitudes:

Peter  healed a man who had been lame from birth (Act.3) and later did other greater wonders.
"And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women, so that they even carried out the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and pallets, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them. The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed." (Act.5:14-16).

Later still,  he healed Aeneas, who had been a paralytic for 8 years (Act.9:33-35), and resurrected Tabitha (Dorcas) from the dead (Act.9:36-42). Peter was "moving mountains," figuratively speaking, and a great many witnessed the great miracles and came to Christ.

Stephen also, being full of faith, and “…, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the people" (Act.6:8).

Philip showed great power as well, and left the people of Samaria so amazed by his miracles that “… the multitudes with one accord gave heed to what was said by Philip, when they heard him and saw the signs which he did. For unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, crying with a loud voice; and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed." (Act.8:5-7).

Later, the Apostle Paul did great wonders as well:

1. He blinded Bar-Jesus in front of Governor Sergius Paulus. (Act.136-12).

2. He healed a crippled man from birth (Act.14:8-9).

3. He delivered a slave girl who had a divining spirit: "... But Paul was annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, "I charge you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And it came out that very hour." (Act.16:16:24).

4. Paul was so filled with so much power that “…so that handkerchiefs or aprons were carried away from his body to the sick, and diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them" (Act.19:11-12).

5. He also resurrected the young Eutychius (Act.20:8-12).

6. He healed from a poisonous viper's bite (Act.28:3-6).

7. He healed the father of Publius, the head of the Island of Malta, and the rest of the sick people of the Island (Act.28:7-9).

LOOKS LIKE CHRIST KEPT HIS PROMISE, AFTER ALL, CHRIS! HIS DISCIPLES DID MOVE MOUNTAINS (FIGURATIVELY, THAT IS).

But what about the promises made to us Christians in general? According to Chris, our prayers at times are not answered (Well, he thinks they are never answered); therefore Jesus' words were lies and, thus, He was an impostor and our faith in Him is in vain.

Chris once gain speaks from abysmal biblical ignorance.

Jesus Christ DID promise that if we ask in His name God would answer, but God added several provisos:

1.      As we have already seen, we must ask in Faith.

Mark 11:24 -- Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. (NIV)

2.      God answers only the prayers of the righteous and of people with a clean conscience.

 “Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. 2But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” (Isaiah 59: 1-2)

“The LORD is “far” from the wicked but he hears the prayer of the righteous.” (Proverbs 15:29).

“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16).

“Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22and receive from him anything we ask…” (1 John 3:21-22).

“If I regard wickedness in my heart, the Lord will not hear.” (Psalm 66:18)

”And we will receive whatever we request because we obey him and do the things that please him.” (1 John 3:22)

    3. Our prayers must be about "genuine needs" and must be "altruistic."

^“Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? ² You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. ³ You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures” (James 4: 1-3).

4. We must ask according to God’s will, as He is the only one who knows what’s really best for us.

”He (Jesus) went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.” (Matthew 26:42)

Given all of the above reasons, at time Christians get an answer, at times they do not. But we Christians know that God answers prayers and we have seen it countless times. At times, the answers are greatly inspiring, given the fact that no coincidence would ever be possible. At times the miracles are beyond scientific explanation and baffle even scientific minds. But atheists like Chris and others would never accept it, as it goes against everything they want to believe.

A few weeks ago a lady in my church fell and hit the hard sidewalk with her knee. (I was there). She was anointed by a minister, as prescribed in the book of James. Church members were asked to pray for her as she was in a lot of pain and could not stand up. We took her to the hospital. X-rays were taken which showed multiple fractures to her knee. We were in a hospital with limited resources and she was transferred to another hospital near her home which could provide better care. The X-rays were taken to the new hospital. New X-rays were taken (About 24 hrs from her fall) and they showed no fracture whatsoever to the surprise of the doctor who compared the two X-rays. She went home not long after, with a healed knee. God does heal!

Chris is, therefore, is either in  the dark about what the Holy Scriptures really say or he is a  liar. Either way, Satan uses him as a deceiver to confound and confuse the ones who have limited Bible knowledge and to give ammunitions to those who want to reject the God of the Bible and follow their sin-filled ways.  

This is just the beginning of our dealing with Chris and his web site. There is more coming.

EVIL BIBLE: CHRIST'S RETURN

 This is how “all-knowing” Chris introduces this section:

 CHRIS: “Jesus and his apostles made MANY prophecies concerning the Armageddon.  Christians would have you believe that it shall come as “a thief in the night”.  Yet, the Bible is rather clear concerning when it would happen.  Matter of fact, the Bible consistently said it would follow soon after Jesus’ death.” 

Let’s quickly show Chris’s inaccuracies and superficial understanding.

CHRIS: “Jesus and his apostles made MANY prophecies concerning the Armageddon.”

Wrong, Chris. “Armageddon” is a term that refers only to a great battle that will occur in the valley of Megiddo, near Jerusalem at “AFTER” Christ’s return. Jesus and his apostles’ many prophecies deal with events “BEFORE” his coming. You obviously lack basic knowledge.

CHRIS: “Christians would have you believe that it shall come as “a thief in the night.”

They believe so because this is Christ’s and the apostles’ promise, Chris. Are you not familiar with their words?

JESUS:  "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. ⁴³But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁴So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” (Matthew 24:35-45)

PAUL:  “For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.” (1 Thessalonians 5:2)

PETER:  “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.” (2 Peter 3:10)

CHRIS: “Yet, the Bible is rather clear concerning when it would happen. Matter of fact, the Bible consistently said it would follow soon after Jesus’ death.”

This is where Chris’s ignorance of scriptures becomes “glaringly” evident. In fact this is where Christians can stop and have a good laugh. If there is one area that is not specific in the Bible, it is this one. This lack of specificity was “intentional” and it is a manifestation of divine wisdom and great love toward believers. (Please read my article, “Why Does the Lord Delay His coming.”

Furthermore, asserting that Christ in any way said that he would establish His Kingdom after his Resurrection is the ultimate manifestation of biblical blindness. We will deal with his proofs later, since according to Chris, “If we are to believe these verses and accept that the end time prophecies failed then surely the whole book is invalid.”

Well, all-knowing Chris, let’s see how successful your efforts at demolishing Christianity really are. This is what he tells us:

CHRIS: “Jesus falsely prophesies DIRECTLY to the high priest (Caiphas) that he would live to see his second coming.  Jesus uses the term “coming on the clouds of heaven”.  This clearly negates the “coming” as the resurrection but as a return to the earth on CLOUDS, not his return in human form from the dead.  Matthew 26:64 & Mark 14:62.”

"But I tell you: From now on you will see 'the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power' and 'coming on the clouds of heaven.'"  (Matthew 26:64 NAB)

Then Jesus answered, "I am; and 'you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power and coming with the clouds of heaven.'"  (Mark 14:62 NAB)

The Greek phrase term used to refer to the “when” is “Meta tauta” which according to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, can be translated “after these things,” or “henceforth.”

Henceforth means “From that time on” (Funk and Wagnalls), or, “In a time to come; in some future time or state.” (http://thinkexist.com/dictionary/meaning/hereafter)

Thus, the time reference is the future, but not a clearly specified future.

There are two possible explanations for this: one specific and one generic.

SPECIFIC: If Jesus was referring specifically to the High Priest, He might have simply meant that in the distant future He might have privileged the man with being present at His return, after the resurrection , so as to show him the foolishness he was about to do. In other words, Christ might resurrect the high priest to witness Christ’s return and see what a horrendous mistake he had done.

This possibility seems to be supported by the fact that all of those who contributed to Christ’s killing may have the same privilege, as we read in the book of Revelation. “Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him.” (Revelation 1:7).

GENERIC: Christ often spoke in generalities. It is quite possible that this statement may have been directed at humans in general. 

CHRIS: Jesus mistakenly tells his followers that he will return and establish his kingdom within their lifetime. Matthew 23:36 & 24:3

Amen, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.  (Matthew 23:36 NAB)

"Immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.  And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming upon the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.  And he will send out his angels with a trumpet blast, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.  "Learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is near.  In the same way, when you see all these things, know that he is near, at the gates.  Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.  (Matthew 24:29-35 NAB)

To Chris this is the clincher. Jesus said that all of those events would have taken place during the life of “that” generation. Since, clearly, that did not happen, Jesus was a liar and He cannot be trusted.

Let’s take a look at this prophecy in detail.

WHAT THE “EVILBIBLE.COM DOES NOT MENTION:

1.    JESUS WAS CORRECT ABOUT HIS FIRST PRONOUNCEMENT: JERUSALEM WAS DESTROYED AND ITS PEOPLE WERE TAKEN INTO CAPTIVITY.

 Matthew 24 ¹ Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. ² And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

 Luke 21 ²²For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written. ²³How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. ²⁴They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

Jesus saw in advance the coming Roman invasion, the destruction of the Temple, and the final captivity of the Jews, which would have taken them to all nations. And it all happened!

Not bad for a deceiver…

Now, before Chris retorts that Christ’s prophecy must have been written by the gospel writers after the events took place, let’s read what F.F. Bruce, one of the foremost New Testament scholar, has to say.

“In this country, (England) the majority of modern scholars fix the dates of the four Gospels as follows: Matthew, c. 85-90; Mark, c. 65; Luke, c. 80-85; John, c. 90-100. I should be inclined to date the first three Gospels rather earlier: Mark, around AD 64 or 65, Luke shortly “before” 70, and Matthew shortly after 70.”

(F.F.Bruce, The New Testament Documents. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Inter-Varsity Press, 1984.

Chris also needs to keep in mind that if Jesus had been an impostor and had not been resurrected as he had promised, there would have been no reason why the disciples would have elevated a liar and a deceiver to the divine plane. People who have been lied to and have been deceived do not elevate the deceiver, they despise him.

2.    JESUS WAS ADDRESSING TWO QUESTIONS, NOT JUST ONE; TWO DIFFERENT SETS OF EVENTS, NOT JUST ONE.

Matthew 24

Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. ² And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
³ Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

This is of critical importance. They assumed that the destruction of the Temple would have ushered the end of the Age and the coming of Messiah. But that was not the case as Jesus hinted at.

Jesus dealt with both periods in a parallel fashion. (See point 5 below)

3.     JESUS KNEW THAT THE EVENTS SURROUNDING THE DESTRUCTION OF THE TEMPLE WOULD HAVE TAKEN PLACE DECADES LATER. HE ALSO KNEW THAT HIS RETURN WOULD HAVE TAKEN PLACE IN THE VERY DISTANT FUTURE.

Matthew 25 ¹Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.

 ²And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.

 ³They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:

 ⁴But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

 ⁵While the bridegroom tarried, they  “all” slumbered and slept. (ALLL OF THEM DIED)

 ⁶And at midnight (The end of the day – The end of times) there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.

 ⁷Then “all” those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. (The resurrection from the dead).

Mark 13:34 For the Son of Man is as a man taking a “far” journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.

 ³⁵Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:

 ³⁶Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.

Christ also gave a stunning prophecy few even notice which could only apply to our days or beyond.  

Matthew 24:11 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. ²² And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.

No reasonable minded human would conclude that this prophecy may have referred to the first century. Only in our days or the future could the reality of global suicide be possible.

ALL OF THE ABOVE PROVES UNEQUIVOCALLY THAT CHRIST WAS REFERRING TO TWO SEPARATE AND DISTANT TIMES, WITHIN THE SAME PROPHECY.

4.    THE WORD, “GENERATION” IN GREEK HAS A VERY GENERIC MEANING.

These are the possible meanings:

1.    A begetting, birth, nativity.

2.    That which has been begotten, men of the same stock, a family.

3.    The successive members of a genealogy.

4.    A race of men very like each other in endowments, pursuits, character.

(Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, p. 1069., Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1977.

So which meaning did Jesus use? It can only be deduced.

In the following web site you may read an excellent article which offers various interpretations for the meaning of word:

http://expositorythoughts.wordpress.com/2008/03/28/this-generation-in-matthew-2434/

5.    CHRIST WAS CLEARLY USING THE BIBLICALLY COMMON “OVERLAPPING PROPHECY.”

Serious biblical students are well aware of the fact that the Bible at times “overlaps” prophecies; that is, it addresses two different times, while giving the impression that it is only referring to one.

One such example is Isaiah 14 which overlaps a prophecy about the King of Babylon with one about Lucifer or the letters to the seven churches which are both letters to literal churches and clearly also to phases of the Christian church through time. The following quote from the site mentioned above addresses this reality quite clearly.

A fourth interpretation says this is an illustration of multiple fulfillment. As Mounce asserts, “Biblical prophecy is capable of multiple fulfillments.” He comments as follows on Matthew 24:32-35. In the immediate context, the “abomination of desolation” (v. 15) builds on the defilement of the temple by Antiochus Epiphanes, is repeated when the sacred temple in Jerusalem is destroyed by the Roman army in A.D. 70, and has yet a more complete fulfillment when the eschatological Antichrist exalts himself by taking his seat in the “temple of God” proclaiming himself to be God (2 Thess. 2:3-4). In a similar way, the events of the immediate period leading up to the destruction of Jerusalem portend a greater and more universal catastrophe when Christ returns in judgment at the end of time. Gundry is right in his observations that double fulfillment (I would say “multiple fulfillment”) involves an ambiguity that needs to be accepted as fact rather than objected to on literary grounds. A number of commentators agree with this explanation.

<http://expositorythoughts.wordpress.com/2008/03/28/this-generation-in-matthew-2434> (9-11-2013).

Thus, Christ was totally correct about His first prophecy and that generation did not pass until all the events relating to it took place.

The end time generation that will witness the events pertaining to the end times “will not pass away” until “all” the events relating to that time come to pass.

Thus, Chris, the problem is not that Christ “lied.” The real problem is that your knowledge and understanding of Scriptures is very limited and your biblical ignorance becomes a source of doubt and confusion only for others who don’t know any more than you.

But Chris has more….

CHRIS: “YET AGAIN, Jesus claims those standing RIGHT BEFORE HIM shall see the Armageddon.  Matthew 16:28 “There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”  Don’t let Christians lie to you and claim Jesus was referring to his modern day believers.  The words “some standing HERE will not taste death” clearly refutes such nonsense.  Obviously the people he was speaking to died, and curiously Jesus STILL isn’t here to claim his kingdom.”

Chris’s abysmal biblical ignorance reaches its climax in the above assertion. Christians who know their Bible know that Christ was referring to what is described in the very next chapter.

  Matthew 17  ¹And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,

 ²And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.

 ³And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.

There you go, Chris. The ones standing before Him saw Christ in all His glory as He would have looked while returning to earth, together with the resurrected Moses and Elias. The fact that this happened immediately after the prophecy should have made Chris think; but Chris is too busy spreading nonsense to stop and really think.

CHRIS:  [Editor's note:  Matthew 10:23 also has Jesus telling his disciples that the second coming will occur before the disciples finish preaching in Israel:  "When they persecute you in one town, flee to another. Amen, I say to you, you will not finish the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes."  (Matthew 10:23 NAB)]

There are two possible solutions to the above. This author favors the two below.

1.    The coming of the Holy Spirit

OR

2.    The word “you” is a generic term which refers to the Church and their preaching of the gospel to Israel at the end time.

When the Holy Spirit was poured down  on to the church in Jerusalem as described in the Book of Acts, Jesus Christ was returning and residing in the minds of his converted followers. He has been doing so with every true convert ever since.

Colossians 1:27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

The other option is that Christ may have been referring to the work that the church would have done in Israel in the end time. Christian evangelists may very well travel through the cities of Israel during the Great Tribulation to announce the imminent return of the Messiah and, before their work is done, Jesus will return.

CHRIS THEN GOES ON TO LIST VARIOUS SCRIPTURES THAT APPEAR TO INDICATE THAT THE APOSTLES BELIEVED THE RETURN OF CHRIST WAS NEAR.

CHRIS: John believes “the time is at hand,” and that the things that he writes about in Revelation will “shortly come to pass.”  Revelations 1:1-3

 AGAIN CHRIS FAILS TO RECOGNIZE THE DEPTH AND INTRICACY OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION.

JOHN REPORTED WHAT HE SAW, THAT’S ALL. THAT WAS HIS ONLY JOB. HE WAS NOT AN INTERPRETER OF WHAT HE WROTE. THAT WAS NOT HIS ASSIGNMENT.

NO DOUBT THE PROPHECIES “BEGAN” TO UNFOLD “SHORTLY AFTER HE SAW THEM,” BUT THEY WOULD UNFOLD IN THEIR TOTALITY OVER “MANY” CENTURIES.

SOME OF HIS PROPHECIES HAD A “DUAL” APPLICATION. THE PROPHECIES TO THE FIRST THREE CHAPTERS, REFERRING TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES, APPLIED TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES WHICH EXISTED THEN AND TO SEVEN ERAS OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH WHICH FOLLOWED SINCE THEN.

CHRIS: John quotes Jesus (1900 years ago) as saying he will come “quickly.” Revelations 22:7, 12 & 20

Chris is so desperate to prove his point that he fails to see some critical dimensions. If Christ had been a deceiver, soon after his death and lack of resurrection he would have been nothing but a despised memory. Instead, in this book written around the turn of the first century, a Glorious Christ who is described as the “Lamb of God,” at least eleven times in this book, who had been sacrificed for all, is alive and well and announcing some very momentous and traumatic events for the whole earth.

The expression, “I come quickly” simply means “I am coming soon.” As we read in other versions such as the NIV

Revelation 22:20 (New International Version)

 ^"20He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming soon."

That is the warning of Christ since the very beginning and Christians know what that means. Whatever the plan of God entails will first come to pass. Generations will pass and fall asleep. But from their perspective they will be before Christ at the resurrection soon after closing their eyes. Christ comes for all Christians upon death and that for me and anyone else could be tomorrow.

CHRIS: John thinks he is living in “the last times.”  He “knows” this because he sees so many antichrists around.  1 John 2:18

“The last times” is an expression which simply means the last days allotted to humanity. Nonetheless, even if john believed he was near the end of days, that was his perception and not a God-given prophecy. No one was to know exactly when Christ’s return would occur.

SEE MY ARTICLE , “Why Does the Lord Delay His coming.”

CHRIS: John says that the antichrist was already present at the time 1 John was written.  1 John 4:3

John is talking about the “Spirit” of Antichrist. The so-called anti-Christ is anyone that opposes Christ. CHRIS IS AN ANTICHRIST.

CHRIS: John quotes Jesus (1900 years ago) as saying he will come “quickly.”  Revelations 3:11, 22:7, 12 & 20

Yes, very quickly, for all humans that lived and live on earth. We die and then the Judgment.

More specifically, He is referring to those of the end times that the prophecies refer to. (It is well understood the church of Laodicea is a phase of the church which will exist before Christ return). As they see the events unfold, let them get ready: His coming is near.

CHRIS: Paul thought that the end was near and that Jesus would return soon after he wrote these words.  Philippians 4:5

It does not say that the coming of the Lord is near, rather “The Lord is at hand.” (NKJV)

If he meant that Christ’s coming was near, he was referring to the proximity of His coming in relation to the length of our lives. Furthermore, we must remember that Christ had not revealed to anyone when he would return.

CHRIS: Paul believes he is living in the “last days.”  Hebrews 1:2

“Last Days” is a relative term. The time following Christ’s resurrection until Christ’s return are the last days in God’s plan for mankind. Six days (Six thousand years) have been allotted to humanity. Day five and six are the last days of the set of six days. The seventh will be the day of rest when Jesus will rule over humanity and give it rest (The Millennium).

CHRIS: Paul believed that Jesus would come “in a little while, and will not tarry.” Hebrews 10:37

Yes, very much so. We fall asleep and we appear before Christ at His coming.

CHRIS: In 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 Paul stated: “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: And the dead Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air: And so shall we ever be with the Lord. Paul shared the delusion, taught by Jesus, in that he expected to be snatched up bodily into heaven with other saints then living, who would, thus, never taste death. The use of “we” clearly proves as much.  It is difficult to deny that Paul was certain that the end of the world was coming in the lifetime of his contemporaries."

And so have most Christians since the beginning. This was part of the plan: keep Christians on their toes. The mystery of Christ’s exact return has been a motivating factor since the beginning and will continue being so until Christ’s return.

As for the “We” it does not necessarily include Paul. It may have been a generic “We” and perhaps it reflected his hope, until he recognized that his death was approaching and he too had to wait for the resurrection.

"For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.” (2 Timothy 4:6)

CHRIS: James thought that Jesus would return soon.  James 5:8 Peter wrongly believed that he was living in the “last times” and that “the end of all things is at hand.”  1 Peter 1:20 & 4:7

Yes, even Peter was kept on his toes by the mystery of Christ’s second coming. Notice, though, that his conviction of the whole package was not that of someone who had been deceived by a charlatan decades before but by someone who was totally convicted by the things he had seen and the power he had been given to even give life to the dead.

 "Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them. (Acts 5:15)

Thus he was willing to go to his death and wait for the resurrection.

CHRIS: YET AGAIN, Jesus claims those standing RIGHT BEFORE HIM shall see the Armageddon.  Matthew 16:28 “There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”  Don’t let Christians lie to you and claim Jesus was referring to his modern day believers.  The words “some standing HERE will not taste death” clearly refutes such nonsense.  Obviously the people he was speaking to died, and curiously Jesus STILL isn’t here to claim his kingdom.

Notice how certain Chris is. As we have shown above, this objection is the easiest to answer and the answer is found in the next chapter.

Chris, therefore, is able to spew out objections and tries to support them with scriptures. Unfortunately, his understanding of biblical basics is so poor  that he is still in kindergarten.

My appeal to people who read Chris’ nonsense is not to stop at what he says, but to dig further. If they will do so, they will be surprised to find that the Bible is full of depth and spiritual wealth that is hidden from the arrogant and is freely available to humble minds who are willing to be shaped by it.

Michael Caputo

CONTACT THE AUTHOR: mcaputo4163@rogers.com

© Copyright, Michael Caputo, 2011 (All rights reserved).

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