Who wrote the Bible?

Anne · Post by **Anne** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 8:21 pm

Who wrote the Bible is a question I admittedly never was too concerned about until Intro to the Old Testament (O.T.). All of a sudden Moses didn't write the Pentateuch and documentary hypothesis and different sources are being talked about. Truthfully, however, I just don't care. I learn what I have to about the topic for the class, but to me it doesn't matter who wrote the Bible. The important thing is that the Bible is the inspired word of God, not who God inspired.

AIOfan11 · Post by **AIOfan11** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 8:25 pm

I believe that God told the 'writers/authors' what to write down, etc. He showed them in an amazing way.

Jonathan · Post by **Jonathan** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 8:27 pm

Anne wrote:Who wrote the Bible is a question I admittedly never was too concerned about until Intro to the Old Testament (O.T.). All of a sudden Moses didn't write the Pentateuch and documentary hypothesis and different sources are being talked about.

You're going to a public university, aren't you?

And in this case, it is important, b/c if Moses wrote the Pentateuch, that proves inspiration.

Dr. Watson · Post by **Dr. Watson** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 8:33 pm

Anne wrote:Who wrote the Bible is a question I admittedly never was too concerned about until Intro to the Old Testament (O.T.). All of a sudden Moses didn't write the Pentateuch and documentary hypothesis and different sources are being talked about. Truthfully, however, I just don't care. I learn what I have to about the topic for the class, but to me it doesn't matter who wrote the Bible. The important thing is that the Bible is the inspired word of God, not who God inspired.

I believe Moses did write the Pentateuch; however, since he was obviously not a eyewitness to creation, Flood, etc, he must have relied on other's records (written or oral) to write his inspired account.

Anne · Post by **Anne** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 8:43 pm

You're going to a public university, aren't you?

Actually, I'm going to a Christian university (hence, why I'm required to take Intro to O.T.)
My prof is a Christian and believes in the truth of the Scriptures, just not that Moses wrote the Pentateuch. At first I found this hard to believe, but taking a closer look at some of the Pentateuch and I had to agree that it was doubtful that Moses wrote the entire Pentateuch (and I don't just mean the obvious parts like his death). I don't agree completely with the documentary hypothesis either.
An argument against the authorship of Moses is the existence of doublets. Take a look at the creation account and the Flood. You'll find two seperate accounts that have slightly different details. In one account Noah is to take 2 of each animal, in the other 7 of some and 2 of others. Also, in one God is referred to as YHWH, and in the other as Elohim.
Basically, this is an area of controversy, which isn't really what I wanted to get into, but I have seemed to enter anyways. The issue I wanted to address is: does it matter who wrote the Bible? Does it matter if Moses wrote the Pentateuch or someone we never heard of and don't know anything about?
To me what is important is God's inspiration. Since we know about Moses' life and know he had a close relationship with God, we can more readily believe God inspired him to wrote the Pentateuch, but does it matter if God inspired someone we don't know about?

Shad Lexer · Post by **Shad Lexer** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 8:54 pm

The way I look at it, God wrote the Bible, through the men he inspired. WHO he inspired doesn't matter as much as the fact that God wrote through them.

Hakeber BC Rathbne Doyle · Mon Oct 31, 2005 8:56 pm

Anne wrote:Who wrote the Bible is a question I admittedly never was too concerned about until Intro to the Old Testament (O.T.). All of a sudden Moses didn't write the Pentateuch and documentary hypothesis and different sources are being talked about. Truthfully, however, I just don't care. I learn what I have to about the topic for the class, but to me it doesn't matter who wrote the Bible. The important thing is that the Bible is the inspired word of God, not who God inspired.

I agrree

Kenric · Post by **Kenric** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 9:23 pm

As said, the Bible was written by men who were inspired by God.

Dr. Watson · Post by **Dr. Watson** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 9:25 pm

Anne wrote:An argument against the authorship of Moses is the existence of doublets. Take a look at the creation account and the Flood. You'll find two seperate accounts that have slightly different details. In one account Noah is to take 2 of each animal, in the other 7 of some and 2 of others. Also, in one God is referred to as YHWH, and in the other as Elohim.

Hmm...I don't have a Bible near at hand, so I can't answer the Flood question; however, I can easily respond to the creation "doublet." Incidently I recently heard this view expressed by the reputable source of my evolutionist physics teacher.

The creation account in Genesis is one account, pure and simple. In chapter 2, it goes back and focuses on the specific creation of Adam. In other words, the first chapter is a general overview of creation, and chapter 2 is a specific account of humans. The "two account" view is simply a misunderstanding of the passage. The flood issue is probably a similiar occurance.

Cheerio

Jonathan · Post by **Jonathan** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 9:30 pm

Anne wrote:(and I don't just mean the obvious parts like his death).

Due to the similar way that passage and the book of Joshua is written, I believe he wrote that chapter.

And I'm going to have to agree with Dr. Watson about the doublet thing.

Anne · Post by **Anne** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 9:42 pm

OK, I should really just not say anything, but I like arguing (I mean debating

) too much to just leave it. If nothing else, it will be food for thought.
If the second creation account is just a recap of the first, why would the author completely switch how he referred to God? From Gen. 1:1 to 2:4a, God is referred to as "Elohim," translated as simply "God" in most versions, and then from 2:4b - 3:24, God is referred to as YHWH Elohim, which is generally translated as LORD God.
If you wanted to you could explain this away, just like you could for the Flood account. But the consistent use of two different names of God with slightly different versions of stories leads to the conclusion that there were two oral or written traditions which were combined by the writer.
This is not a threat to the inspiration of the Bible, but strengthens it. God made sure his story was preserved, and over time small details, which in ancient times were deemed unimportant (like the number of animals on the ark), may have been slightly changed. But, the essense of the story remained in several forms so that when the stories were written down, the writer made sure the truth was contained by writing down both versions.
However, this is all hard stuff to know 100% for sure. I don't think it's possible to know that Moses wrote the Pentateuch or for that matter to know who wrote the Pentateuch at all. I don't think the human authorship of the Scriptures affects the divineness (is that a word?) of the Scriptures.
To avoid plagarizing, I should mention I am getting much of my info from my O.T. textbooK: "Reading the Old Testament" by Barry L. Bandstra, and also from my prof's lectures.
Okay, I'll be quiet now.

Kenric · Post by **Kenric** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 10:02 pm

Anne wrote:OK, I should really just not say anything, but I like arguing (I mean debating ) too much to just leave it. If nothing else, it will be food for thought.
If the second creation account is just a recap of the first, why would the author completely switch how he referred to God? From Gen. 1:1 to 2:4a, God is referred to as "Elohim," translated as simply "God" in most versions, and then from 2:4b - 3:24, God is referred to as YHWH Elohim, which is generally translated as LORD God.
If you wanted to you could explain this away, just like you could for the Flood account. But the consistent use of two different names of God with slightly different versions of stories leads to the conclusion that there were two oral or written traditions which were combined by the writer.
This is not a threat to the inspiration of the Bible, but strengthens it. God made sure his story was preserved, and over time small details, which in ancient times were deemed unimportant (like the number of animals on the ark), may have been slightly changed. But, the essense of the story remained in several forms so that when the stories were written down, the writer made sure the truth was contained by writing down both versions.
However, this is all hard stuff to know 100% for sure. I don't think it's possible to know that Moses wrote the Pentateuch or for that matter to know who wrote the Pentateuch at all. I don't think the human authorship of the Scriptures affects the divineness (is that a word?) of the Scriptures.
To avoid plagarizing, I should mention I am getting much of my info from my O.T. textbooK: "Reading the Old Testament" by Barry L. Bandstra, and also from my prof's lectures.
Okay, I'll be quiet now.

Using just one or two sources is not good. That means your opinion has been exposed only to negative sources, has it not??

Anne · Post by **Anne** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 10:14 pm

Witness4Jesus wrote

Using just one or two sources is not good

I did write a two page paper on one of the main sources, called the Yahwist source and looked at several other sources, including the Anchor Bible Dictionary. I don't claim to be a scholar (I'm a first year university student taking Into to everything classes

), the only things I have said are things scholars have said.
Like I said earlier, this is a topic of controversy even among the scholars that have spent their lives dedicated to studying the Pentateuch. I really didn't mean to get into this discussion, but know that I have, I'm not very good at being quiet.
I have appreciated hearing other people's opinions and hope to hear more.

STRYPER · Post by **STRYPER** » Tue Nov 01, 2005 12:11 am

Did your professor give a hint as to who actually did write the Pentateuch?

I find his logic a bit hard to believe

Dr. Watson · Post by **Dr. Watson** » Tue Nov 01, 2005 9:12 pm

STRYPER wrote:Did your professor give a hint as to who actually did write the Pentateuch?

I find his logic a bit hard to believe

Ditto that. The differences in the names of God is a bunny trail. It's akin to saying that a book was written by two different authors because in one chapter a character is referred to as Mr. Smith, and in another chapter as John.

Anne · Post by **Anne** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 6:06 pm

Wow. I've really gotten in over my head and past what I wanted to talk about. I'm no scholar and have only learnt about documentary hypothesis in the last few months, and even then only briefly.
I was just doing some googling to see what others say, and as expected there are some for it and some admantly against it.
Here's a few links that does a good job of explaining what documentary hypothesis actually is for those who care:
http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_tora1.htm
http://www.ucalgary.ca/~eslinger/genrel ... hesis.html
Here are some articles that oppose documentary hypothesis:
http://www.gotquestions.org/documentary-hypothesis.html
http://www.answersingenesis.org/creatio ... /moses.asp
I do not endorse any of the links, I simply offer them as reading material for people who want to see both sides of the debate.
At this point, I must bow out of this discussion, as even now I'm neglecting my homework.

AioMan · Post by **AioMan** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 6:29 pm

AIOFan11 wrote:I believe that God told the 'writers/authors' what to write down, etc. He showed them in an amazing way.

Exactly.

map · Post by **map** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 9:15 pm

All scripture is "God-Breathed"

So how did Moses know what to write? Let's look to the bible to see what the Word of God has to say about this issue(summarized, please look these up for yourself)
2 Peter 1:20-21 - prophecy comes from the Holy Spirit
2 Timothy 3:16-17 - all scripture is "God-breathed"
Exodus 17:14, 24:4; 34:27: Moses told to write on a scroll, Moses wrote down everything "I" said, God commanded Moses to write down everything He said.
John 5:46-47 Jesus was stating what Moses wrote about him
John 7:19 Jesus stating Moses has given you the law

I'd say Moses was the author of the Pentateuch and it was God-breathed

Jonathan · Post by **Jonathan** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 10:37 pm

Eugenefan23 wrote:
AIOFan11 wrote:I believe that God told the 'writers/authors' what to write down, etc. He showed them in an amazing way.
Exactly.

All here agree on that; it's another thing we're 'debating' at the moment.

Chandler · Post by **Chandler** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 11:59 pm

Anne wrote:Who wrote the Bible is a question I admittedly never was too concerned about until Intro to the Old Testament (O.T.). All of a sudden Moses didn't write the Pentateuch and documentary hypothesis and different sources are being talked about. Truthfully, however, I just don't care. I learn what I have to about the topic for the class, but to me it doesn't matter who wrote the Bible. The important thing is that the Bible is the inspired word of God, not who God inspired.

Haha, that's why I think some Bible colleges need to take a long hard look at what they're teaching. Who wrote Hebrews?

We may never know on this side of eternity. What's important is that you believe it's God's inspired Word.

I think that Moses wrote the Pentateuch but he obviously had to have a source or sources to help him out with the first part of it. Maybe he used a previous account or God revealed it to him or whatever. The only part that I think he may not have written were the last few verses of Deuteronomy which Joshua could've written.

I could be wrong but it doesn't bother me all that much. I believed in Creation long before I ever heard that Moses wrote Genesis. It wasn't even a question I thought about when I was little. The only good reason I can think of to go over all this stuff now is if you are trying to make a case for your faith or if you have doubts about Christianity. Maybe that's what your class is about, I don't know.

Otherwise, it seems like a waste to spend your time trying to prove who did or didn't write a book as long as you accept it as ultimately written by God. Instead you could study the words in the book!

Heh... hope I don't offend anyone. That's just my little take.

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