First Kings records a massive outpouring of light and cloud when Solomon’s temple was dedicated. Is there any record of such an event occurring when the second temple was dedicated? Can you think of any spiritual implications of whether such a miraculous outpouring happened? As far as I know, there is no direct evidence of […]
I was conversing with a friend the other day about the Bible. He said he prefers to read the New Testament over the OT because the latter is less historically accurate. He cited as an example the Hebrew exodus from Egypt: he said that the Egyptians recorded everything (historical events, that is), and there is […]
Note: This is a very long question. The answer is several paragraphs down the page. I am presently taking a Comparative Religion course on the New Testament and have been struggling with some of the themes that have surfaced so far. Our course text is “The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to Early Christian Writings” […]
Could you make a good summary for the evidences to support the Luke 2 account of the census decreed by Caesar while Quirinius was ruling that would have forced Joseph and Mary to go to Bethlehem from Nazareth? I have read so much about the topic. I do see support that it could have happened, […]
Where were some of the areas where Christianity was found? I am assuming you are asking where Christianity spread to in its earliest history. Of course, Christianity had its beginning in Jerusalem and in Judea and Samaria, in what would be Israel and Palestine today. From there, after about AD 50, the new religion spread […]
What happened in early Christianity between A.D 180-311? I am going to assume that you did not choose these dates arbitrarily. Probably you found the starting and ending date for your question in a book you read. Most likely, the end date for your question, AD 311, is a reference to the edict of Toleration […]
Where can I find writings from Joshepus? Josephus had a number of writings, but the most relevant for a Christian are the works “The Antiquities of the Jews,” and “The Wars of the Jews,” also known as “The Jewish Wars.” “The Antiquities of the Jews” is a fairly comprehensive history of the Jewish people, beginning […]
I’m doing a study on non-biblical sources about Jesus’ existence. I know there are people like Josephus, Lucian, Thallus, Jewish Talmud, Cornelius Tacitus & Seutonius. I was wondering if you know any websites/books that have in their writings specifically the parts that talk about Jesus. Also if you know any more people that write about […]
What are common characteristics to religious nationalism? I am not completely confident of how you would define religious nationalism. Let me give you the definition I would use and answer the question based on that definition. If I have missed the mark, please rephrase your question so that I can be sure how you would […]
Do you know the reason given as to why Jewish people no longer offer sacrifices. I have read that in the time of the exile, more weight was given to study of the law and scribes, but even then, the Levitical line was preserved and once the captives returned, sacrifices and temple worship were reinstated. […]
Did Moses live at the same time as Noah? No. Moses lived in the period around 1400 BCE. That is an approximation, and scholars will debate the exact date. Some would place the Exodus from Egypt (under Moses) as late as about 1300 BCE, others would date it at around 1460 BC. That is a […]
Did Christianity originate in Ethiopia? No. Christianity originated in Jerusalem, probably in either AD 29 or AD 33 (the two years which have the Passover fall on the right day to fit the description in the gospel accounts). To be specific, Christianity as a publicly proclaimed religion, began on the Day of Pentecost, forty-nine days […]
Lately I have been wondering about the atrocities of murder, genocide, etc. today. I do not have a problem understanding the existence of evil or human suffering. But throughout the OT God told the Israelites to conduct genocide; including the murder of women and children. I can accept instances like Sodom and Gomorrah were God […]
I do not see the Ark of the Covenant mentioned in the Bible, after the time of Solomon? What happened to it? Where might it be? Is recovering it of any importance? You are correct, as far as I know, about the last time the Ark of the Covenant is known for sure to have […]
I recently viewed a documentary claiming that ancient tablets (older than OT manuscripts) were found in Iraq, telling a story almost identical to Noah’s… and that the soil there showed signs of an ancient flood as well (unlike the land around Mount Ararat). The final conclusion was that Israel received this “story” from the Babylonians […]
When did Christianity begin? Public Christianity began on the day of Pentecost, as described in Acts Chapter two. One could debate this date. For example, one could say that Christianity began the day Jesus rose from the dead, or one could say that Christianity began the day Jesus was born, or the day he began […]
I was wondering if you could provide me with a list of the New Testament books in chronological order. I’m trying to prepare for an upcoming discussion about the reliability of Bible texts so if you could point me in any specific direction…that would be great Do you mean chronological order of when they were […]
“Jews do not believe that Jesus was the moshiach. Assuming that he existed, and assuming that the Christian scriptures are accurate in describing him (both matters that are debatable), he simply did not fulfill the mission of the moshiach as it is described in the biblical passages cited above. Jesus did not do any of […]
In the recent movie, The Passion of Christ, there was a reference to Pilate being warned by Caesar twice not to allow any more uprisings. Is there any historical basis for this? I’m sure there was some political reason Pilate allowed a man he considered innocent to be executed. Melissa (Denver) Relatively little is known, […]
What evidence do we have that the stories on Christianity are real? Unfortunately, this is a rather vague question. I will give a fairly vague answer in response. If you have a more specific question in mind, please send me another question. I am not sure what you mean by “stories” in Christianity? Do you […]
What happen between the Old Testament and New Testament? You should get a copy of my book on Daniel; Daniel, Prophet to the Nations. It is available at www.ipibooks.com There is a lot of material there on intertestamental history. Another source is the book of 1 Maccabbees, which is contained in Roman Catholic Bibles. A […]
I have studied the word Amen. What does it mean and what is the origin of the word? I have read it in the Egypt website that Amen is the ancient name of their god Please Check if it is true. The word amen simply means, so be it or I agree. The etymology of […]
What was life like for the women of the Old Testament? You are asking a very broad question, so I am afraid I will have to give a somewhat vague answer. The reason this is a hard question to answer is that the Old Testament covers a time span (not including the first eleven chapters […]
I?m reading “Genesis and the Big Bang” by Gerald L Schroeder PhD and was wondering if you noticed that he has a Biblical cumulative age for the earth (post-Adam) of 5763 years. I?ve noticed that the Jewish peoplealso use this age, but when you add up the dates in the Bible, it comes out closer […]
1. A woman I have been talking with mentioned, in reference to the claim that Jesus never traveled more than 200miles from where he was born, that there are texts that dispute this claim. She seemed to imply that these texts contained some scandalous reports but I didn’t press the subject since I knew I […]
I’ve had heard many people claim that the Apostles would not have let themselves be put to death for a lie, and this should be taken into consideration when studying the evidence for Jesus, but what evidence outside of the scriptures do we have that the Apostles were actually put to death? I respect your […]
As far as God condoning killing, I understand that he hates sin and so seeks to establish justice on the earth; however, it’s not that he condones killing that bothers me, but that he used Israel to do it! Israel was as sinful (if not more so) than the nations surrounding them. Sinful people killing […]
I wondering about chapter 9 (of the book Daniel in the Bible), if it is not possible to look at the last week as taking 70 years instead of 7, and have it overlap the others so that it covers from the birth of Jesus till the destruction of the temple in which case Jesus […]
How celibacy became common and why it became required are two very different things. In the third and fourth centuries it became common in primitive Christianity for men to choose asceticism as a way of expressing their devotion to God. Asceticism is a general term to describe the philosophy that one becomes close to God […]
While you’ve written a very good book it seems to be based on the premise that Jesus actually existed. What non biblical evidences can you provide that speak to his existence? (the questioner is referring to my book, Reasons for Belief: A Handbook of Christian Evidences, available at www.greatcommission.com) Actually, the book you mention provides […]
I was reading your book about Daniel, and I wanted to ask some questions about Daniel chapter 7 and your comment, because there were some thingswhich weren’t clear to me. 1) In the Roman Empire there weren’t just 11 kings, I mean after Domitian came a lot of other kings in the Roman Empire who […]
Yes, this is essentially correct. The Bible describes the peoples who came to be known as the Arabs as having been descended from Ishmael. As Muhammad, the founder and chief prophet of Islam is Arab, he would be a direct descendent of Ishmael. This is why historians of religion would claim that Judaism, Christianity and […]
I recently watched a tv show about Moses, and it was discussing the Red Sea Crossing. They claimed that Moses never led the children of Israel through the “Red Sea,” but through an unknown sea. They also said the original Hebrew for Red Sea was Yam Suph which meant Sea of Reeds, and the “Red […]
I was looking for some credible evidence for the historicity of Jesus. Two main historians who wrote about Jesus, Thallus and Josephus, are controversial. It is not clear if they wrote it and when they wrote it. Are there records which date to the 1st century which we know where scholars are sure that they […]
If Jesus really did all the things that are recorded in the Bible, why isn’t there more information about him outside the Bible? Thousands must have seen or somehow heard from him. Is it maybe because the written testimonies about Jesus were burned, destroyed by the enemies in the 1st century ? Paul persecuted the […]
I was thinking about the first century church and I was wondering why God didn’t let the great commission be accomplished in the first century. He knew that a lot of people would not hear the message due to false teachings, traditions, other religions, illiteracy and because in some places in the world Jesus wasn’t […]
Many scholars have used the writings of Josephus the Jew as historical evidence for Jesus. But there are a lot of critics who say that the writings of Josephus didn’t even exist until the sixth century. In other words Josephus couldn’t have written it. What do you know about this? I have not personally heard […]
Miracle of Science or Perspective of the observer; Did the sun stand still? God is a God of order, yet he performs miracles outside of the natural laws that govern our world. From a scientific perspective, even a miracle would not allow the sun to suddenly simply stop in the sky. That would mean that […]
“Could you clarify how ancient races outside the Middle East had the opportunity to learn about God? E.g., what about the 40,000+ year-old aboriginal culture of Australia, Pacific islanders, or the Aztecs?” ? Several inquirers Without the scriptures or the Hebrew prophets (who addressed a number of Middle Eastern nations), the gentiles had the opportunity […]
The book of Jashar is one of the many books cited in the OT. Following is a list (possibly incomplete) of sources cited in the O.T. books. The list omits references to other O.T. books. These works are “extrabiblical”-outside (extra, Latin) the Bible. The Book of the Wars of the Lord-Numbers 21:14The Poets-Numbers 21:27The Book […]
I have heard that the Old Testament was written by Jewish priests just a couple of hundred years before Christ, and that it is totally unreliable historically, with lots of religious fables and myths. How can I be sure about this? Two hundred years ago it would have been hard to produce hard evidence to […]
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