Reliability of the Bible – Evidence for Christianity

Please comment on a post by atheist Tim ONeill concerning the resurrection

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Church History, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Resurrection of Jesus .

Question: Please respond to an article I found by an atheist guy named O’Neill regarding the evidence for the resurrection. https://www.quora.com/What-evidence-is-there-for-Jesus-Christs-death-burial-and-resurrection/answer/Tim-ONeill-1 [Author’s note: O’Neill claims that the physical resurrection of Jesus was an invention of Paul and others, made many years after the death of Jesus] Answer: This is typical argumentation from unbelievers. O’Neill begins […]

The killing of children by Herod is only recorded in the New Testament. Therefore it is a fabrication. Response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: How would you respond to people who say “King Herod’s murder of the children is only mentioned in the New Testament. Therefore, it is automatically wrong” or “The murder of the children by Herod was copied from the child massacre in the events with Moses and therefore is made up”? Answer: The vast majority […]

If God was first called YHWH in Moses’ time (Exodus), why is the name YHWH found in Genesis?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Supposed Inconsistencies in the Bible .

Question: I have a Bible question for you that I’ve been wondering about. God reveals his name YHWH to Moses at the burning bush. He also says in Ex 6:2-3 he says that by the name YHWH he did not make himself known to the patriarchs. I think in the NIV whenever the word, LORD […]

A convert to Judaism from Christianity tells me that Paul’s teachings contradict those of Christ and that Christianity is the religion of Paul, not Jesus. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Supposed Inconsistencies in the Bible .

Question: I need your help. I wanna know your responds to some statements by a quite popular Jewish influencer on Instagram. She is an ex Christian who converted to Judaism. So she said that many of Paul’s teachings are contradicted to what Jesus taught and the core belief or Christianity is actually Paul’s teaching and […]

What is the correct translation of Deut 32:8? Is it Sons of Israel or Sons of God? Does this show henotheism in early Judaism?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Versions of the Bible .

Question: I wanted to ask you a question about Deuteronomy 32:8-9. In more recent manuscripts it’s translated as “Sons of Israel” but using older manuscripts it’s translated as “Sons of God” or even angels. Scholars say this was changed to sons of Israel because scribes didn’t like that it sounded so polytheistic. Did God actually […]

Did the New Testament writers borrow the idea of hell as a place of punishment from the Greek mythology about Tartarus?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Apocrypha, Bible Interpretation, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: Scholars say that the concept of hell in the Bible developed throughout time . Hell as a place of eternal suffering didn’t exist in the Old Testament, only the New Testament, which has led scholars to draw the conclusion that early Christians took the idea of hell being a place of eternal suffering from […]

Did the writer of Job and did Isaiah borrow the myth of Leviathan from the Sumerians and Babylonians?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Anthropology, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: I wanted ask you about the similarities between Isaiah 27 and the Canaanite’s Baal cycle in which both Yahweh and Baal respectively kill a large aquatic sea serpent like monster. I’m copying and pasting some more information about it down below. Leviathan in the Book of Job is a reflection of the older Canaanite […]

Does the Soleb Inscription support the Old Testament account of the name of God and the date of the Exodus?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Archaeology and the Bible, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: I wanted to ask you about the Soleb Inscription. I’m copying and pasting some information about it down below. “Yahweh before Israel: Glimpses of History in a Divine Name” by Daniel E. Flemming where he argues that YHWH was a nomadic people group attested by an inscription in the temple at Soleb in Egypt.” […]

A Muslim claims a textual variant of Mark 10:18 supports the conclusion that Jesus did not believe he is God. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, Church History, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Can these statements about Mark 10:18 be fact checked? The Muslim gentleman argued the earliest findings of Mark 10 say “Don’t call me good because only my father is Good” and quoted Justin Martyr and others. https://youtube.com/shorts/zSiB6sq_EnU?feature=shared The Christian didn’t get to respond. [Editor’s note: In this youtube a Muslim apologist claims that there […]

Why do we accept the tradition of the early church leaders on the content of the New Testament when we reject their other traditions?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Apocrypha, Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, Church History, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: How do we know what New Testament scripture is inspired apart from tradition? I understand Luke and Paul are quoted as Scripture but here is the problem. Luke wrote 2 books and Paul wrote 13. There are only 7 of Paul’s letters that are recognized by modern scholarship as “undisputed” (there is no contention […]

Would you use the Talmud to support the notion that Isaiah 53 is talking about a human rather than the nation of Israel?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Uncategorized .

Question: Would you use the Talmud to support the notion that Isaiah 53 is talking about a human being (not a nation)? Answer: This is a great question. So many Jewish commentators today deny that it is a reference to the Messiah, for the rather obvious reason that it IS about the Messiah, and this […]

Why are mainstream Bible scholars so biased with regard to the date of writing of Mark and the other gospels, assuming a date after AD 70?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Church History, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Dear doctor. I wanted to ask you about the bias in mainstream Bible scholarship. You say that almost all scholars agree that Mark was written in the 50’s-60’s AD, but when I look it up the first thing I see is that mainstream scholars all put Mark around after 70 AD. Of course they […]

According to the Qur’an, Jesus was merely a prophet, and his mission was to clarify God’s will to the Jews. What is the Christian response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: According to the Koran, Jesus was only a prophet, before whom other prophets had passed away (5:75) and his mission to the Jews was to clarify for them some of what they differed about (43:63). It is in direct contradiction with the Prophets and Epistles. What should be the Christian response? Answer: What you […]

Why does the Bible not include the prophecies of Idris, Ishmael and others mentioned by Muhammad?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: My Muslim friend criticized the Bible and referred to his scripture 19:58 [editor’s note: The questioner is referring to Sura 19:58, which does NOT mention these prophets, except Abraham. This quote appears to be a false one. I am going to assume that he is listing other prophets mentioned somewhere in the Qur’an, or […]

The Bible only has the written record of a few of the prophets. Maybe if they had a complete record, Jesus would not be rejected by people. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Christians only have the written record of a few prophets in their Bible. It seems Jews did not have a complete record of prophetic speeches, otherwise Jesus would not be rejected. What’s your say? Answer: The Old Testament includes the words of at least 16 prophets. That is quite a few prophets! What would […]

If Jesus appeared to the 500+ witnesses, as reported by Paul in 1 Cor 15:6, why do the gospels and Acts not include this very important information?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General Apologetics, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: I have a doubt about the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:6 that Jesus appeared to 500 after he rose from the dead. If this is true why didn’t the gospels or the book of Acts confirm this event which is very important? And why didn’t Jesus appear […]

The resurrection is a fabrication, as proved by the lack of information in 1 Cor 15 and the fact that Jesus worked no miracles in Jerusalem in Mark

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Uncategorized .

Question: [editor’s note, this is a rather long question] I want you to respond to the following article: “The Resurrection Story of Jesus” Claims of “resurrection appearances of Jesus” in the earliest source, 1 Cor., do not list time, place, circumstances, nor whether Jesus spoke or did anything other than “appear,” and, Jesus appears […]

Why is it that the consensus of scholars is that the Jewish monotheistic idea of YHWH emerged from a Midianite god?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Anthropology, Archaeology and the Bible, General, History, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Uncategorized .

Question: Dear doctor, I’ve been doing apologetic and history research and I wanted to ask you about Yahweh being a Midianite deity that Moses eventually adopted into their worship. Apparently this is the scholarly consensus. Does this theory have any proof? Why is it the scholarly consensus? Is there even any evidence or is it […]

Please respond to an article by Richard Carrier in which he claims that Mark made up the empty tomb.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Church History, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

[Editor’s note: The article below concerns an article the inquirer found by Richard Carrier. Carrier is an atheist who tries to present himself as a scholar, but who writes fantastically poorly reasoned nonsense. My suggestion: Do not waste your time reading his blog, but it is up to you.] Request: Could I ask you to […]

Jesus and the writer of Hebrews quoted from the Deuterocanonical Jewish books, as well as many early church fathers. How do we know the canonical books are inspired and those not in the canon are not?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Apocrypha, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Uncategorized .

Question: I’ve been reading a good amount on the Old Testament canon. Jesus quoted some of the Deuterocanonical texts. The writer of the book of Hebrews did so as well. This books mention events that happened in the Deuterocanon as well. Not to mention that many early church fathers quote the Deuterocanonical books as well. […]

Can you discuss recent claims that Galatians 1:19 (mentioning James, the brother of Jesus) is an interpolation?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, Church History, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Uncategorized .

Question: Could you please make a response to this atheist who claims Galatians 1:9 is an interpolation?https://vridar.org/2011/06/03/a-case-for-interpolation-does-not-rely-on-manuscript-evidence/ Response: First of all, I am pretty sure you are talking about Galatians 1:19, not Galatians 1:9. This question has been “out there” in the internet lately, so I assume you made a little error in your question. […]

Was Paul’s “vision” on the road to Damascus an actual physical appearance, or was it merely a spiritual vision or, perhaps even a hallucination?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Resurrection of Jesus .

Question: I have recently read claims that Paul’s supposed vision on the road to Damascus are just hallucinations. Critics claim that the word used by Paul to describe the event refers to spiritual sight not a physical appearance. Could you respond to his claims about Paul? This really bothered me, and I am struggling. Can […]

Some say we know as much about Jesus as we do about Abraham Lincoln. Others say that Jesus is a myth. Who is right and why?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, General Apologetics, Reliability of the Bible, Uncategorized .

Question: My question is this, Is there technically the same and/or more evidence for Jesus/resurrection and his existing than there is for guys like Abe Lincoln and George Washington exosting (historical figures that everyone accepts as real men even though we’ve never seen them)? Abe and George are in school textbooks with a few anecdotes […]

Defenders of the NT text mention 5000 manuscripts, but these are mostly irrelevant, and the early evidence is very partial. Therefore, the NT text cannot be trusted. Response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Editor’s note: This question is most likely coming from a Muslim source who is trying to undercut the evidence for the reliability of the New Testament manuscripts. He/she is attempting to undermine the evidence, to claim its strength is exaggerated by believers. Question: Not all NT writings are attested by 5000+ manuscripts. Thus, by stating […]

Is baptism “in the name of Jesus Christ” as opposed to in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit the only valid means? Why the contradiction?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, Church History, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: Some Apostolic-Pentecostal Christians claim that being baptized “in the name of Jesus Christ” (Acts 2:38) is the correct form of baptism, and disregard baptism in the name of the Trinity (Matt. 28:18-20). They claim that there is a great importance concerning what you are baptized into. My question is this: are these baptisms the […]

Claim: The gospel writers weave OT passages out of context with invented stories to portray Jesus as the Messiah. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: The Gospel authors weave OT passages and themes into their various portraits of Christ, e.g., John’s Gospel fabricated a narrative that depicts Jesus being offered sour wine to fulfill the second half of Psalms 69:21, but that lacks anyone trying to poison Jesus to fulfill the first half of this passage. In reality, there […]

When was the Talmud written?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Editor’s Note: This is a follow-up from a questioner who wanted to know how important is the statements in the Babylonian Talmud about a certain Jesu who was hanged on the eve of the Passover. This passage is often mentioned as non-Christian support for the reality of Jesus and the fact of his crucifixion. Therefore, […]

The writings of Paul and the Gospel of John are not credible. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: The writings of Paul and the Gospel of John are NOT credible. Reasons are: 1. John was written around 90 CE. If the author of John was with Jesus, it was over 55 years prior! John would have been a senile, Alzheimer ridden 90 year old man! And yet, we are to believe that […]

The gospel writers fabricated the stories about the darkening of the sky, the curtain being ripped, etc. Matthew fabricated the prophecy from Hosea 11:1, and the church corrupted Isaiah 53. Response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Prefigures and Foreshadows, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: The Gospels’ writers fabricated stories about Jesus which have no strong evidence, e.g., the sky grows dark for 3 hours at midday at the crucifixion, an earthquake rips the curtain in the Jewish temple & opens the tombs of the saints, from which dead people resurrect and then appear throughout Jerusalem. This is an […]

In the Qur’an 3:183 it says that the Israelites killed the prophets who presented fiery signs to them. Why does the Bible not mention this happening?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, History, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: As stated in the Koran 3:183, the Israelites even killed the prophets who presented a fiery sign from heaven that consumed their sacrificial offerings, but why does the Bible not mention this happening? Answer: This is an easy question. The Bible does not mention this because it did not happen. The Qur’an is the […]

Muslims say the Pentateuch is not reliable because of the immoral stories about Abraham and his descendants. Your Response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, History, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: According to a Muslim Clergy, the current Pentateuch is not reliable because it has immoral stories about Abraham’s relatives which can’t be from God. Your response? Answer: I am well aware of this charge by Muslims. My response is that there is no such thing as an immoral story. There are immoral actions, but not […]

Generally, are accounts of events which were written 1-3 centuries after the events they record reliable as history?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, History, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Generally speaking, are ancient accounts about events which were written 1-3 centuries after the events they record reliable records of the actual events they record? Answer: Let me give a commo-sense answer, which is that the later an event is recorded after it occurs, the less reliable that account will be. However, there were […]

Christianity borrowed the idea of a virgin birth of a savior from Zoroastrianism, as demonstrated by the Denkard Book 7 Chapter 10 v. 15-19. Response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Editor’s Note: This is a follow-up from an earlier question in which the questioner made claims of Christian borrowing from Zoroastrian sources, and I respectfully asked for actual quotes from which the borrowing occurred. Thankfully, the questioner responded to the request. Question: The NT authors copied elements of Zoroastrianism from the Jews and fit them […]

Muslim imams say that the Pentateuch is unreliable because it includes immoral stories about Abraham and his descendants. Response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: According to a Muslim Clergy, the current Pentateuch is not reliable because it has immoral stories about Abraham’s relatives which can’t be from God. Your response? Answer: I am well aware of this charge by Muslims. My response is that there is no such thing as an immoral story. There are immoral actions, but […]

There is evidence Krishna was a real person. Please compare Krishna to Jesus.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, History, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: 1. I read more than a couple of your articles about Krishna a deity in Hinduism. You said that Krishna is a mythical figure demanding details like where did he live? Where was he born? When was he born? What did he look like? Who were his parents and where did they come from? These […]

What is the scientific evidence for life-after-death? Are NDEs (near death experiences) evidence of life after death?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Editor’s note: This is a series of two questions and two answers. Question #1: How do we demonstrate to non-Christians the Christian understanding of life after death – that we will either be sent to hell or go to heaven based on whether or not we have accepted God’s gift of eternal life in this […]

Is 2 Samuel 7:16 a failed prophecy, since David’s kingdom is no more?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Is 2 Samuel 7:16 a failed prophecy? “And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’”” ‭‭2 Samuel‬ ‭7‬:‭16‬ ‭ESV‬‬..I saw a critic claims that this is a failed prophecy, because “houses” and kingdoms do not last forever. Answer: This is in fact a […]

Do you believe in universalism? The original bible scriptures supported this.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, Church History, General, Philosophy, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: Are you a believer in Christian Universalism (restoration of ALL) Apocatastasis rather than Unitarian Universalism? I believe the Bible in the original writings support this. You mention in some of your writings you believe in heaven but don’t mention hell. Hell–meaning eternal, conscious torment for all who don’t believe in Christ. To me that […]

Tacitus makes a very brief, insignificant mention of Jesus, but Seneca and Pliny the Elder do not even mention the crucifixion. This is evidence that it did not occur.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, History, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Uncategorized .

Question: Tacticus wrote almost nothing about Jesus – just one small passage. Tacitus only said that Christians in Rome believed such a thing. It does not prove that Jesus was crucified. Further, we do not find any mention of Jesus in Seneca’s (4 BCE – 65 CE) writings and the historian Pliny the Elder (23 […]

How can I factually refute the Hindu belief in reincarnation? What about the evidence for Krishna vs. Jesus as real people?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Archaeology and the Bible, General, History, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Can you give me factual references to scriptures/books using which I can use to refute reincarnation theory? I was born in a Hindu family. However God blessed me and I found my true faith. My entire family is Hindu. I have read Bhagavad Gita and Bible. Both have strongly written verses and theories in […]

Why are the minor prophets (except Jonah) never mentioned by the historical books in the Old Testament?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: The editors of the Bible were not interested to preserve the history of Minor Prophets except Jonah. If editors mentioned the histories of Elijah and Elisha, then why were the Minor Prophets were left out? Answer: By “the editors” I assume you mean those who put together the historical books of the Bible. The […]

Why do people not accept the clear evidence for belief in Christianity? Is it because Jesus said most would be condemned?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Archaeology and the Bible, General, General Apologetics, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Questions: 1. I believe there is good evidence for Christianity, but why do so many people not accept it if it’s true? Would a good answer to this question be that Jesus said most people would be condemned? (Matthew 7:13) 2. Does archaeology align well with the Bible? The New Testament is well supported by […]

Doesn’t Paul’s teaching about the divinity of Christ make a mockery of the Old Testament teaching that we should not associate any others with God in his divinity?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Uncategorized .

Question: God created humans and other living beings for nothing else but that they could serve him. He did not desire from them any provision or food. It was revealed to the Prophets to not associate any others with God in his Divinity. Didn’t Paul challenge OT teachings and make a mockery of them by […]

The Dead Sea Scrolls do not support the inerrancy or the historical accuracy of the Bible. Response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Uncategorized, Versions of the Bible .

Question/Comment: The Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS) do not prove the inerrancy or historical accuracy of the Bible. The writings in DSS show a hugely different history than in the Bible. The Genesis Apocryphon is noticeably different from the Bible’s Genesis. Exodus, 1-2 Samuel and Jeremiah are extremely different in the DSS than in the Bible. […]

My Muslim friend told me that those who say Jesus was crucified are spreading lies that will lead them to hell. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Resurrection of Jesus .

Question: You preach everywhere regarding the means of Jesus’ death, but my Muslim friend said to me: “They are spreading lies which will lead them in Hell.” That would include you. What should be our response? Answer: Your Muslim friend is claiming that when we Christians teach that Jesus died on a cross in Jerusalem, […]

Please explain the textual variant in Matthew 11:19. Is the correct original “children” or “deeds?”

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: In the Gospel of Matthew 11:19, one version says wisdom is justified of her children(KJV) and another version says wisdom is justified by her deeds(ESV). Please explain this variant “children and deeds” Answer: This is a familiar example of a textual variant with a fairly well-understood explanation. The explanation of the textual variant is found […]

Please respond to the claims of a famous Jesus-as-myth supporter.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Church History, General, History, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

[Editor’s note: I am doing the reverse of what I normally do here. The question is so long, that I despair anyone would read to the end of it to find my response. So, I am doing something that might be a bit confusing here, which is to publish my response before the question] Response: […]

Deuteronomy 13:1-3 and 18:22 are flawed criteria for determining whether a prophet is indeed speaking for God. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

[Editor’s note: This is a two-part question. The first question needed clarification, which was given, allowing me to give a more nuanced answer to the original] Question: According to Duet. 13:1-3, if a prophet appears among the Israelites and announces a sign and if that sign takes place, and then that prophet orders them to […]

Why does Jude quote from the non-canonical book of 1 Enoch?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Apocrypha, End Times, General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: In reading the book of Jude, I discovered this: Jude 1:14 Enoch, the seventh of our ancestors after Adam, spoke of these people in advance, saying: “Behold, the Lord is coming with millions of angels” There are two questions to ask in this text: 1-Do you think Enoch is seventh in the Genealogy […]

Is Philip R. Davies right that the prophetic books are primarily the product of scribes who wrote for their own interests?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: According to Philip R. Davies, a British biblical scholar, prophetic books are primarily the product of scribes who imitated the traditional style of intermediaries and wrote for their own interest. Does it mean our prophetic books are fake? Answer: Philip R. Davies is an unbeliever. He is not a Christian and it is not […]