MESSY MISTAKES WITH MUSTARD
We believe the Scriptures … to be … without error in the original writings…
We believe this because we believe the Scriptures are “God-breathed” – that what the Scripture says, God says. When a prophet or apostle wrote, the words were both his words and God’s words. We can’t describe the process much beyond that.
The idea that the Bible is without error isn’t directly taught in the Bible. It’s a logical inference. If Scripture’s words are God’s words, and if God cannot lie, then the Bible cannot lie – or make a mistake. But there are many demonstrable “errors” in the Bible. I own several books devoted to answering all the “errors” in the Bible. One, The Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties, is just shy of 450 pages!
Jesus said, for example, that “the mustard seed…is the smallest of all seeds” (Mark 4.31) and adds that it grows “larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches” (Mark 4.32). Botanists have long noted there are much smaller seeds and much larger garden plants in existence than the mustard plant.
How could the Creator of all things not know that?!?!
Usually the answer is something like: Jesus did know that, but He wasn’t lecturing on botany but was speaking to the limited understanding of the local Jewish context. While Jesus’ statement wasn’t precisely scientifically accurate, He wasn’t trying to be precisely scientifically accurate. Jesus communicated what He was trying to communicate and with sufficient accuracy to make His point to his audience.
I’ve watched this play out in debates between conservatives who say the Bible has no errors and the liberals who say the Bible is full of errors. Every “error” in the Bible that liberals point to conservatives insist is not what we mean by “error”.
We conservatives seem to believe “without error” means each Scripture writer communicated sufficiently what he was trying to communicate within the context of his audience’s practice and understanding. Since the mustard seed was the smallest seed first-century Judean farmers knew, Jesus’ statement was true as far as they were concerned. Jesus wasn’t speaking to or trying to satisfy the demands of a 21st century audience in possession of a much broader base of information.
The issue when speaking of the Bible being “without error” is whether or not the original writer wrote with sufficient accuracy that his original audience would have understood his message and would not have accused him of lying. If he did so, he was “without error” – even if a 21st century audience might see glaring mistakes.
I used to think my faith depended on the certainty of all of these things. I spent (and scholars spent) a great deal of time and mental energy trying to solve these problems, believing that if these things weren’t precisely accurate to the satisfaction of a 20th (now 21st) century audience, the Bible could not be trusted.
I no longer believe that. Some may feel called to address trivial “errors”, but my faith no longer rests in the historical or scientific certainty of the Bible. Certainty based on knowledge is not faith. Faith believes amid uncertainties.
When people bring up “errors” my only question is this: Did the apostles see a risen Jesus or didn’t they? Did they risk martyrdom for something they knew didn’t happen or for a mere religious feeling or for a vision or a dream? Or did they risk martyrdom because they knew Jesus was truly risen from the dead?
Jesus is risen. They were witnesses to that and passed that message down. I believe that message. Tiny inaccuracies in trivial details don’t change that message.
My faith isn’t in a perfectly organized theology, but in a risen Savior.
We believe this because we believe the Scriptures are “God-breathed” – that what the Scripture says, God says. When a prophet or apostle wrote, the words were both his words and God’s words. We can’t describe the process much beyond that.
The idea that the Bible is without error isn’t directly taught in the Bible. It’s a logical inference. If Scripture’s words are God’s words, and if God cannot lie, then the Bible cannot lie – or make a mistake. But there are many demonstrable “errors” in the Bible. I own several books devoted to answering all the “errors” in the Bible. One, The Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties, is just shy of 450 pages!
Jesus said, for example, that “the mustard seed…is the smallest of all seeds” (Mark 4.31) and adds that it grows “larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches” (Mark 4.32). Botanists have long noted there are much smaller seeds and much larger garden plants in existence than the mustard plant.
How could the Creator of all things not know that?!?!
Usually the answer is something like: Jesus did know that, but He wasn’t lecturing on botany but was speaking to the limited understanding of the local Jewish context. While Jesus’ statement wasn’t precisely scientifically accurate, He wasn’t trying to be precisely scientifically accurate. Jesus communicated what He was trying to communicate and with sufficient accuracy to make His point to his audience.
I’ve watched this play out in debates between conservatives who say the Bible has no errors and the liberals who say the Bible is full of errors. Every “error” in the Bible that liberals point to conservatives insist is not what we mean by “error”.
We conservatives seem to believe “without error” means each Scripture writer communicated sufficiently what he was trying to communicate within the context of his audience’s practice and understanding. Since the mustard seed was the smallest seed first-century Judean farmers knew, Jesus’ statement was true as far as they were concerned. Jesus wasn’t speaking to or trying to satisfy the demands of a 21st century audience in possession of a much broader base of information.
The issue when speaking of the Bible being “without error” is whether or not the original writer wrote with sufficient accuracy that his original audience would have understood his message and would not have accused him of lying. If he did so, he was “without error” – even if a 21st century audience might see glaring mistakes.
I used to think my faith depended on the certainty of all of these things. I spent (and scholars spent) a great deal of time and mental energy trying to solve these problems, believing that if these things weren’t precisely accurate to the satisfaction of a 20th (now 21st) century audience, the Bible could not be trusted.
I no longer believe that. Some may feel called to address trivial “errors”, but my faith no longer rests in the historical or scientific certainty of the Bible. Certainty based on knowledge is not faith. Faith believes amid uncertainties.
When people bring up “errors” my only question is this: Did the apostles see a risen Jesus or didn’t they? Did they risk martyrdom for something they knew didn’t happen or for a mere religious feeling or for a vision or a dream? Or did they risk martyrdom because they knew Jesus was truly risen from the dead?
Jesus is risen. They were witnesses to that and passed that message down. I believe that message. Tiny inaccuracies in trivial details don’t change that message.
My faith isn’t in a perfectly organized theology, but in a risen Savior.