SHOULD YOU BELIEVE THE BIBLE?

The writing of the Bible began about 3500 years ago (1500 BC) when God revealed to Moses the information contained in Genesis.  The last book, Revelation, was completed around 95-100 AD.  When one considers the exceptional wisdom contained in the Bible, they are amazed!  We live in an amazing generation of time.  The increases in knowledge by man is phenomenal!  And yet, how does it compare to the phenomenal things found in the Bible?  It really doesn't compare!  The Bible is actually incredible.  The reason being that God said that he would "declare the end from the beginning."

How easy is it to do something like predict the future? Can a man correctly predict the future?  Here are some examples:

The director of the U.S. Patent office resigned his high position in 1875.  He complained in his letter of resignation that the office should close because "there's nothing left to invent."  Yet today there are thousands of patents filed for each year!

In 1887, the brilliant French chemist Marcellin Berthelot wrote, "From now on there is no mystery about the universe."  In the years that followed there have been discoveries in atomic structure, the creation of a hundred new sciences including biophysics, astrophysics and molecular biology.

About the same time, Professor Simon Newcomb wrote a highly acclaimed manuscript that proved that it was mathematically impossible for any machine that was heavier than a balloon to fly in the air.  Yet daily the skies are filled with planes that are loaded with people and material.

In 1943, Thomas Watson, the chairman of IBM declared, "I think there is a world market for maybe 5 computers."  Today there are over a billion computers!

In the 1940's computers weight several tons.  Popular Science made the prediction that in the future there might be computers that only weighed 1.5 tons.  Today we have computers that weigh less than 5 pounds!

In 1981, Bill Gates, the brilliant creator of Microsoft said, "640K (640,000 bytes of memory) should be enough for anybody.  Today, my computer has about  512MB of memory.

These inaccurate projections should make it obvious how difficult it is for man to correctly forecast the future with much accuracy.   1.

Yet the Bible is filled with prophecies after prophecies!  Many of these were made hundreds or even thousands of years before they were fulfilled.

The Bible also contains scientific information that took man hundreds of years to discover.

Here are some scientific facts with the dates for the verses given as found in The Reese Chronological Bible.

 Dead bodies spread germs.  Num. 19:11.  This was written about 1461 BC.  In that the Bible did not specifically give the reason for the careful handling of a dead body, it took medical science up to 1845 AD, doctors did not wash their hands after examining dead patients before going to live ones!  This of course had a great impact on the mortality rate.  And then, even into the 20^th century, when a doctor did wash his hands, he did so in a bowl instead of in running water.  In Lev. 15:13, God commanded those who had infections to wash in running water.

Water is essential to plant life.  (Science discovered in 1600's)  Isa. 44:14 Believed written in 712 BC.

Seventy years is the life expectancy of man.  Psalms 90:10.  This is believed to be the oldest Psalms, written in 1461 BC

The Law of Gravity was discovered by Isaac Newton who died in 1727.  Yet Job 26:7, written about 1967 BC, tells us that God hung the earth upon nothing!

Sunlight is essential to plant life.  Photosythesis, Science discovered in 1844 AD.  Deut.  33:14 written in 1423 BC

Blood is essential to life.   Lev. 17:11  Believed to have been written about 1461BC

The earth is round.  Columbus, 1492,  Magellian.  Isa. 40:22  Reese sets this as 712 BC

The Stars cannot be numbered.  Gen. 15:5  Around 1882 BC.  Today there are estemated to be 100 billion stars in our galaxy alone!

                Ptolmey said there were 1,056 stars (2nd Century)

                Tycho Brake said there were 777 stars (1546-1601 AD)

                Johannes Kepler said there were 1,005 stars. (1571-1630 AD)

Each Star is different.  1 Cor. 15:41, written in 57 AD, but was not known until modern telescopes were invented almost 1900 years later.

These are just a few of the many amazing facts that point towards divine inspiration of the Scriptures and prove that we should put our faith in God's Word!

1.  These predictions are taken from The Signature of God, Grant Jeffrey, 1996, p163-164