He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. (Psalm 147:4)
It has been estimated there are 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 stars in the universe.
And approximately 460,000,000,000,000,000 seconds since the first stars appeared (about 100 million years after the big bang).
If god has been naming the stars at the rate of one per second since that time, well that means 99.999954% of them are still unnamed.
No wonder god doesn't answer prayers. He's so far behind in his work that he hasn't got time for stuff like that.
On the other hand, if he managed to finish naming the stars yesterday afternoon, then he has done so at the rate of more than two million names per second for the last 14.6 billion years! Nobody would have understood a word he said.
A few thousand years ago the shepherds watching their flocks by night could easily believe that god knew the number of stars and all of their names. After all, the shepherds had already counted nearly three thousand stars themselves - and even named some of them - so no big deal to find that god had done the same. In other words, back in those days, Psalm 147:4 was regarded as literally true. God really did count the stars and he really did call them by their names.
What about today?
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A few thousand years ago the shepherds watching their flocks by night could easily believe that god knew the number of stars and all of their names. After all, the shepherds had already counted nearly three thousand stars themselves - and even named some of them - so no big deal to find that god had done the same. In other words, back in those days, Psalm 147:4 was regarded as literally true. God really did count the stars and he really did call them by their names.
What about today?
Today Psalm 147:4 is regarded by all Christians as a bit of poetic hyperbole, and only a fool would be tempted to take it literally!
And that's why religion will never die. Whenever a particular bible teaching is shown to be wrong it is simply tossed aside and the text automatically changes from "literally true" to "merely a metaphor".
Right up to the 19th century Christians were using the bible to show that god permitted his followers to own slaves. Then, when slavery was outlawed, Christians reinterpreted the texts until god was saying that his followers were not permitted to own slaves.
Right up to the 19th century Christians were using the bible to show that god permitted his followers to own slaves. Then, when slavery was outlawed, Christians reinterpreted the texts until god was saying that his followers were not permitted to own slaves.
When I was a child the churches were still teaching that hell was a literal place like a big cave full of red hot larva where naughty boys and girls would be tortured for ever and ever and ever. These days such nightmare inducing stories are no longer preached from the pulpit and the churches have invented a completely new type of hell. Sure, the New Testament is full of texts saying that sinners are doomed to writhe and squirm in the "fire of hell" but modern-day Christians completely ignore those texts and declare, instead, that hell is nothing more than "a separation from god". Good Christians will go to heaven when they die, but sinners will miss out on all the fun because they are destined to remain in the grave with no rewards at all.
Isn't that cute?
Christians always look cute when they are telling lies for Jesus. Like the child with chocolate smeared lips vehemently denying that he has eaten any of the chocolate.
Isn't that cute?
Christians always look cute when they are telling lies for Jesus. Like the child with chocolate smeared lips vehemently denying that he has eaten any of the chocolate.
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