Reading The Bible (Part #1)

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Part #2
Part #3
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We'll start by taking a look at the three different ways in which you can read the New Testament:

(1)

If you read the New Testament in the normal fashion, starting at the beginning and continuing through to the end, it all seems to make perfect sense:

• Jesus was born in Bethlehem 
• Spent his childhood in Nazareth 
• Was baptized at the age of thirty
• Preached the sermon on the mount
• Healed the sick
• Travelled to Jerusalem
• Got arrested
• Was executed
• Rose from the dead
• Ascended into heaven

All the gospels seem to be telling that same basic story and all of Paul's letters seem to agree with everything written in the gospels.

Yes, things start getting a bit silly towards the end, in the book of Revelation, where we find seven-headed dragons and ladies in red dresses cutting the heads off zombie horsemen, but apart from that, the New Testament seems to do a fairly good job in telling the story of the life of Jesus. And the Revelation nonsense happened after Jesus was dead anyway - so it doesn't really count does it?

(2)

But now read the gospels side-by-side and you get quite a different impression. The basic story is the same but none of the details match!

Matthew says that Jesus' paternal grandfather was Heli, but Luke says it was Jacob.
(Matthew 1:16, Luke 3:25)

Matthew says Jesus lived in Egypt for several years after his birth, but Luke says he went directly to Nazareth.
(Matthew 2:12-15, Luke 2:39)

Mark says Jesus started preaching after John the Baptist was imprisoned, but John says this is not true.
(Mark 1:14, John 3:23-24)

Mark has Jesus say that no signs will be given, but John says Jesus gave many signs to his followers.
(Mark 8:12-13, John 20:30)

It's as if the gospel writers had never met Jesus; as if they had heard a few vague stories about him and then made up the details to suit themselves.

Christian apologists, of course, have spent the last two thousand years creating "gospel harmonies" that purportedly explain away most of the contradictory stories, but some of those explanations are so pathetically weak that even other Christians have to laugh a little bit.

(3)

And there is a third way to read the New Testament. Don't read it from start to finish and don't read it in parallel (with all the similar events lined up side-by-side). Read the books in chronological order instead.

Regarding the birth of Jesus for example: it was about 55AD when Paul wrote his letter to the Romans and he made it clear that it was a completely normal birth:

Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh. (Romans 1:3)

So normal, in fact, that fifteen years later Mark didn't even bother to mention it in the gospel he wrote in 70AD.

But ten years later, in 80AD, Matthew added some miraculous details to the story and declared that Jesus was born to a virgin:

Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel. (Matthew 1:23)

And finally, in the gospel of John (written in about 95AD) we have a quite fantastic story suggesting that Jesus had existed since the beginning of time and furthermore; that he was not only the "son of god" but god himself! 

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God ... The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. (John 1:1,14)

• 55 AD Jesus' birth was quite normal.
• 70 AD So normal that Mark didn't bother to mention it.
• 80 AD Matthew says Jesus' birth was miraculous (born to a virgin)
• 95 AD John says Jesus existed even before the creation of the universe!

We can see the legend growing as the years pass by.

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And the same thing happens with other biblical characters as well. For example, the very early Christians had never heard about Judas betraying Jesus and then killing himself.

In 1 Corinthians 11:23 Paul says that Jesus was betrayed but he doesn't name the betrayer. Later, in 1 Corinthians 15:5, Paul says that after the resurrection, Jesus appeared to "the Twelve", so Judas was not yet dead, and apparently not regarded as a betrayer either. Judas was still with the apostles and apparently still being treated as an equal; certainly not dead.

Twenty years later, however, by the time Mark wrote his gospel in 70AD, it had become accepted that Jesus was betrayed by Judas, but there was no indication that Judas had died (probably because that part of the legend had not yet been invented).

Ten years after that, when Matthew wrote his gospel in 80AD, the legend had grown to the point where Judas had seen the error of his ways and committed suicide during a fit of remorse.

And another ten years after that, Luke invented a much more mysterious death for Judas, saying that he fell over and his bowels gushed out. Luke makes no mention of suicide. Luke is trying to give the impression that Judas was zapped by God himself.

• 50AD Judas was a fully-fledged apostle with not a stain on his character.
• 70AD he was the apostle who betrayed Jesus.
• 80AD he was the betrayer who died at his own hand.
• 90AD he was the betrayer, struck down by a miracle from God. 

You can see the legend growing as each book is written.

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Also, when reading the books of the bible in chronological order, you will discover something rather interesting about the healing miracles of Jesus. In all of the very earliest books of the New Testament (i,e, Paul's letters) there is not one mention of a healing miracle performed by Jesus - not one!

But as the years passed by and there were fewer and fewer eyewitnesses left to dispute their claims, the gospel writers boldly asserted that miracles had happened - and you can see the miracles becoming more and more spectacular as each author tries to outdo the stories told by preceding authors. For example:

That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. The whole town gathered at the door,  and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. (Mark 1:32-34)

When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. (Matthew 18:6)

At sunset, the people brought to Jesus all who had various kinds of sickness, and laying his hands on each one, he healed them. (Luke 4:40)

• 50AD no healing miracles of any kind
• 70AD all the sick were brought to Jesus and many were healed.
• 80AD many, were brought and all were healed.
• 90AD all were brought and all were healed.

You can see the legend growing year by year.

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