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    ABC:James 1

    From BibleStrength

    Verse 13 (American Atheists)

    American Atheists claims the Bible is wrong about the passage (and makes the following comments (italicized).[1]

    God tests Christians to see what is in their hearts, not to tempt them to do evil, but to make them stronger for His kingdom and ensure they are loyal to Him. For a description of the difference between testing and tempting in the Bible, see the Scofield Study Bible III's note for James 1:14, which reads as follows: "1:14 Test/Tempt, Summary: The concept of testing or temptation is expressed in both the OT and NT not only by the words translated 'test' or 'tempt,' but also by the words rendered 'provoke,' 'snare,' 'trials,' etc. (e.g. Gen. 22:1; Ps. 7:9; 11:5; Luke 22:28; James 1:2; 1 Pet. 1:5; compare Job 31:27; Prov. 22:25; Is. 3:8.) The primary meaning is usually that of proving by testing, or testing under trial. Less frequently the sense is that of enticement or solicitation to evil (e.g. 1:13-14; Gen. 3:1-6; 2 Cor. 11:3-4)."[2]

    Verse 13 (Infidels)

    Jim Meritt of Infidels.org claims a contradiction exists and asks "[God] tempts?"[3]

    The explanation here is pretty straightforward, the KJV just chose a bad word for Genesis 22:1 in 'tempt,' the Hebrew word nacah is usually translated elsewhere as 'prove' meaning to test, try, or prove without the negative connotation of "tempt." The Hebrew Interlinear of the original text is as follows:

    Nacah as seen from how it's used elsewhere in the Old Testament would be better translated as 'prove,' 'test,' or 'try.' The same word is most often translated by the KJV as 'prove' and had it been translated that way here would have removed the confusion. Definitions of the word according to Strong's Exhaustive Concordance and Thayer's are as follows:

    The following is a list of the Interlinear for all 36 times in the Old Testament where nacah is used showing that its meaning is test, try, or prove; not tempt:

    Many of the verses clearly show the word's correct translation is test/try, not tempt. See e.g. Exodus 16:4, 20:20; Deuteronomy 8:2,16, 13:3, 28:56; Judges 2:22, 3:4, 6:39; 1 Samuel 17:39; 2 Chronicles 32:31; Psalms 26:2; Ecclesiastes 2:1, 7:23; Daniel 1:12,14. The Scofield Reference Bible makes a similar point, see e.g. the notes for Genesis 22:1 and James 1:14.

    At any rate, God was just testing Abraham to see what was in Abraham's heart, and whether Abraham would trust Him unconditionally. This is evident from v. 12:

    God is said to do this same kind of testing repeatedly all through the Bible, see Exodus 16:4; Deuteronomy 8:2; Judges 2:22, 3:4; 2 Chronicles 32:31; Psalms 26:2.

    Verse 13 (Again)

    The EvilBible claims a contradiction exists here, and makes the following comments (italicized).[6]

    As pointed out by the Scofield Study Bible III in its note for Isaiah 45:7, the Hebrew word ra translated as "evil" in places like Isaiah 45:7, Jeremiah 18:11, and Amos 8:6 would be better translated as calamity, and carries the idea of suffering or punishment. Indeed, Isaiah 45:7 when examined reveals this, for light is indeed the opposite of darkness, but the opposite of peace is not evil, but chaos or calamity.

    Jeremiah 18:11 when read in context with the surrounding verses becomes even more apparent that God is not doing evil in the sense of unrighteousness but in the sense of calamity, or in other words producing just punishment for the wicked. Thus God says that if nations turn from their evil He will repent of the evil He'd planned to do to them (v. 8). Likewise God says that if a nation God had planned good for does evil, then because they have done evil, God will repent of the good He'd planned to do for their benefit (vv. 9-10).

    As for Lamentations 3:38 it is a rhetorical question, and when read in context makes clear that the "evil" being referred to is simply just punishment for a person's evil deeds.

    The context of Ezekiel 20:25 also makes plain that God is not doing evil in the sense of unrighteousness but rendering a just judgment upon evildoers. Israel at the time was performing heinous idolatry which included the abominable sin of sacrificing their own children alive to idols like Baal and Molech, which was why God punished them with ra, which while translated as "evil" by the KJV would better be translated as "calamity" or "affliction."

    Verse 17: Does God Change His Mind?

    Dan Barker of FFRF claims there is a contradiction here and makes the following comments (italicized):[8] Don Morgan's list at Infidels also claims this is a contradiction (passages are included with those mentioned by FFRF).[9] Jim Meritt of Infidels includes on his "List of Biblical Contradictions" the question, "[Does] God change?"[3] The EvilBible also makes this claim.[6]

    Clearly God by saying "I change not" is referring to His covenants with Abraham, Jacob, and David to preserve a lineage as His chosen people. God does not change His covenants and promises, and this is repeated throughout the Bible. Nonetheless, God can be seen numerous times to change His mind or regret His decisions. (e.g. Ge. 6:6; 1 Sam. 15:11,35; Jon. 3:10) While God does not regret doing wrong (since God does not sin or do wrong), He can be seen to regret justifiable punishments enacted on evil human beings.

    Some of the confusion may be caused the archaic usage by the KJV of the word "repent" which is used to mean God simply being sorrowful, even for executing just punishments, and usage of the word "evil" which is used simply to mean a harsh punishment. See for example its usage in Jeremiah 18:8-13 where God says He will "repent of the evil" He does in punishing evil nations as long as they turn from their evil, and that if they do evil then He will "repent of the good."

    Perhaps the best answer is that provided by CARM, "When God says that He does not change, He is speaking about His nature and character. But this does not mean that He cannot change how He works with people throughout history."[10] For a similar passage to Malachi 3:6, see Psalms 89:34 - "My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips." Here it is explained why the "sons of Jacob are not consumed" and what change is being discussed.

    Clearly God by saying "I change not" as seen in the above passage is referring to His covenants with Abraham, Jacob, and David to preserve a lineage as His chosen people. It is for this reason that God numerous times when disgusted with Israel did not wipe them off the face of the planet (which judging by his frustration levels expressed numerous times, He would certainly have liked to do). Instead as God promised David, He used punishments (v. 32) but He refused to break His covenant that David's seed would endure for ever. (v. 36)

    This can also be seen from the following passage with Moses where God ends up "repenting" for punishing Israel's idolatry of the golden calf:

    God does not change His covenants and promises, and this is repeated throughout the Bible:

    Nonetheless, God can be seen numerous times to change His mind or regret His decisions. (e.g. Ge. 6:6; 1 Sam. 15:11,35; Jon. 3:10)

    While God does not regret doing wrong (since God does not sin or do wrong), He can be seen to regret justifiable punishments enacted on evil human beings. (e.g. Ex. 32:14; Deut. 32:36; Jg. 2:18; 2 Sam. 24:16; 1 Chr. 24:15; Ps. 90:13; 106:45; 135:14; Jer. 26:19; Am. 7:3-6; Jon. 3:10)

    Some of the confusion may be caused the archaic usage by the KJV of the word "repent" which is used to mean God simply being sorrowful, even for executing just punishments, and usage of the word "evil" which is used simply to mean a harsh punishment. See for example its usage in Jeremiah 18:8-13 where God says He will "repent of the evil" He does in punishing evil nations as long as they turn from their evil, and that if they do evil then He will "repent of the good". In KJV-speak, verse 12 even continues with "Thus saith the Lord; Behold I frame evil against you... return ye now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good."

    Unfortunately, the KJV's continued popularity results in confusion over archaic wording that is centuries out of date. Perhaps people forget that words in the English language meant different things when the KJV was translated in 1611 than they do now, over 400 years later.

    Sources

    1. ↑ N.a. (2019). "Biblical Contradictions? American Atheists.
    2. ↑ Scofield, C.I. (2002). "Scofield Study Bible III." Oxford University Press.
    3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Meritt, Jim (1992). A list of Biblical contradictions. Retrieved from http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/jim_meritt/bible-contradictions.html. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "meritt" defined multiple times with different content
    4. ↑ Strong, James (2009). Strong's Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible. Retrieved from http://biblesuite.com/strongs/hebrew/5254.htm.
    5. ↑ Brown, Driver, Briggs and Gesenius. Hebrew Lexicon entry for Nacah. The KJV Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon. Retrieved from http://biblesuite.com/strongs/hebrew/5254.htm and http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?strongs=H5254.
    6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Thiefe, Chris. Biblical Contradictions. EvilBible.com.
    7. ↑ Scofield, C.I. (2006). The Scofield Study Bible III. p. 934. Oxford University Press.
    8. ↑ Barker, D. (2019). "Bible Contradictions." FFRF.
    9. ↑ Morgan, Donald. Bible Inconsistencies: Bible Contradictions? Internet Infidels.
    10. ↑ Does the Lord Change or Not? Christian Apologetics Research Ministry.
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