Category: preservation of the Bible

I Want Pictures!

Saturday, January 21, 2012

“Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed” (John 20:29 KJV).

Once, when my mom offered to read the Holy Scriptures to my then five-year-old niece, the latter protested, “I want pictures!” 🙂 I could not help but chuckle upon hearing that. Yet, how many churchgoers prefer experiences that can seen and felt rather than sound doctrine that can be read and believed?

Most Bibles lack pictures, which makes God’s Word less appealing to the average reader. But, these precious souls fail to understand God never intended His Word to be a photo album or art portfolio. God wanted us to know information, but He did not communicate that information using paintings, drawings, or photographs. God wanted to not just give us His thoughts, but His very words (Deuteronomy 8:3; Psalm 12:6,7; Matthew 4:4; Luke 4:4)! Jesus Christ declared: “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Matthew 24:35; cf. Mark 13:31; Luke 21:33).

While God could have communicated His truth in any way He wanted, He determined to have His truth permanently written down in a Book, His Book, whose words would span the eons of eternity future. That Book would be independent of the reader, and would serve as an objective standard to distinguish truth from error. It would never change, it would always be relevant, and it would never be lost to time. He would preserve the words of the Book forever and ever and ever.

Instead of us seeking “pictures” (visual confirmation of Scripture) like my niece and doubting Thomas of today’s Scripture, let us pursue “the wholesome words of Jesus Christ and the doctrine which is according to godliness” (1 Timothy 6:3). We place no authority on experiences, but we trust alone in the King James Bible’s authority, the only standard by which we gauge the veracity or falsity of all experiences. “We walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).

“The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever” (Isaiah 40:8; 1 Peter 1:24,25).

Should We Be Loyal to a Bible Translation?

Thursday, January 12, 2012

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first: and I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest” (Exodus 34:1 KJV).

No autographs (original Bible manuscripts) exist today: these documents penned by God’s holy apostles and prophets are long gone (disintegrated through continued usage, deliberately destroyed, et cetera). Our link to the God-inspired autographs is apographs (manuscript copies). The Bibles we have today are based on manuscript copies (not the originals). Does that mean we do not have God’s Word today? NOT AT ALL.

Misinformed people (misled by “educated” seminarians) profess, “I owe my loyalty to the original Bible manuscripts, not to any one particular translation.” Utterly ridiculous—they owe loyalty to a non-entity (something that does not exist!)?!?

Indeed, the autographs were important (they contained the very words of God, first transcribed by God’s holy men; 2 Timothy 3:16). The problem is—the autographs do not exist anymore. Does that mean God’s Word is lost? GOD FORBID! Before the autographs were destroyed, God had saints copy them. God’s intention was to preserve the text of the autographs, not the autographs themselves.

Today’s Scripture provides an illustration of Bible preservation through copies. Moses had spent 40 days and 40 nights on Mount Sinai, communing with the LORD and receiving His commandments (Exodus 24:18). As Moses descended the mount, carrying the two stone tablets (the Ten Commandments), he observed Israel dancing naked around a golden calf idol (Exodus 32:19-25). In anger, Moses literally broke the tablets upon which the Ten Commandments were written.

What does today’s Scripture say? God would rewrite the stone tablets. According to God, the originals that Moses broke were not important. It was their text—their “words”—that was important.

One day, God will judge us using something we can read—an English Bible (specifically, the King James Bible). We can neither access nor read the original Greek and Hebrew Bibles (autographs). While we understand the autographs’ significance, we owe our loyalty to a copy of God’s Word that we can read and hold—the (English) King James Bible.

The Hebrew Bible

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

“And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me” (Luke 24:44 KJV).

In today’s Scripture, after His resurrection, the Lord Jesus Christ opens the minds of His apostles so that they understand what happened to Him on Calvary (His suffering, death, burial, and resurrection, as foretold by the Old Testament prophets; cf. Acts 8:26-35 and 1 Peter 1:10,11). Notice how He made specific reference to the organization of the Old Testament Scriptures.

The Hebrew Bible that exists today in Judaism is identical to the one of which Jesus spoke in today’s Scripture. Like in Jesus’ day, it is divided into three elements: “the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms.” Basically, it is the text of our Old Testament, just with combined books and a different book order. For instance, Chronicles is the last book in the Hebrew Bible, whereas the last book of our Old Testament is Malachi.

Moreover, there are 24 books in the Hebrew Bible compared to our 39 Old Testament books. (This is because 1&2 Samuel was originally one book; same with Kings and Chronicles.) (Ezra and Nehemiah comprise one book, not two like in our Old Testament.) (Hosea to Malachi is one giant book.)

These 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, as Jesus indicated, are divided into three sections:

  1. The Torah/the Law/Chumash—Moses’ five books of Genesis to Deuteronomy
  2. The Prophets/Nabum—Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the twelve minor prophets of Hosea to Malachi
  3. The Writings/Psalms/Kethubim—Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Solomon, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, Ezra-Nehemiah, and Chronicles

Notice how the above list correlates with today’s Scripture: “(1) in the law of Moses, and (2) in the prophets, and (3) in the psalms.” What is missing? The apocryphal books! According to Jesus Christ, and today’s Hebrew Bible, Rome’s seven to thirteen apocryphal books were never part of the Old Testament.

Unbelief, the Idiocy of Academia

Monday, November 14, 2011

“Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise” (1 Corinthians 3:18 KJV).

Of the ten major problems in Corinth, human viewpoint (wisdom) is the one that the Apostle Paul addresses in today’s Scripture. Understand that God is not anti-education: learning in and of itself is not evil. But, as the Holy Sprit through Paul teaches here, never expect to gain God’s wisdom by using human viewpoint (human intellect). Why?

Seminaries and Bible colleges are prestigious in man’s eyes, but God despises most of them because they are breeding grounds for unbelief. These institutions, where we would think faith in God’s Word would be encouraged, are oftentimes nothing more than glorified pagan temples that promote doubt in God’s Word! Furthermore, they emphasize the importance of the non-extant (non-existing) original Bible manuscripts instead of trusting the Bible’s existing manuscript copies.

For 2,000 years, heretical, educated minds have misled Christians, but Christians could retaliate by fleeing to the Bible’s doctrine. So, especially within the past 130 years, sinful academia (coupled with satanic influence) began to infiltrate the Bible itself! Bible scholars, “textual critics,” have emphasized scholarship and education to the extent that they have changed the Bible text! This is why Christendom has been deluged with nearly 200 modern “revised” (corrupted) English Bibles.

Textual critics believe that errors crept into the Bible over the centuries of its text’s transmission. Accordingly, they claim that God has commissioned them to “purify” His Word to its original readings. This is a blatant rejection of the promise that God would preserve His words perfectly forever (Psalm 12:6,7; Psalm 33:11; Psalm 100:5; Matthew 24:35; Mark 13:31; Luke 21:33; et al.). God can do (and has done) without these arrogant, Bible-correcting “scholars.”

“For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness. And again, The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain” (1 Corinthians 3:19,20).

Beloved, clutch your King James Bible tightly, and never let it go!

Oh That My Words Were Printed in a Book!

Sunday, November 6, 2011

“Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book! That they were graven with an iron pen and lead in the rock for ever!” (Job 19:23,24 KJV).

The book of Job is perhaps the world’s oldest book. Written over 3,500 years ago, its protagonist is a believing Jew who is humbled through a series of satanic attacks (Job 1:6–2:10). Job, rebuking his friends (or “miserable comforters;” Job 16:2), declares in today’s Scripture that he wishes his words “were printed in a book!” Job knew not that the Holy Ghost would make this come to pass.

God, in His omniscience (all-knowledge), selected these events of Job’s life to become the theme for one of the books within His Book, the Holy Bible. Jewish Job was patient and faithful during his satanic attacks. How he suffered, but he refused to curse God (Job 1:20-22; Job 2:9-12)—in fact, Job worshipped God during his suffering (Job 1:20)!

From the New Testament book of James, we learn why Job is part of God’s Word. “Take, my brethren, the prophets who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. Behold we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy” (James 5:10,11).

In the future, the believing remnant of Israel will have to endure suffering in the seven-year Tribulation. They need comfort and encouragement, so the books of Hebrews through Revelation address the period of time after the rapture (that is, the remainder of Israel’s prophetic program).

God preserved the words of Job in order to encourage Jews living 3,500 years in the future! WOW! James encourages the Tribulation Jewish believers to follow Job’s righteous example during suffering. Just as God brought Job through Satan’s attacks, so God will faithfully bring them through the Tribulation and into their kingdom.

This is just one proof that the doctrine of Bible preservation is necessary and forever.

Every Word of God

Thursday, August 11, 2011

“And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God” (Luke 4:4 KJV).

The prevailing argument in seminaries and Bible colleges is that God’s thoughts, not His very words, are important. Accordingly, many modern Bibles translate using dynamic equivalence: the translator is bound to convey the overall thought of the verse/passage, but he or she may add words to or remove words from the Bible text!! In the Bible we learn that God is interested in preserving His actual words, not just His thoughts.

The Bible says (Deuteronomy 8:3): “…man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.”  Our Lord Jesus Christ quoted this verse in Matthew 4:4 (and also today’s Scripture): “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”

Jesus Christ said: “…the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). He also said (Matthew 24:35): “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (cf. Mark 13:31; Luke 21:33).

Moses declared to Israel: “These are the words which the LORD hath commanded, that ye should do them” (Exodus 35:1). Joshua 24:26 says, “And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God….” The LORD commanded Israel to memorize and teach their children His “words” (Deuteronomy 6:6-9).

Proverbs 30:5 says: “Every word of God is pure….” We read in Psalm 12:6,7: “The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.” God promised to preserve His pure words forever.

Man lives by “every word of God.” We have “every word of God” preserved in the King James Bible, not in the inferior, depraved modern Bibles.

Autographs and Apographs

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

“And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written…” (Luke 4:16,17 KJV).

The original Bible manuscripts written by the prophets and apostles are non-extant today. Either by means of disintegration or intentional destruction, those autographs have disappeared. Today, there are 5,500-plus manuscript copies of those Greek New Testament autographs. Alas, theologians relegate these copies to an inferior position to the originals. Do manuscript copies (apographs) possess the same authority as the original manuscripts (autographs)?

In today’s Scripture, the Lord Jesus read from the scroll of Isaiah. Did Christ read from the original, 700-year-old document that Isaiah penned? In Acts 8:26-35 both Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch also read the scroll of Isaiah. Should we conclude that Christ and the Ethiopian eunuch shared the lone scroll of Isaiah? Preposterous! Both were manuscript copies.

Did Timothy’s family possess the original Old Testament Scriptures (2 Timothy 3:15-17)? Was Paul quoting from the original manuscripts of Isaiah and Hosea (Romans 9:25-29)?

Note that whenever Israel’s king would assume the throne, God instructed: “He shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites:… and he shall read therein all the days of his life…” (Deuteronomy 17:18-20). God instructed the king to study his copies, not the original manuscripts.

Psalm 12:6,7, Psalm 33:11, Matthew 24:35, and Mark 13:31 are but a few examples of God’s promise: “My words shall not pass away.” The Bible says that God has preserved His words. Undoubtedly, immediately after an autograph was completed, it was copied and distributed. Although the autographs and their first copies have disintegrated, their text is preserved today in subsequent apographs.

The original manuscripts have been gone for centuries. God’s words must exist today in manuscript copies. The autographs and apographs are equal.

Do You Have the Right Bible?

Saturday, June 4, 2011

“For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ” (2 Corinthians 2:17 KJV).

Today’s Scripture warns us to beware of MANY corrupt Bibles! In fact, early Christians were bewitched into accepting false bibles (2 Thessalonians 2:2). Satan seeks to deceive us by creating many false bibles. Thus, all of the 100-plus modern English Bibles are not equal in authority. Do you have the right Bible? How do you know?

Over 5300 Greek New Testament Bible manuscripts exist today. Most—the reliable Antiochian Traditional Text—support the King James Bible. The one percent of remaining manuscripts—the corrupt Alexandrian Critical Text—agrees with modern Bibles.

Modern Bibles attempt to remove Mark 16:9-20 and John 7:53-8:11 (480 words) from God’s Holy Scriptures. Mark 1:2 in modern Bibles incorrectly reads “Isaiah the prophet,” when in fact Mark 1:2,3 quote “the prophets” (Malachi 3:1 and Isaiah 40:3 just like the King James says). The clearest Trinitarian verse, 1 John 5:7, is absent from modern Bibles. Modern Bibles also omit Acts 8:37, Matthew 18:11, and Romans 16:24.

Modern Bibles eliminate “without a cause” from Matthew 5:22 to make Christ a sinner in Mark 3:5. Philippians 2:6 and 1 Timothy 3:16 in modern Bibles deny Christ’s deity. Modern Bibles leave out Mark 9:44,46, verses supporting everlasting hellfire. Books that contain mistakes are not God’s Word, for God’s Word is “pure” and “truth” (Proverbs 30:5,6; John 17:17).

The perfect King James Bible is based on the Textus Receptus, God’s preserved Word (New Testament) from Antioch, Syria (see Acts 11:26). The Textus Receptus (Latin for “received text”) has its roots in the apostles’ original manuscripts. Modern Bibles are based on a handful of corrupt manuscripts (chiefly, Codices Vaticanus and Sinaiticus).

God’s preserved Word for us as English-speaking people is the 1611 King James Bible. Avoid the modern Bibles, including NKJV, because they are spiritually unsafe. Modern Bibles question, dilute, and deny fundamental Christian doctrines.