PaulSacramento wrote:What is actually written? Samson actually needed long hair, Lots wife really turned to a pillar of salt, the tower of babel is a literal story.
If you believe in the supernatural, and the writers did, none of that is implausible.
How do you suppose ti was determined, btw, that the highest hills went under 15 cubits of water? Noah navigated to them, and took a sounding?
While some would argue that it was inspired writing, the view of those that take Genesis under the literary genre that it is, view it as a description of how massive the flood is RATHER than the literal and concrete measurment of the depth of the flood. We still use that literary device today.
Or battles inwhich an even number of thousands were killed. That cant be literally true.
so by what percent is it off? Is it still what actually happened if it is off by 50%?
The writers of the ancient world cared less for exact amounts and more about the impact the number had on their audience. We do that now too, very rarely are there exact number given in wars and disasters.
I doubt you think what is written is the bible is what actually happened either, we would merely vary by percents.
Actually, I believe that everything that was written happened.
That is a FAR CRY from saying that I agree with everyone's INTERPRETATION of what happened in the bible.
Nothing is impossible with assumed supernatural intervention. It doth of course betimes
lead down the rabbit hole of "embedded age" and other forms of militant stupidity.
A more respectful reading of the collected folk wisdom of a people might avoid such.
Not to get fooloshly technical, but you know good and well that having the highest hill
under 15 cubits of water , whether interpreted to mean Everest at present height, "flood"
height b4 it shot up, or some middle eastern hill, it is just a way of telling a story.
Going under by 15 cubits did not happen.
That plain statement in the bible is not true.
My take is that a thinking person will see that however read,
the bible is not affected; It is by varying amounts stating things
that are not accurate.
Personally, I think I read it with more real respect and understanding, seeing it as
a historical novel full of magic realism,than
is the case with those who read it as being about an actual god.
