Frequent Questions
3,723 questions
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What are the similarities and differences between the Genesis creation account and other creation stories of the time [closed]
(Operating under the assumption that Genesis was authored by Moses, and its intent is a polemic against other origin stories and their view of the deity at the time).
The Enûma Eliš is said to have ...
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What did Jesus likely say in John 8:58?
In John 8:58, the author quotes Jesus:
. ..πρὶν Ἀβραὰμ γενέσθαι ἐγὼ εἰμί (NA28)
...before Abraham was, I am (ESV)
Many have understood this as a claim to divinity, and some translations render all ...
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What are the arguments in favor of Markan priority?
The synoptic problem refers to scholars' attempts to understand the relationship among the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke (known as the synoptic gospels because they have so much material in ...
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Why did Jesus say, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
"Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" (Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34) appears to be a quote from Tehillim 22.2.
Was Jesus saying G-D had forsaken him?
Or was he merely quoting from Tehillim (Psalms) 22.2 (as an ...
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What language did Jesus commonly speak?
According to Mark 15:34 (ESV):
And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Jesus spoke Aramaic in ...
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What are the arguments in favor of Matthean Priority?
Closely Related:
- What are the arguments in favor of Markan priority?
- What are the arguments against Marcan Priority?
The synoptic problem refers to scholars' attempts to understand the ...
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Does John 21:24-25 indicate John didn't write this Gospel?
The below 2 verses in the Gospel of John seem to indicate that "John" was not the true author of this Gospel.
This intertextual proof seems to indicate that it was him because of the usage of ...
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In John 1:1c, should the Greek word θεὸς be translated into English as “a god” or “God”?
The New World Translation, the official Bible version of the Watchtower/Jehovah’s Witnesses, translates John 1:1 into English as follows:
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, ...
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Who were the "sons of God" (bene elohim) in Genesis 6:2?
Genesis 6:1-2 (ESV emphasis mine):
When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as ...
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Why is Elohim translated as God rather than gods in Genesis 1:1?
I mean Elohim is a plural form of God. So the correct translation would be gods.
Now, perhaps the word elohim is followed by singular words and hence the word Elohim must mean plural.
So what? That ...
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How should Psalm 22:16 read?
Psalm 22:16 seems textually quite difficult. The NET for example reads:
Yes, wild dogs surround me –
a gang of evil men crowd around me;
like a lion they pin my hands and feet.
Yet, they note that ...
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What is the difference between exegesis and hermeneutics?
What is the difference between exegesis and hermeneutics? Are they the same, is there overlap, or does one pick up where the other leaves off?
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What does it mean to be "born of water"?
In John 3:5, Jesus tells Nicodemus that to enter the kingdom one must be "born of water and the Spirit". How is this phrase understood? Is it a single construct (i.e. one birth of both water and ...
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What are the arguments against Marcan Priority?
Closely Related:
- What are the arguments in favor of Markan priority?
- What are the arguments in favor of Matthean Priority?
What are the objections against Marcan Priority?
Wikipedia, Marcan ...
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Tetelestai - What did Jesus really say in John 19:30 assuming he spoke Aramaic or Hebrew?
I have been researching for a long time John 19:30, more specifically the word Tetelestai (τετελεσται) in the Greek. But recently came across the topic of the Hebrew Gospels (possible late ...
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