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This blog is all about the the inspired Scriptures, which are the Word of God.  The devil is always seeking to undermine confidence in God's Word and here I provide evidence to bolster your faith in God's Word, as you take your stand against the evil one.

Jesus said, “The Scripture cannot be broken.” (Joh 10:35).

And the apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” (2Ti 3:16-17).

I hope this will be an encouragement to you in your walk with God.

The Scripture Must Be Fulfilled	The Conciseness of God	Pros and Cons of the NIV
God's Word Never Fails	Understanding the Gaps in Scripture	The Bible is the Word of God
Numerical Patterns in Scripture	Read the Bible for All Its Worth!	Oral Account of Creation from Adam to Abraham
Unidentified Descendant of Jacob Who Went to Egypt	The Uniqueness of God's Word	Bible Reading Plan
The NET Bible	Progressive Revelation	The Unity of the Bible
Who Was the Exodus Pharaoh?	Jacob Was 77 Years Old When He Married	Decreasing Lifespans of Biblical Characters
Significance of the Number 3 in the Bible

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.

Author's note:  You may also access my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master. 

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.

Unidentified Descendant of Jacob Who Went to Egypt

Jacob blesses Ephraim and Manasseh

Let's take a look at a very interesting passage found in Genesis, which initially appears to have an error or contradiction, but upon further examination, it reveals the miraculous involvement of God's hand in preserving His people Israel.

According to Gen 46:8, “These are the names of the sons of Israel (Jacob and his descendants) who went to Egypt.” If you count the names, you will arrive at a different number than the totals indicated at the end of the passage. It is off by one person. In order to reconcile this, we need to identify that person.

I suggest reading Genesis 46 before reading the rest of this article, since it will make more sense to you. Now let me explain the apparent discrepancies and the questions they raise.

Females Included?
You may be wondering if the females were counted or not, since the passage refers to these listed people as “the sons of Israel” (Gen 46:8). The designation of "sons" seems to exclude females. However, Asher’s daughter Serah is included in the biblical count of sixteen children born to Jacob by Zilpah (Gen 46:17). That makes it very clear that females were included.

The question of whether Dinah (daughter of Jacob) is counted requires a bit more explanation. She is listed as a direct descendant of Jacob, and at first glance, she does appear to be counted as one of the thirty-three sons and daughters of Jacob from Leah (Gen 46:15). But then if you count up only the male descendants of Leah, they come to thirty-three, which seems to agree with the count of thirty-three in verse 15. However, since Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan (Gen 46:12), they are not counted among those who “went to Egypt” with Jacob (Gen 46:8). Moreover, since verse 15 specifically states that the thirty-three descendants of Leah include both “sons and daughters of Jacob,” it is certain that Dinah was included. By adding Dinah to the count of those who “went to Egypt” with Jacob, the total of Leah’s descendants only comes to thirty-two, not the stated thirty-three! Who is the missing person? This is the missing piece of the puzzle, and the crux of this article, which I will come to in a moment.

Having proven from Scripture that both Serah and Dinah were included in the count, we know that females who were direct descendants of Jacob were certainly counted. Therefore, we can easily deduce that the counts in this passage included both male and female direct descendants of Jacob, who went to Egypt, even though the passage opens by describing them as “the sons of Israel who went to Egypt” (Gen 46:8). I have also proven that the missing person is a descendant of Jacob through Leah.

Seventy Names Listed?
The passage concludes by stating, “All those who went to Egypt with Jacob—those who were his direct descendants, not counting his sons’ wives—numbered sixty-six persons. With the two sons who had been born to Joseph in Egypt, the members of Jacob’s family, which went to Egypt, were seventy in all.” (Gen 46:26-27). This is one of three passages in the Old Testament, which states that seventy of Jacob's descendants went down to Egypt (cf., Ex 1:1,5; Deut 10:22). Let's look at the names listed in this passage:

1.    Reuben
2.    Hanok
3.    Pallu
4.    Hezron
5.    Karmi
6.    Simeon
7.    Jemuel
8.    Jamin
9.    Ohad
10.   Jakin
11.   Zohar
12.   Shaul
13.   Levi
14.   Gershon
15.   Kohath
16.   Merari
17.   Judah

Er (died in Canaan, not included in count)
Onan (died in Canaan, not included in count)

18.    Shelah
19.    Perez
20.    Zerah
21.    Hezron
22.    Hamul
23.    Issachar
24.    Tola
25.    Puah
26.    Jashub
27.    Shimron
28.    Zebulun
29.    Sered
30.    Elon
31.    Jahleel
32.    Dinah (daughter of Jacob)
33.    Gad
34.    Zephon
35.    Haggi
36.    Shuni
37.    Ezbon
38.    Eri
39.    Arodi
40.    Areli
41.    Asher
42.    Imnah
43.    Ishvah
44.    Ishvi
45.    Beriah
46.    Serah (sister)
47.    Heber
48.    Malkiel
49.    Benjamin
50.    Bela
51.    Beker
52.    Ashbel
53.    Gera
54.    Naaman
55.    Ehi
56.    Rosh
57.    Muppim
58.    Huppim
59.    Ard
60.    Dan
61.    Hushim
62.    Naphtali
63.    Jahziel
64.    Guni
65.    Jezer
66.    Shillem
67.    Joseph (already in Egypt)
68.    Manasseh (already in Egypt)
69.    Ephraim (already in Egypt)
70.    (Unidentified person)

As you can see, there are only sixty-nine names listed, and one seems to be unidentified, because there were supposed to be seventy, according to verse 27. Yet here are the total number of descendants reckoned to each of Jacob's wives in the passage:

Sons and Daughters from Leah = 33 (Gen 46:15)
Children from Zilpah = 16 (Gen 46:18)
Sons from Rachel = 14 (Gen 46:22)
Sons from Bilhah = 7 (Gen 46:25)
______________________
Subtotal = 70

Subtract Er and Onan (Leah’s descendants), who did not make it alive to Egypt = - 2
______________________
Subtotal = 68

Add Ephraim and Manasseh born in Egypt = 2
______________________
Total = 70

Who is the unidentified person that brings the total of Jacob's descendant's to seventy?

If you look at my subtotal above, the names of the direct descendants of Jacob who went to Egypt came to sixty-eight, before you add Ephraim and Manasseh. So why does verse 26 state “sixty-six persons,” when sixty-eight names are listed after omitting Er and Onan? If we remove only the name of Joseph, who is one of the sixty-eight names listed above in the passage, we arrive at the odd number of sixty-seven, not the sixty-six stated in verse 26. So who is the missing person that must be omitted to bring the number to sixty-six? This person would have to have been in Egypt already, and yet be a descendant of Jacob when he arrived there.

Riddle Solved
We arrive at the only possible answer to this when we more closely consider Asenath, Joseph’s wife, as a possible candidate for the missing person. While Scripture refers to her as “daughter of Potiphera, priest of On” (Gen 41:45; 46:20), could she have been a direct descendant of Jacob? Hebrew tradition held that she was born to Jacob’s daughter Dinah when Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite raped her (Gen 34:2). It was believed that an Egyptian priest adopted Dinah’s baby, similar to the way that Pharoah’s daughter adopted Moses.

While the versions of this legend do not agree with each other, and some versions contradict the Bible on certain details, one thing the various Hebrew versions have in common is that Asenath was the daughter of Dinah and Shechem. There is also a Christian version recorded in an apocryphal book that depicts Asenath as an orphan and Potiphera as her foster father. Of course, the basis for our faith must be the Word of God alone, not the traditions of men, so we cannot put our trust in traditions.

However, if there is any truth at all to these legends with regard to Asenath's true parents, and if the priest of On was merely her foster father, then it resolves two questions in Genesis 46. In addition to identifying the seventieth descendant of Jacob who went to Egypt in verse 27, it also solves the puzzle I mentioned in the previous section as to who the missing person is among the thirty-three “sons and daughters of Jacob” through Leah that went to Egypt. By subtracting Er and Onan from the list of thirty-three sons, and then adding Dinah and Asenath, we get the total of thirty-three “sons and daughters of Jacob” through Leah in verse 15. Who else besides Asenath could be the one missing person who meets all the criteria in both verses 15 and 27?

Furthermore, it cannot be that Asenath was merely included among the seventy people in verse 27 merely because she was Joseph’s wife, if she were not one of Jacob's descendants. Otherwise, Jacob’s wives and his son's wives would have also been listed. But they were explicitly excluded, according to verse 26. The count in Genesis 46 specifically includes only the male and female direct descendants of Jacob who went to Egypt.

Putting it All Together
Therefore, the sixty-six direct descendants of Jacob who went with him to Egypt did not include Joseph and his wife Asenath, along with their sons Ephraim and Manasseh, who were already in Egypt when he arrived. By adding these additional four people (pictured in the above illustration) to the other sixty-six, it brings the total to seventy people. This provides a strong case to substantiate the Hebrew belief that Asenath was one of Jacob’s direct descendant’s. It also proves that there is no error in this passage of Scripture.

Finally it shows the amazing providence of God, who preserved Asenath in Egypt, so that no member of Jacob’s family would be lost. God moved the heart of Pharaoh to give her to Joseph as his wife (Gen 41:45), when he promoted him to ruler of Egypt. Not only did it ensure that none of Jacob’s offspring was lost, it also enabled Joseph to marry within his family, thus fulfilling the strict orders that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had been given to marry within their own family, and not take a wife from among the Canaanites.

If Joseph had actually married a true Egyptian woman, then his sons Ephraim and Mannaseh, who were born to her, would not be legitimate heirs of the Promised Land. But they were in fact listed among the twelve tribes of Israel (Gen 48:5-6; Dt 34:2; Num 1:32-33; Rev 7:5-8), and Jacob blessed them and Joseph on his deathbed before he blessed his other eleven sons (Gen 48:9-22). And when the Israelites possessed the land of Canaan, Ephraim and Manasseh received their own territories as directed by Jacob and Moses (Josh 14:3-4). Truly God’s miraculous hand was involved in enabling Joseph to marry his niece.

[1] Graves, Robert & Patai, Raphael, Hebrew Myths (New York: Greenwich House, 1964), p. 237. See also Ginzberg, op. cit., II: 38.

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Painting of Jacob blessing Ephraim and Manasseh while Joseph and Manasseh look on is used here merely as an illustration for educational and commentary purposes only, according to the FAIR USE Act. No copyright violation intended.

Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, you may also like the other posts in this blog available through the Home page, such as The Bible is the Word of God, All Scripture must be fulfilled, and The Bible Never Fails. You may also access other articles on the Home page for this blog, as well as my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master."

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.

Numerical Patterns in Scripture

Throughout the Word of God we see amazing and supernatural patterns in the numbers.  We don’t focus on this most of the time, since that is not the purpose for reading the Bible. We are supposed to focus on the message itself. Nevertheless, these patterns do exist and they help our faith when we see them, because we know it would be impossible for them to exist apart from the Lord’s awesome design.

You see the Bible is actually a compilation of shorter books written over a period of about 1,600 years that were later assembled together in what we call the canon of Scripture. And when the forty men, whom the Lord inspired, wrote the original manuscripts, there were no chapter or verse numbers. These were added many centuries later.  So man did not intentionally create these patterns that I am about to show you, but God saw fit that it would happen that way.

In the Beginning
The Creation of all things by God in the beginning is recorded in Genesis 1:1 and reaffirmed in the New Testament in John 1:1; and 1 John 1:1, where we learn that the Word of God was with God in the beginning and actually was God. 

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” (Gen 1:1)

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (Joh 1:1)

“What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life…” (1 Jn 1:1)

Note that John also says, “All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being…And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (Joh 1:3,14).

Also see Is Jesus God?.

The Mark of the Beast - 666
In the Word we learn that the mark of the beast is either the name of the beast or the number of his name, which is 666, and that those who take the mark will not enter the kingdom of God.  We find some interesting verses bearing those numbers in Jn 6:66 and Is 66:6. But first let me give the explanation of the mark from the apostle John’s apocalypse.

“And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six.” (Rev 13:16-18)

“Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; they have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.’ Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.” (Rev 14:9-12)

Now take a look at what happened in John 6:66.

“As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore.” (Joh 6:66)

John 6:66 describes an apostasy during Jesus day when many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed Him.  We know that according to Paul’s second epistle to the Thessalonians, there will first be a great apostasy (defecting from the truth or falling away) among Christians before the man of lawlessness is revealed, whose number is 666 (Rev 13:18).

And the prophet Isaiah wrote about the sound of the Lord’s voice from His temple, as he takes vengeance on His enemies in Isaiah 66:6, which is in perfect harmony with what we have just read in Revelation about the punishment for those who take the mark of the beast -- 666.

“A voice of uproar from the city, a voice from the temple, the voice of the LORD who is rendering recompense to His enemies.” (Isa 66:6)

Now back to John’s gospel for a moment, and we see that Jesus explained to His family why His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore.

“The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil.” (Joh 7:7).

And from the context we observe that right before many of Jesus’ disciples walked away from Him, He had been teaching that unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. He said, "He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. This is the bread which came down out of heaven; not as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever." (Joh 6:53-58).  It was that teaching which caused many disciples to leave Him.

It certainly was not the twelve disciples who withdrew and stopped walking with Jesus, but it was many other disciples.  We know this because when those disciples withdrew from Him, Jesus said to the Twelve, "You do not want to go away also, do you?" Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. "We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God." (Joh 6:67-69)

One last verse I would like to point out in connection with 666 is Genesis 6:6.

“The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.” (Gen 6:6)

It says that in the days of Noah when the thoughts of all men were continually evil, the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, he regretted it, and it brought pain to His heart, because of all the evil deeds men were committing, which were taking them down to hell.  This too seems to fit right in with the number of man, who was created in the sixth day, which is the number six. And it also fits in with passage about the number of the beast, which is 666.

Also see The Mark of the Beast (666) and Drifting Away.

The Mark of God

In both Revelation 9:4 and Ezekiel 9:4, it speaks about the mark (or seal) of God to protect those who are God's people:

"They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads." (Rev 9:4)

"The LORD said to him, 'Go through the midst of the city, even through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst.'" (Eze 9:4)

The Punishment for Sin
In both Ezekiel 18:4 and Revelation 18:4, we find a warning about the punishment for sin.

The Lord told Ezekiel that the soul who sins will die.

"Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins will die.” (Eze 18:4)

The Lord explained that children would not die for the sins of their fathers, but for their own sins.  And the Lord revealed to the apostle John the need for separation from Babylon in order to avoid participating in her sins and receiving her plagues.

“I heard another voice from heaven, saying, ‘Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues.’”(Rev 18:4).

Also see Sins That Will Keep You From Heaven, Sin and Consequence, The Dangers of Disobedience, and Angelica Zambrano Hell and Heaven.

Delivered from the Bondage of Slavery
Both Exodus 6:6 and Romans 6:6 speak about deliverance of God’s people from bondage to slavery.

The Lord told Moses, “Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, 'I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.” (Exo 6:6)

The apostle Paul wrote about being delivered from slavery to sin when he said, “Knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin.” (Rom 6:6)

Also see my articles called, Having a Servant's Heart  and The Truth Set Me Free!

The Fruit of Repentance
Both Matthew 3:8 and Luke 3:8 speak of the need to bear the fruit of repentance.

"Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance." (Mat 3:8)

"Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our father,' for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham." (Luk 3:8).

Also see my article called, Repentance That Leads to Life.

He Laid Down His Life in Love
We learn from the 3:16 verse in John’s gospel and his epistle that God in His great love for the world gave His only begotten Son, who laid down His life for us in love. That’s in John 3:16 and 1 John 3:16.

“"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (Joh 3:16)

“We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” (1Jn 3:16).

Also see The Sacrifices of God and The Love of Jesus.

The Love Chapters

Most people who read their Bibles should be familiar with the love chapter in Paul the apostle's epistle to the Corinthians. First Corinthians chapter 13 is the famous love chapter, since almost every single one of its 13 verses is about love. Here is a sample you're probably familiar with:

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails." (1 Cor 13:4-8).

But did you know that John 13 is the other love chapter in the Bible? Most of the chapter is about love and how Jesus showed the full extent of his love to His disciples by washing their feet. Here are some excerpts:

"Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love." (Jn 13:1b).

"One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him." (Jn 13:23).

"“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (Jn 13:34-35).

So it's not just a coincidence that both John 13 and 1 Corinthians 13 are about love and that 1 Corinthians 13 has a total of 13 verses.

The New Covenant
The New Covenant is cited in both Jeremiah 31:31 and Hebrews 8:8.

“’Behold, days are coming," declares the LORD, ‘when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah,’ (Jer 31:31)

“For finding fault with them, He says, ‘Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, when I will effect a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah;” (Heb 8:8)

What a rare coincidence that both the chapter and verse numbers match in the Old Testament reference to the New Covenant (31:31), and they also match in the New Testament reference to the New Covenant (8:8). Both passages from Jeremiah and Hebrews refer to the New Covenant in Jesus' blood, which God in His love is inviting you to enter into.

Also see The New Covenant and Law of Love in the New Testament.

No Condemnation
In both John 8:1-11 and Romans 8:1-11, we learn that there is no condemnation for the repentant soul who walks by the Spirit and not according to the sinful nature.

“But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people were coming to Him; and He sat down and began to teach them. The scribes and the Pharisees *brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the center of the court, they *said to Him, "Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. "Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?" They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground. But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court. Straightening up, Jesus said to her, "Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?" She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said, "I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more."] (Joh 8:1-11)

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. But the Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh; so that the righteousness of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For they who are according to the flesh mind the things of flesh, but they who are according to the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace because the carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the Law of God, neither indeed can it be. So then they who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone has not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His. And if Christ is in you, indeed the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of the One who raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the One who raised up Christ from the dead shall also make your mortal bodies alive by His Spirit who dwells in you.” (Rom 8:1-11, MKJV).

Also see The Beauty of Brokenness, By Grace Alone and Keeping Power of God.

Prayer Promises About Asking
The Lord Jesus promised us that we would receive whatever we ask for in prayer, and these are recorded in Matthew 7:7; Luke 11:11; John 14:14; and Matthew 21: 21.

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Mat 7:7)

“’Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he?’” (Luk 11:11)

"If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.”  (Joh 14:14)

“And Jesus answered and said to them, "Truly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' it will happen.’” (Mat 21:21)

If you look at the verse immediately after Mat 21:21, the Lord said, "And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive." (Mat 21:22)

Another interesting aspect about this promise is not only that the chapter and verse references are 7:7, 11:11, 14:14, and 21:21, but that in the English language, the Lord’s promise in Matthew 7:7 creates an acronym for the Word “ASK”:

Ask, and it will be given to you.
Seek, and you will find.
Knock, and it will be opened to you.

Let that encourage you and build your faith! Also see Prayer Promises.

This is That
In Acts 2 when the disciples were all baptized in the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, the apostle Peter explained that this was that which the Lord prophesied through the prophet Joel. The passage quoted by Peter in Acts 2 is written in Joel 2.

“But Peter, taking his stand with the eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: ‘Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give heed to my words. For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day; but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel: “And it shall be in the last days,” God says, “that I will pour forth of My spirit on all mankind; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on My bondslaves, both men and women, I will in those days pour forth of My spirit And they shall prophesy. And I will grant wonders in the sky above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke. Te sun will be turned into darkness and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious day of the Lord shall come. And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the lord will be saved.'” (Act 2:14-21)

"It will come about after this That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and daughters will prophesy, Your old men will dream dreams, Your young men will see visions. Even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth, Blood, fire and columns of smoke. The sun will be turned into darkness And the moon into blood Before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the LORD Will be delivered; For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem There will be those who escape, As the LORD has said, Even among the survivors whom the LORD calls." (Joe 2:28-32).

Also see Baptized with the Spirit and Holy Fire Baptism.

Keeping the Sabbath Holy
In both Exodus 20:8 and Ac 20:8, the context is about keeping the Lord’s Day holy.

The Lord told Moses when He gave him the Ten Commandments, "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” (Exo 20:8).

And in the early Church, they gathered on the first day of the week for worship services. Luke recorded in the book of Acts: “(7) On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul began talking to them, intending to leave the next day, and he prolonged his message until midnight. (8) There were many lamps in the upper room where we were gathered together.” (Act 20:7,8).

Moreover, it is in Jn 20:8 that we read about the apostles discovering the empty tomb on the first day of the week.  "So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed." (Jn 20:8).  However, on that particular morning, they did not gather for worship due to the fact that they did not yet understand what was happening. John says in the next two verses, "For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. So the disciples went away again to their own homes." (Joh 20:9-10).  Therefore, it wasn't until later that night, after the Lord's appearances to them, that they were gathered together on the first day of the week, and the Lord came and stood in their midst (Jn 20:19).

Another interesting side note is that the Sabbath is spoken about in the Synoptic Gospels in Matthew 12, Mark 2, and Luke 6.  In these chapters, we learn about the heart of the Lord of the Sabbath, Jesus Christ.  It’s lawful to do good on the Sabbath, and we don’t observe it in the Jewish way, but we must keep it holy in honor of the Lord who rose on the first day of the week. And the chapter numbers twelve, two, and six do have a correlation with each other, since twelve divided by two equals six. Remember that God said, “Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you.” (Exo 20:9-10)

Also see Keeping Sundays Holy - Part I and Keeping Sundays Holy - Part II.

Tithing
In both Proverbs 3:10 and Malachi 3:10, we learn about the overflowing blessings that come to those who practice tithing.

“9 Honor the LORD from your wealth And from the first of all your produce; 10 So your barns will be filled with plenty And your vats will overflow with new wine.” (Pro 3:9-10)

“’Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,’ says the LORD of hosts, ‘if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.’” (Mal 3:10)

It's interesting that these verses about the overflow from giving the tithe, which means "tenth", are found in the tenth verse of these two chapters. Be sure you are giving God the whole tithe, which is the entire first ten percent of all your income, because the tithe belongs to the Lord. If you are not doing so, He considers it stealing from Him (Mal 3:8). Whatever you give above ten percent is considered offerings.

Also see Is Tithing Required for Christians? and Where Should You Give Your Tithe? 

Marriage is for Life
The apostle Paul speaks about the lifelong nature of marriage in the seventh chapters of his epistles to both the Romans and the Corinthians, and it just so happens that the seventh commandment is "Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery",

"Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives? For the married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living; but if her husband dies, she is released from the law concerning the husband. So then, if while her husband is living she is joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is not an adulteress though she is joined to another man." (Rom 7:1-3)

"A wife is bound as long as her husband lives; but if her husband is dead, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord." (1Co 7:39)

Also see Divorce -- Three Divine Revelations.

Three-and-a-Half years
We learn about the final three-and-a-half years in the twelfth chapters of Daniel and Revelation. That’s in Daniel 12:7 and Revelation 12:14.

“I heard the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, as he raised his right hand and his left toward heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and half a time; and as soon as they finish shattering the power of the holy people, all these events will be completed.” (Dan 12:7)

“But the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, so that she could fly into the wilderness to her place, where she was nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent.” (Rev 12:14)

Please get ready for the Lord's return, so that you are not left behind when the rapture happens. He is coming back right away, but He is only coming for the holy ones. Also see Rapture Revelation to Angelica Zambrano.

God Renders to Each Man According to His Deeds
In the twelfth verses of three different chapters in the Bible, we learn that God renders to each man according to his deeds. This is found in Psalm 62:12; Proverb 24:12; and Revelation 22:12.

“And lovingkindness is Yours, O Lord, For You recompense a man according to his work.” (Psa 62:12)

“If you say, "See, we did not know this," Does He not consider it who weighs the hearts? And does He not know it who keeps your soul? And will He not render to man according to his work?” (Pro 24:12)

“Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done.” (Rev 22:12)

Also see Righteous Deeds and White Robes, The Judgment Seat of Christ, and Your Rewards Are Based on Your Practice.

Forever and Eternity

We know that the number eight stands for infinity or eternity. In fact, the common symbol for infinity, ∞, which was invented by the English mathematician John Wallis in 1655, is a sideways numeral eight. Coincidentally the number of the name "Jesus", who is God over all forever praised (Rom 9:5), is 888.  That is the numerical value of the letters J-E-S-U-S. He says of Himself, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End." (Rev 22:13). He is also a high priest forever in the order of Melchizedek (Heb 6:19-20), without beginning or end, as the Scripture says of Melchizedek, "Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever." (Heb 7:3)

Also see Eternal Destinations and The High Priest as a Type of Christ and Is Jesus God?

More Coincidences in Revelation
The first chapter of Revelation describes Jesus as the First and the Living One. The second chapter mentions the second death. The third chapter contains messages from Jesus to three of the seven churches. The fourth chapter describes the four living creatures around the throne of God.  It also describes the twenty-four elders, divisible by four. The sixth chapter describes only the first six of the seven seals. The twelfth chapter describes the crown of twelve stars on a woman clothed with the sun. The fourteenth chapter describes the 144,000.  One and four are the first two numbers of fourteen and 144,000. The seventeenth chapter speaks of seventeen kings represented by the seven heads and ten horns of the scarlet beast covered with blasphemous names (Rev 17:3,10, 12).

Moreover, the 666th Greek word in the book of Revelation is in chapter two verse ten, which speaks about the devil, while the 888th Greek word is in chapter two verse eighteen, which speaks about Jesus the Son of God. The 666th Greek word mellei (μέλλει) used in Rev 2:10 means "is about to", referring to what the devil is about to do to some of the saints in the Church in Smyrna, namely to cast them into prison for ten days, so that they may be tested. The 888th Greek word homoioi (ὅμοιοι) used in Rev 2:18 means "like", referring to Jesus' feet being like burnished bronze. As I've already mentioned, 666 is the number of the beast's name, who is the devil's antichrist, and 888 is the number of Jesus' name.

Sixty-six Books and Sixty-six Chapters
There are sixty-six books in the Bible, thirty-nine in the Old Testament and twenty-seven in the New Testament.  There is an amazingly similar pattern found in the book of Isaiah the prophet, which contains sixty-six chapters.  Interestingly the first thirty-nine chapters of Isaiah reflect the same tone and message as the first thirty-nine books of the Bible! Likewise, the last twenty-seven chapters of Isaiah reflect the tone and message of the gospel recorded in the twenty-seven books of the New Testament. In the first thirty-nine chapters of Isaiah, one main theme is God’s judgment against sin.  In the final twenty-seven chapters, there is the hope of redemption and forgiveness.

Isaiah begins the last twenty-seven chapters of that book in chapter 40 with these words:

"Comfort, O comfort My people," says your God. "Speak kindly to Jerusalem; And call out to her, that her warfare has ended, That her iniquity has been removed, That she has received of the LORD'S hand Double for all her sins." A voice is calling, "Clear the way for the LORD in the wilderness; Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God.” (Isa 40:1-3)

And Mark’s gospel begins with these words:

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: "Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way; the voice of one crying in the wilderness, 'Make ready the way of the Lord, make His paths straight.'" (Mar 1:1-3).

So when Mark began his gospel, he called it “the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God,” quoting in Mark 1:3 from Isaiah 40:3. This gives further support to the fact that Isaiah 40 is the beginning of the gospel message found in the final twenty-seven chapters of that book. Also see The Bible is the Word of God.

Atomic Numbers That Match Verse Numbers

Seven months before I wrote this 2015 article, I had a dream back on December 5, 2014. In that dream, an old friend of mine, a brother in Christ who had passed on into glory some time prior to the dream, appeared to me. His name was Emile Vaillaincourt, and during his lifetime, the Lord had used him in the gift of prophecy.

In my dream, I was sitting down with my Bible open on a table to Rev 2:26-27 and Emile walked up, pointed at those verses and said, “That’s the number of iron.”  In the dream, when he said that, I immediately knew what it meant. I was amazed at how perfect the Word of God is that even the details like that all line up.  The verses say, “To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations—that one ‘will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery’—just as I have received authority from my Father.”  I had not been reading Revelation recently.

I looked up the atomic number for iron and discovered that it is 26 just as the verses are 26-27! I never knew this or ever thought about it.  I also discovered that the atomic number 27 is the one for cobalt, which is a brittle, hard, silver-grey transition metal with magnetic properties similar to those of iron.  I never even gave a thought before to the atomic numbers of iron or cobalt, or their magnetic properties.  But now I discovered they are both magnets. And Emile was into using magnets for health purposes, when he was still alive on earth.

One other interesting fact is that cobalt compounds have been used for centuries to impart a rich blue color to glass, glazes and ceramics, such as you see on expensive Chinaware.  The fact that it is used in ceramics is also interesting, since pottery is referenced in Rev 2:27.  So if you consider this verse from a chemical elemental perspective, you have a reference to an iron scepter (atomic number 26) striking pottery that is sometimes colored with cobalt blue (atomic number 27).

Putting it All Together
There is unity of Scripture throughout the entire Bible, even though we understand that it was written by forty different inspired men in different settings over a period of about 1,600 years. And we see these amazing patterns that are like divine fingerprints left on his Word, or His "voiceprint" if you will.  They confirm to us that this is no ordinary book, but the very Word of God.

We cannot isolate one part of the Bible for ourselves as the part we accept and not listen to the rest. We must obey the whole Bible.  For “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” (2Ti 3:16-17). From Genesis to Revelation, it is all the inerrant, infallible, inspired, wonderful Word of God.

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB, unless otherwise noted.  Photo of Bible showing chapter and verse divisions is by John Snyder (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons. 

Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, you may also like the other posts in this blog available through the links in the Home page, such as Significance of the Number 3 in the Bible, Numerical Coincidence Confirms Rapture, The Unity of the Bible, All Scripture must be fulfilled, The Bible is the Word of God, and The Bible Never Fails. Also see The 311 Moment, The Mark of the Beast (666), Resting from Work, Keeping Sundays Holy - Part I, Keeping Sundays Holy - Part II, Christian Sabbath is Sunday, not Saturday, and Famous Christian Sabbath Observers. You may also access my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master."

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.

God's Word Never Fails

Can we trust the Bible? Today there are plenty of people who would ask that question, so it's important to give a correct answer.

You see, if we question the infallibility of the Bible, that can give us an opportunity to excuse sinful behavior. In other words, it can lead to disobedience to God.

I personally believe the Bible is definitely infallible. God’s Word never fails. Let’s explore why I think so, as well as what infallibility means, and what it does not mean.

Scriptural Witness
First of all, the Scripture itself tells us that God’s Word is infallible. We learn from Scripture that God cannot lie, and that God inspired all Scripture.

The apostle Paul wrote to Titus, “in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago.” (Tit 1:2) Just as the writer of Hebrews taught (Hebrews 6:18), so also Paul taught that it is impossible for God to lie.

Other passages refer to the purity of God’s Word. The psalmist wrote: “Your word is very pure, Therefore Your servant loves it.” (Psa 119:140). And again, “The words of the LORD are pure words; As silver tried in a furnace on the earth, refined seven times.” (Psa 12:6). Another passage says, “The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.” (Psa 19:7-8). My friend, you can trust God’s Word to be pure and undefiled.

So what is the Word? We know that Jesus is the Word of God, according to the apostle John. He began his gospel with the statement, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (Joh 1:1). This entire passage is clearly about Jesus Christ. He also taught, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (Joh 1:14). Therefore, the Word is a Person, named Jesus Christ, who is God.

But we also know that there is the written Word of God. Paul wrote to the Romans “the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God.” (Rom 3:2). When Jesus spoke to the Jewish, religious leaders of his day, He said, “thus invalidating the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that." (Mar 7:13). He said that they made the Word of God null and void by their traditions that they placed above Scripture.

Jesus often referred to the written Word of God as Scripture. For example, when he read from the sixty-first chapter of Isaiah, he said, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." (Luk 4:21).

The Word of God was also the message that Jesus proclaimed. “Now it happened that while the crowd was pressing around Him and listening to the word of God, He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret.” (Luk 5:1). They were listening to the Word of God that was spoken by Jesus.

The good news of Jesus Christ was also considered the Word of God and was proclaimed by the early church. Luke wrote about them, “And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.” (Act 4:31). The apostles refused to neglect the Word of God. And as a result, “The word of God kept on spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith.” (Act 6:7).

Paul preached the Word of God. He said, “Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God.” (Col 1:25). He also wrote to the church in Thessalonica and said, "when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God." (1 Thes 2:13).

The apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.” (2Ti 3:16). While men wrote the Scriptures, we know that God inspired what they wrote. This includes the writings of the New Testament, such as those of the apostle Paul, who wrote thirteen of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament. The apostle Peter referred to Paul’s writings as Scriptures. He wrote, “… just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.” (2Pe 3:15-16). When Peter indicated that some people distorted Paul’s letters as they did “the rest of the Scriptures,” he indicated that Paul’s letters are themselves Scripture.

Jesus and the apostles used the Old Testament in a way that assumed it is inerrant. Jesus taught that every tiny detail of the Law must be fulfilled. "For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” (Mat 5:18) In order for every stroke of Scripture to be fulfilled, it would have to be correct down to that level of detail. Paul assumed that when he wrote to the Galatians about the promise given to Abraham and Christ. He wrote, “Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, "And to seeds," as referring to many, but rather to one, "And to your seed," that is, Christ.” (Gal 3:16). Notice how Paul trusted the Word of God right down to the detailed level, even to the point of whether a word is singular or plural. We should have that same trust in God’s Word.

There is so much more I could write about the witness of scripture about itself as God’s Word. But this is enough to establish my point. All Scripture is God’s Word. He inspired it all. And since God cannot lie, the Word of God is true.

What infallibility does not mean
I’ve established what I mean by infallibility. Now I’d like to clarify that by saying what it does not mean. The autographs were the original sacred writings, written by the authors, as God inspired them. These were inerrant. But the manuscript copies of those original autographs are not perfect. Infallibility exists only in original manuscripts, and not the copies or translations.

There are instances where scribes have made mistakes in the way they copied the manuscripts. So there is the potential for error in these copies. And the same applies to modern translations, since these are based on manuscript copies. That’s why scholarly translation committees will take this into account and try to use the most reliable manuscripts on which to base their translation. Most of the errors that were made by scribes are not show stoppers. These don’t affect any major doctrines of the faith, so we don’t need to be worried about that. To that end, I think we can view most of the scholarly, modern translations (such as the NIV) as a faithful rendering of the original meaning of God’s Word to the extent that it is necessary for our daily walk with God.

In addition to that, the infallibility of the Bible doesn’t mean there are no errors in the Bible. Here’s what I mean. Not every statement made in the Bible is true. Some people are quoted in Scripture as saying things that are absolutely false. But these false statements are recorded accurately. For example, when Satan is quoted in Scripture, he is quoted accurately, even though we know he is a liar, according to Jesus. Likewise, when the enemies of Christ spoke lies about Jesus, they are quoted accurately, even though their statements were false. So I am not saying everything recorded in Scripture is true, but that God’s Word is completely accurate.

You also need to understand that when I say the Bible is accurate, I don’t mean exact. Sometimes approximations are given for the number of people present or someone’s age. These are not critical and are close enough for us to get the main point. When the Bible says Jesus fed five thousand men, it’s not an exact head count. There were about that many men. And to that you need to add the women and children. But it gives you a correct order of magnitude, so that you know he did not simply feed fifty or a hundred people.

We also find that the quotes of Old Testament passages that we find in the New Testament are not necessarily exact. They may be more of paraphrase. But it is close enough for us to know which passage they were referring to.

And when there is more than one record of the same event, the details may differ. The two witnesses of an event may give slightly different accounts. That’s why you may find slightly different accounts of how things happened, depending on which of the four gospels you read. Four different men wrote them. But the differences are not critical to our understanding of the essential doctrines of the faith.

We see this also in the Old Testament. In one record, it says that God incited King David to take a census count of Israel and Judah. Another record says Satan incited David to do it. One account says, “Again the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He incited David against them, saying, ‘Go and take a census of Israel and Judah.’” (2 Sa 24:1). Yet another account says, “Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel.” (1 Chron 21:1). Which was it, God or Satan? You could get hung up on this. Or you could understand that it was God’s idea and He used Satan to carry out the work.

This understanding would agree with what we read in Job, for example. There we read, “Then Satan answered the LORD, ‘Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But put forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.’ Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand on him.’ So Satan departed from the presence of the LORD.” (Job 1:9-12) In the case of Job, the thought is from God, but the action from Satan. God allowed Satan to carry out an evil plan against His righteous servant, Job. Satan was given permission to act within very specific boundaries.

Then there is the passage where it is recorded that David killed the giant named Goliath (1 Samuel 17:4). Yet in another passage, it is written, “There was war with the Philistines again at Gob, and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim the Bethlehemite killed Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver's beam.” (2Sa 21:19). So in this second passage, it says Elhanan killed Goliath. Which man killed Goliath? Was it David or Elhanan? If you read Chronicles, which is a parallel account of the books of Samuel, it says, “And there was war with the Philistines again, and Elhanan the son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver's beam.” (1Ch 20:5). So it is only when we read this third account that we understand Elhanan did not kill Goliath, but the brother of Goliath. It appears that when the scribe was copying the manuscript of 2 Samuel 21:19, he made a mistake. He left out the words for “brother of,” and simply wrote Goliath. This is a simple mistake that would be easy to make, and it does not affect any major doctrine.

Jesus once presented a parable saying, "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; and this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that THE BIRDS OF THE AIR come and NEST IN ITS BRANCHES." (Mat 13:31-32).

Someone may point out that Jesus said the mustard seed is the smallest garden seed, yet it’s not the smallest seed. You might say the poppy seed is slightly smaller. Based on that fact, a person without faith may challenge the infallibility of God’s Word. He may wonder why Jesus Christ, who made the universe, does not know which seed is the smallest. But here’s another way to look at this with the eyes of faith. Most of the people Jesus was speaking to would not be familiar with the poppy seed. So Jesus used an illustration that everyone would be familiar with instead. Besides, it gave a better picture of the kingdom of God than a poppy seed, because of the contrast between the size of the mustard seed and the tree that it produces. This was a more fitting analogy of the kingdom of God, which starts small at the beginning and grows to be very large, a place where many can find refuge.

What is not the Word of God?
I just want to mention that there are some books of questionable authenticity, known as the Apocrypha, which are included in some Bibles. For example, the Catholic Bible contains these. It's important to note that these books are spurious. They include such books as Tobit, Judith, The Additions to the Book of Esther (contained in the Greek version of Esther), The Wisdom of Solomon, Ecclesiasticus, or the Wisdom of Jesus son of Sirach, Baruch, The Letter of Jeremiah, The Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Jews, Susanna, Bel and the Dragon, 1 Maccabees, 2 Maccabees, 1 Esdras, The Prayer of Manasseh, 2 Esdras, 3 Maccabees, 4 Maccabees, and Psalm 151.

The authors of these books never claimed to be inspired by God, nor were they ever cited by Christ or the apostles. There are many other reasons why these cannot be accepted as part of the canon of Scripture. But I simply want to make it clear that I am definitely not referring to these books when I use the terms "Bible," "Scripture," or "Word of God."

A word of caution
You should be careful not to jump to hasty conclusions about the Word of God, trying to find fault with it. You can get yourself into trouble doing that.

I saw an excellent video that illustrates this. A man is driving a concrete mixer truck down the street. He’s on his way home from work. He glances down and smiles at a photo of his lovely wife on the dashboard. He’s looking forward to seeing her when he gets home. But as he pulls up in front of the house, he sees a brand new, blue Mercedes convertible parked in his driveway. Unfortunately, he immediately gets suspicious of her.

He stops the truck, walks over to the window of the house, and is shocked by what he sees. Inside he sees a handsome man, dressed in a suit, hugging his wife. He is now certain that she is cheating on him. Assuming that the new sports car belongs to the man he saw embracing his wife, he backs his concrete mixer truck right into the car, denting the shiny vehicle. Then he proceeds to dump fresh, wet cement into the car.

As he is doing so, he looks into the house through the curtain once again. His wife notices him watching and is all excited to see him. She has nothing to hide, but waves her hand, beckoning him in. Then the handsome man that was hugging her stands beside her for a photo in front of the cameras. It is now obvious that his wife has just won a brand new car, and the sponsor of the prize is presenting the keys to her.

As the realization hits the husband that the car belonged to his wife and she was not cheating on him, he is mortified. But it’s too late. The car is filled to the top with cement! It’s ruined permanently. And all this was because he jumped to hasty conclusions. He didn’t trust his wife or think the best of her.

The same thing can happen when you read the Bible with an eye out for errors. If you assume the Bible is not true, then you may come up with reasons to support your assumption. But that’s a faulty starting point that will lead to dangerous consequences! You would be sorry in the end that you did that, just as the man who dumped concrete in his wife’s new car.

Putting it All Together
We know that God cannot lie, and that He inspired all Scripture. That includes both the Old and New Testament Scriptures. His Word is pure and without defilement. The Bible is infallible.

Jesus and the apostles used Scripture in a way that indicated they believed it was without error. All Scripture must be fulfilled, right down to the smallest detail!

But infallibility exists only in original manuscripts, and not the copies or translations. Even so, the errors in the manuscripts and modern translations are so minor that most of them cannot even be detected in the modern languages.

When you do see an inconsistency in the Bible, you should always start with the assumption that there is a good explanation for it. How you handle inconsistencies in the Bible depends on whether you trust the Lord and His Word. Your ability to harmonize Scripture depends on your faith.

If you believe that God inspired all Scripture, and that it is impossible for God to lie, you will not stumble over these things. The writer of Hebrews taught that those who did not mix the Word with faith disobeyed God. “For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard.” (Heb 4:2). He goes on to say that they failed to enter their rest, because if their disobedience (Heb 4:6). And he warns us not to follow their example of disobedience. So always begin with an attitude of faith, trusting in the Word of God, Jesus Christ and the Scriptures.

Jesus is the stone that the Father has laid, and upon which the church is built. But he was a stone of stumbling for those who don’t believe (Rom 9:32-33). I hope that you will not stumble over Him.

Lastly, when you read the Scripture, you cannot understand it apart from the help of the Holy Spirit. If you try to, you will simply find the letter of the law. Keep in mind that the Spirit gives life, but the letter kills (2 Cor 3:6). Always pray before you read the Bible, humbling yourself before God, asking for Him to speak to you. Allow the Holy Spirit to show you what the Spirit was saying in the original passage. Look for the spirit of the Word, the heart of God, and the intent of what He meant. If you do, you will see that the Word of God is true, and it never fails.

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. 

Author's note: This post was adapted from a message I recently heard preached at a church in Budapest, Hungary. If you enjoyed this post, you may also like the other posts in this blog available through the Home page, such as The Bible is the Word of God, Read the Bible for All Its Worth!, All Scripture must be fulfilled, The Uniqueness of God's Word, and The Bible Never Fails. I also invite you to take a look at my collection of blogs at Writing for the Master.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.