24
votes
How do those who hold to a literal interpretation of the flood account respond to the criticism that Noah building the ark would be unfeasible?
Well.
Turns out a bunch of Christians "put their money where their mouths are" and actually built the thing. I'd say that pretty well puts to rest any ridiculous claims about it being "...
- 10.1k
19
votes
How do those who hold to a literal interpretation of the flood account respond to the criticism that Noah building the ark would be unfeasible?
If you don't accept the underlying premise of this story that there is a God who interacts with his creation and is perfectly capable of doing things that would naturally be impossible (i.e. what we ...
- 339
9
votes
How do those who hold to a literal interpretation of the flood account respond to the criticism that Noah building the ark would be unfeasible?
With respect to the narrow claim of feasibility, I was surprised recently to learn about the existence of Russian disposable timber ships. Wikipedia says that a belyana could be up to 390 ft long. ...
- 623
4
votes
Accepted
How do literalists envision the size of New Jerusalem?
The Bible says that God will create a new heaven and a new earth and that the New Jerusalem will descend from God to the new earth (Revelation 21:1-2), the eternal dwelling place for all believers, ...
- 33k
4
votes
To the YEC, did God make a single male/female pair of each kind of animal?
The Answer is A. The question is very good, but a lot of people are not familiar with the phrase - YEC [It should be explained ] and it also should be noted that many who hold this view do not use or ...
- 569
4
votes
Did Satan physically and literally fall from Heaven or Sky?
Fall of Satan I did my college thesis on the Fall of Satan, because it is important in establishing the Lordship of Christ over the world in the Kingdom of God! You picked a good topic.
First, the ...
- 2,550
4
votes
Accepted
Did Satan physically and literally fall from Heaven or Sky?
First, let's clarify what the Bible means by "heaven" which has 2 senses:
Part of the universe (the "sky"), usually denoted in the plural "heavens" in the Biblical ...
- 24.5k
3
votes
Did Jesus and NT authors think OT was literal history?
First off
The prevalent view throughout history is that the OT histories, including Genesis 1-11, are genuine history (and, further, that Earth was Created circa 4,000 BC). Moreover, there is much ...
- 10.1k
3
votes
How does a biblical literalist interpret the tale of David and Goliath?
One of several Bible commentaries I have explained this point about the fact that David had been in Saul's employ prior to the giant-killing episode, which raises this question as to why Saul then ...
- 33.8k
3
votes
To what extent do those who hold to a 'literal' account of Genesis 1-11, such as YECs, hold there are symbolic elements in Genesis 1-3?
There is some dispute over what "literalism" refers to (see Wikipedia); I'm of the opinion that it should not be of used of genre-aware interpretative approaches, but others apparently say ...
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2
votes
What was the population of the world at the time of the flood?
According to this article, mankind is nearing its 33rd doubling.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/27503685?seq=1
If you divide The 1,656 years from the creation to the flood by 33, you get 50 years per ...
- 12.9k
2
votes
Do Catholics believe everything in the bible is true as written?
St. Thomas Aquinas writes in Summa Theologica I q. 1 a. 10 ("Whether in Holy Scripture a word may have several senses?"):
all the senses [of Holy Scriptures]* are founded on one—the literal
*Which ...
- 41k
2
votes
Do Catholics believe everything in the bible is true as written?
OP asks:
Do Catholics believe everything in the bible is true as written?
<meme>You keep using that word, "true". It does not mean what you think it means.</meme>
The short answer is ...
- 1,267
2
votes
How to reconcile both Outer Darkness and Unquenchable Fire as descriptions of Hell
This is likely a non-answer answer, but we should start with the title of the book,
"4 Views on Hell."
If one thing is clear it is that the scripture is not clear on exactly what Hell is ...
- 149
2
votes
How to reconcile both Outer Darkness and Unquenchable Fire as descriptions of Hell
Jesus describes a 'great gulf' when he revealed something of the deceased condition of the rich man, separated by great distance from Lazarus, the beggar who once was left, daily, at his gate, who ...
- 26.3k
2
votes
How do proponents of Original Sin support a strictly literal interpretation of Genesis
We are only as good as our nature
The reason we have sinful inclinations, suffering etc. to begin with is due to our nature as fallen human beings. We are fallen and not 'perfect' human beings because ...
- 8,390
2
votes
How do those who understand Noah's Flood to be a global flood explain what the carnivorous animals ate after disembarking?
This is probably best answered by this article, but for the sake of having an Answer here...
First off, I want to take an aside to address a point that unbelievers often raise; namely, that there's no ...
- 10.1k
2
votes
Do Biblical literalists believe we should gouge our eyes out or cut off our hands?
Short answer
Without getting into the weeds about literalism, taking the OP's definition given by evangelicals "as is" (as explained in the GotQuestion article What is biblical literalism), ...
- 24.5k
1
vote
When Jesus says "Amen, Amen I say to you" is that a hint that the next thing He says should be taken "more literally" than usual?
No, 'Amen, amen' is a hint that what He's saying is important ("Pay attention!"), and He is about the intensify his point - whether it's to be understood literally or figuratively.
Consider ...
- 6,754
1
vote
Do Biblical literalists believe we should gouge our eyes out or cut off our hands?
The answer by @GratefulDisciple covers things well. It is important when faced with a many-layered text to consider what each layer says and how the ultimate meaning is a combination of them all.
The ...
- 12.9k
1
vote
How do literalists envision the size of New Jerusalem?
Most literalists would hold to the historical-grammatical method of hermeneutics. This recognizes that there are different genres of literature present in the Bible, each requiring its own rules of ...
- 12.9k
1
vote
How do literalists envision the size of New Jerusalem?
Despite my not being a literalist in the sense of those who say the New Jerusalem on the New Earth will have the literal dimensions stated in Revelation 21:17, the question intrigued me enough to have ...
- 33.8k
1
vote
How to reconcile both Outer Darkness and Unquenchable Fire as descriptions of Hell
In the absence of specific instruction, I will give an answer consistent with the Church of England Commission (1995) position which is the official organ of the Anglican and Episcopal churches.
I ...
- 879
1
vote
How do proponents of Original Sin support a strictly literal interpretation of Genesis
In order to understand how the account in Genesis can be literal and mankind still be under the curse of Adam and Eve's original sin; we need to take a long look at that original sin.
Genesis 1:26 ...
- 13.3k
1
vote
How to reconcile both Outer Darkness and Unquenchable Fire as descriptions of Hell
At first glance it seems impossible for there to be fire and outer darkness at the same time. The best process for trying to understand what the Bible is trying to communicate is to do a word study. ...
- 910
1
vote
How is the earth soon after God turn the light on according to the literalist / YEC?
At this point light and darkness existed at the same time. It is unclear if they were intermingled or not.
Genesis 1:4 KJV And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from ...
- 13.3k
1
vote
Why is hell for a literal eternity if it does not have literal flames and worms?
Biblical prophecies use symbols and analogies to convey truth. Very rare is the prophecy that is entirely literal. However, every symbol represents a concrete reality.
One commentator on prophecies (...
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Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible