Can Jehovah Really Be The Almighty, Omnipotent, Creator?

[naomi24]

And the Lord was with Judah; and he drave out the inhabitants of the mountain; but could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron.

Judges 1:19

[jomifl]

I can't imagine that Alexander the great, Charlemagne, Julius Caesar or in fact any of the well known leaders from history letting a few people in a valley thwart their plans. At least we now have a scale against which to measure god.

[naomi24]

Jim, strange, certainly, but it’s not an idle comment. It comes as part of a story of victorious battles - well apart from that one anyway. ;o)

[jim360]

I've not read Judges properly so don't know precisely what's in it, but I do know there's a lot of sex and violence around that part of the Bible. The "throwaway" bit was referring to "and God can apparently create the entire Universe but can't move a bunch of metal chariots"...

[naomi24]

//God can apparently create the entire Universe but can't move a bunch of metal chariots"... //

Precisely.

[jim360]

Food for thought, anyway. I wonder how that one is brushed aside.

[naomi24]

Priests and preachers brush a lot aside. They read what they want to read and they preach what they want to preach - and that's what the faithful, many of whom know very little about the bible, believe. That's what I keep trying to tell people.

[Old_Geezer]

So you believe that is all can not be confirmed none can be trusted ? What if myths that turn out to be true ? It can be the gist of something is factual even if the details get embellished. I'm no expert but didn't much of what Homer wrote eventually archeologists found evidence for ? Certainty isn't a criteria for truth surely.

[naomi24]

LG, You mentioned Homer, and I’ve often cited the discovery of Troy as evidence that some truth may, indeed, lie within myth – but that isn’t to say that all myths are true. In the case of the bible, I have posted a bit here that is completely at odds with the generally accepted concept of this almighty creator God – and as I said, if one bit is thrown into doubt, then, until we know differently, we must necessarily question the whole.

[naomi24]

^^Sorry, I meant OG, not LG.

[Clanad]

I think this comment appears to rely entirely on one's "worldview'... The implication in the OP is that Judah actually went up against the people equipped with iron chariots and failed, thereby casting aspersion on their God, when in fact, it's apparent that Judah did not fight against that enemy because he and his army feared them (and their equipment). (Supported by the Targums "... The Targums are interpretive renderings of the books of the Hebrew Scriptures (with the exception of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Daniel) into Aramaic. Such versions were needed when Hebrew ceased to be the normal medium of communication among the Jews. In synagogue services the reading of the Scriptures was followed by a translation into the Aramaic vernacular of the populace. For a reading from the Pentateuch the Aramaic translation followed each verse of the Hebrew; for a reading from the Prophets three verses were followed by the Aramaic translation.

At first the oral Targum was a simple paraphrase in Aramaic, but eventually it became more elaborate and incorporated explanatory details inserted here and there into the translation of the Hebrew text. To make the rendering more authoritative as an interpretation, it was finally reduced to writing..." (Source: Metzger; The Jewish Targums)

Additionally, in almost all renditions of battles, a short summary of those killed or wounded is given (e.g. Judges 20)... no such inclusion accompanies Judges 1:19.

Secondly, in following Chapters (notably Judges 4:3, 15) when the nation was led by a woman (Deborah) the Lord commanded Israel fight Sisera who had 900 hundred iron chariots. Sisera and all of his men were killed. The song of Deborah says “The torrent of Kishon swept them away…”

It's an error to infer Judah fought and lost when all indications conclude he simply was afraid to do so... thereby not relying on the Word of the Lord...

[vetuste_ennemi]

I readily accept your point that the passage Naomi quotes indicates deficiencies in Judah rather impotence on the part of the Lord, Clandad. Can you now do even better by convincing me how this divinely sponsored and violent acquisition of real estate is consistent with God's goodness.

[vetuste_ennemi]

It's Clanad - pardon me.

[goodlife]

Look at in this respect, If you tell someone you will help him to do something or offer to perform some service, do you always fulfill your word.

To say yes, to something simply because you think it will please someone before first thinking out the consequences,can make you look a fool. By contrast, if you are careful about making promises, if you think matters through and consider how they will affect your future life, then it will be much easier to keep your word once you have committed yourself. You will have prepared your heart and mind to be true to your word.

Now Jesus, the greatest of all human teachers, based his teachings on the Scriptures. He spoke, not in his own name, but in the name of the One who sent him. (John 7:16-18) That is the example we follow. So, what we say either in the door-to-door ministry or at home Bible studies should centre on the authority of God’s Word. (2 Tim. 3:16, 17)

To no amount of clever reasoning on your part can possibly equal the effectiveness and power of the inspired Scriptures. The Bible has authority. Whatever point you are striving to help a student grasp, and time can be see here at –Mat 24:14.

[vetuste_ennemi]

Oh dear. I asked a question of Clanad and a reply (if reply it was) arrived from Goodlife. "What father when asked for bread will give his child a stone".

[jackthehat]

If only he'd thought to invent magnets.........:o)

[jomifl]

Jack ....it took scientists to do that, so, what use gods eh?

[Octavius]

No, scientists just found them in magnetite. Which is where god left them to be found.

[jomifl]

Octavius, you need electromagnets to deal with iron chariots and god only made one of those, but it isn't very portable.

[mikey4444]

No !...next question please !

[ll_billym]

I agree with Clanad, they probably didn't even have a crack at the inhabitants of the valley, showing that even they had their doubts in the veracity of the Lord when faced with a more 'real' threat. That being despite the fact that the Lord reportedly bothered to get out of bed in the olden days and 'walk the job'.