Who wrote the bible?

[styley]

Please don't answer if you know the answer. I wanna here from people who think they know.

[jno]

I thinnk Moses was dead by the end of Deuteronomy.

[jno]

no vowels, well, there you go, the Bible was another lipogram.

[dot.hawkes]

Did he say 'Damn them, damn them all to hell?'

[Goodsoulette]

Sorry Legm, didnt make myself clear the first part of my answer isnt necessarily my beliefs just what I thought was traditionally believed.

I believe that a lot of these stories are just word of mouth tales telling people how to live their lives. Offering guidance etc I really think they had the right idea, if you meet a true Christian they may seem a bit dorky but they are leading an admirable life. Through the years people have twisted the book and passages to suit what they need it to mean. I think this is the problem Islam is suffering with at the moment.

[johnlambert]

Who wrote the Bible?
God!!! who else?

[styley]

johnlambert, don't be silly.

[styley]

Did the bible not claim that Moses lived to 180?

[Llamatron]

Even if loads of authors and editors were involved I'm sure God guided their hands. Well, many people today claim it to be the word of God and run their life and others by their own interpretaions of it so it's the only possible explanation that their faith can allow.

http://www.powells.com/review/2007_07_14

[styley]

Llamatron, by rights you should be allowed to write a part of the bible, why not? Is there any difference writing your beliefs down 400 years or 2000 years after their occurance?

[jake-the-peg]

Wonderful line of reasoning styley, unfortunately the religous nuts play the get out of gaol free card:

Who wrote the Bible man or God?
Man, guided by the holy spirit

Who edited the Bible and decided what should be in and what should be out?
Man, guided by the holy spirit

Who decided that <anything you like>?
Man, guided by the holy spirit

repeat until bored!

[Goodsoulette]

Jake, do they have to be nuts?

[WaldoMcFroog]

J-T-P; I rather think the Holy Spirit should have allowed a professional to do the editing considering the amount of errors... ;-)

[Octavius]

The Bible that we commonly know (and use/refer to) today was written in translation by 47 scholars working in six committees, two based in each of the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge, and Westminster.

[jake-the-peg]

Ah but that's the translation isn't it Octavius.

The really interesting bit is how the decision was made about what was "in" and what was "out".

The Eastern chuch was for example strongly opposed to revellations making the cut and I believe it is omitted by the Ethiopian church even today.

Today we have rediscovered all these others like the Gospel of Thomas or there's the ones like the Epistle of Barnabas - considerred "in" for hundreds of years before getting the elbow.

The Holy Spirit must have been a bit slow on catching up with that one

[chakka35]

Brief but serious answer:
The only biblical writer who can be positively identified is Paul, who wrote at least five of the epistles attributed to him. The rest of the bible is anonymous.

[Octavius]

I just assumed that the question referred to the common King James Bible. Are we to refer the question to a different Bible then?

[Pippa68]

The Bible is still being translated ~ my brother in law works for a bible translator.

I reckon quite a lot may have been missed or misconstrued during translations ;o)

[Praline25]

A question for chakka35.
You seem quite a composed fellow with a wealth of biblical knowledge. Just curious how you know these things? You seem to know things i've never come accross.

[RATTER15]

It was somebody taking the p1ss out of the gullible and weak minded and people needing a crutch!!

[Praline25]

It's certainly not a crutch. It's more of a crutch when you dont believe it, you can indulge yourself in all the pleasures and distractions and never have to worry cause you think it all aint true. The true meaning of christianity is far far from a crutch.
Weak-minded is far from it, you have to be incredibly strong minded to get past all the back-stabbing from people, would be easier to be like them.
Only the lazy can't be arsed people say things like that.
I think you have to be complete opposite to all that to believe in the bible.