arnoldo

Disputable prophecies are good because at least you can't claim they are prophecies written after the fact! For example if Zekey wrote that Tyre would simply be attacked by various nations and continue to exist you would simply state it was written after the fact. The way it was written people will read Ezekiel for themselves instead of going by other people's opinions.

arnoldo

Yup, Tyre is still there and so is Israel.

Sheshonq

Yes you can. All it takes is imperfect knowledge, an ancient non-technological culture, and add 2000 years of mistakes and copyist errors.

arnoldo

Wow, you are a doubting thomas!

Johnny Skeptic

It doesn't matter since 100% percent disputable prophecies in any religious book is sufficient evidence that the God(s) of that religious book does not exist. No rational God would make even one disputable prophecy because that would harm his reputation.

xaxxat

Good point...

DrewDiggler

Do you know at 20 people per week you could evacuate 13.5K persons in 13 years? Who were the princes taken away ? Sheila Prince, Jason Prince, Bruce Prince?

arnoldo

I suppose the correct term for not taking the bible as literal truth is called higher critcism. In contrast a "fundie" or inerrantist can be considered as practicing "lower critcism"

Johnny Skeptic

Message to arnoldo: If Pat Robertson predicted when and where a natural disaster would occur, month, day, and year, that would be an indisputable prophecy, and surely some skeptics would become Christians who were not previously convinced. That is a reasonable assumption since historically, many people accepted all kinds of outlandish religions based upon a lot less convincing evidence than that. In addition, Nostradamus and Edgar Cayce attracted a lot of followers based upon a lot less convincing evidence than that.

Micah 5:2 says “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” If Micah had predicted that the messiah would rule a heavenly kingdom instead of an earthly kingdom like Micah misled the Jews to believe, and had predicted that the messiah would heal people, and that the messiah would be crucified, buried, and rise from the dead in three days, and that Pontius Pilate would become the Roman governor of Palestine, and that Herod would become the King of Judea, would any more Jews have accepted Jesus? Well, er, uh.

If a God exists, there are not any doubts whatsoever that he has not attempted to convince people to believe that he can predict the future. If a God wanted people to have faith, he most certainly would not try to strengthen their faith with fulfilled prophecy after the fact. If a God exists, it is a given that he has not attempted to strengthen the faith of believers with fulfilled prophecy after the fact. That is because the very best way for a God to strengthen the faith of believers with fulfilled prophecy after the fact would be to make an indisputable prophecy. No religious book contains an indisputable prophecy. No reasonable motives why the God of the Bible does what he does = no God of the Bible.

Amaleq13

No, in contrast they are practicing no criticism.