Can the bible be used to proof the existence of god?

Debate Room
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Is the existence of God proven by the Bible? This question has sparked extensive debate across various platforms. Believers in God often find solace in the perceived historical accuracy of earthly events depicted in the Bible as evidence supporting their faith.

Let us embark on a thought experiment. Imagine a historian commissioned by a ruler to compile a history book covering the past 500 years of the ruler’s domain. Equipped with access to libraries, archives, and prestigious institutions, the historian diligently pens down the historical account. However, amidst the writing process, the historian, who holds strong religious beliefs, confronts a lack of tangible evidence of divine intervention. Struggling with this realization, the historian begins to incorporate supernatural elements into the narrative. Angels appear to forewarn past rulers of impending disasters, historical figures are depicted as prophets who safeguard the region from invading forces, and so forth. Despite these additions, the book receives praise from the ruler and clergy, circulating widely thereafter.

The question I’d like to pose is this: Does this book, in and of itself, prove the existence of God? I believe the answer is unequivocally no. Despite the fact that all the events described within it are true and have occurred, any supernatural occurrences intertwined with these events or religious interpretations thereof are products of human invention.

Now, let’s transport ourselves back thousands of years to the region of Israel. Once again, a ruler initiates the compilation of a historical record spanning the preceding centuries. The historian tasked with this endeavor encounters a similar dilemma regarding the absence of evidence for divine intervention. Driven by religious conviction, the historian introduces supernatural elements into the narrative, mirroring the previous scenario. Despite lacking empirical support, the book gains widespread acceptance among the ruler and clergy, becoming a staple text distributed across generations.

The question remains: does the mere existence of these books serve as proof of God’s existence? The answer seems evident: no. Despite recounting true historical events, the inclusion of supernatural occurrences or religious interpretations does not inherently validate the existence of God.

In conclusion, even if we were to accept that all events detailed in the Bible are historically accurate (which remains subject to debate), we must grapple with the possibility that the authors embellished the accounts with supernatural elements. Consequently, the presence of these events within the Bible does not definitively prove the existence of a divine entity.

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Well I would word it differently, for example does the bible contain any objective evidence that a deity exists, or is even possible, since the word proof in this context is something of a misnomer, and welcome to AR.

I would say that if the bible does contain any objective evidence for any deity, then I can say I have not yet met, spoken to or read any theist or religious apologists who demonstrated this.

You mean in your hypothetical book obviously, not the bible, as we know it contains erroneous claims.

Well the bible contains some factually correct things, and it contains bare claims about supernatural events, derived from an epoch of extreme ignorance and superstition. The way I decide which claims are true is by insisting they be supported by sufficient objective evidence. Again I have not seen anyone demonstrate any for any deity or anything supernatural, or even that they are possible. Thus I remain disbelieving.

The Spiderman movies accurately depict aspects and events in New York, this doesn’t make Spiderman real.

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The archeological provenance of the Pentateuch has been proven to be problematic inasmuch that many of the events either have absolutely no evidence of their occurrence ( exodus), Hebrews in actual Egypt, or are time-lined out (jericho, never mind the trumpets),

The premise of the new testament books is also equally suspect with none of the gospels written before 70 CE and not one fragment of a gospel found dating before 125CE,

None of the the supernatural events narrated in any of the gospels is corroborated by anyone during the event-line claimed.

Not so much “grappling with the possibility” but bringing that probability to the attention of those who enquire.

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In other words, NO.
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Short answer: No.
Slightly longer answer: Since the existence of an almighty god is an extraordinary claim, proving the existence of the christian god (or any god) requires extraordinary evidence. The bible presents only claims, not any empirical evidence, and gives no references to external sources. Thus, the bible presents no evidence in favour of the claim that there exists a god.

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The Bible does seem to contain some facts, as there is independent confirmation of Pontius Pilate and Herod, as an example.

Still . . . this seems to be a thin excuse to justify the belief in a supernatural resurrection, and a religion that justifies homophobia, violence against women, endless wars, slavery, and so on.

Also, I have a philosophical issue with something being used to prove itself . . . although there may be a flaw with my reasoning. By this, I mean if something is flawed, then using it as a standard to quantify itself may lead to a flawed results. So, how can we know if something is flawed unless we use a standard outside of the thing in question?

The Bible has very, very little–if any–evidence outside of itself that we can use for independent confirmation of many of its key points.

So, we are only left with an assumption that The Bible is unflawed . . . which means–as always–believers must fall back on faith.

So, we are expected to believe in The Bible’s perfection while overlooking its internal contradictions, which means that we have little to no external confirmation . . . and lots of internal contradictions within its pages.

And for this book we should kill each other? We should restrict women’s rights? Not use birth control?

For myself, I like to believe that I’m not that stupid and/or gullible.

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So the argument goes…
What if a ruler wrote a religious text covering 500 years of his rein.
He is religious and invents acts of god and angels to add to the events in his book.

Question: Does this prove god exists.

“NO.”,

Once again…
1,000 years ago a ruler, in Israel, wrote a historical record of preceding centuries.
There is absence of evidence of the divine.
He introduces divine elements into the story - without evidence.
The book becomes popular.

Did I miss the difference between these two? The response is still NO!

I think your two scenarios are exactly alike. Did I miss something? What did you see as the difference between the two questions?

Now… What if the first book was actually written about a god? A god the king personally knew and interacted with. A god that waggled his fingers and created the Grand Canyon, The pyramids, Separated the contents, and made the earth rotate around the sun. Because this god used no modern machinery, had no tools, and because he only used magic, he did not leave evidence behind. The king faithfully told the truth about all the divine interactions, the angels, the demons, and all other characters and events that once appeared on Earth. Because he wrote the truth, does that make the Bible a true account?

LOL - No! As Sheldon clearly stated…

A truth claim and a fantasy claim are held to the same standard of evidence. Even if everything the ruler wrote was 100% true, we would have no reason to believe such claims. And finally, the fault for us not believing such claims would lie directly with the god thing. He is, after all, a god thing and could easily provide evidence for his existence.

Once the evidence was provided, then people would have a choice to love and believe in the god thing or not. If it was a god thing like that of the Old Testament, I am quite sure many people would opt out of any kind of relationship with such an asshole.

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Without The Bible There Wouldnt even be A Idea Of Existance of any God. The Bible Is Proof of Something Bigger Than Yourself. Question Answered?!

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Utter bollocks.

Your sad little goat herder mythology is nothing more than a collection of ridiculous unsupported blind assertions. The only thing your mythology is “proof” of, is the propensity of the authors thereof to make shit up.

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Absolute nonsense, the idea of deities abound in cultures and societies that long predate the creation of Christianity and the bible.

How does a bare unevidenced claim, answer the question in any meaningful way? If you think anything in the bible represents objective evidence for a deity then please quote it, and explain why you believe that. Did you even read the previous responses to the thread OP?

I am dubious you can demonstrate any objective evidence from the bible for any deity, as I have see too many theists and religious apologists fail, but you will at least have attempted something beyond preaching at us, which I can’t say I care for at all. This is a debate forum you see, so make the effort please.

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