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Misinterpretation of Scripture by New Testament Figures



1. Why did the writers of the New Testament feel free to misquote and misinterpret the Old Testament and conflate verses? Matthew 3:3 versus Isaiah 40:3; Matthew 12:17-21 versus Isaiah 42:1-4; Matthew 13:35 versus Psalm 78:1-3; Acts 2:16-21 versus Joel 2:28-32; Acts 7:43 versus Amos 5:25-27; Romans 3:4 versus Psalm 51:4; Romans 9:33 versus Isaiah 28:16 and 8:14; Romans 10:6-8 versus Deuteronomy 30:12-14; Romans 11:9-10 versus Psalm 69:22-23; Romans 11:26-27 versus Isaiah 59:20-21; 1 Corinthians 3:20 versus Psalm 94:11; 1 Corinthians 15:54-55 versus Isaiah 25:8 and Hosea 13:14.
2. Why did the gospel writers use the Septuagint, an inferior translation of the Old Testament? Matthew 3:3; Luke 4:17-21; Acts 7:43; Acts 15:17; Romans 10:11.
Did the Holy Spirit fail to inspire them with the more accurate Hebrew text, the one accepted today?
3. Why did Matthew and Peter take Old Testament passages out of context to make them into prophecies, when they were never indicated to be prophetic by the Old Testament author (Acts 1:20 versus Psalm 69:25, for example)?
4. Why did Mark misreference an Old Testament prophet (Mark 1:2)? This misreference is found in the critical text, but not in the Textus Receptus, illustrating that the early church was willing to emend the holy scriptures to remove difficulties.
How can we rely on Mark to explain Old Testament prophecies to us if he is even mistaken about the source?
5. Why does Jude quote the non-canonical Book of Enoch as prophecy (Jude 14-15)?
Did the Holy Spirit fail to inspire Jude with the fact that the Book of Enoch would not be accepted into the canon?
6. Why does Matthew quote a non-existent Old Testament prophecy (Matthew 2:23)?
Was he using non-canonical writings, too?
7. Why does Matthew attribute a quote about the potter's field to Jeremiah, when Jeremiah has no such passage, and the closest one in the Old Testament is Zechariah (Matt 27:9-10; Zechariah 11:12)?
8. Why doesn't Paul ever quote Jesus from the gospel accounts, or show that he knew anything at all about Jesus's teachings and life as portrayed in the gospels?
9. Why is no single hermeneutic adequate for interpretation of scripture?
Why were the New Testament authors so free and loose in their hermeneutics?
How could it be that the meanings of some words and phrases have been lost?
How could it be that some cultural references have been lost?
How can it be that many books and passages admit of multiple interpretations?
Doesn't God want us to understand his Word enough to protect the knowledge of its referents and use unambiguous diction and phraseology?



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