Bible Difficulties:

Resources to Refute the Skeptics and Critics

Wanting the answer to a specific bible difficulty?
Try the Tekton "Encyclopedia Apologetica"

My own answers to bible difficulties, here

He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. (2 Pet 3:16 NIV)

The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Cor 2:14 NIV)

The first to present his case seems right, till another comes forward and questions him. (Prov 18:17 NIV)

Study and be eager and do your utmost to present yourself to God approved (tested by trial), a workman who has no cause to be ashamed, correctly analyzing and accurately dividing [rightly handling and skillfully teaching] the Word of Truth (2 Tim 2:15 amplified)

When a scientist discovers an anomaly in nature does, does he give up science?

Has a skeptic or a critic knocked on your door recently to point out to you that the bible is full of errors and contradictions? If so, no need to worry, I have compiled this list of links and books on bible difficulties to help you in your moment of need.

Tekton Apologetics Ministries even serves up the Critics Piping Hot, all the BIG names are there. Try here for his Encyclopedia of bible difficulties. Glenn Miller's Christian Thinktank is also very useful. These are the two sites I found the most useful.

Skeptic's Instructions for Reading the Bible:

Always read it completely literally in isolation and never take into account the social, historical, literary and cultural context in which it was written.
Have a wrong concept of how God should have done things and then throw the rattle out of the pram when he does things differently - this is otherwise known as setting up a straw man and then knocking him down.
Assume that God dictated it rather than using men in the social, historical and cultural context of the day.
If there is a difficult passage never consult a commentary written by someone who understands the social, historical, literary and cultural context.
Never compare scripture with scripture to find the meaning of difficult texts
Never use different bible versions, never check out the Greek or Hebrew.
Always assume that if you cannot understand something then it cannot ever be true.
Ignore the fact of progressive revelation
Never try to understand the human-divine nature of Jesus or the Trinity, never consult a theologian who can explain these difficult things.

Here is C Dennis McKinsey's advice to the bible critic "Avoid Christian commentaries. Don't be swayed as to what is being said or what commentators allege is intended. Just read it cold." Encyclopedia of Biblical Errancy p. 500.

Most pastors who have been to seminary will have studied biblical Hebrew and Greek and will have an extensive collection of commentaries. One of the church offices established by God is that of teacher (1 Cor 12:28, Eph 4:11).

Mistakes the critics make by Norman Geisler.

Norman Geisler in 'When Critics Ask' says: The Bible is without mistake, but the critics are not. All their allegations of error in the Bible are based on some error of their own. Their mistakes fall into the following main categories.

Assuming that the unexplained is not explainable
Presuming the Bible guilty until proven innocent
Confusing our fallible interpretations with God's infallible revelation
Failing to understand the context of the passage.
Neglecting to interpret difficult passages in the light of clear ones
Basing a teaching on an obscure passage
Forgetting that the Bible is a human book with human characteristics
Assuming that a partial report is a false report
Demanding that NT citations of the OT always be exact quotations
Assuming that divergent accounts are false ones
Presuming that the Bible approves of all its records
Forgetting that the Bible uses non-technical, everyday language
Assuming that round numbers are false
Neglecting to note that the bible uses different literary devices
Forgetting that only the original text, not every copy of scripture, is without error
Confusing general statements with universal ones
Forgetting that latter revelation supersedes previous revelation

Links

First, the three largest sites answering bible difficulties

Tekton Apologetics Ministries Inc- J P Holding - one of the best and larger sites out there, and the guy has a sense of humour, much needed if you are debating the critics who take themselves so seriously. He also refutes the book 'Encyclopedia of Biblical Errancy' (EBE) by C Dennis McKinsey.
Christian Thinktank - Glenn Miller (see Tough Questions:) see also Reasons some people give for not approaching Jesus Christ for a personal relationship: . This is a very good site for long answers to tough questions.
Bible Contradictions - CARM large number of difficulties answered

An interesting site by an ex-atheist

Books on bible difficulties linked to

Hard Sayings of the Bible by Walter C. Kaiser (Editor), Peter H. Davids (Contributor), F. F. Bruce (Contributor), manfr Brauch (recommended). A compendium of five previous books. Answers to 500 verses; 12 introductory articles on miracles, the reliability of Scripture, God's character, geneologies, differences among Gospel accounts and more.811 pp. two columns per page. $20.99. Intermediate level. Also on CD
Hard Sayings of the Old Testament - Walter Kaiser
More Hard Sayings of the Old Testament - Walter Kaiser
Hard Sayings of Jesus - F F Bruce
Hard Sayings of Paul - Manfred Brauch
More Hard Sayings of the New Testament - Peter Davids
Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties by Gleason Archer (Zondervan Publishing House, 1982). 476 pp two column format. $24.99. Scholarly, get 'Hard Sayings...' first.
When Critics Ask A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties by Norman Geisler and Thomas Howe (Victor Books, 1992) 615 pp single column format. This deals with bible difficulties in order from Gen - Rev and covers much of the same material as Gleason Archer in EBD. $18.89 (800 questions answered). It is less detailed than 'Hard Sayings of the Bible' but answers more questions. A good starter.
Exegetical Fallacies by D. A. Carson - a great little book by the scholar D A Carson designed for seminary students, dealing with: word-study fallacies; grammatical fallacies; logical fallacies; presuppositional and historical fallacies.
Solving Bible Mysteries : Unraveling the Perplexing and Troubling Passages of Scripture by D. James Kennedy
Difficulties in the Bible by R. A. Torrey (small book)
1001 Bible Questions Answered by William L. Pettingill, R. A. Torrey (I think this includes Torrey's book above)
Today's Handbook for Solving Bible Difficulties by David E. O'Brien
735 Baffling Bible Questions Answered by Larry Richards
Alleged Discrepancies of the Bible by John W. Haley. Note: John Haley was a late nineteenth century biblical scholar, linguist and Christian apologist. Published in 1874 and set in old typeset, written in response to the "virulent infidel literature" of the day.
Alleged Bible Contradictions Explained by Dehoff
Answers to Tough Questions from Every Book of the Bible : A Survey of Problem Passages and Issues by J. Carl Laney
The Complete Book of Bible Answers by Ron Rhodes
A History of the Synoptic Problem : The Canon, the Text, the Composition, and the Interpretation of the Gospels (The Anchor Bible Reference Library) by David Laird Dungan

How to read the bible

How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth by Gordon D. Fee, Douglas Stuart (Contributor)
A Basic Guide to Interpreting the Bible : Playing by the Rules by Robert H. Stein (recommended by Tektonics)
Cracking Old Testament Codes : A Guide to Interpreting Old Testament Literary Forms by D. Brent Sandy (Editor), Ronald L. Giese (Editor) (recommended by Tektonics)
Interpreting Puzzling Texts in the New Testament by Robert H. Stein (recommended by Tektonics)

Background helps:

The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament by Craig S. Keener
The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Genesis-Deuteronomy by John H. Walton, Victor Harold Matthews
A History of Israel : From the Bronze Age Through the Jewish Wars by Walter C. Kaiser
New Bible Dictionary by D. R. W. Wood (Editor), A. R. Millard (Contributor), J. I. Packer (Editor), I. Howard Marshall

Scripture and apologetic issues

New Testament Documents : Are They Reliable? by Frederick Fyvie Bruce
The Historical Reliability of the Gospels by Craig L. Blomberg - also includes sections on contradictions among the Synoptics and problems in John.
When Skeptics Ask A Handbook of Christian Evidence by Norman Geisler and Ron Brooks 348 pp. This gives evidences for the Christian faith by theme (You should probably get this and When Critics Ask)
The Canon of Scripture by Frederick Fyvie Bruce
The Historical Jesus : Ancient Evidence for the Life of Christ by Gary R. Habermas
Jesus Under Fire by Michael J. Wilkins (Editor), J. P. Moreland (Editor)
In Defense of Miracles : A Comprehensive Case for God's Actions in History by R. Douglas Geivett (Editor), Gary R. Habermas (Editor),
The Making of the New Testament : Origin, Collection, Text & Canon by Arthur G. Patzia
Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics (Baker Reference Library) by Norman L. Geisler. I find this very useful because it summarises the main arguments. There is usually sufficient detail without being over detailed. If you are just beginning to study apologetics this is a good buy. 704 pp. two column fomat $34.99.
The King James Only Controversy : Can You Trust the Modern Translations? by James R. White - should be required reading for all Christians as it explains how we got our modern bible.
Inerrancy edited by Norman L. Geisler, 14 articles by leading evangelical authors, 516 pp. (John Wenham, E Blum, Gleason Archer, J B Payne, Walter Kaiser, Greg Bahnsen, J I Packer, G R Lewis, P D Feinberg, Norman Geisler, R C Sproul, R D Preus, John Gerstner, H Krabbendam)
Christian Scripture : An Evangelical Perspective on Inspiration, Authority and Interpretation by David S. Dockery

Other useful books:

True for You, but Not for Me : Deflating the Slogans That Leave Christians Speechless by Paul Copan -- offers a Christian assessment and critique of moral relativism and also responds to the increasingly common view of religious pluralism (i.e., all religions lead to salvation or liberation) and the related questions of Jesus' uniqueness and the destiny of the unevangelized.
Intellectuals Don't Need God and Other Modern Myths by Alister E. McGrath
How to Stay Christian in College: An Interactive Guide to Keeping the Faith by J. Budziszewski
The New Atheism and the Erosion of Freedom by Robert A. Morey. I mention this short book because it will help you know where the atheists are coming from, some of the arguments they use, although dated, it is well worth getting hold of.
Chosen by God by R C Sproul. I mention this short book because it deals with predestination and answers or addresses many of the difficult questions that skeptics ask. It deals with the sovereignty of God and mans free will, the problem of evil etc. While it is an introduction it is well worth getting.

A decent computer bible which includes multiple translations AND the Hebrew and Greek is a MUST (I use the easy to use Quickverse 4.0 with KJV, NIV, NASB Greek/Hebrew, but there are better available). QuickVerse Standard Edition 6.0

Logic and debating: When debating the skeptics it is most important to be able to recognise the type of argument that they are using. A useful book is Come, Let Us Reason An Introduction to Logical Thinking by Norman L. Geisler, Ronald M. Brooks (Contributor)

Theology: You must also have a good theology textbook which covers the trinity and the human-divine nature of Jesus Christ. A good website that covers these clearly and concisely is Contend for the Faith. We should note that the doctrine of the trinity, while it may be a paradox is not a contradiction.
A New Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith by Robert L. Reymond
Foundations of Christian Doctrine: by Kevin J. Conner (Excellent starter)

Commentaries: Likewise a good commentary will give you background material, especially OT. I use the Expositors Bible Commentary series which I have on CD Zondervan, Amazon.

I have written an article on The Christian and the Mind. This also contains more links and books giving apologetic resources.

Examples of some Bible difficulties: A few of my favorite bible difficulties and some suggested solutions, for more favorites of mine go here

Here are a few so called bible difficulties, seven are moderately easy and three are more difficult.

According to Gen 6:9 Noah was perfect also Job 1:1 but according to Rom 3:23 'all have sinned'. solution
According to Mat 12:40 Jesus will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. But if he was crucified on Friday and rose on Sunday morning he was actually dead for less than two days. solution
In Gen 1:11 God created the trees on the third day and man was created later on the sixth day. Yet according to Gen 2:7 man was created before the trees. solution
If Jesus is God then why did he have to pray? solution
Why are we being punished for Adams sin. Thats not fair. solution
The value of Pi is not correct in 1 Kings 7:23 solution
If scripture is true, then will you drink poison for me? Mark 16:18 solution
Num 31:17 shows God to be a sadistic killer. solution
Rev 12:7 shows that there is war in heaven, I would not want to go there. solution
Mark 15:25 (cf. John 19:14) Was Jesus crucified in the third hour or the sixth hour? solution

It is interesting to note that Satan's first temptation in the garden was to question the truth of God's word and the goodness of God (Gen 3:1-5). In the devil's temptations of Jesus he questioned that Jesus was the Son of God and distorted the word of God. Mat 4:2-10.

For more favorite bible difficulties of mine go here or try the Tekton Encyclopedia for many more.