"The Bible Tells Me So" by Peter Enns - Feb 20, 2015 - book review by Randall F. More

‎February 20, 2015

"The Bible Tells Me So" by Peter Enns (Harper Collins, 2014)

review by Randall F. More, P. Eng.

Enns makes a decision to interpret the Bible in a way that he personally chooses, without regard to conventional exegesis (i.e. critical explanation or interpretation of a text) or hermeneutics (i.e. theory, knowledge, and methodology that deals with literary interpretation). He endeavours to explain God and His purposes in a way that he ‎thinks that God should be or the way that he thinks God really intended to be portrayed in the Bible. He places himself as the authority over God's Word.

Enns tells us that the Bible really only means to say what Enns wants it to say. In this way, Enns becomes the interpreter and translator.

Enns refers to Genesis and Exodus as "more like scripts for a fairy tale" (p. 4)‎. One can be quite sure that God never intended these foundational books of the Bible to be fairy tales.

Enns goes so far as to say that the Bible isn't even true as he writes that "What the Bible says happened often didn't" (p. 25). ‎Does he write such notions just to be controversial? One wonders if the Bible has any meaning or relevance at all for Enns.

Enns has a very low view of God as evidenced when writing that "this God is flat-out terrifying: he comes across as a perennially hacked-off warrior-god" (p. 31).

Enns writes that “God never told the Israelites to kill the Canaanites. The Israelites believed that God told them to kill the Israelites” (p. 54). We know that such an understanding is not a biblical truth. Enns wants to re-write or re-interpret the Bible to say what Enns thinks that the writers really intended to say. This is preposterous.

Enns chooses to believe that God would never have instructed the Israelites to eliminate the Canaanites and so there must be some mistake or a very serious misunderstanding (pp. 54, 60). Just because Enns doesn't see it the way that the Bible records it doesn't mean that God didn't see it that way. Sure, we may not agree with or like what happened but it is often that we do not know or understand God's reasons, purposes, or greater eternal plan. We should know, however, that He is not only a God of perfect love but He is also a God of perfect justice. God's ways are not our ways; they are higher than our ways.

Only God knows what would have occurred if the Canaanites had not been eradicated. God did not eliminate these people to be mean or cruel but to prevent a much greater wickedness in the future. Of course, we are mostly troubled by the death of infants and children but is it possible, as has been suggested by others, that these children very likely would have grown to become wicked adults, similar to their parents, but instead God destined them in infancy for heaven?

Regarding the Canaanites, Enns writes “What most everyone is certain about, however, is that the Bible’s version of events is not what happened” (p. 60). It is just too incredible for Enns to write this without any justification whatsoever. Enns writes “Canaanite genocide is part of Israel’s story of the past – not a historical account of something God did” (p. 70). The story is most certainly a historical account in every detail. 

Enns' notion has a few difficulties. ‎If God never issued such a command, because it is perceived by Enns and others to be too brutal for a good and loving God, then the Bible writers have effectively made God look even worse by blaming it all on Him when, according to Enns, it wasn't even His command. Enns' scenario is greatly lacking as an explanation for anything.

The further difficulty is that with the Bible as the inspired Word of God, it is unfathomable that God would ever allow what Enns considers to be a horrible act (in eliminating the Canaanites) to be blamed on Himself in His own inspired and authoritative Word... unless it truly was His command. (The corollary would be that the Bible is not actually even the inspired Word of God.)

Expressed slightly differently, we should already know that God would never permit Himself to appear to be wicked or evil in His own Word‎ (the Word which He was responsible for authoring) just because the Israelites did something that they erroneously believed that He told them to do. We can be assured that if Enns' supposition was correct, God would have ensured that His inspired Word reflected accurately and truthfully the facts, not a lie or an untruth. Enns' supposition does a great disservice to God and His Word and makes no sense.

Further, if, in fact, the Israelites had destroyed the Canaanites because they erroneously believed that God ‎told them to do so, God might readily have rendered judgment on Israel, instead of on the Canaanites.

Yes, in our finite and lowly minds, God's command may be difficult to accept or understand but God's ways are not our ways. He had a far greater purpose than we might ever fully understand.

Presumably Enns would have similar difficulty with other warnings of God's impending judgement such ‎as that spoken by the prophet Zephaniah. 

God wanted to establish a pure, holy, and chosen people through whom He could bless all the other nations on earth. He chose to do this through Israel. Why is this so extraordinary for Enns to grasp? Instead, Enns wants to make the story suit his own present day temporal values.

Enns writes that Jericho "had no massive walls, which means the biblical story of the 'walls of Jericho' tumbling down is a problem" (p. 59). Enns should know that there is an abundance of archaeological evidence of the ancient walls of Jericho as described in the Bible.

Enns writes that the stories of the Bible are analogous to stories that he used to tell regarding his father when he was a young boy but didn't have all the details correct but that it didn’t really seem to matter (pp. 63-65). Such a perspective represents a very shallow view of Scripture.

Enns writes that "for Christians, Jesus, not the Bible, has the final word" (p. 65). This is not correct. The Bible is the written and authoritative word of God. Jesus is the Living Word. The two together are the consistent Word of God.

Enns writes that "the book of Revelation... is definitely not to be taken literally" (p. 66). Wow! Does Enns know something about the future that God doesn't know and somehow knows that God didn't mean what He said... or is it that he just doesn't like what God is telling us?

Enns writes that many Christians... "are thinking they are showing respect for the Bible and obeying God by making the biblical story mesh with modern science, or rejecting modern science entirely in favor of God's Word" (p. 69). Enns and the many Christians are quite mistaken. If the truth be acknowledged, the biblical story meshes very well with modern science. In fact, the God of the Bible is the God of all science and the two are not inconsistent.

Enns mocks Old Testament civil and dietary laws... only because they don't make sense to him or to most of us today. Not making sense to Enns is not a justification to dismiss the laws which God established for a new nation three thousand years ago. ‎Enns says that "Christians have... re-evaluated these laws against the backdrop of the Gospels" (p. 69). This is not what happened. Christians didn't spend one moment re-evaluating any of these laws. Christ came to free us from the civil and dietary laws because they had already served their purpose for the time when the Israelites had no guideposts for living apart from that which God had provided to them. For the record, it is God's moral laws which are good for all time… for all eternity.

Enns says "that the physical universe is bigger and older and operates very differently than how the biblical writers... thought" (p. 69). How does Enns know this? Enns doesn't provide a single example of where the biblical writers got it wrong.

Enns' objective is "to show Christians that the 'Bible as rulebook' is a human invention and not what God intended or wants" (p. 75). How did Enns come to this conclusion? ‎This is just another example of Enns' incredibly low view of God's Word. In fact, the Bible is God’s manual or rulebook for mankind. The Bible is as much a 'rulebook' or full life manual that could ever be written. It is certainly all that God intended for us.

‎Enns writes that "The biblical storytellers recall the past, often the very distant past, not 'objectively,' but purposefully" (p. 75). Apparently, according to Enns, God is not the authoritative author of Scripture. This is preposterous.

Enns writes that the "biblical storytellers invented and augmented dialogue, characters, and scenes... all for the purpose of telling their story for their audience" (p. 76). No, this is not correct. The writers of the Bible wrote under the authority of the Holy Spirit. The writers did not "invent" anything but instead accurately recorded truth and facts.

‎Enns writes that "Readers who come to the Bible expecting something more like an accurate textbook... are in for an uncomfortable read" (p. 76). Enns is mistaken. For all readers, the Bible is accurate in its entire text.

In referring to the Gospels and the Old Testament, Enns states that "At times these stories of Jesus and Israel contradict each other" (p. 76). Is that so? Enns doesn't provide a single example.

‎Enns has a problem when He writes "that the absence of this episode in two of the four Gospels is a huge signal that their stories of Jesus are significantly different" (p. 82). Sure, the stories of the four Gospels are quite different. If they weren't different there wouldn't be any need for four Gospels. Each is factual and truthful but no one Gospel contains it all... and as far as is known, there are no inconsistencies which would cause anyone to question the legitimacy. Enns finds a problem with the book of John because it is so different than the others (p. 80). With all of Enns' scholarly background, his perspective is rather surprising. Matthew, Mark, and Luke deal mostly with Jesus' life as a man. Matthew writes about His royalty; Mark writes of His humility; Luke writes of His humanity. John, however, writes of His divinity. Of course, John's writing would be very different than the others. The fullness of the true Gospel is only achieved through the contributions of four authors.

Enns doesn't believe that the magi followed a star and he doesn't believe that Herod had babies killed‎ (p. 83). Why is that? It seems that Enns just can't bring himself to believe it. He doesn't believe Scripture as it is written. There is no factual basis for his disbelief. God's Word is nothing more than a fairy tale to him.

Enns attempts to mock God when he writes "Did God not get the memo about the kind of Bible Christians 'need' to have?" (p. 89) but ultimately God will not be mocked. Enns would be wise to recognize that God authored His Word exactly in accordance with man's need... because He knows man's need, exactly.‎

Enns does not seem to understand the book of Genesis or the creation of mankind (p. 113). Contrary to Enns' understanding, Adam is the same person in Genesis 1 and Genesis 2. The descriptions are different aspects of the same narrative.

Enns writes that "The Bible has one more mythically robed story involving God and water: the story of Noah and the flood" (p. 124). Enns would be wise to understand that there is an overwhelming amount of scientific evidence which lends support to the biblical account.

Enns writes that "the Bible itself complicates matters: its writers are clearly engaged in consciously shaping the past rather than simply reporting it" (p. 127). ‎The Bible is no more complicated than that which God intended. It is His work. ‎Sure, each biblical writer has his or her own personality but their work is superintended by God, the ultimate author.

‎Enns writes that "If the Bible isn't clear even about big issues like God (!!), what's it good for?” (p. 135). This may seem like a reasonable question but we can be sure that the Bible, God's handbook and manual to mankind, is just as clear as God intended it.

Enns writes that "even in the biblical creation story, God says, 'Let us make humanity in our own image.' Who is 'us?' Does God have a mouse in his pocket?" (p. 152). One can scarcely believe that someone as knowledgeable as Enns could write such a ‎comment. Enns should reasonably know that the "us" refers to the Trinity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Enns writes that Jesus "wasn't bound by the words on the page of his Bible and what they meant" (p. 169). Of course Jesus was bound by the words of Scripture. There is no reason to believe otherwise. Jesus is the Living Word… the Word lived out in the flesh.‎

Enns has minimized the truth, facts, and power of God's Word. If one accepts the Bible as God’s Word, His authoritative Word, one can be sure that the Bible conveys exactly all that God intended to convey in His Word. There are more than 30 prophecies regarding Christ written by 11 different authors anywhere from 1000 to 500 B.C. Each one of the prophecies came to fruition as recorded in eight books of the New Testament. One can be sure that God was quite capable of having His Manual written for mankind without having Enns or any of us telling Him or telling others what was really intended by re-interpreting His Word. That wouldn’t be God's Word; that would just be Enns' word.

Enns plainly doesn't like the God who identifies Himself in His Word but he doesn't provide any justification for his views other than he refuses to believe what has been written by God about God.

His Word is powerful just the way it is. You and I don't even know the words which we may be speaking ten minutes from now... and yet God knew it all, foretold it all, and accurately recorded events in the minutest detail a THOUSAND YEARS before‎ they even occurred. I don't think that He then got the rest of it wrong or allowed His Word to be anything other than His truth. His prophecies were given for two main reasons: so that we could know that His Word was trustworthy in every regard and so that we could know and claim the promises regarding our eternal destiny.

There is no reason to believe or accept that Enns has any of it correct. Enns provides no substantiation for his views except that's what he wants to believe. In fact, according to Enns, the Bible apparently has little or no merit. It apparently isn't even really God's Word; it doesn't say what God really intended to say, and it is historically inaccurate. For Enns, the Bible isn't an accurate historical record of anything. It's about the history of what Enns believes that the Bible writers meant to record regarding history... but for which they apparently didn't do a very good job.

Sure, Enns could be correct in everything that he says... but he provides no reason whatsoever to believe such and we have no reason to believe that anything that he says is correct except that he wants to believe it himself. That is not a sufficient or a good enough reason. 

Enns is a rationalist. He is using his own intellect as his authority. He is not using God's Word as his authority. For Enns, he is his own authority. Enns is effectively sitting in judgment of God's Word. That is a very bad place to be.

‎Much of what Enns writes is not new. In fact, he would do well to study the curriculum of some of the mainline Protestant churches which, in the decade of the sixties, denounced most or all of the miracles: Creation, the Flood, parting of the Red Sea, the virgin birth, Jesus turning water into wine, Christ's physical resurrection. Enns' understanding of the Bible is not the gospel. Enns’ understanding is basically a denunciation of the supernatural power of God, His miracles, His purposes, and His plan. In fact, Enns mocks some of the miracles because, in his mind, they could not happen in the natural realm. That is exactly what miracles are, events outside the natural realm. We would certainly only be worshiping a very tiny God if He wasn't able to bring miracles to pass. Strangely, Enns happens to believe in the virgin birth and the resurrection but one is compelled to ask what is the reason that he denounces all the other miracles? This might be referred to as selective belief. One doesn't need the Bible for any purpose if one chooses to assign one’s own revelation of truth.

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The Way of Love (I Corinthians 13)

Andrew & Laura Wedding

December 6, 2014

THE WAY OF LOVE (I Corinthians 13 - THE MESSAGE)

If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate.

If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all His mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing.

If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere.

So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.

Love never gives up.

Love cares more for others than for self.

Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.

Love doesn't strut.

Love doesn't have a swelled head.

Love doesn't force itself on others.

Love isn't always "me first."

Love doesn't fly off the handle.

Love doesn't keep score of the sins of others.

Love doesn't revel when others grovel.

Love takes pleasure in the flowering of truth.

Love puts up with anything.

Love trusts God always.

Love always looks for the best.

Love never looks back.

Love keeps going to the end.

Love never dies.

Inspired speech will be over some day.

Praying in tongues will end.

Understanding will reach its limit.

We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete but when Christ arrives, our incompletes will be canceled.

When I was an infant at my mother's breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant.

When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good.

We don't yet see things clearly.

We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist but it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright!

We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing Him directly just as He knows us!

But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation:

Trust steadily in God.

Hope unswervingly.

Love extravagantly.

And the best of the three is love.

Adultery & the Bible - compiled by Randall F. More

Dec 2014

compiled by Randall F. More, P. Eng.

Adultery & the Bible

For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh (Genesis 2:24 NASB).

"You shall not commit adultery. You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor" (Exodus 20:14,17 NIV).

"'If a man commits adultery with another man's wife--with the wife of his neighbor--both the adulterer and the adulteress are to be put to death"' (Leviticus 20:10 NIV).

"If a man is found sleeping with another man's wife, both the man who slept with her and the woman must die. You must purge the evil from Israel" (Deuteronomy 22:22 NIV).

Wisdom will save you also from the adulterous woman, from the wayward woman with her seductive words, ‎who has left the partner of her youth and ignored the covenant she made before God.‎ Surely her house leads down to death and her paths to the spirits of the dead. ‎None who go to her return or attain the paths of life (Proverbs 2:16-19 NIV).

For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil; but in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword. Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the grave. She gives no thought to the way of life; her paths wander aimlessly, but she does not know it. Now then, my sons, listen to me; do not turn aside from what I say. Keep to a path far from her, do not go near the door of her house, lest you lose your honor to others and your dignity to one who is cruel, lest strangers feast on your wealth and your toil enrich the house of another. At the end of your life you will groan, when your flesh and body are spent.  You will say, “How I hated discipline! How my heart spurned correction! I would not obey my teachers or turn my ear to my instructors. And I was soon in serious trouble in the assembly of God’s people.” Drink water from your own cistern, running water from your own well. Should your springs overflow in the streets, your streams of water in the public squares? Let them be yours alone, never to be shared with strangers. May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth. A loving doe, a graceful deer— may her breasts satisfy you always, may you ever be intoxicated with her love. Why, my son, be intoxicated with another man’s wife? Why embrace the bosom of a wayward woman? For your ways are in full view of the LORD, and he examines all your paths. The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare them; the cords of their sins hold them fast. For lack of discipline they will die, led astray by their own great folly (Proverbs 5:3-23 NIV).

For this command is a lamp, this teaching is a light, and correction and instruction are the way to life, keeping you from your neighbor’s wife, from the smooth talk of a wayward woman. Do not lust in your heart after her beauty or let her captivate you with her eyes. For a prostitute can be had for a loaf of bread, but another man’s wife preys on your very life. Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes being burned? Can a man walk on hot coals without his feet being scorched? So is he who sleeps with another man’s wife; no one who touches her will go unpunished. People do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy his hunger when he is starving. Yet if he is caught, he must pay sevenfold, though it costs him all the wealth of his house. But a man who commits adultery has no sense; whoever does so destroys himself. Blows and disgrace are his lot, and his shame will never be wiped away. For jealousy arouses a husband’s fury, and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge. He will not accept any compensation; he will refuse a bribe, however great it is (Proverbs 6:23-35 NIV).

My son, keep my words and store up my commands within you. Keep my commands and you will live; guard my teachings as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart. Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” and to insight, “You are my relative.” They will keep you from the adulterous woman, from the wayward woman with her seductive words. At the window of my house I looked down through the lattice. I saw among the simple, I noticed among the young men, a youth who had no sense. He was going down the street near her corner, walking along in the direction of her house at twilight, as the day was fading, as the dark of night set in. Then out came a woman to meet him, dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent. (She is unruly and defiant, her feet never stay at home; now in the street, now in the squares, at every corner she lurks.) She took hold of him and kissed him and with a brazen face she said: “Today I fulfilled my vows, and I have food from my fellowship offering at home. So I came out to meet you; I looked for you and have found you! I have covered my bed with colored linens from Egypt. I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon. Come, let’s drink deeply of love till morning; let’s enjoy ourselves with love! My husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey. He took his purse filled with money and will not be home till full moon.” With persuasive words she led him astray; she seduced him with her smooth talk. All at once he followed her like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer stepping into a noose till an arrow pierces his liver, like a bird darting into a snare, little knowing it will cost him his life. Now then, my sons, listen to me; pay attention to what I say. Do not let your heart turn to her ways or stray into her paths. Many are the victims she has brought down; her slain are a mighty throng. Her house is a highway to the grave, leading down to the chambers of death (Proverbs 7:1-27 NIV).

"The mouth of an adulteress is a deep pit; he who is under the Lord's wrath will fall into it" (Proverbs 22:14 NIV).

An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her. And he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil All the days of her life…. Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain. But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised (Proverbs 31:10-12, 30 NASB).

You make vows and break them; you kill and steal and commit adultery (Hosea 4:2 NLT).

“…the LORD has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant” (Malachi 2:15 NASB).

"For I hate divorce!" says the LORD, the God of Israel (Malachi 2:16 NLT).

"I am eager to witness against all sorcerers and adulterers and liars…” (Malachi 3:5 NLT).

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“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:27-28 NIV).

“But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery” (Matthew 5:32 NIV).

“Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what defile a person” (Matthew 15:17-20 NIV).

"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate" (Matthew 19:5-6 NIV).

"He said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way" (Matthew 19:8 NASB).

“I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery” (Matthew 19:9 NIV).

He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person” (Mark 7:20-23 NIV).

“Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate” (Mark 10:9 NIV).

He answered, “Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her. And if she divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery” (Mark 10:11-12 NIV).

“You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother’” (Mark 10:19 NIV).

“Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery” (Luke 16:18 NIV).

A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”…. “You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother’” (Luke 18:18,20 NIV).

…by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive… if she has sexual relations with another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress (Romans 7:2-3 NIV).

Let us behave decently, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy (Romans 13:13 NIV).

Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God (I Corinthians 6:9-10 NIV).

Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.”…Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body (I Corinthians 6:16,18 NIV). 

But for those who are married, I have a command that comes not from me, but from the Lord. A wife must not leave her husband (I Corinthians 7:10 NLT).

A woman is bound to her husband as long as he lives (I Corinthians 7:39 NIV).

Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envyings, drunkenness, carousings, and things like these, of which I forewarn you just as I have forewarned you that those who practice such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God (Galatians 5: 19-21 NASB).

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap (Galatians 6:7 NASB).

"No man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter (of sexual immorality) because the Lord is the avenger in all these things" (I Thessalonians 4:6 NIV).

"We also know that the law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful... for murderers, for adulterers and perverts... and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine" (I Timothy 1:9-10 NIV).

Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral (Hebrews 13:4 NIV).

"You shall not commit adultery" (James 2:11 NIV).

“But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars--they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death" (Revelation 21:8 NIV).

Outside the city are the dogs--the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idol worshipers, and all who love to live a lie (Revelation 22:15 NLT).

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ALTERNATE VERSIONS of PROVERBS

For wisdom will enter your heart And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; Discretion will guard you, Understanding will watch over you, To deliver you from the way of evil, From the man who speaks perverse things; From those who leave the paths of uprightness To walk in the ways of darkness; Who delight in doing evil And rejoice in the perversity of evil; Whose paths are crooked, And who are devious in their ways; To deliver you from the strange woman, From the adulteress who flatters with her words; That leaves the companion of her youth And forgets the covenant of her God; For her house sinks down to death And her tracks lead to the dead; None who go to her return again, Nor do they reach the paths of life (Proverbs 2:10-19 NASB).

Wise friends will rescue you from the Temptress – that smooth-talking Seductress Who’s faithless to the husband she married years ago, never gave a second thought to her promises before God. Her whole way of life is doomed; every step she takes brings her closer to hell. No one who joins her company ever comes back, ever sets foot on the path to real living (Proverbs 2:16-19 MSG).

The lips of a seductive woman are oh so sweet, her soft words are oh so smooth. But it won’t be long before she’s gravel in your mouth, a pain in your gut, a wound in your heart. She’s dancing down the primrose path to Death; she’s headed straight for Hell and taking you with her. She hasn’t a clue about Real Life, about who she is or where she’s going. So, my friend, listen closely; don’t treat my words casually. Keep your distance from such a woman; absolutely stay out of her neighbourhood. You don’t want to squander your wonderful life, to waste your precious life among hardhearted (Proverbs 5:3-9 MSG).

Adultery is a brainless act, soul-destroying, self-destructive (Proverbs 6:32 MSG).

For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; And reproofs of instruction are the way of life: To keep thee from the evil woman, From the flattery of the foreigner's tongue.  Lust not after her beauty in thy heart; Neither let her take thee with her eyelids. For on account of a harlot a man is brought to a piece of bread; And the adulteress hunteth for the precious life. Can a man take fire in his bosom, And his clothes not be burned? Or can one walk upon hot coals, And his feet not be scorched? So he that goeth in to his neighbor's wife; Whosoever toucheth her shall not be unpunished. Men do not despise a thief, if he steal To satisfy himself when he is hungry: But if he be found, he shall restore sevenfold; He shall give all the substance of his house. He that committeth adultery with a woman is void of understanding: He doeth it who would destroy his own soul. Wounds and dishonor shall he get; And his reproach shall not be wiped away. For jealousy is the rage of a man; And he will not spare in the day of vengeance. He will not regard any ransom; Neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts (Proverbs 6:23-35 ASV).

Because the command is a lamp and the Law a light, rebukes that discipline are a way of life — to protect you from the evil woman, from the words of the seductive woman. Do not focus on her beauty in your mind, nor allow her to take you prisoner with her flirting eyes, because the price of a whore is a loaf of bread, and an adulterous woman stalks a man’s precious life. Can a man scoop fire into his bosom without burning his clothes? Can a man walk on hot coals without scorching his feet? So also is it with someone who has sex with his neighbor’s wife; anyone touching her will not remain unpunished. A thief isn’t despised if he steals to meet his needsl when he is hungry, but when he is discovered, he must restore seven-fold, forfeiting the entire value of his house. Whoever commits adultery with a woman is out of his mind; by doing so he corrupts his own soul. He will receive a beating and dishonor, and his shame won’t disappear, because jealousy incites a strong man’s rage, and he will show no mercy when it’s time for revenge. He will not consider any payment, nor will he be willing to accept it, no matter how large the bribe (Proverbs 6:23-35 ISV).

For sound advice is a beacon, good teaching is a light, moral discipline is a life path. They'll protect you from wanton women, from the seductive talk of some temptress. Don't lustfully fantasize on her beauty, nor be taken in by her bedroom eyes. You can buy an hour with a whore for a loaf of bread, but a wanton woman may well eat you alive. Can you build a fire in your lap and not burn your pants? Can you walk barefoot on hot coals and not get blisters? It's the same when you have sex with your neighbor's wife: Touch her and you'll pay for it. No excuses. Hunger is no excuse for a thief to steal; When he's caught he has to pay it back, even if he has to put his whole house in hock. Adultery is a brainless act, soul-destroying, self-destructive; Expect a bloody nose, a black eye, and a reputation ruined for good. For jealousy detonates rage in a cheated husband; wild for revenge, he won't make allowances. Nothing you say or pay will make it all right; neither bribes nor reason will satisfy him (Proverbs 6:23-35 MSG).

Charles Krauthammer - "The Real Message of Creationism" Nov 22, 1999 in Time and in book "Things That Matter" - review by Randall F. More

August 24, 2014

‎Dear Dr. Krauthammer

I appreciate and enjoy your commentaries on FOX.

I have just completed reading and very much enjoyed your book, "Things That Matter." I agree with most of your selected writings but disagree with your perspective outlined in, "The Real Message of Creationsim."

You write that creationism "is not science because it violates the central canon that a theory must, at least in principle, be disprovable. Creationism is not."

‎Your assertion is correct but evolution is similarly neither disprovable, nor provable. Evolution therefore cannot be considered as science for the same reason as Creation. Neither can ever be proved nor disproved. Therefore, Creation and evolution, by scientific standards, can never rightfully be considered as anything more than hypotheses, certainly not as scientific facts or laws, basically because neither is observable nor repeatable. It will always be known as the "theory" (or more correctly the "hypothesis") of evolution and nothing more.

For those who believe the Bible to be the Word of God, Creation has the distinct advantage‎ of being a fact, if not by science, by faith, while at the same time the available scientific evidence lends tremendous support for Creation. Not surprisingly, the God of the Bible is also the God of all science. 

From an academic standpoint, ‎both evolution and Creation should be taught in schools but they should BOTH be taught together either as religion, philosophy, ethics, or science. That would then constitute true, unbiased, and scholarly excellence. 

‎Contrary to your assertion, I believe that the Bible is all about facts. There isn't a single reference in the Bible about any subject that has ever been proven to be erroneous. If nothing else, that is truly an astounding record. 

Thank you for your consideration.

‎Your comments would be most welcome. 

‎Yours truly

Randall F. More, P. Eng.