The bible has been through a number of translations, many of them with a political agenda.  Add that the source documents do not agree with each other, the fact that it was written (and edited) by a number of different authors over a period of centuries, and that the authors (and later editors) lived in cultures very different from ours, and you have a collection of books that should not be taken as literal truth.

One example of the editing with a political agenda:  King James I was a flaming fairy, so the translators deliberately emphasized anything to do with homosexuality, mistranslating for example verses that had to do with pagan male temple prostitution as condemnations of homosexuality in general.  At the time he commissioned the translation, the king’s goal was to produce a translation that would refute the fundamentalists of his time.

Last edited by fnord (2009-10-06 21:35:07)

Yeah, they're gonna take out the being kind to poor people and healing the sick parts.

ah297900 wrote:

King James was a flaming fairy? Is that why the bible lisps? "Walketh to the thore and buyeth me thome thigarettes." Etc.

Probably not. James hated tobacco for all the right health reasons but he was quickly addicted to its tax revenue.