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The Bible survives in more manuscripts than other ancient documents.

AuthorTitleSurviving ManuscriptsTacitusAnnals33ThucydidesHistory of the Peloponnesian War96HerodotusHistory109LivyHistory of Rome150SophoclesTragedies193Pliny the ElderNatural History200PlatoTetralogies210Julius CaesarGallic Wars251DemosthenesSpeeches340HomerIliad 1,757VariousNew Testament1 5,795The Bible is available in more languages than other books.

Author Title LanguagesJ. R. R. TolkienThe Lord of the Rings57Mark TwainThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn65J. K. RowlingHarry Potter85MuhammedQur’an (Arabic)102Joseph SmithBook of Mormon115Lewis CarrollAlice’s Adventures in Wonderland174LaoziDao De Jing (Chinese)250Carlo CollodiThe Adventures of Pinocchio260Antoine de Saint-ExupéryThe Little Prince (French)505VariousThe Bible6982The Bible sells more copies than other books.

Author Title SalesLeo TolstoyWar and Peace (Russian)36 millionDan BrownThe Da Vinci Code80 millionJ. R. R. TolkienThe Hobbit100 millionCao XueqinDream of the Red Chamber (Chinese)100 millionJ. K. RowlingHarry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone120 millionCharles DickensA Tale of Two Cities200 millionAntoine de Saint-ExupéryThe Little Prince (French)200 millionVariousThe Bible (Hebrew/Aramaic/Greek)5-7 billion3Which two sayings are in the Bible?

  1. Cleanliness is next to godliness
  2. Am I my brother’s keeper?
  3. God helps those who help themselves
  4. This too shall pass
  5. A living dog is better than a dead lion
  6. God works in mysterious ways
  7. Moderation in all things

God inspired the Bible, resulting in an authoritative book for belief and practice.

2 Timothy 3.14–17 (NRSVue4)14 continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 15 and how from childhood you have known sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 so that the person of God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.

Review:

  • The Bible is a fascinating book because it has way more surviving manuscripts, it is available in way more languages, and it has sold way more copies than other books.
  • The content of scripture alone should make you want to read it since it teaches about God, life, morals, and eternal life.
  • This class will help you develop the ability to discern between the genuine and the counterfeit.
  • God inspired scripture, making its contents useful for training and authoritative.
  • Even recognizing the authority of scripture and studying it assiduously does not guarantee correct interpretation.
  • If we added in manuscripts of the Old Testament the number would jump up considerably, especially after the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls and the documents recovered from the Cairo genizah.
  • If we limit ourselves to only the New Testament, the number of language jumps to 2,191.
  • See Guiness Book of World Records, “Best-Selling Book,” accessed Nov 10, 2023, https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/best-selling-book-of-non-fiction.
  • New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition, National Council of Churches, 2021.

The post 1: Why Should You Read the Bible for Yourself? first appeared on Living Hope.

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