Jonah and the whale - It happened!

Hi, Could you let me know how your source comes to the conclusion that the book of Jonah was written in Greek?Brian.

But the Greek New Testament is irrelevant, in other words, why use a secondary source instead of a primary one?Brian.

So Jonah lived inside a whale/fish/sea monster, what point are you trying to make?Brian

All I can say is .............so what?Brian.

Hiya LOL,Yeah it is a bit weird, all those words and he really hasn't made a point at all.What I am surprised at is we appear to have two Bible verses written in three languages, strange that one.I have also to see any signs of a critical analysis of the sources. No textual criticsm of any sort.Also, no historian would ever claim that anything they write about happened for certain.I am also a bit puzzled that the newspaper account has no mention of the sailor's name or any of the crew.All I can say is that our Ken is no historian.Brian.

Ah, I get Ken's point now (I think).Am I right in assuming that Ken believes that if he can prove that a man can live inside a whale for 3 days then this means that the story of Jonah is true?Or am I oversimplifying his stance?Brian.

Hi, But what I am getting at is it doesn't matter what the creature was, it doesn't matter how many examples of modern day reports of men surviving inside various sea creatures you provide, this does not prove that Jonah was inside a whale for three days. It suggests that it is possible but it in no way verifies that the Jonah event ever happened.I personally don't think a man can survive inside anything's stomach for three days and you certainly haven't shown that it is possible.The title of your thread shows an ignorance of historical methodology, just because you can support a man living inside a whale for a day does not prove that Jonah existed, or that he was inside a whale, this is not a sound historical conclusion.So, just because somehting is possible it does not follow that it happened. If I said yesterday I ran 100 metres in 9.98 seconds, does the fact that it is possible for a man to run at this speed prove that my story is true?I hope you can see the problem with your evidence and how it does not prove that Jonah was swallowed by a whale/sea creature.Cheers.Brian.

It is not nice to try and make a fool of someone like this, Ken was doing his best please do not try to ridicule him.Brian.

Hi,Could I divert your attention to the topic?Do you have any intention of supoprting your claim that 'It happened'?You are not really moving the debate forward, this continuual posting of chatter from other websites is intensely boring.Brian.

You have also asserted that 'it happened' , yet you have not provided a single shred of evidence that 'it happened'. Your silence is only slightly less embarrassing than your ignorance.Brian.

Hi, Let me see, you are positive that this happened yet you admit that you haven't even fully researched this?This kind of reminds me of a joke I heard about what the difference is between a scientist and a fundamentalist Christian. The scientist looks at the evidence and then comes to a conclusion, the fundy has his conclusion and then goes looking for evidence. You may never arrive at the truth Ken if you take the fundy approach.Good luck anyway.Brian.

Hi Moose,I totally agree.Ken is trying to find a natural explanation for a miraculous event, it looks like a lack of faith from where I am sitting.But this has been an incredibly boring topic, Ken's persistent refusal to answer people's replies makes me wonder what the point of the thread actually was.Brian.

HI Ken, It doesn't matter if there is a mix or not, as soon as a miracle is invoked it becomes a supernatural event.Again you are contradicting you topic heading, when you say there could have been then you negate your claim that 'It happened'. Well two things really.Firstly, I thought you might be polite enough to reply to the posts I directed to you.Secondly, as an EvC Moderator of 'The Bible: Accuracy and Inerrancy' forum I have an obligation to read as many of the posts as I can But back to the topic, can you see the problem of having a concluson then looking for the evidence?Brian.

Hi TL Right, I see it now LOL.So, correct me if I am wrong but if 0.01% of a fundy argument is agreed to as being possible it then makes the other 99.99% (regardless of how ludicrous) possible as well?Then in Ken’s mind, because it is possible for a man to live for three days in a whale's belly (Ken, I am not saying it is possible), Jonah automatically becomes a real person, and all the events associated with him are undoubtedly true? This is verging on some sort of psychological illness, it is the sort of worldview that a child would have. I do respect people’s freedom to follow whichever faith they want to, and to worship however they want, but taking this approach, IMO, means that the reader is not fully appreciating the amazing literature of the Bible. It is up to them of course, but it is really embarrassing to see an adult believing in a 6000 year old universe and a worldwide flood 4400 years or so ago. But what is more embarrassing is the silly apologetics offered to maintain their position. Another puzzling side to them is the way in which they ignore experts that try hard to explain complicated issues to them, they ask for clarification on some things and when it is given they tell the expert that they are wrong! It is like living inside a Von Daniken book. Actually, I really was confused, and you are correct, it was down to me thinking that surely an adult isn’t thinking what I think he is thinking! It is really quite sad when you think about it, it is such a waste of life, a waste of precious time. I am glad you said this because I was beginning to think that I was coming to the wrong conclusion. We would argue in this way when we were ten years old!Thanks for the clarification, at least now I can rest assured that I am not jumping ot any wrong conclusions with our Ken.Brian.

I strongly suggest that you do some theological research as well.Brian.