Is the Bible Consistent?
You know what I like about my dogs? I like their consistency. For example, I have two dogs, and they are consistently happy to see me. It doesn’t matter if I had a bad day or a good day, my dogs are happy to see me. Now there’s a flip side to consistency. For example, my dogs like to eat breakfast at daybreak. If I haven’t fed them by daybreak, they find me and let me know about it. Furthermore, that kind of consistency can bring about some very rigid behaviors. For example, if you have two dogs, you probably feed one of them first. Switch dogs. Feed the other one first and see what happens. They will look at you like you’re crazy and get all anxious. It’s quite comical, but it’s also somewhat sad that such a simple change can throw a dog for a loop.
As humans, there is something in our core that strives for consistency. For example, my morning commute takes about 25 minutes. If it takes 32 minutes on one particular morning, I am not happy. When I order a Big Mac, I want it to have special sauce. I expect special sauce. If it doesn’t have special sauce, I am not happy. If my car has run perfectly for years, and it suddenly breaks down, I am not happy. You get the picture.
So, when I read the Bible, I expect it to be consistent. However, there appear to be many inconsistencies in the Bible. For example, Sampson was glorified for killing Philistines, but Jesus said turn the other cheek. Proverbs says saving is wise, but Jesus says to not even worry about what you eat or wear.
So, is the Bible inconsistent? I don’t think so. I think humans are inconsistent, but I think the Bible is “consistently” relative to the situation. God doesn’t want robots. He made us with the capacity to reason. And although he didn’t make us gods, he made us in his image (which is another good blog topic..). He doesn’t want us to be the dog who got thrown for a loop because he/she got fed first.
Ecclasiastes 3 sums it up better than I ever could:
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
PS: If you thought that the above verse was just a groovy 1960s song…..you’re not alone.