Cut off her hand...

Do you think he was being literal in this, or was he, perhaps, trying to convey a truth by figurative means. For example, beware the yeast of the Pharisees and sadducees.

You believe everything is from God as a general rule. You never throw away whole doctrines. Rejecting any verse in very dangerous and must be undertaken with extreme caution. But Jesus does set the precedent. There were certainly things in the OT that he updated. Usually in connection with barbarous or hardhearted regulations. Let your conscience and the spirit guide you. The overarching rule is that God is not cruel and he loves his creation. Can you imagine Jesus stoning a bull?
I certainly accept the justice of God’s wrath and the need to demonstrate the deadly and deceptive nature of sin. We also have to watch ourselves. Certainly I am sinful and therefore should not presume to know better than God. But, nonetheless, I can conceive that the odd verse is a man made insertion that God does not necessarily endorse.

Im pretty sure that he meant it literally for our soul sake. I dont see how he could have meant that mataphorically.

Yes I do I believe everything is of G-d as a general rule, since all Scripture is G-d breathed. Explain to me how you decide which Scriptures you decide to throw out. Is that based on your wisdom and intelligence?

Can you imagine starving people not killing a bull for food because it is a god?

Tell me, what you even believe about that statement that all scripture is inspired by God?

That all words are inspired? Then tell me, which print has them. Which textual version. Is codex vaticanus all inspired? Is Septuagint all inspired? Is Vulgate? Or NIV? Or KJV? Which one has every word inspired.

If you mean that all good Bibles and translations are inspired in the meaning that they are useful for the Church, than you said nothing for the conversation, we all believe that Bible/Scriptures are useful. Some of us just do not think that every verse, sentence or word in sources we have today must be infallible or put there by God himself.

But what you said is absurd. There is no Bible that has every bit from God in the meaning of special inspiration. I doubt there is even Bible close to that.

If you think so, which one is it? There are whole books completely different between LXX and MT, like Jeremiah. There are whole chapters missing like psalm 151. There are different canons (old protestants, modern protestants, orthodox, RCC, coptic, ethiopian...)

To say that every word or every bit is perfectly preserved, reliable or inspired is... absurd.

So what is the benefit of plucking out one eye? You need to pluck out both for the remedy to be effective and then you still have your imagination, so perhaps a labotomy would be in order?
The point made by Christ is clear: the priority of the soul over everything else.
Why is it hard to believe that this is not another example, among many, of a metaphor?

Pray about it. Feels wrong for me to call it a metaphor.

I think you misread what I wrote.
When I said ‘You believe everything is from God as a general rule’
I wasn’t talking about you, I meant that is what a person should believe!
I should have written
‘One should believe everything is from God as a general rule’
Sorry for the misunderstanding.

I use several different translations at any one time when I study the bible,
Often cross referencing verses with other verses, rather than just relying on
a single verses or translation.

I also ask the Holy Spirit to show me what He wants to reveal. When you ask the
Holy Spirit the real wow factor is revealed big time. Things get noticed and
understand that you never saw before. Things are always fresh never stale.
I’ve lost count of the number of times I thought I read something and
understood it, for me to get the wow moment again when I read it later.
As once again my understanding is open in a new way.

Reading the bible with your spiritual eyes wide open is incredible to me.
It’s completely different to just reading it like a book. I understand exactly
what John meant when he was given a scroll which tasted like honey.
I also understand that about being thirsty for the word and drinking it in.

It’s not always like this I have my run of the mill dry periods too. Usually when I’m
tired, distracted, bogged down by the cares of the world. I really wish I didn’t
but I can really understand and see from first hand experience how the Holy
Spirit guides, instructs, etc when reading the bible. That’s why I believe Timothy
was guided by the Holy Spirit when he wrote those verses. I know it to be completely
true.

For me the bible is a massive adventure with plot after plot and story after
story all coming together and all pointing to the goodness of God the father.
Yes there are things I don’t understand, but as I get older I find they are
getting clearer. Any why questions I might still have, I know will be resolved
in the next life. I have tasted the goodness of God which shines through out
the entire bible.

Things happened for a reason back then, I’m not saying we should all go
around killing entire people groups and cutting off women’s hands! But dig
much much deeper, research, more importantly ask the Holy Spirit to show you
and He will.

If you read my earlier post about circumcision I gave my thoughts on the
original OP. But one other thing that just came to me. What if the linage of
Jesus was halted by a man being damaged preventing him from having
children.

We certainly see that was tried by the destruction of children in the bible.
I certainly believe the destruction of children was a work of Satan to disrupt
that linage, what if Satan was also to use a woman in the same way?

Maybe that could also be a reason for that specific law.

God was very careful to preserve a remnant at all costs to ensure His
plans for salvation, came to fruitation.

You are right Demi. Everyone has his or her own path. I heard that a Russian man deliberately blinded himself in obedience to this command. I do hope it was the right decision.

He was showing as well, the seriousness of sin. Shaking people out of their
apathy by His comments.

Then why do you fight the Old Testament as the Word of G-d?

Did you forgit about your "bull"?

I wouldn’t go that far! It is one thing to claim that a single verse is an uninspired insertion, another thing entirely to upend the entire bible.

The sacrificial system was certainly intended to demonstrate that even with the reduced standard of holiness required by the OT law, man still could not keep the bargain. The plan of redemption is based on sacrifice. The fact that other nations and religions sacrificed animals (and men) does not mean God would not do so, anymore than the fact that other nations occasionally told the truth or were kind to their children, would force God to abandon truth or kindness.

In the scripture you quote, God was simply saying that merely slaughtering animals was not God’s plan. His real plan was a people devoted to him, who tried to keep the law. This combined with sacrifices for sins was the plan. It was the dedication and sincerity of his people that God valued, not the blood of bulls and goats.

I am saying that the overwhelming majority of the biblical writings are true. But I do admit the possibility that there may be one or two verses that are man made insertions. So the bible, like everything else man has made, is flawed. But this doesn’t matter. God has revealed himself through the writings of men. He got his message across. He did not do what Allah did: Type the bible himself using man as a mindless automaton. God is great enough to work with imperfect humanity. I actually find this inspiring.

Indeed!

I understand what you are saying but that actually proves that you do not support "all Scriptures are inspired" in the meaning you used it, i.e. in the meaning "every sentence you read in your Bible is from God".

You realize there are different translations. But there are also much deeper problems than various translations and I mentioned some of them in my posts.

The fact is that the overwhelming majority of the bible is inspired. We are only talking one or two verses that are uninspired man made insertions. So we do not face a situation where we have to decide if this or that verse is untrue. But if we find a verse that seems to contradict what we know from the rest of the bible, then we examine it, pray about it, put it on the forum and discuss it and only in the very last resort, consider that it may be in the microscopically small group of uninspired verses. Jesus certainly set a precident in this. He did not agree with stoning the woman caught in adultery for example.

If one or two are flawed how do you decide which one or two? There are millions of verses in the Bible... 66 Books which one or two are wrong?

G-d is perfect!!! ALL 66 BOOKS ARE G-D BREATHED AND ACCURET OR IT IS EQUAL TO THE KORAN!!! FALSE!!!!

Through prayer th Holy Spirit gives us utterancea. We canz dwell, on our own understanding in/of anything.
For example. When Erasmus translated the scriptures he was forced to add things by the Catholic church that werent in the original scriptures.
The holy Spirit gives us decernmenz to see and check and test