* Printed from manuscript notes found among Colonel
Ingersoll's papers, evidently written in the early '80's.
While much of the argument and criticism will be found
embodied in his various lectures magazine articles and
contributions to the press, it was thought too valuable in
its present form to be left out of a complete edition of his
works, on account of too much repetition. Undoubtedly it was
the author's intention to go through the Bible in this same
manner and to publish in book form. "A few Reasons for
doubting the Inspiration of the Bible."
THE Old Testament must have been written nearly two thousand years
before the invention of printing. There were but few copies, and
these were in the keeping of those whose interest might have prompted
interpolations, and whose ignorance might have led to mistakes.
Second. The written Hebrew was composed entirely of consonants, without
any points or marks standing for vowels, so that anything like accuracy
was impossible. Anyone can test this for himself by writing an English
sentence, leaving out the vowels. It will take far more inspiration to
read than to write a book with consonants alone.
Third. The books composing the Old Testament were not divided into
chapters or verses, and no system of punctuation was known. Think of
this a moment and you will see how difficult it must be to read such a
book.
Fourth. There was not among the Jews any dictionary of their language,
and for this reason the accurate meaning of words could not be
preserved. Now the different meanings of words are preserved so that by
knowing the age in which a writer lived we can ascertain with reasonable
certainty his meaning.
Fifth. The Old Testament was printed for the first time in 1488. Until
this date it existed only in manuscript, and was constantly exposed to
erasures and additions.
Sixth. It is now admitted by the most learned in the Hebrew language
that in our present English version of the Old Testament there are
at least one hundred thousand errors. Of course the believers in
inspiration assert that these errors are not sufficient in number to
cast the least suspicion upon any passages upholding what are called the
"fundamentals."
Seventh. It is not certainly known who in fact wrote any of the books of
the Old Testament. For instance, it is now generally conceded that Moses
was not the author of the Pentateuch.
Eighth. Other books, not now in existence, are referred to in the Old
Testament as of equal authority, such as the books of Jasher, Nathan,
Ahijah, Iddo, Jehu, Sayings of the Seers.
Ninth. The Christians are not agreed among themselves as to what books
are inspired. The Catholics claim as inspired the books of Maccabees,
Tobit, Esdras, etc. Others doubt the inspiration of Esther,
Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon.
Tenth. In the book of Esther and the Song of Solomon the name of God is
not mentioned, and no reference is made to any supreme being, nor to any
religious duty. These omissions would seem sufficient to cast a little
doubt upon these books.
Eleventh. Within the present century manuscript copies of the Old
Testament have been found throwing new light and changing in many
instances the present readings. In consequence a new version is now
being made by a theological syndicate composed of English and American
divines, and after this is published it may be that our present Bible
will fall into disrepute.
Twelfth. The fact that language is continually changing, that words are
constantly dying and others being born; that the same word has a variety
of meanings during its life, shows hew hard it is to preserve the
original ideas that might have been expressed in the Scriptures, for
thousands of years, without dictionaries, without the art of printing,
and without the light of contemporaneous literature.
Thirteenth. Whatever there was of the Old Testament seems to have been
lost from the time of Moses until the days of Josiah, and it is probable
that nothing like the Bible existed in any permanent form among the Jews
until a few hundred years before Christ. It is said that Ezra gave
the Pentateuch to the Jews, but whether he found or originated it is
unknown. So it is claimed that Nehemiah gathered up the manuscripts
about the kings and prophets, while the books of Job, Psalms, Proverbs,
Ruth, Ecclesiastes, and some others were either collected or written
long after. The Jews themselves did not agree as to what books were
really inspired.
Fourteenth. In the Old Testament we find several contradictory
laws about the same thing, and contradictory accounts of the same
occurrences. In the twentieth chapter of Exodus we find the first
account of the giving of the Ten Commandments. In the thirty-fourth
chapter another account is given. These two accounts could never have
been written by the same person. Read these two accounts and you will
be forced to admit that one of them cannot be true. So there are two
histories of the creation, of the flood, and of the manner in which Saul
became king.
Fifteenth. It is now generally admitted that Genesis must have been
written by two persons, and the parts written by each can be separated,
and when separated they are found to contradict each other in many
important particulars.
Sixteenth. It is also admitted that copyists made verbal changes not
only, but pieced out fragments; that the speeches of Elihu in the book
of Job were all interpolated, and that most of the prophecies were made
by persons whose names we have never known.
Seventeenth. The manuscripts of the Old Testament were not alike, and
the Greek version differed from the Hebrew, and there was no absolutely
received text of the Old Testament until after the commencement of the
Christian era. Marks and points to denote vowels were invented probably
about the seventh century after Christ. Whether these vowels were put in
the proper places or not is still an open question.
Eighteenth. The Alexandrian version, or what is known as the Septuagint,
translated by seventy learned Jews, assisted by "miraculous power,"
about two hundred years before Christ, could not have been, it is said,
translated from the Hebrew text that we now have. The differences can
only be accounted for by supposing that they had a different Hebrew
text. The early Christian Churches adopted the Septuagint, and were
satisfied for a time. But so many errors were found, and so many were
scanning every word in search of something to sustain their peculiar
views, that several new versions appeared, all different somewhat from
the Hebrew manuscripts, from the Septuagint, and from each other.
All these versions were in Greek. The first Latin Bible originated in
Africa, but no one has ever found out which Latin manuscript was the
original. Many were produced, and all differed from each other. These
Latin versions were compared with each other and with the Hebrew, and
a new Latin version was made in the fifth century, but the old Latin
versions held their own for about four hundred years, and no one yet
knows which were right. Besides these there were Egyptian, Ethiopie,
Armenian, and several others, all differing from each other as well as
from all others in the world.
It was not until the fourteenth century that the Bible was translated
into German, and not until the fifteenth that Bibles were printed in
the principal languages of Europe. Of these Bibles there were several
kinds--Luther's, the Dort, King James's, Genevan, French, besides the
Danish and Swedish. Most of these differed from each other, and gave
rise to infinite disputes and crimes without number. The earliest
fragment of the Bible in the "Saxon" language known to exist was written
sometime in the seventh century. The first Bible was printed in England
in 1538. In 1560 the first English Bible was printed that was divided
into verses. Under Henry VIII. the Bible was revised; again under Queen
Elizabeth, and once again under King James. This last was published in
1611, and is the one now in general use.
Nineteenth. No one in the world has learning enough, nor has he time
enough even if he had the learning, and could live a thousand years, to
find out what books really belong to and constitute the Old Testament,
the authors of these books, when they were written, and what they really
mean. And until a man has the learning and the time to do all this he
cannot certainly tell whether he believes the Bible or not.
Twentieth. If a revelation from God was actually necessary to the
happiness of man here and to his salvation hereafter, it is not easy to
see why such revelation was not given to all the nations of the
earth. Why were the millions of Asia, Egypt, and America left to the
insufficient light of nature. Why was not a written, or what is still
better, a printed revelation given to Adam and Eve in the Garden of
Eden? And why were the Jews themselves without a Bible until the days
of Ezra the scribe? Why was nature not so made that it would give light
enough? Why did God make men and leave them in darkness--a darkness that
he, knew would fill the world with want and crime, and crowd with damned
souls the dungeons of his hell? Were the Jews the only people who needed
a revelation? It may be said that God had no time to waste with other
nations, and gave the Bible to the Jews that other nations through them
might learn of his existence and his will. If he wished other nations
to be informed, and revealed himself to but one, why did he not choose
a people that mingled with others? Why did he give the message to those
who had no commerce, who were obscure and unknown, and who regarded
other nations with the hatred born of bigotry and weakness? What would
we now think of a God who made his will known to the South Sea
Islanders for the benefit of the civilized world? If it was of such vast
importance for man to know that there is a God, why did not God make
himself known? This fact could have been revealed by an infinite being
instantly to all, and there certainly was no necessity of telling it
alone to the Jews, and allowing millions for thousands of years to die
in utter ignorance.
Twenty-first. The Chinese, Japanese, Hindus, Tartars, Africans, Eskimo,
Persians, Turks, Kurds, Arabs, Polynesians, and many other peoples,
are substantially ignorant of the Bible. All the Bible societies of
the world have produced only about one hundred and twenty millions of
Bibles, and there are about fourteen hundred million people. There
are hundreds of languages and tongues in which no Bible has yet been
printed. Why did God allow, and why does he still allow, a vast majority
of his children to remain in ignorance of his will?
Twenty-second. If the Bible is the foundation of all civilization, of
all just ideas of right and wrong, of our duties to God and each other,
why did God not give to each nation at least one copy to start with? He
must have known that no nation could get along successfully without a
Bible, and he also knew that man could not make one for himself. Why,
then, were not the books furnished? He must have known that the light
of nature was not sufficient to reveal the scheme of the atonement, the
necessity of baptism, the immaculate conception, transubstantiation, the
arithmetic of the Trinity, or the resurrection of the dead.
Twenty-third. It is probably safe to say that not one-third of the
inhabitants of this world ever heard of the Bible, and not one-tenth
ever read it. It is also safe to say that no two persons who ever read
it agreed as to its meaning, and it is not likely that even one person
has ever understood it. Nothing is more needed at the present time than
an inspired translator. Then we shall need an inspired commentator,
and the translation and the commentary should be written in an inspired
universal language, incapable of change, and then the whole world should
be inspired to understand this language precisely the same. Until these
things are accomplished, all written revelations from God will fill the
world with contending sects, contradictory creeds and opinions.
Twenty-fourth. All persons who know anything of constitutions and laws
know how impossible it is to use words that will convey the same ideas
to all. The best statesmen, the profoundest lawyers, differ as widely
about the real meaning of treaties and statutes as do theologians about
the Bible. When the differences of lawyers are left to courts, and the
courts give written decisions, the lawyers will again differ as to the
real meaning of the opinions. Probably no two lawyers in the United
States understand our Constitution alike. To allow a few men to tell
what the Constitution means, and to hang for treason all who refuse to
accept the opinions of these few men, would accomplish in politics what
most churches have asked for in religion.
Twenty-fifth. Is it very wicked to deny that the universe was created
of nothing by an infinite being who existed from all eternity? The human
mind is such that it cannot possibly conceive of creation, neither can
it conceive of an infinite being who dwelt in infinite space an infinite
length of time.
Twenty-sixth. The idea that the universe was made in six days, and is
but about six thousand years old, is too absurd for serious refutation.
Neither will it do to say that the six days were six periods, because
this does away with the Sabbath, and is in direct violation of the text.
Twenty-seventh. Neither is it reasonable that this God made man out of
dust, and woman out of one of the ribs of the man; that this pair were
put in a garden; that they were deceived by a snake that had the power
of speech; that they were turned out of this garden to prevent them from
eating of the tree of life and becoming immortal; that God himself made
them clothes; that the sons of God intermarried with the daughters
of men; that to destroy all life upon the earth a flood was sent that
covered the highest mountains; that Noah and his sons built an ark and
saved some of all animals as well as themselves; that the people tried
to build a tower that would reach to heaven; that God confounded their
language, and in this way frustrated their design.
Twenty-eighth. It is hard to believe that God talked to Abraham as one
man talks to another; that he gave him land that he pointed out; that he
agreed to give him land that he never did; that he ordered him to murder
his own son; that angels were in the habit of walking about the earth
eating veal dressed with butter and milk, and making bargains about the
destruction of cities.
Twenty-ninth. Certainly a man ought not to be eternally damned for
entertaining an honest doubt about a woman having been turned into
a pillar of salt, about cities being destroyed by storms of fire and
brimstone, and about people once having lived for nearly a thousand
years.
Thirtieth. Neither is it probable that God really wrestled with Jacob
and put his thigh out of joint, and that for that reason the
Jews refused "to eat the sinew that shrank," as recounted in the
thirty-second chapter of Genesis; that God in the likeness of a flame
inhabited a bush; that he amused himself by changing the rod of Moses
into a serpent, and making his hand leprous as snow.
Thirty-first. One can scarcely be blamed for hesitating to believe that
God met Moses at a hotel and tried to kill him that afterward he made
this same Moses a god to Pharaoh, and gave him his brother Aaron for a
prophet;2 that he turned all the ponds and pools and streams and all the
rivers into blood,3 and all the water in vessels of wood and stone; that
the rivers thereupon brought forth frogs;4 that the frogs covered the
whole land of Egypt; that he changed dust into lice, so that all the
men, women, children, and animals were covered with them;6 that he sent
swarms of flies upon the Egyptians;8 that he destroyed the innocent
cattle with painful diseases; that he covered man and beast with blains
and boils;7 that he so covered the magicians of Egypt with boils that
they could not stand before Moses for the purpose of performing the
same feats, that he destroyed every beast and every man that was in
the fields, and every herb, and broke every tree with storm of hail and
fire;9 that he sent locusts that devoured every herb that escaped the
hail, and devoured every tree that grew;10 that he caused thick darkness
over the land and put lights in the houses of the Jews;11 that he
destroyed all of the firstborn of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh
upon the throne to the firstborn of the maidservant that sat behind the
mill,"12 together with the firstborn of all beasts, so that there was
not a house in which the dead were not."