I’ve asked this question so many times and no christian been able answer.
If there is only one god, then which gods are being refered to in Exodus 20:3 ”You shall have no other gods before me”?
Some will say; it’s a metaphore - however, then god himself must be a metaphore. Other will say; it can be false/man-made gods - then how do you tell the difference?
Regardless how you try to twist and turn this - if there are no other gods, then there is no need to refer to something that doesn’t exist. Or else you need to prove the existence of ”the god” and do that in a way that disproves the others gods existence.
What’s your view? Can it really be that simple?
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A theologist would explain that belief, derived from a human mind, can produce false gods. Hence why the iteration and reiteration in the bible, that he is who he is, and there is no other.
A catch twenty two if you ask me.
@doG
Doesn't the thelogist shot himself in the feet by saying that? Unless I am mistaken, the god of the christians could too be derived from the human mind by his own admission.
Thanks. That's the most common argument that I've come across from christians. However, the logic in that argument states that god is no more than a false god. Or am I missing something?
@3000
Correct, hence why the catch twenty two statement. Without demonstrable objective evidence, a blind unevidenced assertion, no matter what god, is a blind unevidenced assertion.
@Easy question: What's the first commandment? " I am the Lord thy God, thou shalt not have any strange gods before Me.”
Why would God say that if there were not other Gods?
How many Gods are mentioned in the bible?
☀♂⌂Addar
☀♂Adrammelech
☀♂♕Amon
☀♂☾Anammelech
☀♂♀Anath
☀♀Artemis
☀♀Asherah
☀⌂☾Ashtaroth
☀♀⌂
☾Ashtoreth
☀♂⌂Baal
☀♂Baal-berith
☀♂Baal-peor
☀♂Baal-zebub
☀⌂☁Baal-zephon
☀♂Bel
☀♂Berith
☀♂Chemosh
☀♂♞
☾Dagon
☀♀☾
ØDiana
☀♀ØDike
☀☾Dioscuri
☀♂ⓅDodo
☀♂☼El
☀♂El-berith
☀♂⌂Gad
☀♂♕
Ø②Hadad
☀♂Hermes
☀♂Jupiter
☀♂☾
ØKiyyun
☀♂ⓅMarduk
☀♂☾Mars
☀♀ØMelecheth-
hashamayim
☀♂ØMeni
☀♂Merodach
☀♂ⓅMilcom
☀♂Molech
☀♂Moloch
☀♂∩Nebo
☀♂Nehushtan
☀♂☾Nibhaz
☀♂Rephan
☀♂Reu
☀♂⌂
∩Rimmon
☀♂☾
ØSikkuth
☀⌂∩Sinai-Sinite
Sinim-Sin
Sivan
☀♀☾Succoth-
benoth
☀♂Tammuz
☀♂☾Tartak
☀♂Zeus
☀⌂♞
☾Zoheleth
https://www.abarim-publications.com/NaLi/Other_gods_Bible.html#.XrqKMkQzbcd
The answer is simple: the bible was made up by many different people, it is not or was the thoughts or word of god.
Here is one of my favorites to get the excuses and apologetics rolling... *chuckle*...
Genesis 3:22 New International Version (NIV)
22 And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.”
And, as a slightly off-topic sidenote, anybody else notice how Adam and Eve were apparently "scheduled" to die at some point anyway? Seems to me that makes the whole original threat by god rather pointless. Wonder how many people notice that... *scratching chin*...
It is a good one! Poor, poor Tom!
@thereare3000
Interesting you should ask.
More than one god?
Judaism did not become monotheistic until after the alleged exodus.
(1) New Testament, not as far as I'm aware.
(2) Torah; arguable. Some scholars have argued that the word 'elohim is only used in the plural case. Apologist hotly dispute this claim .
There is also the wording of the commandment, which I find interesting: Exodus 20:13 "Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”(KJV) surely is there was only one god, the commandment would be something like 'you shall have no FALSE gods before me"
(3) From scholarly endeavour :
I think so. Apparently, old YHWH began as a very early Israelite war god. His wife Asherah was part of the Canaanite pantheon. ***
Archaeologists have found literally hundreds of figurines of a female god in Israel.**** They date to the third century bce. The conclusion is monotheism may have been the state religion, but the people kept their old gods. .Same thing happened in Egypt when Akhenaten introduced the worship of only one god in the fourteenth century bce.
(((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((9)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
***Did God Have a Wife?: Archaeology and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel, (Eerdmans, ISBN 0-8028-2852-3, 2005),[1] is a book by Syro-Palestinian archaeologist William G. Dever, Professor Emeritus of Near Eastern Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Arizona. Did God Have a Wife? was intended as a popular work making available to the general public the evidence long known to archaeologists regarding ancient Israelite religion: namely that the Israelite god of antiquity (before 600 BCE), Yahweh, had a consort, that her name was Asherah, and that she was part of the Canaanite pantheon.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Did_God_Have_a_Wife%3F
**** The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts, a book published in 2001, discusses the archaeology of Israel and its relationship to the origins and content of the Hebrew Bible. The authors are Israel Finkelstein, Professor of Archaeology at Tel Aviv University, and Neil Asher Silberman, an archaeologist, historian and contributing editor to Archaeology Magazine.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bible_Unearthed
Your question raises an important theological point that has been debated for centuries. In Exodus 20:3, the commandment "You shall have no other gods before me" is a central tenet of monotheistic faiths like Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.
Interpreting this commandment depends on one's understanding of the nature of God. Some argue that it refers to the exclusive worship of the one true God, Yahweh, and prohibits the worship of any other deity or idol. In this view, the commandment emphasizes the monotheistic belief in the existence of only one true God.
Others interpret the commandment more broadly, suggesting that it prohibits the worship of any false gods or idols, whether they are conceived of as actual divine beings or as human-made constructs. In this interpretation, the commandment emphasizes the importance of true faith and allegiance to God alone.
Regardless of interpretation, the commandment underscores the monotheistic belief in the supremacy and uniqueness of God. To write my essay for me cheap refers to a request made to an essay writing service or individual writer to compose an essay at an affordable price. It indicates that the requester is seeking assistance with their essay writing needs but has budget constraints. It serves as a foundational principle for believers to prioritize their devotion and allegiance to the one true God above all else.
Ultimately, the interpretation of this commandment may vary among individuals and religious traditions. However, at its core, it reflects a commitment to monotheism and the exclusive worship of the divine.