Elements of Productive Bible Study: Interpret, Part 2

Elements of Productive Bible Study: Interpret, Part 2

by John MacArthur

Faithfully reading Scripture is fundamental to your spiritual growth. But reading alone isn’t enough to sanctify you—it’s just the first step in the process.
To truly get the full meaning—and the full benefit—of Scripture, you’ve got to be able to interpret it accurately. While you might be able to glean some eternal truth from a basic, surface reading of the text, God’s Word deserves and demands our careful attention and diligent study.

We already looked last week at some of the common, dangerous mistakes people make when it comes to interpreting the Bible. Today, I want to highlight five key principles of sound biblical interpretation. These are tools I use regularly when I’m preparing to teach, and I know they will help you in your own study.

The Literal Principle

In simple terms, this means you take the words of Scripture in their literal, normal, natural sense. A literal view of God’s Word will help guard you against spurious interpretive methods like numerology, extreme allegory, and bizarre mysticism. What each word means is what it means.

Obviously, that’s not a call for slavish, rigid literalism. But even where Scripture employs parables, hyperbole, similes, metaphors, and symbolism, we’re to read and understand those figures of speech in their natural, normal sense.

Fans of allegory will point to the figurative language deployed in some apocalyptic prophecies, but that’s far from the norm in Scripture. And even in those passages, a clear understanding relies on historical study and not the imagination of the reader.

Don’t approach Scripture as if it’s a treasure map or a puzzle that needs to be solved to access some secret meaning. If you ignore the literal understanding, you discard any hope for an accurate, coherent interpretation. With few exceptions, the simple, direct meaning of the text is its original, intended meaning.

The Historical Principle

We need to work to understand the Bible in its original, historical context. Ask yourself this question: “What did this verse or passage mean to its author and its original audience?” A text without a context is a pretext.

To fully understand any book of the Bible, you need to be aware of the history involved. Who was the original audience? Where did they live? What were the political and cultural conditions like? What were the tensions, problems, and crises in that community at the time of the writing, and did the writer address those issues? Were there specific customs or rituals that have a bearing on the meaning of the text?

Answering those questions and others like them helps bridge the gap between the culture of the Bible and our modern society, bringing you to a clear, thorough understanding of the writer’s original message.

The Grammatical Principle

Often the syntactical construction of a passage is the key to its meaning. Verbs, nouns, pronouns, prepositions—just as in any other language, the usage and placement of the individual words help determine their meaning.

Sentence diagramming isn’t as stressed in grammar classes as it once was, but identifying the grammatical parts of a verse or passage and how they work together is very helpful when studying Scripture. If you don’t accurately and precisely follow the sequence of the words and phrases, how can you hope to know what God’s Word truly says?

The first thing I do when I prepare to teach a passage is study the biblical text in its original language. I want to make sure to get the full meaning of each word in the passage, and not overlook some nuance that can be lost in the translation to English. You can do the same in your personal study, even if you don’t know Greek and Hebrew. Interlinear translations, Bible dictionaries, and good commentaries ought to give you insight into the original languages, and help you break down what the words and phrases meant to their original audience.

The Synthesis Principle

If the Bible is God’s Word, it must be consistent with itself. No part of Scripture can contradict any other part. It was all inspired by one Author—the Holy Spirit—and consequently, it reflects a marvelous, supernatural unity.

That means that obscure passages can—and should—be understood in light of clearer ones. The synthesis principle puts Scripture together with Scripture to arrive at a clear, consistent meaning. If you hold to an interpretation of one passage that does not square with something in another passage, one of the passages is being interpreted incorrectly—and possibly both of them.

Using Scripture to interpret itself will also guard you from many heretical, extrabiblical doctrines, as it forces you to submit your interpretation to the standard and context of the rest of Scripture. It protects you from spiritual contradictions.

The Practical Principle

You can’t end your Bible study without asking, “What does all this have to do with me?” What does the passage have to say about faith, godliness, growth, sin, and repentance, and what are the implications for your life?

Regardless of what you’re studying, there will be some practical connection to your life. As Paul said in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.”

Once you’ve considered the literal meaning of a passage, its historical and grammatical context, and how it harmonizes with the rest of Scripture, you need to draw out the practical implications for your life. That’s what productive Bible study looks like—digging down to the original meaning of a text and applying it to your life.

Does that seem like something you can do faithfully in your own, personal study of God’s Word?

Elements of Productive Bible Study: Interpret, Part 1

Elements of Productive Bible Study: Interpret, Part 1

 by John MacArthur

When it comes to Bible study, too often people want to jump straight to application. They might be faithful to read God’s Word, but they skip an important step on the way to applying it to their lives. And in many cases, that application comes from only the most basic, shallow knowledge of what Scripture truly says and means.

You can’t dig deeply into the riches of God’s truth if you only have a surface understanding of its meaning. If you truly want to apply God’s Word to your life, you cannot skip over the important step of interpretation. It’s not enough to simply know what the Bible says—we must strive to know what it means by what it says.

It’s a matter of, as Paul charged Timothy, “rightly dividing the Word” (2 Timothy 2:15, NKJV). Left to our own understanding, we might be able to make some limited sense of portions of Scripture. However, other passages would leave us as clueless and confused as the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:31). In fact, without careful interpretation, you could wind up with a different application of biblical truth for each person in your family, your Bible study group, or even your congregation.

In order to interpret the true meaning of Scripture, there are a number of gaps we need to bridge. Since the Bible was originally written in Hebrew, Greek, and even some Aramaic, there are language gaps we need to cross. Why did the biblical authors use the words, phrases, and idioms they used, and what did they mean to the original audience? And do our translations of those words and phrases capture their full meaning, or is there more to it than is instantly apparent in our English Bibles?

Along those same lines, we need to bridge the culture gap. We need to understand how the biblical authors thought and lived, and how that influenced what they wrote. You can’t appreciate the full weight of the parable of the Good Samaritan or Christ’s interaction with the woman at the well if you don’t understand the tension between Jews and Samaritans. We don’t need to contextualize Scripture to make it relevant today—we need to understand its original context and how it shaped God’s Word.

In addition to language and culture, there’s also a geography gap. Even a basic understanding of Old and New Testament geography can make a significant difference in your understanding of a particular text. How many times have you consulted the maps in the back of your Bible? Just that basic information helps bring vivid detail to the life and ministry of Christ, His disciples, and many other Old and New Testament figures.

Finally, when it comes to interpreting God’s Word, we need to bridge the history gap. Knowing Pilate’s background and the mistakes he’d made with the Jews helps you understand why he was so willing to hand Jesus over for crucifixion. Knowing about the wicked lives of the Roman rulers helps you understand the kind of persecution and opposition Paul and the other apostles faced. Don’t fall into the trap of treating God’s Word like a collection of fables, fairy tales, and ancient proverbs. Knowing the real history that shaped the events in Scripture helps bring them to life in your study.

The work of bridging those gaps is interpretation, and it’s a vital part of any thorough, productive Bible study. It can seem like daunting work at first, but it’s the only way to get past a shallow, surface understanding of God’s truth. To help you with that, tomorrow we’re going to look at five key principles of Bible interpretation.

It's Not You, It's Me

I was recently reading Deut. 33 and in it is detailed many blessings and curses for those that are obedient or disobedient. The obedient were on the receiving end of all kinds of positive things. The disobedient got all kinds of promises of disease or death, pestilence, etc.

It made me think of the way that many folks take a promise of God out of context and try to apply it to their own life. We would not dare take the curses as promises for us, because it is clear, looking at the context, that it is not for us (plus it is negative). If we would not accept the negative promises of God as our own, why do we accept the positive promises as our own without the same consideration?

I wonder if it is because we think we deserve all the blessings of God because we are so good, and God would surely not punish our disobedience to His holy, righteous law because of all the good we usually do.

I was thinking also of the promises to the Israelites for the promised land. We like to claim the promises for the promised land for ourselves, but not the promises to Moses, that he will not make it into the Promised land because of his disobedience. I think the same applies with Jeremiah 29, that I've addressed before...We like Jer. 29:11, where God has a good plan for us, but shouldn't also claim Jer. 29:17- thus says the Lord of hosts, 'Behold, I am sending upon them a sword, famine and pestilence, and I will make them like split-open figs that cannot be eaten due to rottenness.

Can we have it both ways? Can we claim promises of God that seem to be for someone else entirely? If we can, why not the promises of destruction for our disobedience also?

I wish we could claim some of these things as our own, but I am not at liberty to take something out of context and apply it to myself, no matter how encouraged it makes me feel...But we are called to rightly handle the Word of God and I don't think this does it.

Without Wrath, Grace Means Less?

<sup>I ran across a good quote dealing with the parable of the sower. It was from a blog, but I don't know which one, so I can't give credit where it is due.  It is basically dealing with the importance of rightly preaching the Word of God. That is where the power is. Our pastor was just talking about this: Opinions fade, the Word does not.


Matt 13:18, 20-21</sup> “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: ²⁰ The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. ²¹ But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. 


Here's the quote: "If this is sometimes the case with those who hear the true Word of the Kingdom, properly proclaimed, how plainly this exposes the dangers of our modern watered-down presentations of man's sinful state.

Rather than risk offending people by telling them of the wrath of a holy and just God toward sinners, we instead talk of having "made mistakes" and "messed up our lives". 


Instead of warning of the coming judgement, we tell people that God loves them, omitting any mention of His holiness and justice. Rather than call sinners to repent, we entice them with the offer of a better, more abundant life."

We Must Recieve, Honor and Obey the Word

For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. (Matthew 5:18)

To be a follower of Jesus Christ is to accept what He says about Scripture and to wholeheartedly echo Peter’s sentiment: “You have words of eternal life” (John 6:68).

The privilege of knowing Christ and His Word also carries with it certain essential obligations. First, we must receive God’s Word exactly for what it is, “the word implanted, which is able to save your souls” (James 1:21).

We should be completely receptive because the Word is the highest standard of truth, joy, and blessing, and it tells us of the way to salvation. Second, we are obligated to honor the Scripture.

The psalmist wrote, “How sweet are Your words are to my taste! Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Ps. 119:103; cf. Jer. 15:16). The great Reformer Martin Luther did not fear his human opponents.

However, when He stood in the pulpit to expound Scriptures, his knees often knocked under a sense of awe and duty to honor the Word. Third, we must obey God’s Word.

The apostle Paul commanded Timothy, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15).

A key to genuine obedience in the Christian walk is to “let the word of Christ richly dwell within”
(Col. 3:16).[1]

John MacArthur

___________________________________________________________________________

End notes:

[1] John MacArthur, Daily Readings From the Life of Christ [Chicago: Moody, 2008], April 3.

AOMIN: "Private Interpretation of Scripture for Roman Catholics"

This is not comforting, as Roman Catholic apologists might have us to believe. To the contrary, this is scary stuff and presents a recipe for disaster:

AOMIN: Private Interpretation of Scripture for Roman Catholics

Even in strictly pragmatic terms, this philosophy of biblical hermeneutics over the years has not prevented Rome from losing parishioners, confidence, money, properties, etc. on account of liberalism and sex abuse scandals.

What Does It Mean "to Me"?

Here's a good blog post dealing with the idea of expository preaching, that is preaching that strives to tell the listener what the Bible says, not simply what it means for them.

John MacArthur does a nice job explaining why it is not necessarily up to the preacher to make the Word of God relevant. He says, "it is [relevant} inherantly so, simply because it is the Word of God".

Here are a few snippits: I encourage you to read the whole article.

The question of what Scripture means has taken a back seat to
the issue of what it means “to me.”

This seems to be the way many Christians view Scripture. It is not enough that we are learning about what God has done in history. It has to be about us. But it is not about us. This is one thing Rick Warren said well in Purpose Driven Life- It is not about us. [Of course, he spends the next several hundred pages explaining how it IS about us and what we do...but I digress]

I have been guilty of this myself, but I recognize the problem with this type of Bible "study" and Scripture memorization. We must be careful to not "claim" promises as our own when the context seems clear that it is not. Because, frankly, my own selfishness likes to make things about me, whether it is or not.

White Horse Inn recently had a broadcast where they called this type of Bible reading, "Texual Narcissism". Here is more from MacArthur:

But now and then someone tells me frankly that my preaching needs to be less doctrinal and more practical.

Practical application is vital. I don’t want to minimize its importance. But the distinction between doctrinal and practical truth is artificial; doctrine is practical! In fact, nothing is more practical than sound doctrine.

Too many Christians view doctrine as heady and theoretical. They have dismissed doctrinal passages as unimportant, divisive, threatening, or simply impractical. A best-selling Christian book I just read warns readers to be on guard against preachers whose emphasis is on interpreting Scripture rather than applying it.

Wait a minute. Is that wise counsel? No it is not.

He goes on to explain how if we don't actually understand what the text is saying, we cannot apply it's teaching to our lives. And that "application not based on solid interpretation leads Christians to all kinds of confusion." I would add, all kinds of spiritual weirdness.

How many times have Christians taken verses out of context and said "God told me" thus and such? Too many times. It has been said that the biggest threat to the faithfulness of the Church is not from without, but rather from within.

Be sure to read the rest of the article.

D.B.

Confessional (Done with the NIV)

As the title suggests, I’m through with the NIV. The 1984 rendition was problematic enough, and the latest version is unforgivable. I visit Bible Gateway, which posts a new Verse of the Day pick everyday, and I see mounting evidence of a downward spiral of the work of the Zondervan publishers or NIV translation committee.

Does anyone know where I can buy an inexpensive ESV?

The new version of the New International Version

I just now heard about this; I didn’t know how many other people have already heard of this. Bible Gateway has the run-down on the latest, updated version of the NIV. They have also published notes from the NIV translators. Here are the links:

Updating the New International Version of the Bible: Notes from the Committee on Bible Translation

Updating the New International Version of the Bible: Notes from the Committee on Bible Translation

(If you ask me, the NIV translators continue to dig themselves deeper into a hole each time they release a revised “rendition” or “translation” of the Scriptures.)

What is the Bible Basically About?

Quick answer: Not me. It about Him.

Osteen Said What?

Here is a video that the Museum of Idolatry did that goes through portions of one of Joel Osteen's talks to see if what he says lines up with Scripture. It is a little distracting because it is like watching an Asian Old Time Kung Fu movie (his lips don't line up perfectly- at least not when I watched it).

But if you can get past that and realize what he is teaching to folks and how the author of the Museum of Idolatry goes through, questioning his theology.

What do you think? Is he accurate in his comments during the video?

Highlighting

So, when you've found an awesome passage in scripture that you want to highlight, what do you do? Do you take a marker and highlight? Do you underline?

I have a much better solution! When you highlight with markers, the ink usually soaks through the page; and when you underline, the text becomes difficult to read -- or you end up underlining THROUGH the words. What's the fix? Colored pencils.

You heard me! Go to any Walmart, buy a $3, 12-pack of Crayola pencils! They erase! They highlight! And no messy underlining! Here is my "Super Secret" Color code so that you can know at a glance what passages you're looking for!

Red: Headlines, Promises, Commands
Light Blue: General Highlight
Pink: Character of God
Yellow: Wisdom/Foolishness
Green: Wealth/Money/Poverty
Brown: Righteousness/Wickedness
Orange: Family
Violet: Old Testament Prophesy of Jesus

What version should I use? Part - 1

So there are a lot of different Bibles out there, but which one should you use? There are four REALLY good translations: KJV, NKJV, NIV, and NASB, but even then which of those is the "best"?

There is a movement out there called the King James Version Only Movement. The JKVO people believe that the KJV is the only Bible people should use. They say it is the only version without errors. They even say that it was God-inspired. Let investigate some of these claims...

Without Errors:
The KJV was written in A.D. 1611. You do realize that the Dead Sea Scrolls were only discovered in 1947? I'm not saying that the KJV is full of corruption, but over the centuries many, older, more accurate texts have been found to base our translations off of. KJVO advocates also stated that if any man truely wants to understand God, he must use the KJV -- as in, if you are a Russian, you HAVE to speak English so that you can read the REAL KJV. According to their theology: if you do not have the JKV you do not have the Bible. (Follow my logic now...) Therefore, before the JKV was written no one had the Word of God. If you do not understand English, you do not have the Word of God. KJVO advocates also believe that the KJV is superior to the Greek and Hebrew texts that it was based off of... You do realized that the Bible was originally written IN Greek and Hebrew...

Let's get technical... The KJV was based on what's called the "Textus Receptus". The Textus Receptus was part of a group of manuscripts called the "Byzantine Family" (another group of texts was called the "Alexandrian Family" but we'll get into that later.) What do I mean by group?

When Paul and the disciples sent their letters out to the new church they always added "and share these with everyone." Anyone and everyone would hand copy the letters any way they could and distribute them. Some of the copiests were actual scribes and copied well, while others were just shy of illiterate. Years later we have THOUSANDS of copies of the Bible with little bits and pieces that have been changed due to mistakes during copying (these are called "textual variances"). These were divided into the Byzantine and Alexandrian Families.

*Example Time !!!" A Professor decided to teach his class a lesson at a college. The task was to give 30 students a copy of a 12 page essay and to hand copy it themselves. After this the original text was put away and the students had to reproduce the original text through the hand-written copies. None of the hand-written copies came out the same; however, after much comparing, the students handed in their final copy. Although none of their copies of the text had come out the same, the students had reproduced the original text with 100% accuracy with the exception of one word... "too" and "also". The professor has tried this exercise many times on his students and the results are always the same. What does this tell us? SINCE we have thousands of copies of the Bible, by comparing the documents to each other we can discern what the original text said (with the exception of words such as "too" and "also"). We have NO DOUBT that we have the real Bible, because none of the textual variances affect the message the Bible is trying to convey: Christ's Deity and Humanity, God's Sovereignty, salvation by grace, the reality of Heaven and Hell... All Bible versions (when I say "versions" I'm talking about KJV, NKJV, NASB, and NIV) and translations are 98% identical. IDENTICAL!!!! There is only a 2% variance at all!!!!!!!

To Be Continued... Part - 1, Part - 2, Part - 3

Never Read a Bible Verse- Part 7- "Glory to God in the Highest..."

Greg Koukl has another great video (3:32) that describes the problem often associated with the reading of this popular "Christmas" verse. I know we are past Christmas, but it seems we are never past doing the best we can to accurately quote the Bible.

Be sure to click the link and check it out.

D.B.

Never Read a Bible Verse- "Judge Not" Mistake

Here is a 5 minute video in Grag Koukl's "Never Read a Bible Verse" miniseries. If you have ever encountered someone who told you 'Judge not lest you be judged' in order to silence your objection to their behavior, lifestyle, ideas...this is something you'll want to listen to.

Particularly because the passage does not necessarily mean what they want it to mean. Also, one point Koukl raises is that the person who think you are wrong for judging them, are also wrong using that same verse. They are judging you!

D.

The Bible is All About Jesus

Here is a link to a blog that has a list of 313 prophecies that some attribute to Jesus. They are from the Old Testament and He fulfills them in the New. I have not read through them, but I would be a little skeptical about some of them. I think lists like this sometimes include some that are a little hard to accept. But the vast majority are fulfilled by Jesus and some ae definately quite impressive.

D.

10 Questions: 1-5

The following is a response to “Anti-gag” (Chris Hill).

First, thanks for your interest. I decided to answer your questions in the hopes that you really are seeking God. If not, then I hope everyone else will appreciate my answers.

For everyone else, last night a link to an anti-christian video was posted in the comments section of my blog. Upon watching the video I was both disappointed and glad at the same time. I was disappointed because I couldn’t believe that someone actually thought this was logic, and glad because I had a chunk of meat to dig my teeth into. The video posed 10 questions in an attempt to prove that God is imaginary.

All right, my friends. I have an answer to every single one of those questions...

I would first like to point out that the video begins with a vain attempt to induce pride in the viewer by making the claim that, “You have all the answers. You have the ability to answer these questions because you have knowledge and power,” (sounds like they might believe in God after all.) The truth is that we are tiny human specks in the universe and to think that we might have the knowledge to understand and explain everything there is to know: 1) in the universe and 2) about God, is ludicrous... But on with the questions.

Question number 1) "Why won’t God heal amputees?"
Why won’t God heal the flu? Why won’t God heal warts? How about this: why should He heal anybody? Does God obey our whims? How dare you try to make the King of the Universe your personal vending machine! Just because someone has an amputation doesn’t mean that God won’t give them a better life in all eternity. To look at the momentary discomfort of any human being and say, “Therefore, that is proof that God doesn’t exist,” is ridiculous. This life is so infinitesimally short that to spend it complaining to God is a waste!

Question number 2) "Why are there so many starving people in our world?"
I suppose the author of this video would prefer that God to zap food into people’s mouths, once again betraying their ignorance of what God’s purpose is. While I would not disagree that there are some instances where there are individuals that are having very difficult times providing for themselves, most instances where there is mass starvation is caused by plague, natural disaster or an oppressive government, because we have plenty of land and plenty of food that we can get. Once again, since God is a god of eternity, to look at the temporary discomfort during the few years that we live on this earth and say, “Therefore, there is no God,” is sheer lunacy. The author would do better spending a little time learning about who God is and what He wants from us rather that assuming that He’s a magic genie that should jump up and dance every time we demand it.

Question number 3) "Why does God allow the death of so many innocent people?"
Once you show me someone who is truly innocent, then I will answer your question. No one on this earth is pure and innocent in the eyes of Almighty God. Every single person on the planet is fallen and sinful. The video puts up the points of:
Exodus 35:2, “For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a holy {day,} a sabbath of complete rest to the LORD; whoever does any work on it shall be put to death.”
God was making a point that He is to be obeyed. Anyone who disobeys this simple commandments should be put to death because since they cannot be trusted to do this simple thing how can they be trusted to obey a greater thing?
Deuteronomy 21:18-21 Disobedient youth are to be put to death.
Once again, God understood that if a child is continually disobedient, then that child will be disobedient through adulthood and may entice others to be disobedient as well. This would quickly corrupt the society.
Leviticus 20:13, “If {there is} a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their blood-guiltiness is upon them.”
Once again, as with the previous section, God is dealing with disobedience. Homosexuality is condemned in the Bible because it is an attack on the institution of the family and marriage. God knows that without these pillars to uphold society, society is doomed to collapse.
Deuteronomy 22:13-21 Girls that are not found to be virgins when they marry are to be put to death.
Once again, harlotry corrupts a society, just open up your high-school history book an take a look! God does account for rape and incest (in which case the girl is not to be put to death). But God understands that once the people no longer sanctify virginity, the society is headed for disaster!

Question number 4) "Why does the Bible contain so much anti-scientific nonsense?"
Once again, show me a verse in the Bible that is truly nonsense. The video firsts tries to create an assumption that God might be against technology -- which He is not! God gave humanity the ability to learn, improve and invent. The video then tries to put up “evidence” of unscientific verses:
“God did not create the world in 6 literal days 6,000 years ago.”
(I could devote an entire blog to proving this point, but I’ll try to keep it brief.) Any student of physics understands that matter, space, time and energy were all created at the same time and yes, they were CREATED. Our universe’s law of entropy demands that there had to have been a creation event some time in the past. How far in the past? Well, I could give hundreds of examples that would demonstrate irrefutable evidence for a young earth, but here are just two: first, we are loosing our moon (it used to be closer to us,) and second, the Earth is moving farther away from the sun (we also used to be closer.) These facts rule out that our solar system is billions of years old since as little as 100,000 years ago the radiation from the Sun would make the earth uninhabitable and the moon so close that land tides would destroy all life on earth.
“There was never a worldwide flood that covered Mount Everest.”
You are assuming there was a Mount Everest that needed to be covered. Let me first point out that students of geology agree that there had to have been a massive flood that covered the earth to create the observable evidence that we have today. Before the Flood, the earth was relatively flat, but when the crevasses in the ocean (check any ocean floor map) opened up, the pressure of the water caused the ocean floor to get lower and the mountains to get higher. Mount Everest didn’t exist until after he Flood.
“Jonah did not live inside a fishes stomach for 3 days.”
Once again, you are assuming that Jonah lived. No where in the Bible does it say that Jonah lived in the fish’s belly. Jonah died and was resurrected – an Old Testament foreshadowing of Jesus being buried and resurrected.
“God did not create Adam from a handful of dust.”
Prove he didn’t. Since it is so easy to check out so many facts presented in the Bible, and therefore demonstrate that God can be trusted, it is therefore logical to also trust Him in the areas that we cannot check out.

Question number 5) “Why is God such a huge proponent of slavery in the Bible.”
I don’t know what Bible your reading, but simply because the Bible documents the existence of slavery in no way means that God approves of it. The Bible is a history book; that’d be like saying since Abraham Lincoln talked about slavery he was a proponent of it -- now do you see how this is ridiculous? Some people point out that since Paul regulated slavery (rather than abolishing it) he must therefore have approved of it; Let me say that in no way is Paul approving of slavery -- the Government at the time is the one that mandated slavery (once again an oppressive government.) So, Paul said “you know what, since you are a slave, why not make the best of it? Become a Christian and receive the gift of eternal life, and maybe along the way your master will become saved too, since your life is such a great example.” The Old Testament account of Joseph, who started out as a slave but then became the ruler of all Egypt and got the Pharaoh saved as well, would be a good example.

AOMIN: "How to Lose a War"

While we await the return of Bright's Ideas:

http://aomin.org/aoblog/index.php?itemid=3285

It seems there was a time when only Nazis burned books.