John Walton said it particularly well in a lecture: “Nowhere in the Bible does God ever ‘upgrade’ the Israelites’ understanding of the world.” Meaning: He doesn’t tell them the world is a sphere; He doesn’t tell them that the sun is bigger than the earth or that most stars are bigger than the sun. He doesn’t expound the germ theory of disease. He doesn’t explain the causes of mental illness. He doesn’t give them any new technology—including steam engines, but also including, say, soap; etc., etc. He takes them as He finds them, and expounds to them theological ideas only.
[T]he Bible, [is] a revelation to human beings, it is a revelation in human language. It is not a revelation of words but of ideas, and hence everything in its language is subordinated to the purpose of imparting the ideas. The peculiarities of human speech are conformed to in the various particulars already mentioned.1
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Author: Compiled
Keywords: Evil spirit, Sickness, Healing, Unclean spirit, Demons, Illness, Devils, Demon posession, Possessed of a demon, Demonology, Demon accomodation, Ancient sickness, Ancient illness, Ancient sicknesses, Ancient illnesses, Lunacy, Lunatic, Demon possessed, Possessed of a devil, Demoniac, Devil possession, Exorcism, Epilepsy, Epileptic, Moonstruck, Moon struck, Casting out demons, Casting out devils, Exorcize, Exorcise, Exorcize demons, Exorcise demons, Mental illness, Mental illnesses, Mental sickness, Mentally ill, Mentally sick, Language of Accommodation, Language of accomodation, Accomodation, Accommodation
Bible reference(s): Joshua 10:12-13, Habakkuk 3:11, Acts 19:15-16, Acts 8:7, John 10:20, John 10:21, John 7:20, John 8:48, John 8:49, John 8:52, Luke 10:17, Luke 11:14, Luke 11:15, Luke 11:18, Luke 11:19, Luke 11:20, Luke 11:24, Luke 13:32, Luke 4:33, Luke 4:35, Luke 4:41, Luke 7:33, Luke 8:2, Luke 8:27, Luke 8:29, Luke 8:30, Luke 8:33, Luke 8:35, Luke 8:36, Luke 8:38, Luke 9:1, Luke 9:42, Luke 9:49, Mark 1:23-24, Mark 1:26, Mark 1:32, Mark 1:34, Mark 1:39, Mark 16:17, Mark 16:9, Mark 3:15, Mark 3:22, Mark 3:30, Mark 5:2-18, Mark 6:13, Mark 7:26, Mar 7:29-30, Mark 9:25, Mark 9:38, Matthew 10:8, Matthew 11:18, Matthew 12:24, Matthew 12:27-28, Matthew 12:43, Matthew 15:22, Matthew 17:18, Matthew 8:16, Matthew 8:31, Matthew 9:33, Matthew 9:34
Source: Compiled.
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