Does the Bible Condone Human Sacrifice?

[@kristyleavitt8007]

“The Bible does not condone everything that it records.” So helpful!!

[@1daninternationalsoundsyst201]

That to show that there are more than one god in the Bible

[@ryanmozert]

​@@1daninternationalsoundsyst201one God

[@ryanmozert]

​@@1daninternationalsoundsyst201why do you ask

[@lindareeb4330]

Wow, the Bible does not condone everything that is recorded. Truth. Let's take this to heart.

[@AtheismActually]

Sure. But among the many atrocities it records are atrocities commanded by its God character. Do you deny this?

[@suelingsusu1339]

@@AtheismActually .... read 2 Samuel 21:1-14 where your god DEMANDS and COMMANDS and receives and accepts the human sacrifice of 7 boy so as to abate a famine he caused. and Joshua 7:1-26 where your god demands and commands and receives and accepts the human sacrifice of a man and his entire household as well all the objects and humans in it ... in order to resume in aiding in war crimes he ordered

[@HarryNicNicholas]

does that imply that the bible can't be taken literally, that it is in fact wrong?

[@AtheismActually]

@@suelingsusu1339 Are you sure you're responding to the right person?

[@suelingsusu1339]

@@AtheismActually .... yup... I am giving you more verses that prove your point further... the human sacrifice in those verses is commanded by the deity of the bible.

[@ahhitskatie9094]

This was so well-stated. Thank you Alisa! I struggled quite a bit every time I read this in my Bible, but your commentary does help to bring quite a bit of clarity!

[@secbc79]

Kenneth Bailey makes the argument in his book, "Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes" that our Western interpretations fail to take into account the layout of traditional homes of the time in which mangers and animal stalls were within/connected to the rest of the home in a one-room dwelling. The animals would be brought in throughout the night to prevent theft and in order to generate more heat in the home. Bailey argues that Jepthah's expectation would have been for an animal to be the first thing out to greet him on his return: The story of Jephthah in Judges 11:29-40 assumes the same kind of one-room home. On his way to war, Jephthah makes a vow that if God will grant him victory on his return home he will sacrifice the first thing that comes out of his house. Jephthah wins his battle but as he returns home, tragically, and to his horror, his daughter is the first to step out of the house. Most likely he returned early in the morning and fully expected one of the animals to come bounding out of the room in which they had been cramped together all night. The text is not relating the story of a brutal butcher. The reader is obliged to assume that it never crossed his mind that a member of his family would step out first. Only with this assumption does the story make any sense. Had his home housed only human beings, he would never have made such a vow. If only people lived in the house, who was he planning to murder and why? The story is a tragedy because he expected an animal (Bailey, 2008, p.30). He goes into greater detail in his book of course but just another perspective to ponder!

[@openlysaved]

Additionally the keeping of a vow is something lost in our time but not lost to God... In this sense Jephthah is placed in a situation similar to Abraham albeit in a different way and with a different outcome based on the common interpretation... Albeit human sacrifice is also something The Father would do in Giving His only Son...is God therefore unjust for asking Abraham or giving His only begotten Son? The question of the focus of the action is Important. Another example of questionable actions in the old testament that deserve a second look is the action of Lot in Sodom and Ghomorah when offering his daughters to keep the men/angels. What was his focus in this? Was it because his daughters were of no value or was he displaying the value of keeping strangers/neighbors by offering his daughters? Is it that God gave His Son who was of no value or does He demonstrate His love towards us that He gave the most precious gift He could give? The focus reveals the intent.

[@frankstanley8499]

This story is gross.

[@punisherlee]

@@frankstanley8499 It reminds me of Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 "When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay." The takeaway of this being that when your emotions (positive or negative) run high, be cautious of what you say to God. It is better to be silent than to give a vow that you cannot keep because then, it will be disobedience.

[@davidfrisken1617]

@@punisherlee That is how I also took the story. That is, an animal or human could have been the sacrifice. It really is a nasty story when you think about it. God possesses the human with his Holy Spirit and then knowing the daughter would be the sacrifice, forces the oath to be made. To be fair and in historical context, Yahweh was not at this time all knowing and makes lots of mistakes and was just one of many gods who were similar.

[@stlouislord28]

Did any of y’all watch the video? It sounds like to me he had her serve in the Tabernacle instead.

[@carlasnyder3371]

So well done Alisa! Truly thanking God for your clarity of thought and speech for such a time as this! I am using your podcasts and interviews frequently in homeschooling my girls to show them your godly example of becoming women of virtue, commitment and wisdom

[@josephsolomon3436]

Awesome, Alisa! I love the point you made that you were thankful that the Spirit of the Lord would come upon imperfect people, yet God still honors them, because of their faith. Amen! Wow! This is humbling. It's also beautiful. It makes it so easy to fall even deeper in love with our heavenly Abba. Thanks, again.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

get a room. jeez.

[@knowyourlove5613]

To make a “sacrifice unto the Lord”, he would have had to bring it to the Levites. Correct? The Levites aren’t going to sacrifice a human. More than likely she was dedicated in service, and her Dowery was used to buy sacrifices. Taking this passage as a human sacrifice story is sick. But sadly I think many past religious leaders have twisted this story into human sacrifice to justify vile behavior. Then that interpretation has just hung around.

[@Catherinetatethefkingliberty]

Good point. It makes God look schizophrenic if He punished the Israelites for practising child sacrifice but condoned Japhthah's child sacrifice to His name

[@dahelmang]

Just remember that it was a Levite in the same book shoving his slave out into the crowd to be raped instead of him. The Levites in the book of Judges weren't any better than the other tribes. But yeah I think the wording of the passage makes it likely that he offered her up like Samuel. There was even a price to redeem a vow that had been taken irresponsibly.

[@AdrienneJung.M]

Yes! This is the interpretation that makes the most sense....why else would they "mourn her virginity" and not her life in general if she was being killed? She is being dedicated to service to the Lord and therefore will have no husband and children.

[@rosabutcher5092]

Also the main point that is made here is that ‘she knew no man’ (which closes the passage), and she grieves her virginity, not her life. It’s much more likely that she was dedicated in service to the Lord.

[@wahlao81]

Yes your view is supported by the fact that his daughter and friends mourned her virginity not her death which would have made sense if she was to be dedicated to service unto God

[@discipledesigned]

Wait if God clearly detests child sacrifice, why would He sacrifice HIS ONLY CHILD to Himself?

[@andrewcarpenter3991]

The Lord Jesus Christ who is God in the flesh vowed in the eternal with His Father to gave up His life freely for the salvation of mankind. There is no greater love than to give up one's life for those you do love and Christ suffered on the cross to atone for you, and all of mankind. I humble myself before God in this truth in thanksgiving for this selfless sacrifice and pray all men and women will.

[@SusieQ3]

I always understood that story to be about how far from God, and His prescribed practices, the people had fallen already. The book of Judges is a rapid descent into utter Godlessness, and either way, the Jepthah story is an example of this. If he had been in right relationship with God and regularly worshiped at the Tabernacle and learned God's law like he was supposed to, he would have vowed to sacrifice the prescribed animal for a burnt offering, not just "whatever the first thing out of my house is", even if he was expecting it to be an animal. Judges truly gets worse from here, and I don't think it actually matters if he killed his daughter or not. We can clearly see how far off the mark he was, either way, just from the vow alone.

[@timhaynes6833]

That is a good and interesting point. Because what if the animal had blemish or was wounded already or something. You can't just offer up anything just because you think it's the first. No way would you truly know what would be coming out your house, or you just didn't well think it through. But He didn't take into account the correct sacrifice that should be brought to God. He conjured up his own in his rash hasty decision.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

don't worry, no one think they are going to hell, not even atheists, god lets everyone off, all you have to do, no matter how evil you've been in life is repent, easy peasy, this god stuff is a breeze.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

@@timhaynes6833 bar codes and sell by dates.

[@davidfrisken1617]

You forget, He was possessed by the Holy Spirit who forced the oath knowing the daughter would then be murdered.

[@SusieQ3]

@@davidfrisken1617 sir, every Christian is "possessed by the Holy Spirit" as you call it (we call it being in dwelled by), but the Holy Spirit does not control your mind or body. Jepthah still had is own free will by which to make his unlawful oath, and that is what he used when he made it.

[@michaelshelton7761]

Alisa, this is the best articulation of this story I have ever seen. I will re-visit this and dig into some commentaries, but I think this is gonna make some heads explode when I explain it. Very excellent, well done, Ma'am!!

[@HarryNicNicholas]

this is the BEST excuses for god video yet, she almost had me convinced that god can kill anyone anyhow he wants and people will think it's great. i despair of humans.

[@michaelshelton7761]

@@HarryNicNicholas I despair of your poor grammar and the apparent fact you did no research. I looked at commentary by J. Vernon McGee and J.P. Millar, and they both agree with Ms. Childers. Furthermore, my Hebrew reference agrees (along with the Septuagint) with her in the context and translation of to be offered up as a burnt offering, or, lift up in ascent, a stairway. Not being a Jew or ancient Israelite, I would probably not know the context as they would. But Jephthah very likely lamented that he would have no grandkids through his daughter, and being fertile and having kids was a fervent goal of a Jewish woman, who is now relegated to a 100% devotion to God and would not / never "know a man," e.g., experience sexual relations in marriage. This was her lament, and coming from a female, Ms. Childers' explanation makes sense. Context, context, context. God would have never endorsed an actual crispy critter rendition of the daughter.

[@luigidibenedetto338]

We are planning to start a church and call her THE CHURCH OF RECYCLED SINNERS and her motto WHERE GOD OF THE BIBLE IS IN THE RECYCLING BUSINESS OF OLD HEART INTO NEW HEARTS

[@HarryNicNicholas]

and don't forget "GOD OF THE STICKY CAPS LOCK"

[@thefitcookie]

Really interesting, I had always read that passage as his daughter was consecrated to the Lord to live in service as a virgin till she died. I had never heard it interpreted as human sacrifice until now. I think given the context and that she was mourning her virginity and not her life, the first interpretation (that she was set aside as a servant of God) seems more likely.

[@melindamercier6811]

Jephthah swore an oath in haste (a rash oath), and we forget that this was in the time of the judges when few people even followed the law or knew what the protocols were for lawbreaking. We also tend to forget that even those who love the Lord can do things that are not wise. It seemed he knew the law concerning his oath, but he failed to remember, or know, that breaking his oath wasn’t unforgivable. Leviticus 5:4-13 allowed for a way to atone for a broken oath. But if no priests/ministers around him taught the Laws of Moses, he couldn’t possibly have found out on his own during those times.

[@preetisarkarpsalms23]

Shared on Facebook, stories: what's app status and Telegram. Thank you sister 🙏🙏🙏😊. God bless you abundantly!!

[@jayp224]

Very interesting take. I have wrestled with this passage for many years myself.

[@streetsdisciple0014]

You mean you’ve tried to dumb down the tribalistic practices of ancient Mesopotamian cultural by harmonizing scripture to fit what you think god really meant to say.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

get with the program, god can't do anything wrong, christ what religion did they teach you? GOD CAN DO NO WRONG. get that into your thick skull.

[@bonbrindley7143]

Always appreciate your clear analysis of the Bible! Thank you Alisa!

[@HarryNicNicholas]

always appreciate a good excuse for gods acting like a dick is what you mean.

[@hadassahsoddsandends]

Thank-you for including the view that he did not actually take her life! I rarely hear that taught outside of the Hebrew Roots umbrella, and I found it refreshing that you didn't bash it.

[@suelingsusu1339]

@Alisa Childers.... I suggest you read 2 Samuel 21:1-14 where your god DEMANDS and COMMANDS and receives and accepts the human sacrifice of 7 boy so as to abate a famine he caused. and Joshua 7:1-26 where your god demands and commands and receives and accepts the human sacrifice of a man and his entire household as well all the objects and humans in it ... in order to resume in aiding in war crimes he ordered. and Exodus 13:1-16, Exodus 22:29-30, Exodus 32:28, Numbers 31:40, 2 Samuel 24:15

[@julieann6769]

Good commentary! I actually never heard the view of the virgin daughter having a life of service to the Church before. I always assumed that the reminder of her never knowing a man was a reminder to us of how she was physically pure. Interesting.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

yes that was close wasn't, god ALMOST got caught being a prick. get with the program, god can't do anything wrong, christ what religion did they teach you? GOD CAN DO NO WRONG. get that into your thick skull.

[@rockandsandapologetics7254]

You absolutely hit the mark on this one. I think many people have the idea that what happens in the Bible is supposed to have some sort of teaching element to it. That's not precisely true. The Bible is an honest book, and isn't going to re-tell the story of Jepthah, for instance, to make it fit His narrative of mercy and forgiveness. That's why you have the stories of David sinning in the Bible and many other things. Sin is sin, and no matter who commits it God is not pleased, but He includes the historical account just the same, because it is an honest book.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

thank god YOU have a perfect understanding of what god is thinking, i always thought that the mind of god was impossible to know, but you and sean mcdowell and alisa having tea with god every wednesday, and having deep discussions with him about his thoughts is so reassuring. i always thouhgt god was a fairy tale. can you get god to pop round to my place one day soon?

[@WildNatureUniqueTV.]

Remember the vowed is to have a burn offering, which a common command of god, even a human sacrifices in the OT. not any altar offering as what an apologist assumed.

[@creationscienceaplogetics]

Thank sis. For this wonderful vdeo

[@punisherlee]

Superb conclusion!

[@phillip0537]

Fantastic and clear explanation. Really well done as usual.

[@TheKaneECO]

God does in fact ask for human sacrifice several times in the Bible. Here's one. Via Numbers 31:25-40; God commands Moses' officers to kill every Midianite male and non-virgin female, but to keep the virgin females alive for themselves -- except for one in a thousand which were to be given to God. After, um, "examining"... the females, the soldiers found 32,000 virgins, 32 of which were to be sacrificed to God. Numbers 31:40 tells us that: "And the persons were sixteen thousand; of which the LORD's tribute was thirty and two persons."

[@shimonnygaard2265]

Doing the actual text service 🙌🙌 excellent human being 🙌🙌well done.

[@edcorps2876]

Great comments here. I read another possibility that the passage should have an "or" in it because it is two different things. "it will surely be the Lord's 'or' I will offer it as a burn sacrifice", this would have made sense because Jepthah obviously would have known there was a possibility that a human would come out of the house first. So two possibilities 1. It should not even be translated as "burnt offering" 2. It should have been translated as 'or' not 'and'. I think given the context though, there is no way he actually burned his daughter, it really sounds like she's mourning her virginity and that suggest that she would be dedicated to a live of service to God, probably at the tabernacle.

[@tryingnottobeasmartass757]

A burnt offering did not mean a living thing was burned alive. The living thing was killed first, then it was burnt. It seems pretty clear from the context of Judges that Jephthah killed his daughter.

[@edcorps2876]

@@tryingnottobeasmartass757 You should do a little more research. The Hebrew that is translated "burnt offering" only mean "ascending" or "rising up". Also, Hebrew doesn't have conjunctives, there is very good reason to believe that the use of 'and' should actually be 'or' as I stated above. In context, it actually makes very little sense that he sacrificed his daughter. 1. She's not mourning her life, just her virginity, which would make sense in context of dedication, not death. She also doesn't react like one would that was going to be sacrificed in such a manner 2. The Levites would not have allowed this to occur, human sacrifice was forbidden 3. God just sent Japheth against people that one of the things he had against them was human sacrifice. This would make no sense.

[@moizahmed4705]

Many Christians seems to forget that Jesus himself was a human sacrifice to God. This Christian notion that God's wrath can only be appeased with the spilling of human blood is a common theme in pagan cults throughout history such as Mayans and Aztecs.

[@morlewen7218]

A good starting point about at the topic child scacrifice performed by Israelites (even to Jahwe): Child Sacrifice in Ancient Israel by Heath D. Dewrell

[@areuaware6842]

Exodus 13 They have covered up the story about the mass graves of thousands of the skeletal remains of babies found in Israel. When the story broke fifty plus years ago they said it was the discarded children of prostitutes. Now the story is all but forgotten.

[@anthonymannetta5311]

So grateful I struggled with this thank you Lord bless you

[@laureldreinking]

Thank you so much for this explanation. Jeptha’s story has always bothered me. Your first explanation makessense to me, and in part because I like it better, I think from now on I will consider it as the most probable interpretation.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

can't you invent your own excuses? that's patheitic, you KNOW god can't do anything wrong, but you need alisa to make up the bullshit for you? all you have to remember is ANYTHING that makes you uncomfortable about gods evil activities, THERE IS ALWAYS AN EXCUSE.

[@NeededGR13F]

@@HarryNicNicholas why reinvent the wheel when someone already found multiple plausible answers?

[@hannahbaker2856]

Although faith and works/deeds/actions have been termed two sides of the same coin in theological writings, this particular Biblical text also highlights that Hebrews 11 is the "hall of FAITH", not the "hall of works." Faith can exist independently of how often or how badly someone does bad works/messes up.

[@risenshine7032]

It’s called the hall of faith but it’s a record of all the works they did, faith is only visible by what’s produced from it. If nothing is produced or done, there is no faith.

[@kvelez]

Thanks for the explanation. God bless.

[@rakastellar8955]

I have so much respect for the research you are doing, you even looked up the Hebrew word. I don't deserve you teaching me so much, I am humbled you try to educate me.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

gosh, hebrew, gosh.

[@discernthetimes]

Thank you for sharing!

[@Star-dj1kw]

For the folks that are riled up at Ms Childers, don’t you get that the point of this video is wrestling with the inconsistency in people of Faith? You’re gonna have to do that in real life- the spouse who acts ONE WAY in public, but is abusive behind closed doors 😭 but he says he’s a Christian and he loves Jesus? How do i reconcile that? These are questions in real life. These are paradoxes in people in the Bible. But discussing it does not destroy my faith in God. God is bigger than any mere human’s faithfulness! God is our hope and foundation 💗

[@JasonSmith-jr7jh]

Thank You! Bless You!

[@HeatherB09]

Thank you for this! I just recently read that passage and was a little 😳.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

get with the program, god can't do anything wrong, christ what religion did they teach you? GOD CAN DO NO WRONG. get that into your thick skull.

[@rb8954]

Seriously flawed people made it to heaven. A comforting thought.

[@cynthiaharris5736]

True story

[@andreay9935]

Seriously that why Jesus Christ came as "the lamb to take away our sins" because we are seriously flawed people.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

i don't actually think hell exists, it seems to me EVERY christian is convinced that no matter what they are going to heaven, that salvation is a given, ever meet a christian who said "i don't think i'll ever be saved"? no, me either.

[@davidfrisken1617]

To be fair and in historical context. At this time there was no afterlife in a heaven.

[@rb8954]

@@HarryNicNicholas You're actually speaking to one with those kind of doubts

[@tl4633]

Spot on. Thanks for sharing.

[@HouseofComments]

God bless you Sister.

[@savedbymylovegodthelordjes8394]

praise the Lord and God bless you all glory be to the HOLY TRINITY forever and ever amen

[@HarryNicNicholas]

why?

[@cynthiaharris5736]

There’s so much more to Jephthah’s story, it’s a must read you will find it in Judges 11. But I recommend you find out the story of his father Gilead

[@hamarijz-borokgoro]

Thank you very much.

[@tsolakin]

“The Bible does not condon everything it records”. True word. Thanks

[@A.S2400]

Ok but “god said so” So how do you reconcile that?? It records god saying to kill humans. Repeatedly.

[@williambillycraig1057]

Good treatment of a complex text.

[@scribe53]

I knew that Luther had stated that the scriptures (which Luther had translated himself from Hebrew into German) were clear about Jephthah's daughter's end: death as a burnt sacrifice. He's wrong. (Luther was known to make some brash and unacceptable statements.). Jephthah lived in the time of the judges (and there were appalling things that the Israelites did in that period) but there were also moments in which God was honored. Jephthah's history is no small part of understanding the tragedy of his daughter's entire dedication to the Lord. Jephthah was the illegitimate son of his father and his brothers had driven him out of the family. A man without a family has no inheritance in the land; he's as good as a non-citizen; no rights, no privileges, no standing. When the LORD worked through Jephthah to give him a family, land, wealth and then national leadership and victory over the enemies of the Israelites, Jephthah must have thought he was on top of the world. And when his only child, his daughter, rushed to be the first to greet him when he returned from battle, his heart must have sunk. Not because he was planning to literally burn her in the Fire of the Bronze Altar, but because his family line would end with his daughter, who would remain a virgin and in service at the Tabernacle. In Leviticus chapter 27: 1-4 the Israelites were instructed: "The LORD said to Moses, 'Speak to the people and say to them, "If anyone makes a special vow to dedicate persons to the LORD by giving equivalent values, set the value of a male between the ages of twenty and sixty at 55 shekels of silver, according to the sanctuary shekel, and if it is a female, set her value at thirty shekels." Jephthah would certainly have paid "the redemption price" for his daughter's life, sacrificed several animals as burnt, sin, and thank offerings and then she would remain to serve at Shechem/the Tabernacle, unmarried, never able to have a child if her own. Both Jephthah and his daughter suffered the greatest sorrow that Israelite men and women could experience; for Jephthah there would be no one to carry on the family line; for his daughter, she would be childless, excluded from family life and excluded from the possibility of bringing the messiah into the world.

[@sanjeevgig8918]

""But did Jephthah actually offer his daughter as a burnt offering? The majority view for centuries has been that he did."

[@stellarjayatkins4749]

It does not state that he killed her. He “sacrificed” his descendants. She never had children. Only the most dishonest and uncharitable interpretations of this passage leads to the conclusion she died.

[@NeededGR13F]

Judges 11:30-31 And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord and said, “If you will give the Ammonites into my hand, then whatever comes out from the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the Ammonites shall be the Lord's, and I *will offer it up for a burnt offering.* Judges 11:34 And as soon as he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low, and you have become the cause of great trouble to me. *For I have opened my mouth to the Lord, and I cannot take back my vow.* Judges 11:39 And at the end of two months, she returned to her father, *who did with her according to his vow that he had made* She had never known a man, and it became a custom in Israel It doesn't have to explicitly say that he killed her, the context rules out the possibility that he let her live.

[@stellarjayatkins4749]

@@NeededGR13F No. It doesn’t. Every single other reference to sacrifice explicitly forbade human sacrifice. The fact it states “it became a custom” actually RULES OUT the possibility he killed her. The custom was a vow of celibacy. Similar to nuns in the later Catholic and Orthodox churches. Learn to read.

[@NeededGR13F]

@@stellarjayatkins4749 well let's be consistent. I'd like you to read Deuteronomy 23:21-23 and please reconcile it with what you said about human sacrifices being forbidden. I'd also like you to find an example of a living creature being successfully offered up as a burnt offering (specifically a burnt offering, that is what he vowed) and still be alive after. You're also in error on the custom. The full sentence reads: "She had never known a man, and it became a custom in Israel that the daughters of Israel went year by year to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in the year." The custom was to lament her for four days each year. You can only make the case that the custom was a vow of chastity if you intentionally cut out verse 40 from the sentence. You were just talking about dishonest interpretations in your first post, let's be consistent and respectful.

[@stellarjayatkins4749]

@@NeededGR13F I have read it. Thanks though. It’s a passage I’ve questioned a lot. It’s a translation, done through multiple languages. For reference: as a burnt offering.” עוֹלָֽה׃ (‘ō·w·lāh) Noun - feminine singular Strong's Hebrew 5930: 1) whole burnt offering 2) ascent, stairway, steps Sacrifices to God were often referred to the same way, with the same words, regardless of context. That doesn’t change the fact that every other reference in the Bible where human sacrifices were being done, they were condemned. If you study this passage in the Aramaic Hebrew or the Greek, it’s extremely unlikely she was killed... considering doing so is and always was expressly forbidden.

[@NeededGR13F]

@@stellarjayatkins4749 and what specifically is it that determines wether it means a burnt offering or stairs?

[@dahelmang]

Really makes it hard to believe in a distinction between mortal and venial sins.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

i bet

[@cathys465]

QUESTION: Wasn't Jesus a human sacrifice?

[@m_collins]

The problem comes in when we hold up these old testament people as models to follow. Even people like David, a man after God's own heart, have deep human flaws. The point is not to draw life lessons from their lives or actions. The Bible is written for us but not to us. We often read it back from our cultural time moment. BTW - others will look at our time and question our actions and ethics.

[@davidfrisken1617]

In the case of David, God punished his offences by torturing and killing his baby and having his wife gang raped in public. This seems consistent behaviour for the historical context of the gods of the time.

[@m_collins]

@@davidfrisken1617 Seems like humans are responsible for that. You should troll somewhere else.

[@davidfrisken1617]

@@m_collinsSorry, I don't get your point. Are you saying the bible doesn't condone what it says god ordered? I am just trying to understand how that makes humans responsible if it was orchestrated by God?

[@contenderfortruth]

Knowing the character of God must override passages that seem confusing on the surface. Digging into a passage, as Alisa did, brings out the truth in scripture that would otherwise be missed. Only someone trying to discredit God would use a superficial understanding of this passage.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

strikes me the character of god is that of a natural born killer.

[@MatthewDistefano]

I find it interesting that Christians argue against human sacrifice (rightly) but then turn around and believe that Gehenna is a place of eternal conscious torment (not to mention their Calvinistic atonement theory which is basically child sacrifice...but I digress). Gehenna was the place where Molech had children sacrificed to him, and in spite of the Hebrew Scriptures condemning it and saying how Yahweh "never had it cross his mind," they turn around and basically say, "but now it will be a place of torment where God's children go and suffer for all eternity." The exegetical and philosophical hoops they jump through is pretty astounding.

[@jason666king]

Apologetics: defending things that are irrational and/or immoral based on faith in bronze age comic books.

[@leviwarren6222]

You say that Good detests child sacrifice, yet it's also an entirely necessary for His plan for salvation. Is it simply that God detested sending His Son to be sacrificed?

[@areuaware6842]

They obviously are liars trying to explain away their evil ideology and evil false god.

[@leviwarren6222]

@@areuaware6842 137 troll comments on this channel. "You are fake news." The time you spend typing are precious seconds you can never get back. A grain in a finite handful of sand. Even the instantaneous dopamine rush that you get from a response cannot add another grain to your quietly diminishing pile and it certainly won't make the ones you waste any more fulfilling.

[@areuaware6842]

@@leviwarren6222 , Better than the rocks crying out.

[@areuaware6842]

@@leviwarren6222 , But you wouldn't believe even if the rocks were crying out this message.

[@phantomdragon3893]

Nope you interpreted wrong One Jesus wasn't a child but a full grown man and God in the Flesh. He was set up as the Lamb of God, because he is. The God the Father sacrifice His Son because He volunteered to do so. He paid the price so we don't have to. Christ truly is the worthy Lamb of God.

[@TheDanEdwards]

Jepthah's story is the most obvious case of child sacrifice in the Bible, but not the only one. The role of human sacrifice is a topic of discussion these days because looking at the OT carefully brings out these problems and in the light of archeology there is growing support that child sacrifice may have occurred in that region. Francesca Stavrakopoulou's dissertation was on this subject and she later republished it as "King Manasseh and Child Sacrifice" for those who wish to really dive into the details. But.... And this is the big thing: Christianity's central doctrine is that human sacrifice does indeed satiate the wrath of an angry god. There's no other way around this: traditional Christianity teaches that killing a human (the main character in the Gospel stories) did indeed please an angry god. Now this may all be down to the idiosyncrasies of one Paul/Saul; his letters have been used to develop Christian teachings. Perhaps the Jewish zealots of the Roman territory didn't teach this. But for sure by the time of Augustine the church was all in on the idea of human sacrifice working. And this raises the problem of the transubstantiation belief, because it's the most extreme form of the cultic practice Holy Eucharist. The idea of eating the sacrifice is based indeed in the Jewish practices - the animals that were sacrificed on the alter were eaten (in part) afterwards. Now I fully expect Alisa to not accept the above and many of her followers also ignore these things. But the bloody history and nature of sacrificing animals, including humans, is at the foundation of your belief system.

[@NeededGR13F]

I don't see where you're going with this. Are you saying Christians were doing human sacrifices after the events of the Gospels?

[@gwen2292]

The Jews did not sacrifice Jesus to please God. They wanted Him killed because they thought He was a blasphemer, and most especially the Pharisees were afraid that the Jews would forget them. They envied Jesus. The Pharisees were self-pleasers. And how could it be a sacrifice when they didn't do a proper burnt offering? It was Roman's customs that killed Jesus. Now, why is God pleased to crush His Son? It's because Jesus became sin for us and as a holy God, He did what is just. And whosoever believes in His Son should not die but has eternal life.

[@NewCreationInChrist896]

Don't follow the world follow Jesus Christ. John 10:27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me"

[@ErikWithBrain]

Are you kidding me? The Bible literally says God condoned Jesus being a human sacrifice... so we know God is OK with at least one. How is this even a debate? This sounds like a Christian trying to glaze over the brutal realities of her religion.

[@victorwest8041]

You are right, it's just a stupid religion based on a mass murdering, imaginary god...........death is very important to ancient, stupid religions.

[@gregdelaney119]

Thank you for this. Your book and videos have inspired me to seek truth and to better understand Christian apologetics. There is so much false teaching in this world....

[@HarryNicNicholas]

apologetics is the opposite of truth, had you not noticed? apologetics is "how to make excuses for an evil god" and "how to reassure people that they aren't silly"

[@yitzharos]

Let this be warning of how God may judge our nation for allowing abortion.

[@A.S2400]

Jesus is a child sacrifice. So Christianity glorifies human first born sacrifice.

[@lauterunvollkommenheit4344]

"God absolutely detests child sacrifice" - except when he commands it in Exodus 22:29-30. No animal substitution here: "The firstborn of your sons you shall give to me. You shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep: seven days it shall remain with its mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to me." Ezekiel 20:25-26 explains why Yahweh did that: "Moreover I gave them statutes that were not good and ordinances by which they could not live. I defiled them through their very gifts, in their offering up all their firstborn, in order that I might horrify them, so that they might know that I am the Lord." While in Jeremiah 7:31, he denies it: "And they go on building the high place of Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire-which I did not command, nor did it come into my mind." There are other passages as well where Yahweh condones human sacrifice.

[@alishaba-]

In the Bible, being offered to God as a firstborn is not the same as being literally burnt to God. It talked about how the firstborns were to be redeemed as well. Numbers chapter 3:12-51 adds some more context. I would encourage you to read it over. In connection with this account, if you look up additional verses about what the Levites did, you will see that they were set aside to be used by God, definitely not to be burned to Him. Also, Jesus was a firstborn and this very situation was referenced in Luke 2:21-24, which quotes from the old testament. There is not a single instance in Scripture I have seen where Yahweh commanded any child to be literally burned to Him as a sacrifice that a Scripture says was actually burned. Edited to add: Yes Abraham was willing to offer up Isaac but God stopped him. He doesn't desire children to be killed. He forbid and punished people for passing their sons or daughters through the fire, the origin of which came from false worship from nations around them. There are many similitudes in the Bible and also expressions were used and understood differently than how we may at first glance understand them today (in a different language,) especially if we don't read the full context of all the mentions of a topic in Scripture. The Hebrew letter Shin for instance can mean fire, holy, consumed, to separate, or set aside, etc. Scriptures talk about sacrifices by fire, sure, but there are other times the word 'sacrifice' is used that doesn't entail death. For example, Hebrews 13:15 is a clear example of this. Even in English today when we hear the word 'sacrifice', it has multiple meanings.

[@lauterunvollkommenheit4344]

@@alishaba- Remember that the Hebrew Bible was written over the course of hundreds of years during which opinion on human sacrifice changed. Exodus 22:29-30 belongs to the Covenant Code which is the oldest collection of laws, much older than the Priestly laws you mentioned. By the time of the Babylonian exile, this type of human sacrifice became unacceptable to biblical writers. That's why Ezekiel tries to explain it as a punishment while Jeremiah denies it altogether. But vow sacrifice is still OK. Jephthah makes his vow after Yahweh's spirit's come upon him. And Leviticus 27:28-29 forbids him to change his mind later. Another example of this type of sacrifice is in Numbers 21:2-3. You can find other Biblical verses as well.

[@larryhoyt143]

Josephus says that Jephthah offered his daughter as a burnt offering, which was not condoned by God.

[@michealhunter7924]

tight, very tight, glory to god

[@dynamo6796]

What about the 7 things God hates? Shedding of innocent blood

[@HarryNicNicholas]

for goodness sake, haven't you got ythe message? GOD CAN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG. if he kills anyone they deserve it, if he drowns babies, they had it coming or they are just relocated to heaven, ANYTHING but god being a really evil, incompetent twat.

[@ryanmozert]

Read Exodus chapter 22 in the original language

[@irenedagami130]

God forbid human sacrifice. My understanding was her sacrifice was actually not getting married which is a bid deal for the father since it means his generation would not continue on.

[@TheKaneECO]

God also asked for human sacrifice many times. So we cannot say that he is against it. He specifically commands it in in a variety of stories.

[@TheNinjaInConverse]

Wild.

[@El-Chav0]

the Bible is a historical book and inspired hands down. Muslims say it can't be both inspired and historical but they are wrong. It's is both.

[@Melody.Joy.23]

But…. Jesus was a human sacrifice that God demanded. To save people from the hell that he created. 🥴

[@HarryNicNicholas]

i'm sure alisa can spin it so you can feel better.

[@sonnysimmons528]

well..suppose its a matter of whether something all powerful and supposedly 'good' allows for bad to happen to good people, seeing as bad can only be known as bad is when its something done as something undeserved to someone good therefore dictating its stance. so this world both allows for good to be done to the bad, basically praising and awarding those bad with what the good offers and then bad to happen to good, allowing the distinction between the two and basically showing that if your good your not only not done bad to but not protected by your idol you see as good so why would you expect it. take control and stop waiting for someone else to do what is our responsibility to do something about. gods not going to do it for us. evil only persists as long as those who are 'good' do nothing. and in my eyes those allowing evil are evil themselves

[@streetsdisciple0014]

Thank you apologist for taking something i feel uncomfortable with and making me feel all goody goody inside with vanilla and chocolate covered sprinkles.

[@williamfranz6639]

Jesus told the pharisees," Go and learn what this means,' I desire mercy not sacrifice.'" Matthew 9:13 and Matthew 12:7 and Hosea 6:6. We know that the Gospels account for the ," highlights," of Christ's life and so 2 distinct passages with the exact same reference to Hosea creates a de facto emphasis on the teaching. Jesus did not quote every scriptural passage. The passages he did quote as referenced in the Gospel's therefore suggests additional scrutiny as a Christian. The passages clearly publish God's desire. There are in fact other passages where God's desires disfavoring sacrifices are written. Is there a conflict in our understanding of the Gospels with sacrifices like burnt offering. I don't think so. The subject passage on this video is an old story. Back then, they didn't have drones and satellites. The common belief was that heaven had a barrier with earth some short distance above their heads. They burned a sacrifice, and the smoke rose into heaven.( Right into God's living room. Lol). Everything was going well on the video until the discussion of ," did he kill her, and was she a virgin." In the passage she is. The spiritual lesson derives from the passage. The history is the least important possible level of useful revelation. Why focus on it? Better to focus on the passages from Matthew on the subject of mercy vs sacrifice. In each cited passage Jesus prefaces with the admonition to go and learn what it means. I think he was talking to us all

[@jessicae.7255]

Thanks for this 🥲. So helpful

[@robertdouglas8895]

All sacrifice is insane. Forgiveness replaces sacrifice as the way to salvation. Matt 12.7 If you had known what these words mean, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice,” you would not have condemned the innocent. If the way is to yoke yourself to Christ, then that way is easy with light burden, not a sacrifice for yourself and others.

[@danicawilson1]

Would love to see you do a video on something I have been struggling with that my college kid came home with strong convictions that Adam and Eve are not real bc that was 6,000 years ago and we now have scientific proof that the earth is billions of years old.

[@TheKaneECO]

Yes the Earth is in fact much much older than the Bible claims. The Bible was written by men, they would have had no knowledge of the age of the earth. Which is why they were wrong. The Earth is undeniably billions of years old.

[@Iskah_Batya]

No. If you never got to experience sex and you learned that you'd morn your virginity. I was forced into an abortion once married. My daughter's father said he was glad cause he couldn't have loved that kid as his own. Adoption? It's better than abortion.

[@Star-dj1kw]

The comment section is arrogant and rude. Just WOW 🤯😳

[@lenicachambers8368]

The story of Jephthah and his daughter is so sad. Another story in the book of Judges that causes me to SMH is the Levite and his concubine ( chapter 19 ). I think the last verse, of the last chapter of the book of Judges sums up the times of that book. "In those days, there was no King in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes." Judges 21:25 KJV.

[@jeffphelps1355]

Jephthah made a ignorant promise, he was not obligated to keep it. God would not held him accountable

[@HarryNicNicholas]

and you know this how?....

[@discipledesigned]

Was Jesus not a human sacrifice

[@worldrecord54]

Why would God accept Jephthah offer of a burnt sacrifice, when he did not accept Abraham. Meaning God stopped Abraham from sacrificing Issac. To me that is hard to understand. I see where Richard Dawkins might have wrong impression of God To top it off Jephthah blamed his daughter as one of them that trouble me that I opened my mouth unto the Lord The body really is nothing, just the Spirit, that matters to God.

[@hondotheology]

if the bible condoned it, the story wouldn't read as a tragedy

[@TheKaneECO]

God certainly has changed his mind about wanting sacrifices. He asks for human sacrifices many many times. Some of which are plain as day and can't be interpreted in any other way.

[@othername6345]

We know God HATES child sacrifice, so there is no way He would want it or even condone it.

[@TheKaneECO]

We know God ASKED for human and child sacrifices many times. God seems to change his mind quite a bit.

[@Myshcan]

I didn't know Richard Dawkins was a Harvard evolutionary biologist.

[@shellyblanchard5788]

The guy's daughter wasn't sacrificed in that manner instead he paid to give her to lord in th value of money. If you read in the law you will find out. We are not under those laws to vow anything like that now. It is a new covenant. Leviticus 27

[@brentoniverson1020]

Your God sacraficed his only begotten SUN?

[@csmoviles]

🙏❤🙏❤🙏

[@michellewarren386]

So why are all the kiddy killers still getting away with killing our children...

[@sanderdeboer6034]

Women that defend the EVIL women hating christian god = enigma! Even if true that she wasn’t a burn offering, she still lost her freedom to do with her life what she wanted to do. Considering that this is the only life we have (even if there is an afterlife) this is a horrible punishment for something she had NO part in. So even if the first explanation is true, there is a MAJOR problem with it!

[@thomascoffin5930]

You need a book to tell you if human sacrifice is condoned. Really

[@oophelia46]

It's still legal today ... In the form of abortion

[@thomascoffin5930]

@@oophelia46 women's choice, free will.

[@thomascoffin5930]

@@oophelia46 like I said, a man can not or should not get involved in women's issues. Let God handle it

[@oophelia46]

@@thomascoffin5930 yes, humans have free will to choose evil, you are right...

[@thomascoffin5930]

@@oophelia46 there you have it, god don't care

[@whiskeybrown262]

Does the Bible condone genocide slavery, & misogyny? I hope not 🤷‍♀️

[@maluwa6957]

The Bible does not condone it. What it does is remind us while taking us through a journey in to bronze age beliefs, practices and how people lived back in those times. Prophets were not predictors of the future, but they were people who stood up and condemned these barbaric customs. Then came a prophet named Jesus who encouraged people to love even their enemies while reminding us to side with those who are marginalized, the poor, weak, sick, those in prison , those who suffer and who are oppressed.

[@TheDanEdwards]

"Then came a prophet named Jesus" - yeah.... but no. Here's the problem: orthodox (little "o") Christian doctrine is that sacrificing (killing) a human (probably virgin) does indeed satisfy the wrath of an angry god. That's right, the core doctrine of Christianity is that human sacrifice works.

[@maluwa6957]

@@TheDanEdwards I understand your point. But that's how fundamentalist Christians read these stories. I am a progressive Christian, and been a Lesbian, I am constantly hit with abuse by the fundamentalists who call me a sinner. Human sacrifice has nothing to do with God. Its what people back in ancient times lived and believed. And they were under the impression that sacrificing a human to a God would appease that God. The core doctrine of Christianity can be summed up in stories Jesus told us. The Good Samaritan, the prodigal son and the woman caught in adultery been just 3 of them. These stories should remind people what it means to be a Christian and not Human sacrifice. Regards.

[@maluwa6957]

@Excuse me but , Jesus went against the Roman Empire by criticizing their cruelty, which was a crime. The penalty was execution.

[@maluwa6957]

@Excuse me but When did a person become a criminal for speaking up against cruelty and abuse? Why should anyone die for sins committed by others?

[@downenout8705]

Lol, do you seriously expect your audience to believe that if a homosexual chicken had walked out of his house he would have put that chicken into the service of Yahweh for the rest of it's life. There would have been the ancient equivalent to Chick-fil-A and you would not be here sacrificing your humanity on the altar of Yahweh/Jesus, trying to excuse away the roasting of a gay chicken.

[@frankstanley8499]

Christianty is vicarious atonement through human sacrifice. And yes human sacrifice is wrong. You had to make a whole video?

[@sanjeevgig8918]

See, those other religions were so bad because they sacrificed babies - but Christianity is awesome because it sacrificed a man who-was-god from friday evening to sunday morning. ha ha ha ha ha

[@gwen2292]

@@sanjeevgig8918 The thing with Jesus was that He willingly sacrificed Himself. Did those babies willingly said yes?

[@sanjeevgig8918]

@@gwen2292 The goat-herders who sacrificed babies were ignorant. What's your excuse ? In 2021, you believe, god came down to earth and sacrificed himself to himself from friday evening to sunday morning and magically absorbed everyone's sins ? lol lol lol

[@gwen2292]

There is no sense in trying to explain my religion if you are not here to attempt to understand it. You mock Jesus, I can be patient with that. But I won't waste my time. I don't want to waste your time either.

[@sanjeevgig8918]

@@gwen2292 lol. i disbelieve just one more religion than you.

[@manafly955]

Wait hold up God is supposed to be the one who wrote the Bible the scriptures not man so what are you talking about

[@AgoristsAxioms]

"God" didn't absolve Jephthah and his daughter of his vow because Yahweh is a Demonic Alien, NOT God - actual Creator of the Universe. Jesus never once referred to Yahweh as Abba Father. The only times Jesus alluded to Yahweh he did so disparagingly. Read Mathew 7:7-11 and Luke 11:9-13 as a prime example

[@stephenwrouton]

Great video and interesting topic! Commentary on the Torah by Richard Elliott Friedman addresses this. He said that this story is connected to Jepthah making a vow using the Lord's name. He mentioned that if Jepthah had not sacrificed his daughter (and I suppose it really doesn't matter in what manner he sacrificed her) then Jepthah would have then taken the Lord's name in vain, which is the a worse sin than any other. The reason for this is that had he not did what he vowed to do, by his own actions, he would have declared YHWH a liar and a false god. Therefore, if anyone makes a vow using the holy name of YHWH, they are bound to do it, even if it is against the law of God. This story is really an example of what it looks like to break the commandment, "You shall not take the name of YHWH in vain." Every commandment in the Bible has an example of what it looks like to break a commandment. This is what this story aims to do.

[@victorwest8041]

Was Jeeziz a planned sacrifice condoned by God? It sure was, read the stupid book without making lame excuses for the stupid parts.

[@sanjeevgig8918]

Christians: Bible is the inerrant word of god. Same Christians: No, he really didn't mean that. What he meant was .... lolz