Paul's Shipwreck Proves That Acts is Real History

Skeptics often claim that Acts is historical fiction, but there is a significant amount of historical evidence outside of the Bible that corroborates the reliability of the book. In this video, we're focusing specifically on Acts 27-28, which details Paul's shipwreck.
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[@HotManJonah]

I live in Malta! 2 months ago we celebrated The Feast of Saint Paul's Shipwreck! Its a very fun and joyous festival! So much confetti and parades happening! Thank you for the informing video, and thank you, Saint Paul, for converting the island!

[@prestonyannotti7661]

That's awesome man! I wonder how it is to live in between Italy and Africa how do the two influence your country?

[@jty1999]

Malta looks beautiful! Hope to visit someday

[@Mark-cd2wf]

Cool!😁👍

[@jfr45er]

Is a viper brought out at this festival? 🐍

[@eugenetswong]

Jonah, is there still a first man of the island?

[@matheusadornidardenne8684]

We should retitle it to "Book of Facts".

[@TestifyApologetics]

facts

[@Boundless_Border]

As an atheist I would find it hilarious if the Bible was retitled to "Book of Facts." Obviously we are reading that differently but I thought to share. Have a good day.

[@matheusadornidardenne8684]

@@Boundless_Border I was refering to the Book of Acts. Acts, facts, got it? :P

[@iBringDaLULZ]

The Book o' Facts!

[@Boundless_Border]

@@matheusadornidardenne8684 I didn't originally. It is still funny. Presumably on both sides for different reasons. I just thought to share. Anyway, enjoy your day.

[@williambarck5958]

I became a believer in Christ as a young Navy man out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, returning to Pearl Harbor from Yokosuka, Japan in 1975. I have always read the Acts account of Paul's journey as a gripping, harrowing tale of men against the unforgiving sea. And I sailed on modern steam-driven steel-hulled warships. Paul's shipwreck on Malta rings true to me, to my core as a sailor!

[@BeachsideHank]

Lubber!

[@Idishrkdmd]

Paul fighting a Sharknado gives me chills. It is actually a biblical tier event.

[@jpraise6771]

Children of man and children of God, lend me your ears! The righteous father bids you Christians to prayers, and reflection! To you who do not know Christ, let this message be the start of your journey of understanding him, before he returns.

[@eugenetswong]

I wish that there were such things as sharknados in biblical times, just so that God could force/trick atheists into saying, "There no such things as sharknados. I lack belief!".

[@markb3786]

@@eugenetswong I love it when God plays tricks! It's so funny! I can just see God doubled over in laughter!

[@Artemisarrowzz]

@@markb3786 God doesn't play tricks. Many people today, atheists or believers, wrongly believe that the world or events we have today have always been the same, or that very big catastrophes can't happen simply because they have not seen them. I can assure you 100% that is something like a sharknado had ever happened (and lol what a mental picture), atheist would say it didn't simply because they've never seen it before, same way I'm sure people in 1000 years will doubt the veracity of 2004's tsunami if all the videos of it are lost, if say the ocean by then is "under control" or something.

[@SeattleDinghyer]

@@eugenetswong I wish the Bible was true, that'd be cooler.

[@TheStarshipGarage]

As a history buff, this type of evidence makes me excited

[@Bildad1976]

For 40 years, I have been studying Biblical apologetics as a layman, and your videos have me very captivated, so much so, for example, that I was very disappointed when I suddenly realized that this video was ending! Whoa! I was enjoying it so much that I really felt bummed! That's okay, as long as I know there's more to come. (By the way, I don't know why I hadn't thought of it, but I intend to share your channel with my children, who also love God's Word. All 13 children, 6 children-in-law, and 13 young grandchildren! )

[@notmyname4478]

Congratulations to you for raising so many Kids and expecially for raising them christian! You already did your part in this world Just doing that

[@Ctsone2]

Im glad that your family is saved dude, that’s awesome. I don’t know what I’m gonna do if my kids ever grow up and become atheist, well actually I would pray but like still

[@lukeman4566]

@@Ctsone2 It is up to you to show them what living like Christ looks like and put the fear of God in them while helping teaching them God loves them. If you do that, you will have done your part, so yea, pray and trust that we can't save people, God does that. For now, seek The Holy Spirit's will and discernment in your life in this current season. Put your yes on the table for God in whatever He is asking you to do or not do and fix your eyes on Jesus for the strength to do it. You were not meant to carry these burdens on your own. I pray these words are an encouragement and a timely word to your life. Always remember where you came from, that you are a sinful person who grieves God, but don't beat yourself up, because you are a Child of God, created in His image for a purpose, we are loved FAR more than we know

[@righty-o3585]

Youve been studying apologetics sunce you were 7 years old ?

[@RobertGrif]

As a Christian and a history buff, I am so looking forward to this series!

[@Thor-Orion]

Same! This is right up my alley! So excited for the rest of the series!

[@ultramarinechaplain88]

Skeptics : ahoyyyy mateysss, move ye goal postsss bacckkkk

[@godsgospelgirl]

My husband got me onto your "undesigned coincidences" videos, and I've loved them! I'm excited to learn how history supports the Bible!

[@robertromanul2212]

Honestly Im always impressed how people have been able to navigate the sea anytime before the advancements of like the last century, let alone for thousands of years ! Props to Paul for surviving 👍

[@pedrojunior5996]

Thank you so Much, I pray that At some point, Atheists realize that if bible errors are good enough to Disprove the Bible, Bible accuracy should also be good enough to prove it, I doubt it will Happen, but There is hope

[@darkwolf7740]

Funnily enough, most 'Bible errors' I've seen are not even errors. They tend to be people ripping stuff out of context, or in some cases, just copying errors from scribes. Like any other book in human history, having the odd error doesn't undermine an entire literary genre. If that was the case, we wouldn't be able to thank Tacitus and Josephus for recording early 1st/2nd century history.

[@negativedawahilarious]

​@@darkwolf7740 those type of people are the ones who search in google: "Top 10 bible contradictions"

[@bikesrcool_1958]

@@darkwolf7740it’s because modern western atheists have a very fundamentalist view of the inspiration of scripture, rivaling the idea that the Bible just plopped out of heaven lol. Many of these discrepancies can be settled easily and if the worst case scenario is a copying error for something like a number… it doesn’t look horrible for us !

[@seanhogan6893]

That is the Spiderman fallacy.

[@darkwolf7740]

​@@bikesrcool_1958Agreed. I've never seen it as a big issue. Only a problem if you're a fundamentalist or something, but even then... it's not like you can take everything in the Bible literally all of the time.

[@darkwolf7740]

Just hearing you say "Ahoy" makes me believe that you need to pursue an apologetic pirate music career. For reasons... 👀

[@markhorton3994]

Christians should have nothing to do with pirates, musical or otherwise. Pirates were maritime theives. That almost always included murder. Evil. Christians are supposed to avoid evil. Pirates still exist. You don't want to meet one.

[@LivingAnarchy]

Oh, new playlist. Hello, Testify! :)

[@JustAnApe445]

Dude love your videos man keep it coming I’m an agnostic Christian but I love the way you defend the Bible and Christ and Paul ❤🙏🏽

[@CrownOfThornss]

I will pray for you, my friend:)

[@JustAnApe445]

@@CrownOfThornss thank you

[@Mandarintoenail1]

Pardon my misunderstanding but how can you be agnostic and Christian? Seems like the latter would trump the former.

[@TestifyApologetics]

​@@Mandarintoenail1Just give people place to explore. I used to read the Bible unsure of Christianity and Jesus. It took me a while to get there.

[@JustAnApe445]

@@TestifyApologetics this right here 💯

[@johnlin5550]

YESSS I love your content, excited to see a new series coming!

[@michaelg4919]

looking forward to this!!

[@crusadr_4966]

Just discovered this channel, love this content man!

[@Biblestudies658]

Aaaaay new series!

[@manaman9625]

I was blessed enough to visit St Thomas Bay where the ship crashed. It was incredible reading these verses and being able to see where they recovered the anchors, the reef, the sand, and all the other details mentioned

[@DrakonPhD]

I know theres also arguments that the actual island Paul landed on was Melita near Croatia, since the naval travel eould also work out to reaxh there, and that island has poisonous snakes likr described in Acts (something I've seen some skeptics say is that Malta doesn't have poisonous snakes). Either way, great video!

[@TestifyApologetics]

Yeah fwiw I always found the skeptical objection about the vipers to be pretty weak. We cannot be absolutely certain about the wildlife situation on Malta 2,000 years ago. While today there are no venomous snakes on the island, it does not mean there weren’t any back then. Malta was mostly uninhabited and untouched by human civilization at the time Paul was shipwrecked. We just cannot definitively say what kind of creatures roamed the island then. It is possible that a small population of venomous snakes existed and got wiped out as human activity began to change the environment. Humans have a tendency to disrupt ecosystems wherever they go. Furthermore, fossil records are incomplete, and the lack of preserved remains does not prove the absence of a certain species, especially for smaller creatures like snakes.

[@DrakonPhD]

True, animal life 2000 years ago on a remote island is basically impossible to tell. There's other arguments I've heard, like how after being shipwrecked ocean currents would make the ship drift north, not southwest, or how Malta was not really chosen as the sight until the 1500s when the knights of Malta put in Malta in their translation of the Latin Vulgate. Either way, it was one of those two islands, and I feel there's good arguments for both. It's not major in the grand scheme of things, especially compared to that tiny Cretan island Luke got spot on. That's the biggest evidence for me.

[@ngliscsaxon6128]

This was a really episode! Can't wait to see more 'juicy nuggets' like this one

[@leakythinktank9072]

Great nuggets of evidence. Excellent video. Thank you for it. God bless.

[@nevermind824]

In future videos could you list major sources in the description? I wanted to find James Smiths book a few days later and had to skim through to remember his name. Thanks.for the hard work

[@nebricback1430]

Love it!

[@ryanrockstarsessom768]

Thank you

[@joshwaldner1440]

Great video! I was curious if you know about Bob Cornuke's documentary on Paul's shipwreck? He presents some pretty cool evidence for finding the anchors of the the ship which Luke mentions being cut free.

[@keithbrown1915]

Acts 27 29 "Then fearing lest we should have fallen upon rocks, they cast four anchors out of the stern, and wished for the day. "They have found the four anchors of the ship that were cast off to lighten the ship during the storm.

[@theepitomeministry]

Hemer's book is nutty. Glad it's being covered.

[@clinged2711]

I love your content

[@desertdinghy9833]

You read about Luke's shipwreck description in Acts and it rings true. Luke is describing exactly what mariners do when in extremis, and helplessly being driven ashore, especially in the days of sail. He relates that the usual celestial signs are absent. Stars guided ships. Without them you can only rely on dead reckoning. After the length of time related without seeing the stars, the mariners likely had very little clues as where exactly they were. They would have, at best, relied on educated guesses judging by current, wave action and wind direction. The ship eventually was driven into the mouth of a creek emptying into the sea. A ship wedged like this, bow first, would present the stern to the surf and the ship, held fast, would be battered to pieces by the waves astern, exactly as Luke describes. I am not a mariner, but I spent most of my life as a maritime photographer, studying ship design, the behavior of ships underway, anchor usage in emergencies like loss of power due to engine failure or wind driven storms so fierce that the sails were shortened or fully furled against the yards so they wouldn't be torn apart. The sailors would have also shortened sail so the winds wouldn't drive the ship's bow so deep into the wave troughs that it could likely "pitchpole" or have it's stern be raised so high that the ship flips forward and over like a pole vaulter's pole when it's driven into the soil. Just as bad would be an event where the ship pivots on a wave and the wind hits the sails with such force, the ship lays on its side and rolls over. Luke's account is no less historically correct and fascinating than if you were reading about the adventures aboard the merchant sailing brig "Alert" in Dana's true accounts in "Three Years Before the Mast" The first time I read Luke's biblical shipwreck account, I was flabbergasted at the accuracy in his telling of the shipwreck and the mariner's actions preceeding the wreck. And consider Paul. He was a man of many adventures and had faith in the Lord, knowing God would get them through disaster. He stayed calm, had a plan, and gave instructions to the crew like making sure they were fully fed and well hydrated because no one was sure where they would end up or if there would be enough food to keep them alive. Thank you for bringing your excellent video to youtube. You totally nailed it!

[@emoryzakin2576]

That was too cool

[@justinmay8161]

Hey man, what bible translation do you use for your videos? I really like, i wouldn't mind getting one.

[@TestifyApologetics]

ESV

[@justinmay8161]

@@TestifyApologetics Haha thanks for the reply. That's a good one, I have the NASB, but I find it's a little too wooden for my taste. I think I'll get the ESV.

[@paulgeorge1144]

The shortest and probably the cheapest way to get to Italy was through Corinth and hence Nicopolis which city Paul actually mentions in his letters. The sea voyage via Crete was hazardous. Acts at this point most probably passes over into fiction.

[@knightforlorn6731]

this was cool with a capital J.C.! Subbed!

[@donjezza]

I don't know why but I was expecting you to present a shipwreck recorded in a different historical source that correlates to this particular shipwreck.

[@SunnyLovetts]

No amount of evidence will convince those who simply want to be their own "God." Sadly... but amazing job, hopefully some agnostics see this! :)

[@BeachsideHank]

Or- No amount of evidence will convince those who simply want their own "God."

[@marknieuweboer8099]

What a splendid false dilemma! Perfectly neglecting the correct option that historical research confirms some aspects of some stories, disproves others and is undecided about some more.

[@youngpoet44hunnies]

You should write a book on these things

[@ItsJustAdrean]

I would love if you had a second channel in which you deep dove into these sources -- bible geography!

[@doriesse824]

A lot of people believe he existed, and that Acts is history, but they also teach Paul is a false apostle.

[@platopiglet]

Love the stl reference

[@TestifyApologetics]

i grew up there

[@prestonyannotti7661]

Glad to see your having fun with these! Your the scourge of redditers everywhere 😂

[@xurnnn5072]

Hey man, sorry this if off topic for the video , but recently I have been struggling with how bible scholars who once were Christian after learning about the Bible completely lose their faith such as Dr. Kipp. Dr. Josh Brown I believe his name is, and Dr Bart and so on and so on, how do you respond or reconcile with that? It’s been hard for me. After analyzing and reading the book, shouldn’t it strengthen your faith?

[@TestifyApologetics]

This isn't as one directional as they make it out to be. Check out talkaboutdoubts.com. We'd be glad to chat 1 on 1 and help out. The short answer is biblical scholarship has a lot of epistemological problems and bad habits.

[@darkwolf7740]

Speaking as a non-believer, I would say that you have nothing to worry about. Some people lose their faith, and that's perfectly fine. Sometimes (though I'm not saying that it happened to these people in particular) people will choose to disbelieve as they feel that it isn't the life they want to live. Maybe that's what happened to them, maybe not, but there are many reasons as to why people reconsider their worldview upon further analysis.

[@Mandarintoenail1]

When we read in the New Testament that the religious leaders were worried about losing their positions, I think the same behavior, to a point, is happening here, in that those who are within the field posses the biases of the field and will not allow themselves to come to certain conclusions. Not seeing the forest for the trees. The field of study ends up with bad habits as mentioned above and if one wants to find a reason to not believe, then see John 3:19-20 KJV And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. [20] For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. A coworker friend who was against my conversion gave me Bart Erhman’s misquoting Jesus book. Little did she know it drove me closer on the path to Jesus instead of away. It showed that discrepancies were minor and not theological. Jesus really existed historically and said and did some things I needed to respond to. I think there are scholars and “believers” alike who are weak in faith and belief, and weak in character to admit it openly. Their de-conversion is not a loss of the belief but an admittance to their true position which maybe they had kept secret before, the new information they discover in the scholarly realm being the perfect excuse to pin the loss of belief on, instead of admitting their heart had always been far from God. The religious leaders and scholars in Jesus time were painted sepulchers after all

[@xurnnn5072]

@@TestifyApologetics ok thank u I will check it out definitely soon. I appreciate it

[@RustyWalker]

You found the passenger list? Fancy that! Oh, you found ships sank in the Med. Not quite as impressive, especially in the 1st century. The author knew about shipping and that's about all you can say.

[@lukepoplawski3230]

Proving that Acts isn’t a fabrication is the least of the Bible’s concerns in order to be considered a rational or reliable account 🙄

[@KyouheiKaizo]

No one talking about how bummed out Paul and the gang must've been getting shipwrecked.

[@djrlathrop111]

Given the MO for the guards was to execute prisoners to prevent their escape, and the only reason they didn't was because the captain liked Paul, they at least were probably feeling pretty good about the whole affair.

[@allegedmars]

great satire man

[@markhughes7927]

7:09 Felix was the prisoner; Jesus was with them; authenticity in the binding of the ship with (girdling) ropes; presume grain thrown overboard because absorbing sea-water gotten into the hold…

[@germanius1732]

Are you a trinitarian? I’m a oneness Pentecostal, but I’m really questioning the oneness doctrine, I still believe in Jesus only name baptism, but idk. I would like not for you to convince me, but to give me more evidence and explanations to evaluate which path I should take, God Bless.

[@TestifyApologetics]

I'm Pentecostal but Trinitarian. I think your theological instincts and doubts here are correct. See Greg Boyd's book Oneness Pentecostals and the Trinity.

[@germanius1732]

@@TestifyApologeticsthanks I will eventually I’m only 17, and this is really hard for me, because I’ve been living as an apostolic for like all my life. One of the reasons I started questioning the oneness doctrine is because it is a new doctrine that started in 1914. But it is still a massive step, it not like something small.

[@germanius1732]

@@TestifyApologetics for example I don’t see how ever since the 4th century all the way the 1914, all Christian’s got it wrong, and you know apostolic got it right, again it is possible, but not probable. Also this is my version of oneness: One essence, who manifest in three distinct manifestation, again, I know that it is contrary to the UPCI theology.

[@TestifyApologetics]

​@@germanius1732they'd argue their doctrine isn't new which is true it is as old as Sabellianism. But the church rejected that teaching as it's actually not apostolic. I don't know what to tell you other than when you get out of your house consider finding a different church.

[@germanius1732]

@@TestifyApologetics it gonna be hard, my family has been there for a long time, I received the Holy Spirit there, my dad rejected the trinity, so for my family to go back to trinity, it’s hard. But the evidence keeps staking up the more I study and read the Bible. I feel that if apostolics studies the Word then they would slowly question oneness view. I’ll look into the book you recommended. But that local Apostolic church is also my family. Quick question though is Gods name, JESUS?

[@rev.stephena.cakouros948]

Everyone is talking about today's eclipse. We were cautioned not to stare directly at without special glasses. My mind went back to Thales of Miletus who in 585 BC predicted an eclipse. But while that was quite something there is on record an even greater prediction in the Old Testament. In Amos 8:9 where the prophet predicted the darkness that covered the earth when Christ hung on the cross. It reads, "And in that day declares the Lord God I will make the sun go down at noon and will darken the earth in the daytime." Now read "At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock." [Mark 15:33] That eclipses our eclipse doesn't it? And look, leading secular historians around at that time admitted to what happened when Jesus died and the sun as it were, left the sky. Isaac Watts Well might the sun in darkness hide And shut his glories in, When Christ, the mighty Maker died For man the creature’s sin.

[@pootisbirdxp]

5:28 *Yarr* I know the seas 🤣

[@lukeman4566]

Wonderful. I pray these videos will lead people to examine the life of Jesus themselves and come to seek a relationship with God. Christ is the only true fulfillment for your life and salvation for your soul! Jesus loves you all, take care of yourself for me, have a wonderful night

[@timsmith2525]

@0:15 They might to think once.

[@suleymanbabak1973]

I guess that also makes the cyclopses a fact since the odissey is history because shipwrecks and travels in the mediterranean existed.

[@BeachsideHank]

And crewmen could be turned into swine.

[@BeachsideHank]

*Quoting scriptural psychobabble confers neither fact, wisdom nor authority, only tribal ignorance.* People wrote fictional stories, folklore, and plagiaristic works thousands of years ago, just as they do today- why is this fact so hard for believers like you to comprehend?

[@icypirate11]

Paul's shipwreck story reminds me of another really similar story. What could it be...? 🤔🤔🤔 hmmm... Oh yeah! The story of Odysseus being shipwrecked! I wonder which story came first or really happened in history... hmmm... 🤔🤔🤔

[@RoyCyberPunk]

There's nothing about seamanship in the odisey but there's plenty of marine monsters, land dwelling monsters like the cyclops that they face so your comparison makes as much sense as comparing the Wright Brothers first flight to Icarus as only a Leftist atheist who believes in pregnant men and cannot define what a woman is and thinks that math is racist among other imbecilities plus literally also thinks that a fully functional building like the 16th chapel or the Empire State building can manifest by accident as in stones randomly dropping over millions of years and the same goes for everything including motorized vehicles which is absurd as all those things require a mind behind them so you people have gone as far as literally abandon all reason and common sense in order to avoid accountability which is what you people loathe and fear the most which is why you guys keep getting ever more nonsensical. Bye 👋🏽...

[@fluffysheap]

Yes there's definitely only ever been one shipwreck

[@RoyCyberPunk]

​@@fluffysheap I hope you are been sarcastic about one shipwreck in the entire history of the Mediterranean sea.

[@jeffreyrobinson3555]

I’m not a Christian, however I often get a laugh from those who phoo phoo the Bible as an historic document. Do I believe a series of plagues hit Egypt and from that Semitic people living in the north fled for Palestine You can believe God sent the plagues ( you) or it was a natural event (me) but either way Exodus reads like history. We can say the same thing about the synoptic gospels, believe or not they should be taken as historic documents The Bible needs to be treated in the same way as any historic document from classical time

[@chancylvania]

5:42 I’m sorry did you just say “chalasantes?” Oof that hurts my ears. It would be khalasantes (an aspirated or fricative K sound). The Greeks (and Hebrew) don’t have a “chuh” sound.

[@KingOppSanti]

😊

[@jesusisthechristthesonofgod]

the book of acts is a historical document of historical events, why would anyone be surprised if it's historical?

[@Meowwolfwarrior]

No matter what ive been thru jesus is always real. Facts. Amen and amen. And for those who say paul was a fake apostle, what about James 4:7 “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” ????? This works in real life. So, fake that 😊

[@jefw37]

@Testify Acts 21:17 - 26 ......What is going on here ??? are you up to the challenge? are there Some real double standards going on here? Or what?

[@scottgodlewski306]

Does any amount of historical verification make Jesus’s claim to divinity or his resurrection true? I’m getting Spider-Man fallacy vibes. I’m not saying they’re not true, but even if EVERY detail could be confirmed save those two, it wouldn’t demonstrate the truth of those two claims. I’m not sure what the goal of any of this stuff is. Is it for believers in doubt? A non-believer, who doesn’t believe simply because they’re not convinced, won’t find any of this compelling. As someone who feels the psychological compulsion to believe but can’t reconcile faith and reason, I feel like I live in a space where no one is able to effectively reach me.

[@metaldisciple]

3:35 no pun intended

[@Yaaqov-yk9gt]

Love the addition of NPCs

[@ProfessorJM1]

Bear with me….says Elisha😂😂😂😂

[@SalvableRuin]

Cilicia, not "Cicilia"

[@jerometaperman7102]

The things that religious folks think of as evidence always amuses me. That Saul was aboard a ship that was wrecked is plausible but that does not at all prove that the rest of the book of Acts is accurate. I have been pointing out this sort of thing for years about the bible in general. There are parts that contain true history but that hardly means that the whole thing is true.

[@petar.dj98]

There is some indication that the island in question is not Malta but Mljet (Croatian island). Look into that theory

[@TestifyApologetics]

This disconfirms that theory

[@jimtom7313]

lol that thumbnail is smth

[@k27ism]

The favorite atheist argument these days is that: "Even comic books mention New York for Spiderman to be in, so therefore when the Bible mentions real places and figures it could easily just be made to look like fictional things blending in reality, when actually, nothing happened in the Bible that is true." If that's the case, then it really speaks levels of their understanding of what's real and what isn't. But if we have to accept their flawed reasoning, then obviously the only way to prove reality as described in any book to exist, is to see what the book says of events in that time to learn of it is accurate to history. Another way is to actually look at what stands out as pointing to be true. Do you see a spiderman cult going around trying to explain that spiderman is real because based on a comic book it therefore has to be true? We dont see people like that because it's stupid to waste time and resources of your life to convince people of something that doesnt offer anything more than, "this is real". Christianity doesnt go around telling people Christ is real, actually to say that Jesus has eternal life, so if you want to enter heaven you believe in His sacrifice. There's a huge difference in this that athiests cannt fathom. They're so caught up in their own mind to not work out their flaws.

[@frankjames1955]

ya need a little more bible verses

[@Jordanx9]

Interesting theory I think you should do a video on. The Romans changed the way the Bible tells us about Pilate to make it easier to convert the Roman people to Christianity. (Instead of making him a bad guy like Caiaphas) in a nutshell basically blaming the Romans for changing the Bible and cause “antisemitic” views of the Jews since around the 1st Century. Do I believe this no, but however it is an interesting video idea.

[@TestifyApologetics]

Already done kzbin.info/www/bejne/rJerYZmFbbuto8ksi=7WtMfeM4sFRDfTBG

[@Jordanx9]

@@TestifyApologetics awesome!

[@WayneRossi]

My problem here is that getting details right is not a sign that something isn’t historical fiction; it just means that the author did a good job. If I were writing a shipwreck scene in a historical novel, I might take details from an actual account and then insert my hero into the story. It seems very plausible that the author of Acts could have done the same with his hero. He knew Paul was supposed to have been in a shipwreck, so he could have taken details from an account of a real survivor and used them to craft a believable tale.

[@TestifyApologetics]

You're confusing possible with probable. We know Paul existed. He had traveling companions. He was shipwrecked. This isn't even a miracle claim. There is nothing improbable about Acts being a travelog of Paul's.

[@WayneRossi]

​@@TestifyApologetics I don't think this is a confusion. Your video wants to establish the idea that Acts is realistic and therefore interpretations from critical scholars that it is heavily embellished or entirely fictional are unlikely to be accurate. I think that the presence of realistic details does not establish that the author of Acts was a traveling companion of Paul because verisimilitude is likely to be part of accounts that are not in fact historical. There are separate reasons to think that Acts is not historical in its depiction of Paul. Critical scholars see the differences between the depiction of Paul's personal history, his theology, and his relationship with other apostles in his letters versus their depiction in Acts as being good reasons to be very skeptical of the idea that Acts was written by someone who knew Paul intimately. Given that, the level of detail in the travel sequences is not sufficient to draw the conclusion that this is a historical travelogue of Paul, when alternative explanations for such a level of detail are also plausible.

[@Boundless_Border]

I tried to take a different tact. I remarked how the closing statements around 6:49 were disconnected from whether the author of Luke was actually there for this event (presuming it happened). And I can't seem to get any common ground on that. I'll wish you luck on discussing things on this side.

[@TestifyApologetics]

​​​​@@WayneRossiI actually uploaded a video addressing these very concerns but you'll have to wait a week before I publish it. I also addressed alleged contradictions between Paul and Acts a couple years ago, and in a live from last year. They're not all that damning and actually rather weak. Thanks for the thoughtful and respectful pushback.

[@Yawnyaman]

This is the only detailed account of a contemporary long sea voyage in Roman times. Obviously Virgil conceived a longer historical and fictional account in his Aeneid, but that is low on practical seamanship. Pliny has a detailed account of a land journey across Italy at a similar date which is a useful companion piece to this one. The key point is that Acts is clearly contemporary reportage rather than historical fiction. As such it refutes Atheistic claims that Christian theology ( which is detailed at some length in the numerous sermons that puncture the narrative) was a creation of times long after Jesus.

[@Mr53gil]

A Northeaster is a storm that moves up from the South West and moves to the NORTH EAST. The winds in the location you show would be a Southwester.

[@voicesofantiquity]

It's not that skeptics doubt so much the historicity of Paul's travels but rather Paul's message that Jesus of Nazareth is the divine son of the one true god.

[@SavedbyGraceAlone1962]

The Bible is a collection of historical documents.

[@BeachsideHank]

Old, yes. Historical-? The bible is to historical accuracy as is the Flintstones are a legitimate prehistory documentary.

[@SavedbyGraceAlone1962]

@@BeachsideHank You've proven ignorant people do indeed make ignorant comments.

[@BeachsideHank]

@@SavedbyGraceAlone1962 *PSA:* When you publish a point of view in a public forum, it is no longer private, exclusive or personal; *it is subject to analysis, discussion, and critique* as well as any *feedback,* be it positive or negative. Therefore you have defacto invited any and all replies.

[@rickedwards7276]

You may have heard this one. The fact that there’s a train station in London does not prove that Harry Potter and the school of wizardry exist.

[@truthgiver8286]

And Jonah's adventures prove that whales are fish! so the bible proves a lot of wrong things it even thinks Pi is 3, Shame but there were only bronze age schools available to god at the time.

[@simonodowd2119]

Interesting video, literally nothing in there suggests that "Luke" traveled with Paul. You know there were libraries and travel/shipwreck stories in the ancient world right....?

[@TestifyApologetics]

Lol. Yeah, tons of libraries, with card catalogs and bound books with page numbers, chapters, and indices. Super easy to look stuff up. And he made this highly realistic fiction way before the modern historical novel-a true forerunner. Also, he sent this book to a guy who might not have traveled to any of these places himself to impress him, even though he might not be able to check. But then he couldn't be bothered to apparently not differ with Paul's letters in several points, which would've been circulating widely at this time. And of course, there's nothing miraculous here. We know Paul existed and had traveling buddies. Thanks for the satire; I appreciate it.

[@seanhogan6893]

Yeah, it's hard to know what to do with that story. That fourteen days without seeing the sun or the stars or having food is obviously implausible. Yet the time on Malta feels like a first-hand account. Paul is bitten by a snake which isn't even venomous. Paul prays for a man with dysentery and he recovers. These don't feel like reports that grew in the telling. BTW isthatinthebible has an article on the (im)plausibility and (theological) purpose of Paul's sea voyage in Acts which I found a good contrast to this video.

[@alexm7627]

@@tenmilesfm you're wrong if you think a Christ like attitude excludes being sarcastic or ironic just saying

[@TestifyApologetics]

Jesus, Paul, Amos, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah all used sarcasm and or satire. I don't mean to needlessly offend but some stuff deserves mockery

[@tonyr6365]

Jesus is God's Son. Jesus is Lord. Jesus was crucified and died for the sins of the world. Jesus's blood was shed for the forgiveness of sins. Jesus was buried for three days. Jesus was raised from the dead by God.

[@Boundless_Border]

I think we can agree you weren't an eyewitness. So. Could you regurgitate this tale by reading the Gospels? I think it is pretty evident that you did since that is the way you did the video.

[@TestifyApologetics]

Sorry but you're not making any sense

[@darkwolf7740]

I wasn't an eyewitness to the execution of Charles I either...

[@Boundless_Border]

@TestifyApologetics I'm asking if you, a noneyewitness, can regurgitate this tale? If you can, then your closing remark that the author of Luke needed to be an eyewitness to that event falls very flat. Edit: If you still can't understand, just leave it. Good luck with this new series.

[@Boundless_Border]

@@darkwolf7740 Sure. But are you making the case that a non eyewitness can't regurgitate tales based on other sources?

[@darkwolf7740]

​@@Boundless_BorderSure, they can. But that would depend upon what a person's motives are and whether these motives justify deception or whether they demonstrate that they are being deceived themselves... in which case we would then have to ask the same question as to what motives the deceiver has.

[@modernatheism]

Ok, so some parts of Acts could have been historical, skeptics may grant that point. But it was normal for ancient writers to blend history and legend on their stories. See for example, Herodotus Histories, which report on the Greco-Persian wars and are considered part of the history gerne, but nevertheless contain several mythical and legendary claims, such as the supernatural rescue of Delphi from a Persian attack.

[@TestifyApologetics]

yes, that is true. The point I'm making is that the gospel authors were scrupulous, well-informed and very close up to the facts. Many history writers were not as close up and are reporting legendary elements from hundreds of years ago. The evangelists were not the kind of authors who invent details, but reported at least what was claimed. The question is 1.) Is what they claimed something one can be honestly mistaken about? 2.) What was the context in which they made these claims.

[@ChristinaFromYoutube]

Paul was worshipped as a god on Malta (and Lystra too) because he is the Man of Lawlessness.

[@TestifyApologetics]

He refused to be worshiped this comment is crazy talk

[@ChristinaFromYoutube]

@@user-kp5gx6pp2v I do obey the commandments. I am not Hebrew Roots or anything because I speak English and all the half-Hebrew half-English stuff just makes me confused and tired. I believe Jesus in Matthew 24 that he would never appear to anyone in the wilderness. Therefore that wasn't Jesus that Paul encountered in the wilderness. I believe Jesus when he says "The Son of Man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matthew 13:41-42 "Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus." Revelation 14:12

[@ChristinaFromYoutube]

@@TestifyApologetics show me the verse where he stopped them. Its not there.

[@ChristinaFromYoutube]

@@user-kp5gx6pp2v "fallen from grace" I reject Paul completely and Jesus never uses the word Grace even once. Jesus clarified that lust is adultery and anger is murder and no divorce except sexual immorality and no oaths. Use your context clues to realize "fulfill the law" means to make complete, to make whole. He literally just said lust is adultery too so he definitely wasn't abolishing the adultery law written by the finger of God and given to Moses. These are not Moses' Laws. They are the Law of God written by His own finger and given to Moses. These Laws are eternal and yes I absolutely delight in the Sabbath and honor the Sabbath and share in rest with my Father as commanded. He says the Sabbath is the eternal sign between He and His people that He is our God.

[@ChristinaFromYoutube]

And you don't have to worry about me falling victim to the rabbis. Like Paul, the Pharisee of Pharisees, they push headcoverings which is NOT in the Law of God anywhere. Plus I listened to Jesus about them being called rabbi in the first place. I keep the commandments in the bible that God gave through Moses and through Jesus the "prophet like Moses" as they are written God says its sinful to add to the commandments therefore Paul and his fellow Pharasaic rabbis are in sin when they add to the Law with headcoverings.

[@onlyalexicon]

hello I love your videos keep it up