philip0906:

shhhh. . .which error?out of d multitudes of links and proofs,one was not true.What about d rest?Atleast u say I admit my mistake,thanks 4 d compliment.Also,"beg" Mazaje,2 admit his.He hasn't discredited anything here(apart 4rm d luke's own).He is only using "his brain",His feelings,His emotions and what he thinks. . .I am showing VERIFIABLE PROOFS More on d way

Mr philip my man. . . . . .I don't know much about  some of the links you have dropped so I won't make any comment on them since I don't know anything about them, I only point out to the ones that I know have already been discredited. . . . .I won't give my personal opinions because I noticed that you are not interested in them at all. . . . . .I'll look them up and when I discover something interesting I will post it up. . . . . . .Thanks for all the links though, I have educated myself  with some new information that I never knew before. . . . . .

mazaje:

Mr philip my man. . . . . .I don't know much about some of the links you have dropped so I won't make any comment on them since I don't know anything about them, I only point out to the ones that I know have already be discredited. . . . .I won't give my personal opinions because I noticed that you are not interested in them at all. . . . . .I'll look them up and when I discover something interesting I will post it up. . . . . . .Thanks for all the links though, I have educated myself with some new information that I never knew before. . . . . .

nicee. . .I had also been claiming dat Luke's tomb had been found,until ur post.So I've also learnt something

And the question still remains. . .

And the question still remains. . .

Does The Christian God Actually Exist?

ayo84:

Does The Christian God Actually Exist?

. . . like beauty. . . in the "I" of the beholder . . .

ayo84:


Does The Christian God Actually Exist?

Ur fellow atheists who lived centuries b4 u have been asking this question yet none has been able 2 say and prove dat God does not exist.If d question and prove has been there and certain,u wouldn't be asking,ur generations who choose 2 follow ur paths will still ask. while Christians,muslims,jews,hindus have believed 4 certain dat God indeed exists without any questions posed. . .so keep asking

philip0906:

your fellow atheists who lived centuries b4 u have been asking this question yet none has been able 2 say and prove dat God does not exist.

. . .So much for having SMART, [b]RATIONAL [/b]and [b]LOGICAL [/b]atheists all over the place. . .

The christian god exists by the christians, with the christians and for the christians. And that is where the existence of this god begins and ends. He is only alpha and omega within the christian belief, but not outside of it. He is a god in a christian box, packaged and labelled by the christians for the christians. He is a "made in christiandom" god.

So, why does someone living outside the christian box bother whether this god exists or not? Surely, I
it can't be a question of that great an importance to the outsider, is it? Abeg, let the christians have their god o jare! They are entitled to him.

Jenwitemi:

The christian god exists by the christians, with the christians and for the christians. And that is where the existence of this god begins and ends. He is only alpha and omega within the christian belief, but not outside of it. He is a god in a christian box, packaged and labelled by the christians for the christians. He is a "made in christiandom" god.

So, why does someone living outside the christian box bother whether this god exists or not? Surely, I
it can't be a question of that great an importance to the outsider, is it? Abeg, let the christians have their god o jare! They are entitled to him.

2 show how confused u atheists r,its not only christians dat believe dat God exists.The muslims,jews,hindus alike believe in a supreme being.Different religions with one single belief-EXISTENCE OF A SUPREME BEING. . .so ur assumptions r inside ur own "little brain". . .

philip0906:

2 show how confused u atheists r,its not only christians dat believe dat God exists.The muslims,jews,hindus alike believe in a supreme being.Different religions with one single belief-EXISTENCE OF A SUPREME BEING. . .so your assumptions r inside your own "little brain". . .

The poster whom u quoted is not an atheist but a deist its becos he detest Christians and believes the Christian God is different from his own God, that why u think hes an atheist

toba:

The poster whom u quoted is not an atheist but a deist its becos he detest Christians and believes the Christian God is different from his own God, that why u think hes an atheist

oops k. . .but like I pointed out,Jews,Muslims,Hindus,Christians alike,believe in a supreme being

Oh ,no no! Muslims do not believe in the existence of the christian god
The jews do not believe in the existence of the christian god
The hindus do not believe in the christian god
The sikh? Definitely not.
The budfhists? Not a chance.

Do people of other religions believe in a supreme creator? Of course they do! They just don't believe in the christian version simply because they have theirs.

So that leaves us with the conclusion that only christians believe in the christian made god. Nothing wrong with that, though.

philip0906:

2 show how confused u atheists r,its not only christians dat believe dat God exists.The muslims,jews,hindus alike believe in a supreme being.Different religions with one single belief-EXISTENCE OF A SUPREME BEING. . .so your assumptions r inside your own "little brain". . .

^^
Its u atheists who "intelligently" coined d term,"Christian God" 2 suit your "beliefs" and hide under dat cover 2 attack Christianity.Muslims believe in God who they refer 2 as Allah,Jews believe in God et.c Only if u live in a different world,would u doubt that "universal truth" dat Christians,Muslims,Jews et.c believe in God. . .so live with it

philip0906:

^^
Its u atheists who "intelligently" coined d term,"Christian God" 2 suit your "beliefs" and hide under dat cover 2 attack Christianity.Muslims believe in God who they refer 2 as Allah,Jews believe in God et.c Only if u live in a different world,would u doubt that "universal truth" dat Christians,Muslims,Jews et.c believe in God. . .so live with it

First of all coon, Jews are a distinct ethnic group while Muslims and Christians are just people who plagiarized Jewish folklores and traditions to create religions.

Second, are you saying that Muslims and Christians believe in the same god?

Martian:

First of all coon, Jews are a distinct ethnic group while Muslims and Christians are just people who plagiarized Jewish folklores and traditions to create religions.

Second, are you saying that Muslims and Christians believe in the same god?

R u saying muslims don't believe in a "God"?wether they r d same or not,it is still d same G-O-D, meaning a supreme being,which u atheists don't believe in.U get d drift?
"Jews believe that there is a single God who not only created the universe, but with whom every Jew can have an individual and personal relationship"
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism/beliefs/beliefs_1.shtml
"Muslims believe that there is only one God. . ."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim

[sup][/sup]

philip0906:

R u saying muslims don't believe in a "God"?wether they r d same or not,it is still d same G-O-D, meaning a supreme being,which u atheists don't believe in.U get d drift?
"Jews believe that there is a single God who not only created the universe, but with whom every Jew can have an individual and personal relationship"
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism/beliefs/beliefs_1.shtml
"Muslims believe that there is only one God. . ."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim

So because Jews decided that their single god created earth(get it right, they didn't know anything about the universe, hell, they thought the world was flat) means that their god exists?


I wish i could gather all you uncle ruckus clones in one place and nuke you all to heaven.

Martian:

[sup][/sup]
So because Jews decided that their single god created earth(get it right, they didn't know anything about the universe, hell, they thought the world was flat) means that their god exists?


I wish i could gather all you uncle ruckus clones in one place and nuke you all to heaven.

Atleast u saw it with ur own eyes.I'm no Jew,go ask them dat question.Typical atheist looking 4 an escape route

philip0906:

dats all 4 now,more tomorrow. . .

The thing is, you still haven't answered the original questions that were asked.Instead you have spent valuable time and considerable effort beating about the bush.What a pity!

Let me list a few examples of bible contradictions from a bible that is supposed to come from the all knowing Christian god :

(1)How did Judas die?

Ans 1 : And he cast down the pieces of silver into the temple and departed, and went out and hanged himself (MAT 27:5)

Ans 2 : And falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all of his bowels gushed out (ACT 1:18)

(2)Who was Josiah's successor?

Ans1 : 2CH 36:1 Jehoahaz

Ans 2: JER 22:11 Shallum

(3) What were Jesus last words?

Ans 1 : And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, eli, lama sabachthani?" that is to say, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" , Jesus, when he cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost (MAT 27:46,50)

Ans 2 : And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, "Father, unto thy hands I commend my spirit:" and having said thus, he gave up the ghost (LUK 23:46)

Ans 3 : When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, "It is finished:" and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost (JOH 19:30)

And they say the Christian god is not the author of confusion!

Good grief! ! !

philip0906:

Atleast u saw it with your own eyes.I'm no Jew,go ask them dat question.Typical atheist looking 4 an escape route

Saw what Talking to you people is like beating ones head against a wall.

A few more bible contradictions :


(1)Is god satisfied with his works?

Ans 1 : god is satisfied with his works (Gen 1:31)

Ans 2 : god is dissatisfied with his works (Gen 6:6)

(2)Where does god live?

Ans 1 : god dwells in chosen temples (2 Chron 7:12,16)

Ans 2 : god dwells not in temples (Acts 7:48)

(3)Light or darkness? Which one u dey na? Make a choice.

Ans 1 : god dwells in light (Tim 6;16)

Ans 2 : god dwells in darkness (1 kings 8:12/Ps 18:11/Ps 97:2)

(4)Can he been seen/heard or not?

Ans 1 : god is seen and heard (Ex 33:23/Ex 33:11/Gen 3:9,10/Gen 32:30/Is 6.1/Ex 24:9-11

Ans 2 : god is invisible and cannot be heard (John 1:18/John 5:37/Ex 33:20/1 Tim 6.16)

(5)Does he get tired or not? Him dey rest or na firewood?

Ans 1 : god is tired and rests (Ex 31:17)

Ans 2 : god is never tired and never rests (Is 40:28)

(6)Is god omnipresent or not?

Ans 1 : god is everywhere present,sees and knows all things (Prov 15:3/Ps 139:7-10/Job 34: 22,21)

Ans 2 : god is not everywhere present,neither sees nor knows all things (Gen 11:5/Gen 18:20,21/Gen 3:

(7)Does he know the hearts of men or not? Yes or no? Wetin dey?

Ans 1 : god knows the hearts of men (Acts 1:24/Ps 139:2,3)

Ans 2 : god tries men to find out what is in their heart (Deut 13:3/Deut 8:2/Gen 22:12)

( Is he all powerful or not?

Ans 1 : god is all powerful (Jer 32:27/Matt 19:26

Ans 2 : god is not all powerful (Judg 1:19)

(9) Is he unchangeable or not?

Ans 1 : god is unchangeable (James 1:17/Mal 3:6/Ezek 24:14/Num 23:19)

Ans 2 : god is changeable (Gen 6.6/Jonah 3:10/1 Same 2:30,31/2 kings 20:1,4,5,6/Ex 33:1.3.17,14)

(10) Is he partial or impartial?

Ans 1 : god is just and impartial (Ps 92:15/Gen 18:25/Deut 32:4/Ro, 2:11/Ezek 18:25

Ans 2 god is unjust and partial (Gen 9:25/Ex 20:5.Rom 9:11-13/Matt 13:12)

(11)Is he the author of good or evil? Which one man go believe?

Ans 1 : god is the author is evil (Lam 3:38/Jer 18:11/Is 45:7/Amos 3:6/Ezek 20:25)

Ans 2 : god is not the author of evil (1 Cor 14:33/Deut 32:4/James 1:13)

(12) Does he give blessings or withhold blessings? I'm sure this is the part "Christians" love. . .lol

Ans 1 : god gives feely to those who ask (James 1:5/Luke 11:10)

Ans 2 : god withholds his blessings and prevent men from recieving them (John 12:40/Josh 11:20/Is 63:17)


How many person go talk? And my questions still remain unanswered! ! !

@philip. Made very nice contributions. On proving d existence of God, the existence of God or Gods is not self evident neither does he openly impose himself, nd prima facie absence of presence. It wuld take extraordinary steps to acquire knowledge on god, nd dose steps u need to show n prove, dey must be rational. Otherwise, it is simply a claim, which can be rejected if it is unreasonable. An atheist can not be expected to disprove a claim absolutely, its impossible, u cannot disprove a claim that, invisible elephants possess all humans n are not rationally ascertainable. One can only disprove d backin 4 d claim. Also u ve to realize that all religions on an equal plane, all severely lackin rationality and propelled by faith, which is a subjective factor. U ve to prove d higher ground christianity has over all others. Try differentiating btw god n zeus. Havn't u bin surprised dat ur god is strangely human-like or humanoid. Morally responsible as social man is, adapts to moral changes. Has a sense of justice, belonging, pride. Also culturally defined, within christianity, jesus or god is unique n different to south america n europe n africa. He speaks in human language, sees a necessity 4 order such dat his heaven has a hierarchy, despite dey bin perfect. D biggest indication 4 no god is evil n imperfection because a creation wuld reflect its creator, except if u concede dat ur god is imperfect. Also noticed ur hatred 4 reason n human knowledge. Doesn't it have practical relevance, it is assertive n powerful like d atomic bomb, ability to sustain billions of people, create d dna. U can't ignore it. On archaeological evidence, i wuld dwell on it on my next post, Gud nite.

B4 crashin, a note to make is this, yes jews, muslims, christians all believe in a single but different beings. Monotheism is just whats in vogue, centuries ago, people believed in many gods. All monotheist religions have heavily borrowed from d first monotheist religion-Zoroastrianism. From messages of salvation n condemnation to self sacriface n miracles.

@harakiri
I know u have searched 4 these,all ur lifetime.But first r u muslim r atheist?That will help me answer some of ur questions. . .But let me just begin,while u answer mine

(3)Light or darkness? Which one u dey na? Make a choice.

Ans 1 : god dwells in light (Tim 6;16)

Ans 2 : god dwells in darkness (1 kings 8:12/Ps 18:11/Ps 97:2)

* I Timothy 6:15-16 " . . . the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach . . ."
* James 1:17 " . . . the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning."
* John 12:35 "Then Jesus saith unto them, . . . he that walketh in darkness knoweth not wither he goeth."
* Job 18:18 "He [the wicked] shall be driven from light into darkness, and chased out of the world."
* Daniel 2:22 "He [God] knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him." See also Psalm 143:3, II Corinthians 6:14, and Hebrews 12:18-22.

vs.

* I Kings 8:12 "Then spake Solomon, The Lord said that he would dwell in the thick darkness." (Repeated in II Chronicles 6:1)
* II Samuel 22:12 "And he made darkness pavilions round about him, dark waters, and thick clouds of the skies."
* Psalm 18:11 "He made darkness his secret place; his pavilion round about him were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies."
* Psalm 97:1-2 "The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice . . . clouds and darkness are round about him."
The Psalm97:2 u quoted,u surely closed ur Bible immediately u read that place cos in dat same verse 4,it says "His lightnings enlightened d world. . ."
The first set is referring to God being the source of truth. The second set is referring to God's secretive nature in that much of God's truth is hidden. But much is revealed in the New Testament through Jesus Christ. 1Cor 2:7 "We speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began." Rom 11:33 "Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!"
More on d way.

@harakiri
Even if u want 2 "attack" d Bible,read it thru. . .

Cool Is he all powerful or not?

Ans 1 : god is all powerful (Jer 32:27/Matt 19:26

Ans 2 : god is not all powerful (Judg 1:1

* Jeremiah 32:27 "Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me?
* Matthew 19:26 "But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible."

vs.

* Judges 1:19 "And the Lord was with Judah; and he drave out the inhabitants of the mountain; but could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron."

The "he" in Judges 1:19 is not referring to the Lord but to Joshua. The Lord allowed him limited success. The Lord says in Exodus "I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee." Ex 23:29

(11)Is he the author of good or evil? Which one man go believe?

Ans 1 : god is the author is evil (Lam 3:38/Jer 18:11/Is 45:7/Amos 3:6/Ezek 20:25)

Ans 2 : god is not the author of evil (1 Cor 14:33/Deut 32:4/James 1:13)

* Psalm 145:9 "The Lord is good to all."
* Deuteronomy 32:4 "a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he."

vs.

* Isaiah 45:7 "I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things." See "Out of Context" for more on Isaiah 45:7.
* Lamentations 3:38 "Out of the mouth of the most High proceedeth not evil and good?"
* Jeremiah 18:11 "Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I frame evil against you, and devise a device against you."
* Ezekiel 20:25,26 "I gave them also statutes that were not good, and judgments whereby they should not live. And I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all that openeth the womb, that I might make them desolate, to the end that they might know that I am the Lord."

These are simply using different connotations of the same word. Here are a few connotations of "evil" from the dictionary

1. Morally bad or wrong; wicked: an evil tyrant.
2. Causing ruin, injury, or pain; harmful: the evil effects of a poor diet.
3. Characterized by or indicating future misfortune; ominous: evil omens.

A given context may be referring to one of these connotations while not referring to another. Thus the Lord does not create morally bad things, but he does create misfortune, ruin and pain at times.

Ans 1 : god is seen and heard (Ex 33:23/Ex 33:11/Gen 3:9,10/Gen 32:30/Is 6.1/Ex 24:9-11

Ans 2 : god is invisible and cannot be heard (John 1:18/John 5:37/Ex 33:20/1 Tim 6.16)

First,John5:37 is not d only verse in dat chapter.Jesus was talking 2 D Jews who sought 2 kill him(just like u) in verse 18 "Therefore d jews sought more to kill him. . ." verse19 "Then Jesus answered and said unto them. . ." So that statement Jesus made,was to d Jews whom he was talking 2.I'm sure d Bible u used,marked out Jesus' words in "red". . .
To help u further
* John 1:18 "No man hath seen God at any time."
* Exodus 33:20 "Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live."
* John 6:46 "Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God [Jesus], he hath seen the Father."
* I John 4:12 "No man hath seen God at any time."

vs.

* Genesis 32:30 "For I have seen God face to face."
* Exodus 33:11 "And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend."
* Isaiah 6:1 "In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple."
* Job 42:5 "I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee."

The Old Testament verses are simply using figures of speech. "Face to face" there is simply referring to friendship as Exodus 33:11 indicates. The Isaiah passage is referring to a vision, not seeing God literally. And Job also didn't literally see God but was confronted by God directly.

Ans1 : 2CH 36:1 Jehoahaz

Ans 2: JER 22:11 Shallum

I wonder if u have ever read d Bible or u just cop and paste 4rm islamic websites. . .
I chronicles3:15 which gives d names of d sons of Josiah "And the sons of Josiah were the firstborn Johanan,the second Jehoiakim,the third Zedekiah,the fourth SHALLUM"
Shallum is another name for Jehoahaz and thats the name Jeremiah used.

(2)Where does god live?

Ans 1 : god dwells in chosen temples (2 Chron 7:12,16)

Ans 2 : god dwells not in temples (Acts 7:48)

I see no contradiction here. The claim that "my eyes and heart will always be there" appears to mean nothing more to  than the fact that the LORD would pay special attention to the temple and have a special affinity for it; the LORD would reveal Himself to His people through the temple.Mind u,it was an answer to Solomon's prayer.This same Solomon,said this in his prayer in 1Kings8:27 "But will God indeed dwell on the earth?behold the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee;how much less this house that I have builded"
Stephen's speech in Acts merely highlights the transcendence of God. Put simply, if you put these together you arrive at the following truth - God is transcendent, yet He reveals Himself where He will.

Ans 1 : god is tired and rests (Ex 31:17)

Ans 2 : god is never tired and never rests (Is 40:28)

There is absolutely no contradiction here.U have only closed ur eyes in reading d Bible and closed ur heart in understanding the Bible.The term "rested and was refreshed' is simply a vivid Oriental way of saying that God ceased from the work of creation and took delight in surveying the work.To better understand it,Genesis2:3 says,"And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made;and he rested on the seventh day from all his works which he had made"
Moreso,Exodus31:12-18 is God telling the children of Israel to keep the sabath day(rest from all works) and he used Himself as an example 2 let them see reason y they should honour the Sabath. . .Very easy to comprehend

(6)Is god omnipresent or not?

Ans 1 : god is everywhere present,sees and knows all things (Prov 15:3/Ps 139:7-10/Job 34: 22,21)

Ans 2 : god is not everywhere present,neither sees nor knows all things (Gen 11:5/Gen 18:20,21/Gen 3

"Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden." [Gen 3:8]

"But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that men were building." [Gen 11:5]

"The the LORD said, 'The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sins so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know." [Gen 18:20-21] I accept the teaching that God is everywhere present and sees and knows all things. So let's consider the instances in Genesis that are cited:

Gen 3:8 - "Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden."
Let's also add the next verse to strengthen the critics case: "But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"

How could one hide from God? Why does God need to ask this question?

First, what Adam and Eve could have hid from is merely the visible and special manifestation of the Lord. As for God's seeming ignorance, anyone with children can recognize the utility of such questions. If a child is known to have broken a lamp, it is better to question the child than to simply accuse her. The former approach enables the child to take an active role in her wrong-doing, and allows for her to apologize. Note that God asked several questions:

"Where are you?, Who told you that you were naked?, Have you eaten of the fruit of the tree?"
Note the response. Instead of begging for mercy and confessing their sins, both the man and woman justified themselves and sought to put the blame on another. So typically human! By asking these questions, God enabled the man and woman to either freely repent or to firmly establish their sinfulness. Thus, while the critic thinks these are questions demonstrating ignorance, such an interpretation can be easily dismissed in light of the above considerations. What of the others?

"But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that men were building." [Gen 11:5]

"The the LORD said, 'The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sins so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know." [Gen 18:20-21] These look like common human notions of someone coming down to check out what is going on. And perhaps, that's how the writer of these accounts understood God. But perhaps there is also another layer to the account. Obviously, it teaches God's transcendence. But it also demonstrates God's interest. He is not an aloof sky-god. And he doesn't watch from afar. He gets right down into human history.

But there is more. Maimonides once noted that just as the word 'ascend', when applied to the mind, implies noble and elevated objects, the word 'descend' implies turning one's mind to things of lowly and unworthy character. Thus, God is not "coming down" in a physical sense, but in a "mental" sense, where he turns his attention to the sinful activity of men and invokes judgment. Of course, it is hard to describe God in human language, but I think the above account is not unreasonable.

Since these supposed contradictions depend on a particular interpretation which is (or at the very least may be) in error, no contradiction has been established.

Now let me put some logic into your heads. . .
1.Who told God that Adam and Eve had sinned against him?
2.Who told God that men were building a tower 2 see Him?
3.Who told God that Sodom and Gomorrah were commiting attrocities?How did d "cry" reach Heaven?
If u can answer these questions,ur problems are solved

(1)How did Judas die?

Ans 1 : And he cast down the pieces of silver into the temple and departed, and went out and hanged himself (MAT 27:5)

Ans 2 : And falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all of his bowels gushed out (ACT 1:18)

Matt 27:5 states that Judas "threw the pieces of silver, and he went away and hanged himself."

Acts 1:18 states, "and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out."

It's rather easy to reconcile these:

1. First, Judas tried to kill himself by hanging himself. And this is not always a successful way. Maybe he tried, and failed (as have many others who have tried to commit suicide by hanging). Then after some time, he threw himself off a cliff and fell upon some jagged rocks. Keep in mind that it is not uncommon for people who commit suicide to have tried it before.

2. Judas could have tied a rope to a tree branch that extended over a cliff (after all, you have to get some space between your feet and the ground to hang yourself). In this situation, the rope/branch could have broke before or after death, and Judas plummeted to the ground and landed on some jagged rocks.

Certainly, these explanations are plausible, thus a contradiction has not been established

MAT 27:5-8 Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself. But the chief priests took the silver pieces and said, "It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, because they are the price of blood." And they consulted together and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in. Therefore that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day.

First of all, notice that the text does not say that Judas died as a result of hanging. All it says is that he "went and hanged himself." Luke however, in Acts, tells us that "and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out." This is a pretty clear indication (along with the other details given in Acts - Peter's speech, the need to pick a new apostle, etc.) that at least after Judas' fall, he was dead. So the whole concept that Matthew and Luke both recount Judas' death is highly probable, but not clear cut. Therefore, if I were to take a radical exegetical approach here, I could invalidate your alleged contradiction that there are two different accounts of how Judas died.

Notice verse 5."Then he, went and hanged himself." Matthew does not say Judas died, does it? Should we assume he died as a result of the hanging?

What does Acts say? ACT 1:18 (Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out.

ACT 1:20 "For it is written in the book of Psalms: 'Let his dwelling place be desolate, And let no one live in it'; and, 'Let another take his office.'

Here we may have a graphic explanation of Judas' death. Of course, maybe someone can find some medical source somewhere that discusses the possibility of one having their entrails gush out after being burst open in the middle, and still survive.

So, my line of reasoning to dispel the contradiction myth re: the "two" accounts of Judas' death is this. Matthew doesn't necessarily explain how Judas died; he does say Judas "hanged himself", but he didn't specifically say Judas died in the hanging incident. However, Acts seems to show us his graphic demise. Therefore, there is no contradiction between Matthew and Acts re: Judas' death.

We do know from Matthew that he did hang himself and Acts probably records his death. It is possible and plausible that he fell from the hanging and hit some rocks, thereby bursting open. However, Matthew did not say Judas died as a result of the hanging, did he? Most scholars believe he probably did, but,

Still on how Judas died. . .
Many atheists say the Greek word "apagchw" (ie: hang oneself) is translated as a successful hanging. But the reply is, No you can't only conclude this, although, this was a highly probable outcome. But Matthew does not state death as being a result. The Greek word is APAGCHO. Matthew 27:5 is it's only occurrence in the New Testament. In the LXX (the Greek translation of the OT used at the time of Jesus), it's only used in 2 Samuel 17:23 : "Now when Ahithophel saw that his advice was not followed, he saddled a donkey, and arose and went home to his house, to his city. Then he put his household in order, and hanged himself, and died; and he was buried in his father's tomb." Notice that not only is it stated that Ahithophel "hanged himself" [Gr. LXX, APAGCHO], but it explicitly adds, "and died". Here we have no doubt of the result. In Matthew, we are not explicitly told Judas died. Also, there is nothing in the Greek to suggest success or failure. It simply means "hang oneself".