The bible is a very symbolic book as well and the iron chariots represent rational thinking.

And iron chariots, as the Bible tells us, are more powerful than God. Sounds about right. ;) (Yes, I approved this comment because that line was too hilarious to pass up.)

God cannot overcome iron chariots. He would be violating free will to force someone to believe in Him or what He can do. He cannot overcome unbelief.

Say what? This is no description of God that any Christian I know believes in. This is God as Tinkerbell.

You seem to have conveniently forgotten the rather important doctrine of God being omnipotent. Whether people believe or pray has no impact at all on God's power.

It is truly astounding how willing people are to mutate and redefine their supposedly ultimate being in order to reach a predetermined conclusion.

...the iron chariots represent rational thinking.

Ummmmm, OK, so you're saying that god can't overcome rationality? Sounds about right.

But God is not rational.

Agreed!

Jesus could do hardly any miracles in his home town due to unbelief.

He also can't overcome disbelief. Awesome.

Psalm 20:7 Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.

Deuteronomy 20:1 When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you.

Isaiah 31:1 Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who trust in the multitude of their chariots and in the great strength of their horsemen, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel, or seek help from the LORD

Also, the Bible doesn't say not to commit crimes nearly as much as it shows god telling people to do just that.

But if God told people to do it it can't be a crime can it? After all God is all good right, even when he's plainly being evil? 'Tis a puzzlement and no mistake.

Steve Euthyphro Bowen :)

Yes my bias is that the Bible is inerrant.

Doesn't that open you up to GIGO?

Many just don't like the answers they find so they dismiss them.

Which answers are those? That we should stone disobedient children or hold slaves or treat women as objects?

God encourages us to seek Him intensely.

He does this how?

It is clear that the book of Judges was trying to prove God's supremacy and not disprove it. Focusing on just one line of one verse does not reveal the true meaning.

How do you know that there was one author considering that many books have many authors? How do you know that the intent was to prove god's supremacy and not just to tell a story or tell the history of the people? If it was to show god's supremacy, how do you know that it wasn't an error? True, one verse won't reveal the intent, but it can show an error in the story - which you deny can happen since the Bible must be inerrant.

This is why we say the Bible does not contradict itself. If a person thinks one passage says they should go and commit a crime but the rest of scripture states the complete opposite then we are sure the person is misunderstanding and misapplying the passage.

IOW, you can throw out any passage that you feel doesn't fit your interpretations of what the Bible is saying. Also, the Bible doesn't say not to commit crimes nearly as much as it shows god telling people to do just that. But, that's another discussion for another day I think.

Regarding the leukemia thing I haven't answered it thuroughly because I was told to stay on topic Maybe there is another thread in which I can answer it.

My point is pertinent; it addresses your implied claim of omnipotence.

Also, it seems to me that The Word of a Perfect Communicator ought not need interpretation. It also seems to me that a Perfect Word ought to be immune to mistranslation. It also occurs to me that a much more efficient way to communicate with one's followers if one is an omnipotent being is to directly speak to them via telepathy or burning bush or whatnot.

So yeah, call me unconvinced. You wish me to believe that your god created the entire universe, and yet he cannot even create a clear manifesto?

ask the question , "what did this mean to the author? Next we ask, "what did this mean to the audience?".

We are still expected to be an audience if this is God's word. Relevance to us is...?