The Creepy Lie part 2

In part one we covered that ghosts are not real and that people don’t go to heaven after they die. And this week we will cover some of the doubts people have. One was already discussed in the previous article, but another will be discussed here.

Let’s start with the bible! “And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise.” (KJV, Luke 12.43). Wow! How easy was that to debunk all that was already stated?! All destroyed in one verse! Everything about people not going to heaven after they die! Look what it just said. Jesus told the thief on the cross next to Him that he would be in paradise that DAY with Jesus.

Before you get all excited, let’s look at the rest of the bible. If the rest of the bible says the opposite, then we get an inconsistency in the bible. That means that the bible can’t be trusted. Or does it? Is this bringing up an inconsistency? Of course, it looks like that, but is that the case?

Let’s get the basis, first. A comma can mean a lot! If you put it in the wrong place, or you forget altogether to insert it, it can make a funny or incorrect message. Like “Let’s eat Grandpa.” What you might mean is “Let’s eat, Grandpa”, but the message might be that you want to eat your poor grandfather! Now it may be silly in some contexts, but koine greek was generally written with no punctuation. It was just like a run-on sentence.

When translating koine greek to English, it is challenging to decide on where a comma should go, or where it shouldn’t go. And so sometimes we put it in the wrong place! That is probably what happened in Luke 12:43. What Jesus might have meant, instead of, “today shalt thou be with me in paradise,” was “Verily I say unto thee today, thou shalt be with me in paradise.” Do you see the difference?

You might still have some doubts about this, so let’s turn to another scripture. After Jesus was resurrected, Mary Magdalene decided to visit the tomb by herself to weep. When she got there, she saw two angels brightly shining. “And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid Him” (KJV, John 20.13). She was sorrowfully weeping as she turned out into the morning light. “And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus” (KJV, John 20.14).

Jesus asked her why she was weeping, and she explained to Him that her savior had been taken away. “Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master” (KJV, John 20.16).

She recognized Jesus immediately, but he told her, “Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God” (KJV, John 20.17).

Jesus told her that He had not gone to His Father’s yet. He hadn’t gone to heaven yet. So it would be impossible for Him to have met the thief there, and to show him all around heaven. Jesus had stayed in the grave.

~ Alice

Works Cited:

"Luke 23 (KJV) - And Jesus said unto him,." Blue Letter Bible. Web. 7 Sep, 2022. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/luk/23/43/s_996043>.

"John 20 (KJV) - And they say unto her,." Blue Letter Bible. Web. 7 Sep, 2022. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/jhn/20/13/s_1017013>.

"John 20 (KJV) - And when she had thus." Blue Letter Bible. Web. 7 Sep, 2022. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/jhn/20/14/s_1017014>.

"John 20 (KJV) - Jesus saith unto her, Mary.." Blue Letter Bible. Web. 7 Sep, 2022. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/jhn/20/16/s_1017016>.

"John 20 (KJV) - Jesus saith unto her, Touch." Blue Letter Bible. Web. 15 Sep, 2022. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/jhn/20/17/s_1017017>.