PROPHECY FULFILLED - ONE WORLD CHURCH

Jonah and the whale ?

Many people only know the Bible from what they have read about it and written by other people who challenge its validity.

The information that is given to them by people with different motives for denying the truth of the Bible is sometimes mixed with truth to help give their explanations a little more validity.
Time after time people have questioned the story of Jonah and questioned its varasity, recently I saw an article which seemed to explain much to people who would question the story of one of the greatest prophets in the Bible.
I dont know who wrote the article but for me it explains quite a lot.
See what you think

Did a whale really swallow Jonah?

The story of Jonah in the Bible is viewed skeptically by many people because of its miraculous content. Jonah was a prophet who was sent to the town of Ninevah to preach to the people there and tell them to repent and turn to God. Jonah did not want to go to the Ninevites, so he ran away from God and got on a ship. God brought a storm (Jonah 1:4–16) and the ship was nearly destroyed. Jonah realized it was his fault, so he asked the sailors to throw him overboard, and they did. Once Jonah was sent overboard, the storm dissipated. Then, a giant fish (often assumed to have been a whale) swallowed Jonah and he was in the belly of the fish for three days and nights, at which time the fish spewed Jonah onto the shore near Ninevah, likely in full view of the Ninevites (Jonah 1:17; 2:10).

After Jonah appeared in Ninevah, he preached to the people there and they all, including the king, repented and believed in God. This miraculous conversion, alongside the fantastic story of Jonah's experience with the giant fish, or whale, is the reason why people find the book of Jonah difficult to believe. However, a closer examination of history, of the words of Jesus in reference to Jonah's story, and of God's character, shows that perhaps Jonah's story is not so far-fetched as many people think.

History presents a fascinating detail about the Ninevites. They worshipped a god called Dagon, and Dagon was a fish god. He was often depicted as a man wearing a fish, or as a half-man, half-fish creature. Dagon was also worshipped by other ancient people, including the Philistines (Judges 16:23–24; 1 Samuel 5:1–7; 1 Chronicles 10:8–12). We know that the Ninevites worshipped Dagon because of archeological finds—images depicting Dagon found in the remains of their palaces and temples. With this in mind, if the Ninevites saw a man being spewed out of the mouth of a giant fish, it is plausible that they would have believed him to have divine origins, and would have been persuaded to listen to anything he had to say, and to obey his words, which is exactly what the Bible tells us happened (Jonah 3).

An ancient historian by the name of Berosus adds even more validity to Jonah's story. He tells the tale of Oannes, a mythical fish-man who came from the sea and gave the people wisdom. Scholars relate this story to the Babylonian water-god Ea, or Enki, but Berosus used the name "Oannes" which would have been the Assyrian / Ninevite translation of the Greek name "Ioannes" which the Hebrews translated as "Jonah."

These historical details are provocative. We must add to them Jesus' words. "For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here" (Matthew 12:40–41; Luke 11:29–30, 32). Jonah was a prophet in that he spoke truth to the Ninevites, but Jesus treated the details of Jonah's story as a prophecy pointing to his own death, burial, and resurrection. Futhermore, speaking of the unbelieving Jews, Jesus said that "no sign will be given to [this evil generation] except the sign of Jonah" (Matthew 12:39; Matthew 16:4; Luke 11:29). Apparently, Jesus believed the story of Jonah to be true.

This brings us to God's character. We know that Jesus is God (John 1:1–3; John 8:58), and that God does not lie. There is no indication from the text of Jonah's book, nor from the words of Jesus, that the story of Jonah was a fairy-tale or fable. Clearly, Jonah's survival in the belly of the fish, and the repentance of the Ninevites were miracles. Anyone who believes the story of Jesus' resurrection, and has experienced personal repentance and redemption, will acknowledge that these too are miracles. As such, we should have no problem admitting that indeed, Jonah was swallowed by a whale (or great marine animal of some kind).

Corrupt versions of the Bible.

It took me by surprise when I read a post about the New International version of the Bible. Below I have copied and pasted the post to show some of the verses that have been left out. Wow these verses are so important that people need to know because it really waters down the good book. Look for yourselves, compare it with the only reliable Bible that we have today The King James version.

                                                      Corrupt Bible Versions
                                            The NIV leaves out 16 entire verses!

 1. Matthew 17:21: "Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting."
 2. Matthew 18:11: "For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost."
 3. Matthew 23:14: "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation."
 4. Mark 7:16: "If any man have ears to hear, let him hear."
 5. Mark 9:44: "Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched."
 6. Mark 9:46: "Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched."
 7. Mark 11:26: "But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses."
 8. Mark 15:28: "And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors."
 9. Luke 17:36: "Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left."
 10. John 5:4: "For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had."
 11. Acts 8:37: "And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."
 12. Acts 15:34: "Notwithstanding it pleased Silas to abide there still."
 13. Acts 24:7: "But the chief captain Lysias came upon us, and with great violence took him away out of our hands,"
 14. Acts 28:29: "And when he had said these words, the Jews departed, and had great reasoning among themselves."
15. Romans 16:24: "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen."
16. I John 5:7: "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one."

Welcome to Just Owt !

Hello and Welcome

Hello here's the customary post welcoming you to this new blog.
If you are wondering about the blog title the word 'owt' it is slang for anything, thats if you live in the North of England. So it means that I am going to post on anything I find of interest, a sort of journal of what is going on in my head at the time of posting.

I have had a few blogs none of which seems to take off as I dont know what I am doing to be honest.
It always seems like a great idea at the time of starting these blogs but I seem to forget about them or just get bored with the subject so maybe this time I will not be shackled by one particular subject but be free to post about 'owt' I want to.