If you believe that the Bible is the inpired word of God; what gives anybody the right to
pick and choose verses and change their meaning according to some subjective interpretation?
It is clear that in this case, the Bible must be taken literally.
What else is wrong with figurative or symbolic interpretations? If we take the Bible figuratively then we acknowledge that there exists knowledge and reason outside the Bible that allows us to decipher/interpret the meaning of the verses.
If we can reason without the Bible then why not use this reasoning power to create our own moral laws. Moral laws based on reason can be disputed and changed. Whereas moral laws based on faith cannot be disputed because they are holy or the words of God himself (more like the 2000 year old words of a group of uneducated peasants). This just goes to show that moral laws are preferable when deduced with reason. Ever wondered why we have law books and not Bibles in a court of law?
Hence if we take the Bible figuratively then believers must acknowledge that the meaning derived from the reading must be used for one’s personal use and NOT for universal moral law (we have reason for that). This leaves believers with two choices. One choice is to take the bible literally. The other choice is to use the bible strictly for personal use ONLY rather than using it as a tool of power over the uneducated.
And so, on this site, we will see what happens when one takes the Bible literally…