The New Testament cites numerous Old Testament texts as being fulfilled in the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. Some of these citations have perplexed Biblical scholars insofar as the referenced passages from the Hebrew Bible, in their literary and historical contexts, appear to have no obvious relationship whatsoever to the Messiah.
In this article, I will consider three categories of undesigned coincidences in the New Testament – that is, examples between the gospels, examples between the book of Acts and the epistles of Paul, and examples involving the external secular sources that corroborate elements of the New Testament.
The principle of undesignedness is a forgotten but brilliant argument which can be used to corroborate Biblical history. In this article, I want to consider a few examples of undesigned coincidences in the Old Testament.
I round off my series by reviewing Carrier’s analysis of what he calls “leading examples” of undesigned coincidences.
Rounding Off My Response to Richard Carrier On Undesigned Coincidences (Part 6) Read More »
I discuss Carrier’s dismissal of coincidences involving the gospels and external secular sources, and his dismissal of undesigned coincidences in the book of Acts.
External Coincidences and Acts of the Apostles: Responding to Richard Carrier (Part 5) Read More »
I review Carrier’s claim that “redaction is usually the better hypothesis.”
Is Redaction Usually the Better Hypothesis? Responding to Richard Carrier (Part 4) Read More »
I continue my response by reviewing Carrier’s allegation that McGrew has fabricated some of her examples.
Who Has Fabricated Data — Lydia McGrew or Richard Carrier? (Part 3) Read More »
In this article, I will consider Carrier’s claim that undesigned coincidences can be adequately accounted for by scribal errors.
Dr. Richard Carrier is an ancient historian who is best known for championing the idea that Jesus of Nazareth is a mythical figure.
Yes, Richard Carrier, There Are Undesigned Coincidences (Part 1) Read More »
How useful is fulfilment of Messianic prophecy in the person of Jesus to the purposes of contemporary, twenty-first century apologists? In this article, I explore a way to frame the argument in a robust and objective way. First, I will summarise my argument and then I will dig into the details.