Should Bible be Censored?

Should the Bible be censored because of explicit sexual references?

 

Should Shakespeare?

 

Maybe it depends on whether you're creating a movie for adults or a cartoon for kids.

 

Why?

God made sex beautiful. The devil made it dirty. If you see it as dirty, check yourself.

In His service;
Jim

 

You know... It does not matter in my eyes where the book itself is allowed. But theres no way to stop living letters (or living epistles) penned by the Spirit of the living God, to be known and read by all... Therefore you can win others without a word because your known and read by the Love of God not the book under your arm.

God bless

Seth3

 

That is not true. A knowledge of the Bible is absolutely necessary. A person cannot be saved, cannot be born again without the direct message of the word of God. The simple outward testimoy of your life is not enough.

1 Peter 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

 

1Peter3:1 Likewise, ye wives, [be] in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may WITHOUT A WORD be won by the conversation of the wives;

Faith cometh BY HEARING and hearing by the WORD OF GOD. His WORD being IN YOU can win others (seen in this instance with the wife and husband) and CONVERSATION of the WIVES.

Same is true if the BOOK (if ever) gets banned… It stops nothing at all. The Living Word by the Spirit of God is to be IN YOU. The Spirit as Jesus says (Don’t worry ahead of time what you will speak the Spirit will give you the words at the time, it wont be YOU speaking BUT THE SPIRIT that is IN YOU).

2Corinth 3:2 Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:

2Corinth3:3 [Forasmuch as ye are] manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

John 5:39-40 Search the scriptures; for IN THEM ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of ME (WORD/SEED in you). And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

Romans 10:8 But what saith it? THE WORD is nigh thee, [even] IN THY MOUTH, and IN THY HEART: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;


God bless

Seth3

 

What do you mean by censored?

If you mean removing references to graphic and/or explicit language in general, no.

However, if you mean keeping young children from read graphic and/or sexually explicit language, then yes. My son is 8 years old, and reading much of Song of Solomon would be inappropriate. My high school aged kids, however, it's fine.

Very true!

 

When I was a boy of eight, I read the book of Genesis.

I learned that Onan spilled his seed, although I didn't know what that meant.

I learned that Judah went to see a prostitute, who happened to be his daughter-in-law.

I also read Leviticus and Deuteronomy. Kind of boaring. Except those parts that talked about a man laying with another man or an animal. And those parts about sleeping with your sister, aunt, etc.

 

Seth,
Nice job of pulling Scripture out of context. The fact is one cannot be saved without the gospel.

1 Corinthians 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

You cannot have a wordless gospel.
DHK

 

The Bible is truth. It tells things as they are, historically accurate and true. It shows a nation that goes into sin, and how sinful that nation can be. Not to get into a translational debate here, but one of the beauties of the KJV, is that it holds a literary art of putting some of the more explicit sexual references in more discreet terms. Other modern translations, especially paraphrases such as the Living Bible, don't hold much back even using vulgar languange that we would steer our children away from. They degrade God's Word.
There are explicit scenes. But some things can be said or translated in a much less offensive way (which I believe was accomplished in the KJV).
DHK

 

Hello gentlemen... I wish to interject -

Hbr 11:6 But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God:

So it is pretty clear that we are saved by Faith (what we believe). How then, does faith come?

Rom 10:17 So then faith [cometh] by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Until you are born again, your spirit/heart is corrupted and dead. To give life to them, it must come by faith... but faith cannot come without hearing God's Word (the scriptures). Until you spirit/heart has been rejenerated by your faith in christ, how can you hear clearly from God? Even if He speaks to you, you listen with 'corrupted ears'.

As to the thread topic, No... the Bible should not be censored. The scriptures clearly says not to add or subtract from the Word. If you are a parent, then you have a responsibility to teach your children the way you think they should be taught, and you have the right to control what they learn about - but you never have the right to censor or change the Word.

 

I would disagree. If one does an indepth study of the Greek and hebrew phrases, you'll find that certain phrases in the original scriptural languages did indeed carry a vulgar content to the people of the time. Hence, if a contemporary translation translates the vulgarity in like fashion, it is not a degrading of God's word. I do agree with your comment that some phrases in the KJV are translated in less vulgar fashion, but must of that is also because the vulgar context no longer applies in the English language. If you were to tell a man in the 1600's that he "spills his seed" or "knows a lot of women", your comments would have been offensive and downright vulgar to many ears.

 

Christ crucified is a pretty easy thing to remember. I think we can determine to know nothing save this (alone) and walk by the faith of Christ in it.

Which then indeed I Agree with DHK (for once) The Cross IS the Wisdom and Power of God.

Simple I don't need to carry twelve versions of scriptures and concordances and all the theological gear with me. Just my faith in Him.


God bless

Seth3

 

Certainly. And taken in the proper context, they may still be offensive today. Many people still know what it means "to know a woman," when said in the right context. Context is everything.

Look up 1 Samuel 20:30 in the Living Bible and see what it says. This is the kind of thing that I am talking about.
Also Judges 19:22 Rather than "we may know them"
"Bring out the man who is staying with you so we can have sex with him."

I would rather have the KJV which puts matters in a far more discreet way.

 

No. Properly understood from a Catholic/pre-1935 protestant view marital relations are a holy act and shed light on our relationship with Christ.(I discussed this in a post from a while ago which I will repost here)

In describing Jesus's relationship to the Church, of which we are all members, Paul does not describe this as simply any personal relationship(Eph 5) but he likens it to the most intimate of earthly relations we will have, our marital relationship.

Christ offers himself completely to his Church in an act of total self-giving (selfless) love and the Church in turn receives this love and the two are forever united, in a loving embrace which is fruitful.

Most Christians are uncomfortable with the idea of Jesus in our bedrooms but the most intimate part of this most intimate relationship reflects the relationship we have with Christ. We promise ourselves for the rest of our lives to our spouses, in our most vulnerable state our nakedness, we commit ourselves to a complete union where the two become one and where the husband offers himself totally and completely and selflessly to his spouse and the wife receives this love from the husband and returns his loving embrace, and the love is fruitful.

This spousal analogy is repeated throughout scripture, that is our relationship to Jesus, it is that intimate, nothing is hidden or held back and nothing about the relationship is selfish or self serving, it is total self giving love. Understanding that should helps us to better understand our own intimate relations.

With this understanding of what our most intimate relations reflect how can we or our children accept anything which literally mocks Jesus’ commitment to his Church or our commitment to him? This includes such things as pre-marital relationships, abortion, and sodomic behavior including purposely infertile relationships (contraception). All these things are not a true reflection of what are intimate relations are to image, that is the love we share with Jesus Christ

God Bless

 

DHK
If the original Greek/Hebrew/Aramaïc used what in those days were seen as euphemisms than a translation should use them as well. If the original was crude back then, than so should the translation be nowadays. One has to accurately translate the original text after all.

 

Isaiah 59:21 As for me, this [is] my covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit that [is] upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, SHALL NOT DEPART OUT OF THY MOUTH NOR out of the mouth of THY SEED, NOR out of the mouth of THY SEEDS SEED saith the LORD, from HENCEFORTH AND FOR EVER.

God Bless

Seth3

 

I don't believe what the KJV translators translated in 1611 was crude in the 17th century. I don't believe that we have to go out of our way to be crude and vulgar. There is enough profanity in this world without deliberately putting it into the Bible where it is not needed, and then falsely claiming that that is the way it was "back then." Perhaps now, our society is so degenerated and desensitized to sin that therre is a thirst for crude, vulgar language, and a desire for sexual voyeursim such as there never has been before. And now people want that reflected in the Bible. Jesus said that when he comes again: "Will I find faith?"
DHK

 

Depends on what you mean by "censored."

If you mean such passages should be removed...No.

If you mean distribution of the Bible should be limited because of such content...No.

If you mean that adults should exercise oversight on what their children are exposed to...Yes. There are parts of the Bible that children should only be exposed to as they are mature enough. Just as in the rest of life.

And since my wife and I do not yet have children, I still know everything. :D