Presuppose away. As for me, the text of the Bible as we have it is the word of God as He has preserved it. Jesus Himself said:
"Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away." (Matthew 24:35)
Those words are also recorded in Mark 13:31 and Luke 21:33.
To paraphrase Joshua, "Choose you what you will believe. As for me I will believe the Lord."
Yes, it may correctly be said that my viewpoint is neither scientific nor scholarly. But neither is the opposing viewpoint. Both are based upon certain presuppositions, or as some may say, faith.
Why do philosophers wear long robes? Because their feet are not planted upon solid ground.
I stand with the earliest Christians who set the Septuagint as the norm of their faith.
Material is usually added to texts, not subtracted.
“The presupposition here is that the Qumran texts are indeed accurate, that they provide a standard by which to judge other texts.”
Good catch.
Exactly. Nobody ever seems to objectively examine their own assumptions.