[Poison Pill]

it's inerrant and infallible.

God's word is truth. That in itself says it's inerrant.

How did Judas Iscariot die?

[Springfield Reformer]

Presumably, since you appear to be mounting an attack on Biblical inerrancy, you suppose there is a contradiction between these two accounts:

Matthew 27:4-5  Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that.  (5)  And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.

Versus:

Acts 1:16-19  Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.  (17)  For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.  (18)  Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.  (19)  And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood.

Your problem is that these two passages are rather easily reconciled, and not only so, but there are a number of theories by which to do it.  The most typical is that Matthew describes the proximate cause of the death.  But for the fact of hanging himself, he would not have died at that time.  Whereas Peter in Acts is describing the same event in it's more notorious aftermath.  The scenario would have played out like this:  Judas finds a tree near a cliff, throws a rope over a branch, secures it, then ties the other end around his neck, and jumps off.  This is an amateur job, and so any number of outcomes are possible.  Did the rope hold? Maybe the knot slipped and he fell onto some sharp rocks below.  Or possibly the rope and the knot held, and he hanged there dead for days, dangling in the sun, during which time his body would have swollen, his skin integrity lessened until he finally came apart and hit the ground, bursting open like an easily ruptured water balloon.  

As an attorney, I have to take and assimilate testimony that sometimes seems to contradict, but is actually just the natural byproduct of the different perspectives and histories of the witnesses. Indeed, what actually makes an attorney wonder whether he's being lied to is when the stories line up too perfectly.  That just doesn't happen with what I call natural truth.  Everybody leaves their own personal fingerprint on the stories they tell, no matter how objectively true they are.

BTW, another interesting theory is linguistic, that the Greek behind the expression "hanged himself" can, albeit rarely, be a reference to extreme grief, a sorrow so deep it leaves one "choked up," as it were.  If this were true, then we could even say Matthew does not describe Judas' death at all, but his emotional reaction to his own sense of guilt.

But whichever theory seems best, the posit of an unequivocal contradiction is destroyed, as there are multiple possible ways to reconcile the data in a manner consistent with the premise that any God-breathed writing is assuredly accurate, else we accuse God of being unable to deliver His own perfect word through imperfect people, thus undermining any confidence we might have in His message to His people.  But we need not listen to the serpent asking "hath God said," but may with confidence proclaim His word as "thus saith the Lord."

Peace,

SR

[metmom]

What’s that got to do with the inerrancy of Scripture?

If you choose to believe that the Bible has error in it, then you have absolutely NOTHING on which to base any faith.

Satan’s best ploy is to cast doubt on God’s word, just like He did in the garden with Eve.

*Did God REALLY say.....?*

[Elsie]

How did Judas die?

 

 

The Book says that he hung himself...

 

Matthew 27:3-5

 Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, ⁴ saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? See to it yourself.” ⁵ And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself.

 

It also says...

 

Acts 1:18-19

Now this man acquired a field with the price of his wickedness, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his intestines gushed out.

 

(Nothing here about MANNER of death.)