The Ransom for All

{Matthew 12:39} But he answered them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, but no sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah the prophet. Matthew 12:40} For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so will the Son of the Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. {Matthew 12:41} The men of Nineveh will stand up in the judgment with this generation, and will condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, someone greater than Jonah is here. {Jonah 1:17} Jehovah prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. {Jonah 2:2} He said, "I called because of my affliction to Jehovah. He answered me. Out of the belly of sheol I cried. You heard my voice. Some claim that there is a discrepancy in the Bible's account since Jesus had proclaimed that he would be dead for three days and three nights. The claim appears to be that i...

The question was presented: How could the earth be made in seven literal days, since without the earth, there would have been no days? The argument seems to be that if there is no earth, then there could have been no days in which the earth was created. Actually, the scriptures nowhere state that the planet earth was created in seven days, but rather that the heavens and the earth were created in six days, and on the seventh, Jehovah rested from creation. (Exodus 20:11; Exodus 31:17; Genesis 1:1-2:2.  This would mean that the "beginning" referred to in Genesis 1:1 includes the entire six days. The skies and the land were created during the six days described. -- See our study: The Six Days of Creation How could the heavens and earth be created in "six days," if there were no "days" until the earth was created? To understand this, we need to realize that in the Bible, as in well as in our common speech today, "earth" does not always mean ...

And again the anger of Jehovah glowed against Israel, and moved David against them, to say, Go, number Israel and Judah. - (2 Samuel 24:1) And Satan stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel . - (1 Chronicles 21:1, Green's Literal) Many critics of the Bible often cite these two scriptures as being one of the alleged contradictions found in the Bible. In one scripture, it says that Jehovah moved David to number the people of Israel and Judah; in the other scripture, we find that Satan moved David to number Israel. From the scriptural perspective, both scriptures are correct, and there is no contradiction. Satan cannot do anything that Jehovah does not permit, especially as related to His people. Thus, in permitting Satan to do this, it could be said that Jehovah moved David to number Israel. Similarly, in foretelling the “Man of Sin”, Paul wrote that this Man of Sin comes “after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders.” (2 Thessalonian...