Whether or not a Bible passage is “literal” or “figurative” has come up in recent church study groups I’ve attended. Some people believe a verse is meant as a metaphor, while others think exactly as the words state.
Whenever puzzled, I search for foundational truths. In the Bible, the very first sentence in Genesis says: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
If this premise is accepted, then one has no trouble believing that God could, and would, literally stop the sun and hold it in position for two days—with no darkness. This miraculous hold happened as an answer to Joshua’s prayer to be able to fully rout five Amorite kings and their armies (Joshua 10:1-15).
Another example would be in 1 Samuel when the Philistines captured the ark of God and displayed it as a trophy in Dagon’s temple. The next morning, the people of Ashdod saw their “god” flat on his face before the ark, a gold-plated wooden chest containing God’s laws.
Maybe the wind just blew ole Dagon over. Anyhow, his followers dusted him off and put him back in place. Only problem is that Dagon fell over the very next night and again landed face down before the ark, only this time the statue’s head and hands broke off. (1 Samuel 5: 1-7)
Modern scholars might scoff at the notion Jonah got swallowed by a whale and lived inside the mammal’s belly three days. Exercise caution though to dismiss this as merely figurative. Jesus said, “For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation,” (Luke 11:30).
The sailors knew Jonah fell into the sea and washed up on Nineveh’s shores. How could a normal human survive three days in the water without divine intervention? Jonah’s bedraggled resurfacing commanded enough awe and respect that an entire evil city of 120,000 souls turned to God. (Jonah 4:11)
Why do we of the internet era consider ourselves so smart that we dismiss history? We are ill advised to believe one Bible teaching, but discount another.
If Jonah’s survival is only a metaphor, then maybe Jesus just ended up in a coma on the cross. Hear my sarcasm here: Perhaps he came to three days later and busted out of that tomb by himself, despite a heavy stone seal and armed guards. And the Bible account of angelic attendants must be only unusual reflections of sunlight.
It is illogical to be inconsistent. Either we believe in miracles—or we don’t. Beware minimizing wonders to make God fit into our concepts of what’s possible.
God Almighty is capable of orchestrating supernatural acts. That’s what separates Him from every other wanna-be deity like fishy Dagon.
(This is part 1 of 4 in a series about Biblical miracles. The next post will be up on Saturday.)
Resource: Secular article about possibility of a whale swallowing a human
