Bible Authenticity

“Otherwise, what will they do who are being baptized for the dead, if the dead do not rise at all? Why then are they baptized for the dead?”—- 1 Corinthians 15:29 NKJV

Based on the scripture above, Mormonism teaches that its members have an obligation to research their genealogy and get baptized for any of their deceased relatives who were never baptized in the Mormon Church. The problem with this multifold, primarily:

(1) The scripture is not translated accurately. It should be translated as: “However, people are baptized because the dead will come back to life. What will they do? If the dead can’t come back to life, why do people get baptized as if they can come back to life” (1 Corinthians 15:29 GWT). This verse makes the point that getting baptized makes no sense if there is no resurrection. read more

The genealogies leading to the Messiah, Jesus Christ, are vitally important as supportive proofs of his being qualified as God’s Messiah (Matthew 1:1-16; Luke 3:23-38). So we definitely do need them, and should pay attention to them. Other Biblical genealogies, while being important for historical purposes, so we should be aware of them, but, nevertheless, are not of great importance for Christians. Please see the other two articles on this site about genealogies.
Beyond what is mentioned above, Christians are warned:

“Stop teaching false doctrine and occupying themselves with myths and endless genealogies. These myths and genealogies raise a lot of questions rather than focusing on God’s plan, which centers in faith” (1 Timothy 1:3,4 GWT).

“Avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless” (Titus 3:9 NIV)

Apparently some first century Christians were indulging in unscriptural “controversial speculations” (NIV) that included “endless genealogies” (NIV), and “arguments and quarrels”. So Christians today can take this as a warning against doing the same things. This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t study study, discuss and examine different interpretations of the scriptures. The warning is actually against “genealogies”, petty quarrels and “speculations” that “go beyond what is written in Scripture” (1 Corinthians 4:6 GWT). We should engage in honest discussions of the Bible that lead to wisdom (Acts 17:11; Proverbs 17:17).

The Bibles that we use today are based on a Hebrew Refined Master Text, usually the Biblica Hebraica. A comparison of the genealogies in Genesis 5:1-32 and 11:10-26 of what is in our Bibles, which translated from the Hebrew, with the Greek Septuagint version, reveals that the Greek version has more years between the time of Adam’s creation and Abraham, because (1) The man’s age when his child is born is longer, usually by 100 years, and (2) Cainan is included in the Greek, but not in the Hebrew.

The following three articles by Henry B. Smith, which are available on the internet, clearly document the case for using the Septuagint genealogies in Genesis 5 and 11, in preference to the standard Hebrew text that all of our Bible translations have:

(1) MT, SP, or LXX? Deciphering a Chronological and Textual conundrum in Genesis 5

(2) Methuselah’s Begetting Age in Genesis 5:25 and the Primeval chronology of the Septuagint: A Closer Look at the Textual and Historical Evidence

(3) From Adam to Abraham: An Update on the Genesis 5 and 11 Research Project: Dec 16, 2017

The fact that Luke’s genealogy includes “Cainan” (Luke 3:36), gives much credence to the case that the Septuagint genealogies in Genesis 5 and 11 are more accurate than the Hebrew text’s. This has the net effect of adding at least 1,250 years to the time from Adam’s creation to Abraham. Expressed slightly differently, it would mean that Adam was created at least 1,250 years earlier, meaning that humans have been on earth for at least 7,250 years.

However, as strong as the case may be for the Septuagint’s genealogies, it is wise not to be dogmatic. Why? The very fact that the inclusion of “Cainan” in Luke 3:36 differs from the standard Hebrew text of Genesis 11, should also give us pause. If God allowed his Word, the Bible to have such a difference indicates that using genealogies to create a chronological timetable, or timeline, may not be what God wants us to do! This is one area where there is enough doubt as to which genealogical table is correct, the Hebrew or the Greek, that we can conclude it is not really important.

See the upcoming article: Are Genealogies Important for Christians?

The Hebrew people recorded public genealogical records that document history, establish identity, and/or legitimate office. Family tradition, marriage, links to the past,  inheritance and property rights were all important to them, as they are to people today (Deuteronomy 25:5-10; 1 Chronicles 1-9; Ezra 10:18-43). The key to legitimacy and identity is a direct irrefutable familial tie with the past. These lists may go backward in time (1 Chronicles 6:31-33; Ezra 7:1-5; Luke 3:23-38), or forward in time (Genesis 5:1-32; 11:10-32; Ruth 4:18-23; Matthew 1:1-17). These two types of genealogies can be combined, as they are in Matthew 1:1-17. Additionally, genealogical rolls may either contain a simple succession of names or may be supplemented with expansive content pertaining to the activities of certain prominent individuals on the list.

Genealogies are prominent in both the early and late history of the Hebrews, and others. In the book of Genesis there are ten primary genealogical lists. One important thing is that these document the line leading to the Messiah, although Genesis itself does not tip the reader off to this purpose. For historical purposes, the lineagies of non Yahweh worshippers, such as Cain (Gen 4:17-26), Ishmael (Gen 25:12-18), and Esau (Gen 36) are also documented.

Genealogies were very important credentials to the Hebrew people. Abraham’s descendants through Isaac and Jacob were promised special blessings from Almighty God, which were guaranteed if they obeyed the conditions of God’s covenant with them (Genesis 12:1-3; Exodus 19:3-8; Deuteronomy 11:22-28). However, if they could not prove they had descended from Abraham, they were not considered true Jews and were excluded from full participation in Jewish community life. So, a lost genealogy put one’s status as a Jew at risk. In addition, some privileges were restricted to members of certain tribes. For example only dependents of Levi (Abraham’s great-grandson) could serve at the Temple. All this is well illustrated in the case of some returnees from the Babylonian exile, who could not prove their descent because “they searched for their names in the genealogical records, but they were not found, so they were disqualified” (Ezra 2:59-63 NLT).

The most important genealogies in the Bible are the ones that lead to the Messiah, who proved to be Jesus of Nazareth, and would be born in the line of Abraham (Genesis 5:1-32; 11:10-32; Ruth 4:18-23; Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-38).