# Who really wrote the bible? -Debate- **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [November 29, 2012, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476 "2012-11-29T16:28:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![James52637](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/439d5e/32.png) [@James52637](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/James52637)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/1 "2012-11-29T16:28:10Z")
## I’ve seen multiple theories and arguments as to who really wrote the bible. This thread is more for the people who already realize it’s not true, because I don’t really think “Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, etc., etc., etc.” is a very truthful belief. I’m asking more about the Old Testament, because I have seen some proof to whom actually wrote the New Testament. I’m not voicing my opinions quite yet, just trying to get a feel for what this community believes. I’m looking for: ## Name Approximate Age Approximate Year of writing Guess as to why Whether you believe they saw it as the truth I’d like it to be kept kind of serious, but bible jokes are always welcome. xD ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/2 "2012-11-29T16:39:13Z")
[Dex and Eutychus](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1989/who-wrote-the-bible-part-5). (wrote a series of articles on the topic, that is. I don’t think they wrote the bible, though I guess you never know) ---
**Author:** ![James52637](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/439d5e/32.png) [@James52637](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/James52637)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/3 "2012-11-29T16:42:05Z")
It’s still quite a debate, as there isn’t enough evidence there to give a clear and definite answer. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/4 "2012-11-29T16:59:27Z")
> [@James52637](#): > > It’s still quite a debate, as there isn’t enough evidence there to give a clear and definite answer. Which makes me think you might not have read the reference. Or ALL the reference. Or maybe you didn’t realize the link was only Part 5 of 5. Did you start at [Part One?](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1985/who-wrote-the-bible-part-1) Which part do you think isn’t clear? ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/5 "2012-11-29T17:00:31Z")
> [@James52637](#): > > I have seen some proof to whom actually wrote the New Testament. Bet you haven’t. But anyway, I was about to list my theories about who wrote which books, but seriously, Dex and Euty’s articles cover it pretty well. And you don’t have to be “somebody who realizes it’s not true” to accept modern critical consensus on Biblical authorship. Plenty of people believe in the Bible as a sacred document without having any trouble with the notion that a lot of the authorship is traditionally misattributed. ---
**Author:** ![James52637](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/439d5e/32.png) [@James52637](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/James52637)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/6 "2012-11-29T17:00:45Z")
“All we can say is that many scholars look to Jamnia and 90 AD as the point at which the Hebrew Bible was fixed. Others point to dates anywhere from 200 to 400 years earlier. We can only assert, with a fair degree of confidence, that the Hebrew Bible was certainly fixed by 90 AD and probably before that.” They just admitted they’re not sure about that. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/7 "2012-11-29T17:02:25Z")
But yet you have proof of who wrote it and when? Why don’t you share it with us? ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/8 "2012-11-29T17:03:11Z")
> [@James52637](#): > > They just admitted they’re not sure about that. There’s nothing wrong with saying, “We don’t know.” Do you have any stronger evidence that wasn’t considered? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/9 "2012-11-29T17:03:20Z")
> [@James52637](#): > > I have seen some proof to whom actually wrote the New Testament. You can’t start a thread like this, drop a line like _that_, and not expect us to immediately demand a cite. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/10 "2012-11-29T17:06:04Z")
> [@James52637](#): > > They just admitted they’re not sure about that. Is that supposed to be a problem? We’re discussing texts that are a few thousand years old. We can come up with some well informed ideas about the sources of the books but there’s almost zero chance we’ll ever know the precise names of the authors and editors of any books of the Bible. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/11 "2012-11-29T17:08:52Z")
I’ll tell you who didn’t write the new testament: Anyone who saw Jesus with his own eyes. ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/12 "2012-11-29T17:11:36Z")
> [@James52637](#): > > “All we can say is that many scholars look to Jamnia and 90 AD as the point at which the Hebrew Bible was fixed. Others point to dates anywhere from 200 to 400 years earlier. We can only assert, with a fair degree of confidence, that the Hebrew Bible was certainly fixed by 90 AD and probably before that.” > > They just admitted they’re not sure about that. This answer makes me wonder if you even understand your own OP. You seem to me to be asking who wrote individual pieces of the OT and when and why they did it. Yet the part you quote from the Dex and Eutychus article is talking about when the books in the OT became accepted as the Hebrew canon, not when or by whom anything was written. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/13 "2012-11-29T17:21:12Z")
> [@Crotalus](#): > > This answer makes me wonder if you even understand your own OP. You seem to me to be asking who wrote individual pieces of the OT and when and why they did it. Yet the part you quote from the Dex and Eutychus article is talking about when the books in the OT became accepted as the Hebrew canon, not when or by whom anything was written. There seems to be a lot that he doesn’t understand about the Bible-for instance, until a very recent Googling, he didn’t know why Jews didn’t follow the New Testament. [Cite.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=15745746#post15745746) ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/14 "2012-11-29T17:25:31Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > I’ll tell you who didn’t write the new testament: Anyone who saw Jesus with his own eyes. Paul is generally accepted to have written several books of the NT, and claims to have seen Jesus with his own eyes (post-resurrection). Edit: Okay, maybe he just _hears_ Jesus in a bright light. I withdraw the nitpick. ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/15 "2012-11-29T17:27:42Z")
Pretty sure we could have gathered that the OP doesn’t have a firm foundation on biblical authorship since his wording implied that he wanted a singular author for a collection of texts. ---
**Author:** ![Chief\_Pedant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a6a055/32.png) [@Chief\_Pedant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chief_Pedant)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/16 "2012-11-29T17:33:17Z")
> [@James52637](#): > > ## I’ve seen multiple theories and arguments as to who really wrote the bible. This thread is more for the people who already realize it’s not true, because I don’t really think “Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, etc., etc., etc.” is a very truthful belief. I’m asking more about the Old Testament, because I have seen some proof to whom actually wrote the New Testament. I’m not voicing my opinions quite yet, just trying to get a feel for what this community believes. > > I’m looking for: > > ## Name Approximate Age Approximate Year of writing Guess as to why Whether you believe they saw it as the truth > > I’d like it to be kept kind of serious, but bible jokes are always welcome. xD Which book? A minimal effort of research on any given book or section of the Bible will give you a reasonable overview. I think it’s unlikely that any particular author was faking their component (however wrong they might have been). How did Moses make tea? Hebrewed it. Etc. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/17 "2012-11-29T17:34:04Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > You can’t start a thread like this, drop a line like _that_, and not expect us to immediately demand a cite. Or an invitation to correct the grammar. > [@](#): > > I have seen some proof to whom actually wrote the New Testament. It’s _who_, not _whom_! ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/18 "2012-11-29T17:42:48Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > There seems to be a lot that he doesn’t understand about the Bible-for instance, until a very recent Googling, he didn’t know why Jews didn’t follow the New Testament. [Cite.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=15745746#post15745746) Wow! Thanks for pointing that out. We have a biblical scholar here. For those who don’t want to click: [QUOTE=James52637] I did some good old fashioned googling and saw the general reason Jews leave out the NT is due to their belief that Jesus was not the Messiah and he disagrees with so much that the OT says. [/QUOTE] ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/19 "2012-11-29T17:50:55Z")
> [@Crotalus](#): > > Wow! Thanks for pointing that out. We have a biblical scholar here. For those who don’t want to click: Which was the followup to this gem: > [@](#): > > I should’ve been more thoughtful and included that I’m looking at Christian belief, because I couldn’t care less about what the Jews have to say about it. They leave out a half of the bible without any reasoning from what I’ve been informed. ---
**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476/20 "2012-11-29T17:51:39Z")
I like how it’s the _general_ reason and not the specific one. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-really-wrote-the-bible-debate/642476.md?page=2)