When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties [Hardcover]

Norman L. Geisler (Author), Thomas Howe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1992

Learn how to defend the authority and inspiration of Scripture. Writing in a problem/solution format, the authors cover every major Bible difficulty from Genesis to Revelation.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 615 pages
• Publisher: Baker Books (September 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801011426
• ISBN-13: 978-0801011429
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 2.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #460,992 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Norman Geisler (PhD, Loyola University) is president of Southern Evangelical Seminary and author or coauthor of over fifty books including Decide for Yourself, Baker's Encyclopedia of Apologetics, and When Skeptics Ask.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good resource, May 5, 2000

By 

J. F Foster - See all my reviews
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This review is from: When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties (Hardcover)

Geisler/Howe provide a good resource to respond to the kind of objections that regularly surface when it comes to alleged Bible contradictions or errors. I thought the book was well laid out and logical to follow in terms of presentation. I thought that many of the explanations were adequate, some were exquisite, a few others seemed to fall a bit short. Overall, I think it's a book that can be repeatedly referred to for guidance, since objections to the inerrancy of Scripture are always swirling around even in the midst of sound and compelling rebuttals.

I did not give the book 5 stars for 2 reasons. First, I thought that some (not many) of the explanations offered were a little hollow. But as I'm typing this, I can only think of 2 instances where I thought this. Secondly, there were a few verses in Scripture that were not dealt with in the book that probably deserved to be addressed due to their controversial or non crystal clear meaning. But again, on the whole, I thought this book was pretty thorough both in the verses it analyzed, and in the analysis itself. Not perfect, but a good solid resource.

38 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy it, put it on the bookshelf, and then use it, July 28, 2000

By 

E. Johnson (El Cajon, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties (Hardcover)

This is one of my favorite books of Bible difficulties (the other by Gleason Archer, Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties). Although they cannot possibly cover every single difficult passage with very detailed explanations, I have found the authors' exegesis to be very sound. They consider the important elements to interpreting a passage, especially the text's context and historical situation. Also, the biblical languages are utilized in a very simple layman's style. I have been very satisfied by their answers, and I rarely look up a difficult passage that was not included in this book. (Hint: Be ready to look at the other synoptic gospel accounts if the first passage is not listed.)

If you are looking for a good reference book to answer biblical "contradictions" or out-of-context prooftexts that supposedly support a very unbiblical position, then this is your book. If nothing more, Geisler and Howe give you some ideas of the proper interpretation, and then you can go look for more information if it's not satisfactory. Nobody ever said that being a Christian would ever be easy!

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Beginning Reference Work, July 13, 2004

By 

Trent Dougherty "Socratic" (New York) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties (Hardcover)

I've used this book to teach a seeker's bible study. Most people seem to really appreciate the honesty. The cumulative effect of looking up entries is to realize how bible difficulties arise. This is as valuable as any particular entry. Some difficulties are treated more in-depth than others. Some can be thoroughly dealt with in a short entry, others solutions can only be gestured at. This book is not meant to be the end-all-be-all of bible difficulties but it is a comprehensive overview of Bible difficulties. At first, the size of the book might be discouraging: this is a big book. However, it becomes encouraging when you see how-time and time again-there are simple solutions or natural explanations for the Bible difficulties, it's just that it takes longer to explain a solution than it does to raise a problem. This should go next to his _Encyclopedia of Aplogetics_, _General Introduction to the Bible_, and _When Skeptics Ask_ on your reference shelf.