Can the resurrection be explained as a case of mistaken identity?

[Paul of Tarsus]

Can the resurrection of Christ be explained as a case of mistaken identity? Apologist William Lane Craig finds this notion to be absurd. He has explained that he debated a skeptic who, out of desperation to save face in his debate over the resurrection with Craig, argued that Jesus could have had an identical-twin brother who was mistaken for Jesus after Jesus was executed.

I'm not so sure if the idea of Jesus having an identical twin brother is so absurd. No doubt there are cases in which an identical twin is misidentified as his or her deceased twin, and some people, especially those who are unaware that the deceased twin had an identical twin brother or sister, could think the deceased twin has come back from the dead!

But a case of misidentifying Jesus need not involve a twin or even a sibling. Any man who resembled Jesus may have been mistaken for Jesus. In those days there were no cameras, and exactly what Jesus looked like may have been unknown to most people who had heard of him. Consequently, it would not have been hard for them to believe that the man they were seeing was the risen Christ.

[JehovahsWitness]

... Jesus erred when he said that mustard seeds are the smallest of seeds.

It was, in the region.



JW

[JehovahsWitness]

That way all the hatred for humanity so much a part of Christianity has no reward.

What is asserted without evidence can be denied without evidence: Hatred for humanity is a part of Christianity*.

* I take it that by CHRISTIANITY you are referring to the teachings and practices attribute to Christ as recorded in the bible canon.



Well... you have provided a suitable rebuttal for your own assertion. I await some evidence to support your unsupported claim.


JW

[Paul of Tarsus]

... Jesus erred when he said that mustard seeds are the smallest of seeds.

It was, in the region.

Where did you get that Greek word? I checked the Greek interlinear, and I don't see it in Matthew 13:30-32. Like many apologists, you inserted some of your own words into the text to try to make Jesus' statement appear true. You need to save Jesus from looking to be imperfect because if Jesus doesn't know what the smallest seed is, then he doesn't know how to grant you eternal life in a paradise earth.

And I really love it; I just LOVE it!

[JehovahsWitness]

...I checked the Greek interlinear, and I don't see it in Matthew 13:30-32.

... Jesus erred when he said that mustard seeds are the smallest of seeds.

Jesus was correct as recorded in Matthew 13:30-32. after all he isn't recorded in that passage as saying the mustard smallest seed is "....the smallest of seeds on the planet" or "the smallest in existence".

[JehovahsWitness]

... Jesus erred when he said that mustard seeds are the smallest of seeds.

It was, in the region.

Where did you get that Greek word?

From Mark 4:31

[Paul of Tarsus]

Where did you get that Greek word?

From Mark 4:31

I checked the Greek for that passage, and the relevant phrase is σπαρῇ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς which is translated "it has been sown upon the earth." So Jesus isn't referring to where the seed comes from but where it will be sown. Since smaller seeds are sown "upon the earth," Jesus is still wrong.

[JehovahsWitness]

... smaller seeds are sown "upon the earth,"...

SOWN UP ON THE EARTH ...

This expression in Greek simply refers to where seeds are put to grow... le " the ground/soil". It sheds no light (of itself) on the paremeters of his statement.

MARK 4:31 NWT

It is like a mustard grain, which at the time it was sown in the ground was the tiniest of all the seeds on the earth.

other translations
https://biblehub.com/mark/4-31.htm

If Jesus was referring to seeds (that are sown upon the earth/into the soil) that his listeners were familiar with in the region then his statement would be absolutely true.



Jesus isn't recorded in that passage as saying the mustard smallest seed is "....the smallest of seeds (that is sown into the ground/earth) on the planet" or "the smallest of seeds (that is sown into the ground/earth) in existence". The Greek allows for him to simply be refering to the mustard seed being the smallest in the region where he was speaking at the time.

CONCLUSION : Those that declare his statement wrong do so on the unproven (and unprovable) assumption he was refering to the smallest seed that could ever be sown, rather than the more reasonable reading, that has him adapting his rhetoric to his local ("regional") audience.

JW



RELATED POSTS

[Paul of Tarsus]

[Replying to JehovahsWitness in post #98]

Mustard seeds are not the smallest seeds in Israel. I already posted an image that demonstrates that orchid seeds are smaller.



So see if you can find something else to defend Jesus with.

[Avoice]

[Replying to Paul of Tarsus in post #1]

Maybe they crucified Simon of Cyrene. It is said that they compelled him to carry the cross.
I've walked the streets if old Jerusalem. If one had to carry timber down those streets they look like crap when they arrived at their destination. They'd be sweaty and dirty and a mess and could easily pass for anyone of similar characteristics