Evidence That Demands a Verdict, 2

by Josh McDowell

Among important books in the defense of Christianity, this one has few equals. Evidence That Demands a Verdict is an easy-to-read, front-line defense for Christians facing the tough questions of critics and skeptics. Using secular evidences and other historical sources, Josh McDowell's faith-building book is a "must read" for every Christian.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, Christianity, Reference, Theology, Religion

Paperback

First published January 1, 1972

About the author

Josh McDowell is a bestselling Christian apologist, evangelist, and author of over 150 books, including Evidence That Demands a Verdict and More Than a Carpenter. Once an agnostic, he converted to Christianity while investigating its historical claims. He went on to earn degrees from Wheaton College and Talbot Theological Seminary. For decades, McDowell has been a prominent speaker with Campus Crusade for Christ, addressing issues of faith, character, and youth culture worldwide. His work emphasizes historical and legal evidence for Christianity and tackles challenges posed by skepticism and non-Christian beliefs. He lives in California with his wife, Dottie, and is the father of four children, including fellow apologist Sean McDowell.

Reviews

[David Sarkies · Rating 2 out of 5]

An academic examination of Biblical criticism
22 May 2013

This book differs from Evidence that Demands a Verdict in that where the first book was simply a collection of notes that brought about evidence that supported the existence and the incarnation of Christ, this book is written more in a traditional form and seeks to undermine two prominent theories, one of them being what is called the source theory (I can't remember the other theory that he attacks in this book, but I think I will spend my time on the Source Theory).
The Source Theory is the idea that the Old Testament was composed during the Babylonian Exile from a number of different sources which includes the Eloist source, the Yawhist source, the Priestly Source, and the redactor. Three of these sources were basically a collection of writings that had come down from pre-exilic period and during the Babylonian exile a person known as the redactor brought these collections together and created the Old Testament as we know it.
I tend to have a more traditional mindset to the construction of the Old Testament than the academics that support the Source Theory, one reason being because a part of me likes the idea that there is a powerful God that can intervene in the world on a miraculous level. Obviously parts of the Old Testament are incredibly offensive to our post-modern society, and I suspect that people want to try to explain these ideas away (such as the wholesale genocide of the Caananite people, which in the end the people of Israel were not able to follow through with). I guess our more scientific minded society that has to weigh all evidence also balks at the idea of unexplainable miracles.
To be honest, the Bible is not the only ancient text in which miracles are recorded, however it is a text that claims authenticity, and also claims to be the truth. It is by making these claims that it opens itself up to criticism, and this I can understand. Many of the other ancient documents are very vague on their miracles, if those miracles happened at all, and can also easily be explained away. However, the Bible calls us to either believe it or not, but because of the difficulties with regards to some of the miracles, we try to water it down so that we can believe it without having to accept the unexplainable events.
With regards to the sources I do partly accept the source theory as it is clear that the book of Genesis has been constructed from numerous sources, and in part, the book of Exodus appears to have a similar construction. I would also not be surprised if parts of the Old Testament were brought together during the Babylonian exile. However, we should note that there are also references to books (such as the book of Jasher) which no longer exist, or if they do exist, they are little more than pious frauds. Mind you, there were a number of books that were written after the exile, so the Old Testament in its final form did not come about until the intertestimonial period.
This brings me to the book of Isaiah. There are a number of academic scholars in Christian institutions who believe that Isaiah is not one but two books. However, they also have a special understanding of what prophecy is about. Their position tends to be that prophecy is God speaking to the people about things that are occurring to them, and either encouraging them or rebuking them. However, as they suggest, prophecy is not about foretelling the future. In a way I agree and I disagree. If God is God then God can tell the future because he can affect the future. For instance (and I am not God so I am bound by the restraints of this world) if I say that on Saturday I am going into the city and I am going to buy a book, am I telling the future, and if I do go into the city of Saturday and buy a book, did my prediction come about? I'm sure if based on that evidence I ran around claiming to be a fortune teller then people would think I was insane. However, from my position and reading of the Old Testament, the future predictions are not fortune telling but rather God saying 'I will do this at a time of my choosing.' If he does do that, well, he is God. The thing with God though is that when he says that he is going to do something well, he does it, it is just that sometimes he takes a lot of time to get around to doing it.

[Evangeline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heady, philosophical, but so so good.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the second Christian book I read (The Late Great Planet Earth was the first) after I became a Christian and has been revised recently.

[Terry Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great discourse on the historical accuracy of the Bible. I keep this on my book shelf. Great reference book.

[Patricia Dietz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hard reading, good logic, but much of this is based on (sound)human reasoning. Worth while.

[ALAGBooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

2/10/12 Pastor Greg W recommended

[Steve Rainwater · Rating 1 out of 5]

See my review of Evidence That Demands a Verdict, Vol 1. This book is basically the same thing, only the arguments aren't as good.

[Susan Guinn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is great! It goes through so much information on the authenticity of the Bible. It gives historical records, archeological information on Christ, cities in the Bible, events in the Bible. It's a fascinating read for any Christian or anyone searching for information on these subjects.

[Carôle Ceres · Rating 2 out of 5]

Long and Tedious. Could have been told in Half the Time.

This was the most tedious of the series (with absolutely no redeeming qualities). I believe that this story could have been told in half the time.

Truly only worth pursuing to complete the series.

[Paula · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is an adequate collection of evidence for faith in Christianity, marred by a prejudice against any but the author's own peculiar brand of doctrine. Authors need to be open minded, and not display their prejudices with such obvious fervor. It marred what may have been a useful book otherwise.

[Dianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently listened to this on audible and would have gotten a lot more out of it in print. It was good, though.

[Richard Locke Peterson · Rating 2 out of 5]

rubbish

[Ryan Talbert · Rating 4 out of 5]

More thorough than a casual read but informative and powerful all the same.

[Calum Mackenzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dry. Written in a way that doesn’t remotely consider its readers. ‘More than a carpenter’ by mcDowell is an easier read and ‘a ready defence’ by McDowell, though as dry has even more information, including the information included in this book.

[Marianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review redux: Many years ago I saw a video series based on this book. I not only enjoyed the series I learned a LOT! Naturally, I ran out and bought the two volume set thinking I'd get the same concise, well-documented information in book form. I was disappointed to discover that these books are more of an academic outline -- fine for a researcher who wants all his ducks in a row but hardly "readable". So, yeah, the info is all there if you want to wade through the massive outline, but this is not a book I can recommend for evening reading. Watch the video instead.

[Marianne Ogden · Rating 3 out of 5]

Less easy to follow than volume one.