Criticism of the Bible

This article is about criticisms of the Bible as a source of reliable information or ethical guidance. For the academic treatment of the Bible as a historical document, see Biblical criticism.

Criticism of the Bible, the collection of religious texts held to be sacred by Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and other Abrahamic religions, often concerns the text’s factual accuracy, moral tenability, and supposed inerrancy claimed by biblical literalists. There remain questions of biblical authorship and what material to include in the biblical canon. Christian fundamentalists regard the Bible as the perfect word of God; fundamentalist Jews hold the Hebrew Bible in similar high regard.

Modern scholarship holds that most biblical books are of unknown or multiple authorship and combine tradition, myth, and polemic rather than strict history. Critics note biblical inconsistencies and textual issues. Bible translation involves interpretive choices and manuscript differences, leading to debates over accuracy and meaning. Archaeological evidence supports few Old Testament events and challenges many others. Critics argue that the Bible’s early narratives, including Genesis, the exodus, and the united monarchy, are historically and scientifically inaccurate, as evidence from archaeology, geology, astronomy, biology, and genetics contradicts literal interpretations. Though Jesus is broadly agreed to have existed, the details of his historicity are also debated.

Philosophers Elizabeth S. Anderson and Simon Blackburn argue that the Bible is morally inconsistent, citing passages they describe as endorsing slavery, genocide, misogyny, violence, and other unethical practices.

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