The Reformed Olive Press

How the Bible Reflects Human Perception of God Through Cultural Projection: An Alternate Interpretation The Bible is not a static divine manual dropped from heaven. Rather, it reflects a dynamic human journey of understanding God—shaped by cultural assumptions, fears, hopes, trauma, and storytelling traditions. Ancient authors weren’t writing with modern journalistic or scientific expectations. They were crafting narratives within the literary and theological frameworks of their time. The result is a rich, layered text that reveals how people projected their views of God into their sacred history. Rather than diminish the Bible, this makes it more relatable—it’s a human story reaching for the divine. Ancient Storytelling and Embellishment – The Special Effects of Their Time Ancient Near Eastern storytellers were known for using literary embellishment. These dramatic flourishes weren’t lies—they were a form of theological and emotional expression. Just as modern filmmakers use slow-mot...

Why Even the Animals? Understanding God’s Command to Kill Livestock in the Conquests When reading the Old Testament, particularly the conquest narratives in books like Joshua and 1 Samuel, a jarring detail stands out: God sometimes commanded Israel not only to destroy the people of a city but also the animals (e.g., Joshua 6:21; 1 Samuel 15:3). For modern readers, this can feel needlessly cruel. Why would God command the killing of livestock—creatures that seem innocent and uninvolved? But as with all difficult passages, we must consider the historical, spiritual, and cultural context of the Ancient Near East. The reasons are not arbitrary. Here are several biblical and logical factors to help us understand these hard commands. 1. Animals Were Involved in Idolatry and Pagan Rituals In many Canaanite and neighboring cultures, animals weren’t just farm creatures—they were part of the religious system. Bulls, goats, and sheep were often consecrated to idols, used in demonic rituals, or sy...