Bible Passages & Articles

In the 4 readings assigned to us this week, the different perspectives on free will versus determinism, and everything in between, is discussed and challenged in the Biblical world.  Certain passages seem to advocate for the free will humanity holds, while others seem to argue that God has determined each event of the future.

Psalm 139:1-8 could, as the reading discussed, be seen as heavily deterministic.  Most importantly expressed was the author’s faith in God’s omniscience and omnipresence.  By asking, “Where can I go from you Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?” the author (suspected by most to be David) implies that God is with him wherever he goes, both mentally and physically.  His omniscience is expressed throughout the psalm, such as in the line, “You are familiar with all of my ways.”  His omnipotence, however, is the only one left not explicitly expressed.  It’s not that the author doesn’t believe God is fully powerful; it’s just that he doesn’t clarify whether God’s ability to be all-powerful means that God chose to dictate every aspect of human life.  The article we read suggests that advocates of determinism would read this passage and assume that God’s creation and omniscience would be linked to form a God that determines our lives and choices.

Mark 10:17-22, on the other end of the spectrum, was favored more by advocates for free will.  It cannot be disputed that the rich man in the story was given a choice.  Growing up he chose to follow the Ten Commandments, he made a choice to ask Jesus how to receive eternal life, and he made a choice to walk away sadly.  Although this Bible passage does not specify whether the man followed Jesus’s suggestion or not, it was always assumed in my Sunday School classes as a child that he did not end up selling his possessions.  If that was the case, he did indeed have a choice in the matter.  Even if Jesus saw his heart and knew what was most important to this man – his wealth – the man still held the final decision in his own hands.

Jonah 1:1-2:10, in my opinion, is the clearest point of argumentation of the texts so far.  It tells us in a straightforward manner how Jonah and God acted.  There are no assumptions of whether it was intended to be determinism or free will.  It’s not a parable or a poem; it’s rather a documented event.  There is, on one hand, the absolute plan God had in mind: He wanted Jonah to go and preach to the people of Ninevah.  He set events in place and spoke to Jonah so that this would take place.  This could set up an argument for determinism.  Jonah, on the other hand, made choices of his own.  First he disobeyed and ran from God, then told the truth to the sailors, then chose to accept God’s will and escaped the fish.  This could set up an argument for free will.  The “uneasy tension,” as the article describes it, is compatibilism at work.  God’s plan versus human choices is what set the story in motion.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 seems to be yet another argument for determinism, as does the accompanying article.  The repetition of the idea that there is a predestined time for every event, along with the discussion of God’s creation and actions, set a tone of belief in His will coming to completion, regardless of humanity’s choices.

Altogether, these Bible passages set up different arguments for each side of the answer to the question of who is the author of our lives.  The linkage and plausibility of each of them only strengthens my agreement with a compatibilist viewpoint.