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Q&A:Plagiarism: Difference between revisions
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Our refutation of the charge of plagiarism in the Bible is found below. However, even if we were unable to refute this claim, it is completely irrelevant to the issue of whether William Branham was guilty of plagiarism. Each individual accusation must be dealt with separately and considered on its own merits. | Our refutation of the charge of plagiarism in the Bible is found below. However, even if we were unable to refute this claim, it is completely irrelevant to the issue of whether William Branham was guilty of plagiarism. Each individual accusation must be dealt with separately and considered on its own merits. | ||
The fact remains that William Branham said he received the following sermons from God while it can be clearly shown that he plagiarized them from others (the source of the plagiarism is listed in parentheses): | |||
#1957 sermon entitled "The Eagle in her Nest" (C.L. Franklin) | |||
#1960 sermon series on the seven church ages and the related book, "An Exposition of the Seven Church Ages" (Clarence Larkin) | |||
#1961 sermon entitled "Revelation Chapter 4" (Clarence Larkin) | |||
#1961 sermon series on the seventy weeks of Daniel (Clarence Larkin) | |||
#1963 sermon series on the seven seals (Clarence Larkin) | |||
#1964 sermon entitled "The Future Home Of The Heavenly Bridegroom And The Earthly Bride" (Clarence Larkin) | |||
#1965 sermon entitled "Christ is Revealed in His Own Word" ((Clarence Larkin) | |||
#1965 sermon entitled "A Thinking Man's Filter" (Billy Graham) | |||
=The Biblical Sin of Plagiarism= | =The Biblical Sin of Plagiarism= | ||
Today, plagiarism is considered to be intellectual theft or intellectual dishonesty. It is specifically defined as taking "the work or an idea of someone else and pass it off as one’s own."<ref>Catherine Soanes and Angus Stevenson, eds., Concise Oxford English Dictionary (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).</ref> | |||
In Jeremiah 23:30 we understand that God also does not condone plagiarism: | |||
:''Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour.''<ref>The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version. (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009), Je 23:30.</ref> | |||
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It is clear that God is against plagiarism when a person says they received their inspiration from God, when in fact they received it from another person. | Here is the same passage in a modern English: | ||
:''“Therefore,” says the LORD, “I am against these prophets who steal messages from each other and claim they are from me.<ref>Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2015), Je 23:30.</ref> | |||
It is clear that God is against plagiarism when a person says they received their inspiration from God, when in fact they received it from another person. And this is exactly what William Branham did: | |||
:''Now, then, when we got finished with the book of the revelation of the church, what God did to those seven churches, which were then in their infancy, or their shadow, in Asia Minor. Then the Holy Spirit revealed and opened to us all the mysteries in There, of how He has brought His Church through history. And if you don’t have The Seven Church Ages on tape, it would be good if you listened to them. And soon they’ll be in book form.<ref>William Branham, 64-0719M - The Feast Of The Trumpets, para. 38</ref> | |||
William Branham said that the Holy Spirit was the source of his teaching on the seven church ages, yet he never mentions Clarence Larkin as the source of most of his teaching. In fact, in many places, he actually [[Plagiarism#Plagiarism in the Church Ages|quotes Larkin word for word]]. | |||
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It is also clear that Luke tells us at the outset that he heard the story of Jesus from a number of eyewitnesses and from all of the reports that he heard and gathered, he put together an account of the story of Jesus. At no point in the book of Luke does the author state that this is his unique work. In fact, he starts out with a statement that he put together this account for his friend from a variety of different sources. | It is also clear that Luke tells us at the outset that he heard the story of Jesus from a number of eyewitnesses and from all of the reports that he heard and gathered, he put together an account of the story of Jesus. At no point in the book of Luke does the author state that this is his unique work. In fact, he starts out with a statement that he put together this account for his friend from a variety of different sources. | ||
'''Nowhere does Luke violate the principle that God outlined in Jeremiah 23:30.''' | |||
==Matthew 23:23== | |||
Matthew the apostle was a former tax collector who may well have kept records of Jesus’ ministry. Tax collectors were well versed in keeping records. We also understand that the Gospel of Matthew, like all of the Gospels in the New Testament, is an anonymous document.<ref>Donald A. Hagner, Matthew 1–13, vol. 33A, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1993), lxxvi.</ref> However, the first of the canonical gospels was widely ascribed by the early church to be Matthew, the apostle of Jesus (named in Mt 9:9; 10:3; Mk 3:18; Lk 6:15; Acts 1:13).<ref>W. D. Davies and Dale C. Allison Jr., A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel according to Saint Matthew, vol. 1, International Critical Commentary (London; New York: T&T Clark International, 2004), 8.</ref> | |||
The original manuscripts of the books of the New Testament are referred to as "autographs" (or autographa). However, none of the original autographs are available today. They were most likely destroyed in the violent persecutions of the early church.<ref>James B. Williams and Randolph Shaylor, eds., From the Mind of God to the Mind of Man: A Layman’s Guide to How We Got Our Bible (Greenville, SC; Belfast, Northern Ireland: Ambassador-Emerald International, 1999), 183.</ref> Everything we have today are handwritten copies of the original books. | |||
Other than this, we have no real knowledge of how the Gospel of Matthew was written or put together. Did Matthew use an amanuensis, a scribe who wrote what Matthew dictated? From their letters, we know that both Paul and Peter used amnuenses.<ref>Harry Y. Gamble, “Amanuensis,” ed. David Noel Freedman, The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 172.</ref> | |||
Certainly, if Matthew used his own experiences with Jesus, then a charge of plagiarism cannot be levied against him. | |||
It is also important to note that the "sin" of plagiarism as described in Jeremiah 23:30 cannot be levied against Matthew or any of the Gospel writers as they are not ascribing the words to themselves, they are simply recounting the story of Jesus as they best recall it from everything they saw and heard. | |||
Based on the above, we do not think the charge of plagiarism from a biblical perspective can be made against any of the Gospel writers. | |||
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