How'd they (i.e., authors of the NT) know that?

[Anthony5000]

Okay. I posted this in the AAA section, but as I await an answer from an apologist, I throw this out to the floor:

This is kind of obvious, but how do you think the authors of the New Testament know about certain events that were only witnessed by a few (or fewer) people?

Take the temptation of Christ, for example. The obvious and plausible answer is that Christ told the disciples what happened. It’s interesting from a narrative standpoint (and I don’t mean this in a skeptical way at all) that we never read in any of the synoptic gospels the actual telling of the event, e.g., “Jesus told His disciples, ‘I was in the desert…’”

There are a number of events like this, but this is one of the major ones. Thanks!

 

[COPLAND_3]

The most important factor is that the Holy Spirit revealed everything to them that they wrote, which was through Divine Revelation. No doubt that Jesus told them many things in those 3 years that He was with them, but when they put their accounts into writing, the Holy Spirit inspired their pen. But there are other NT authors who were not one of the 12, such as Luke, Mark, Paul, Jude, and James, and what they were taught orally was then inspired when it was being written.

 

[MarcoPolo]

There are a number of events like this, but this is one of the major ones. Thanks!

The book of Acts begins with a description of the risen Christ telling things about the Kingdom to the disciples over a period of 40 days. So that is a possible explanation, and most reasonable. Mary is also often held to be a resource that she knew of events Jesus would have told her, and she lived with John for a number of years afterward. And of course, there is special revelation as Copland stated.

 

[Mark77]

**“But there are also many other things which Jesus did; were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.” (Jn 21:25).
**
INSPIRATION= In “SPIRIT”!

Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, Ora Pro Nobis Peccatoribus!

mark

 

[Joe_Kelley]

Note that Jesus traveled with the apostles for three years. He must have told them many things as they were walking along or resting in the evening.

 

[Mintaka]

Yep, and Jesus told the apostles that the Holy Spirit would remind them of the stuff He’d told them when they needed to know.

(Besides which, ancient people used their memories more than we do and therefore had stronger faculties of memory; and rabbinical training meant you were expected to do a lot of listening to your teacher and remembering what he said.)

 

[LilyM]

The most important factor is that the Holy Spirit revealed everything to them that they wrote, which was through Divine Revelation. No doubt that Jesus told them many things in those 3 years that He was with them, but when they put their accounts into writing, the Holy Spirit inspired their pen. But there are other NT authors who were not one of the 12, such as Luke, Mark, Paul, Jude, and James, and what they were taught orally was then inspired when it was being written.

Jude and James were among the 12. As for Paul, he called himself an Apostle and acted as the equal of the 12, having met Christ directly (albeit after His resurrection). More importantly, the 12 seemed to accept Paul as such as well, and to treat him as an equal

 

[COPLAND_3]

Jude and James were among the 12. As for Paul, he called himself an Apostle and acted as the equal of the 12, having met Christ directly (albeit after His resurrection). More importantly, the 12 seemed to accept Paul as such as well, and to treat him as an equal

You are exatly right, what was I thinking! Thanks for pointing that out!

 

[LilyM]

You are exatly right, what was I thinking! Thanks for pointing that out!

No worries, happens to the best of us