apaleífo̱
Puritan Board Freshman
I've heard a lot of atheists claim that the episode in Genesis where Jacob puts the striped rods in front of his sheep in order that they may give birth to spotted offspring is proof that "the authors" of the Book of Genesis believed that such a superstitious practice actually had a genetic effect upon the animals. Now, I have read the passage multiple times and always interpreted that episode simply as something that Jacob did out of his own motivation but that actually had little effect on the miraculous outcome that occurred, since in the next chapter Jacob claims to Rachel and Leah that God appeared to him in a dream telling him that He would make certain that the sheep would give birth to spotted offspring.
My question is: how do most theologians interpret this passage and am I right in assuming that Jacob acted on his own volition when attempting to influence the genetic markings on his flock's offspring? Also, what is the best answer in response to an atheistic attack against this passage?
My question is: how do most theologians interpret this passage and am I right in assuming that Jacob acted on his own volition when attempting to influence the genetic markings on his flock's offspring? Also, what is the best answer in response to an atheistic attack against this passage?