The following 40 points have been designed to help members of the Bahai faith (followers of the prophet Baha-u’llah) to compare some of their teachings with those of the Bible. Each point highlights a Bahai teaching and demonstrates one or more scriptural points that are at odds with that teaching:
- The denial of the existence of Satan the Devil. (Matthew 4:1, 2; 1 Peter 5:8)
- The belief that evil is a lesser degree of good. (Psalm 97:10)
- That there can be many acceptable interpretations of the Bible’s fundamental teachings (2 Peter 1:20, 21; 2 Timothy 1:13)
- That the Bible is said to be inaccurate in that it contains internal contradictions. (2 Timothy 3:16, 17; Matthew 5:18)
- The acceptance of the man-made theory of evolution. (Genesis 1:24, 26; Psalm 100:3; Proverbs 20:12)
- The false teaching of the immortality of the human soul. (Ezekiel 18:4, 20)
- The false teaching that the soul is distinct from the body. (Genesis 2:7)
- The false teaching that the dead are conscious somewhere and can be contacted. (Ecclesiastes 9:5, 10; Isaiah 8:19, 20)
- Baha-u’llah’s claim to be the “prince of this world” (a reference to God’s enemy, Satan — John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11)
- His claim to be the “helper,” God’s invisible active force, his spirit. (John 16:7, 20:22)
- His claim to be Israel’s “Lord of hosts” (Almighty God himself — Psalm 24:1, 10)
- The exclusive Divine title “Most High” applied to the Bab (Baha-u’llah’s forerunner). (Psalm 83:18)
- The denial of the core Biblical teaching concerning original sin. (Romans 5:12)
- That the coming of Baha-u’llah fulfilled the Biblical prophecies concerning the heavenly, invisible, “presence” of Jesus Christ. (Matthew 24:3)
- That the nations will achieve international peace. (Jeremiah 6:13, 14; 1 Thessalonians 5:3)
- That religion will be the cause of unity. (Luke 12:51)
- That the foundation of all religions is one. (Matthew 13:39; 2 Corinthians 6:15)
- That God is indefinable and beyond comprehension. (Amos 3:7; Luke 10:22)
- That a new prophet abrogates the teachings of the old. (Matthew 5:17, 18)
- That Ishmael was sacrificed as a ransom for the sins of the world. (Psalm 49:7, 8; Acts 4:12; Hebrews 10:10)
- That God’s creation did not have a beginning. (Provers 8:22-31; Revelation 3:15)
- That there were generations before Adam. (Luke 1:3; 3:38; Romans 5:12; 1 Corinthians 15:45; Jude 14)
- That the Biblical account of creation is “symbolic.” (1 Timothy 2:13)
- That the resurrection is consistently spiritual in meaning. (Acts 24:15)
- That Paradise is the joy of knowing and loving God, and after death, entrance into the Kingdom of God. (Genesis 2:8; Ecclesiastes 9:10; Isaiah 45:18; John 3:13)
- That Hell is a state of alienation from God, loss of his eternal favour. (Acts 2:31)
- That no people are to be considered the people of Satan. (John 8:44; 1 Corinthians 4:4)
- That Jesus annulled the Jewish laws on divorce and the Sabbath. (Matthew 19:8; 12:12)
- That there are many messengers as great as Jesus. (Acts 4:12; Philippians 2:9, 10)
- That the term of every life is fixed. (Ecclesiastes 9:11; Luke 13:3)
- That the “Gentile Times” means that the Jews would be free to return to their homeland. (Galatians 3:28, 29; 4:24-26; Matthew 21:43)
- That Christ’s second “advent” or presence is 2300 days after the rebuilding of Jerusalem. (Daniel 8:13, 14)
- That the 70 weeks prophecy of Daniel 9 began in 457 BCE. (Nehemiah 1:1, 3)
- That there is a connection between the ’70 weeks’ prophecy and the 2300 days of Daniel 8:14. (Daniel 9:25, 26)
- That Jesus’ second presence means a physical return to earth. (John 14:19; Hebrews 9:24, 28; 2 Corinthians 5:16)
- That he will return to a specific earthly location. (Luke 17:24)
- That Micah 7:12 applies to the second presence of Christ. (Compare verse 13 with Jeremiah 25:12)
- That Jeremiah 49:38 applies to the second presence. (Jeremiah 25: 17, 25)
- That Daniel 8:2 applies to the second presence. (The vision concerned ancient Persia and Greece; Daniel was literally in Elam when he saw this vision.)
- That Isaiah 35:2 applies in a literal sense to the second presence of Christ. (Jeremiah 50:19, 28; 537 BC — the return of the ancient Jews to their homeland.)