National Pastor Survey Results

For years, “Supernatural Bible change” discussions have relied on subjective examples: Someone provides a “fill in the blank” memory quiz question, and the participant invariably gets it wrong the exact same way as everyone else.  This can be repeated with approximately 10 to 15 familiar passages with virtually anyone that knows their Bible almost without exception. The Christian Bible change community has observed this consistent reaction for 9 years now.

But once the participant learns that they are incorrect, instead of being shocked, they somehow manage to reframe it as trivial by saying something like, “Oh yeah—now I remember.” So not only do the majority of people get a significant number of familiar passages wrong the same way as everyone else when they shouldn’t, they also display an irrational indifference to what amounts to a catastrophic memory failure.

Many of these passages are so familiar, that the inability to remember them correctly seems like something more akin to early onset dementia than forgetting where you left your keys. The response from most people should be utter astonishment, not a cavalier reframing to run of the mill misremembering.

We find this inability to acknowledge the obvious to be more of a phenomenon than the phenomenon itself.  Jesus describes this egregious lack of discernment in Mark 8:18; “Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? This “fill in the blanks and hope for the best” approach is therefore generally unproductive because every mismatch can be waved off as normal memory error.

Our debate Model

That is why we are presenting a groundbreaking evidence-based approach to this very polarized topic. Our model will help to establish a completely objective basis for debate on this topic. The premise is simple:

SBCO International has conducted two surveys that seek to measure the level of unified misremembering of Bible scriptures that is clearly taking place in our world today.  We have completed an international survey and a national pastors survey. Our surveys show consistent unified misremembering across various demographics that often reach levels as high as 96.7%. 

CLICK HERE to see full results of both of our surveys.

The reader doesn’t have to take our word for it, because this observation can be repeated by anyone using our 20-question online Bible Quiz at alteredbible.com. The reader can use that simple resource to get whatever sample size they need to make their own conclusions. The reader can also easily use Google Forms as I did to create a more robust survey and collect data themselves.  Once the reader sees the same kind of unified misremembering themselves, they will be forced to make a decision. Are you going to answer the question that this ministry is bringing to the body of Christ or not.

Average amount of misremembering

Additionally, I have included two independent studies were done to try to determine what the average amount of misremembering was in any given situation. Both of these studies found that the average false-memory rates are between 20% – 30%. (depending on task and stimulus). The significant discrepancy between our findings and the findings of these two studies provides a strong indication that something unexplainable seems to be taking place.

CLICK HERE to see these two studies

Unified misremembering

It is also significant to note, that in addition to unusually high rates of misremembering, our data clearly shows that everyone is also
misremembering the same way. And misremembering and misremembering the same way are two entirely different things. There has to be a cause for this unusually high rate that is also highly correlated. 

So what’s the cause?

The Questions

1) If the average rate of misremembering is approximately 25%, why did the pastors in our survey misremember at rates as high as 96%?

2) If they were simply misremembering, they would be misremembering differently, so what caused dozens of pastors to get multiple verses wrong the same way?

3) As an example, 29 out of 30 pastors all chose the same wrong answer for Job 1:21. How is that possible?

no objection to our testimony. Once all objections are removed from our testimony, we can then engage in a respectful discussion regarding the 25 underlying theological reasons why the Bible can be changing without their being any controversy. It is at this point that we can also introduce a variety of additional corroborating evidence such as residual evidence, flip flops, expert testimony and prophecies foretelling the event.

CLICK HERE to see 25 theological reasons why the Bible can be changing.

Summary of the responses from pastors in our survey

Key:

“29/31” means 29 out of 31 chose the same wrong answer. “Correct: 1/31” means 1 out of 31 chose the correct answer

“(KJV)” The KJV designation after a chapter and verse reference indicates that this is a change that either only takes place in the KJV Bible and not in other versions, or what is remembered by everyone is only the KJV version that no longer exists. The old English phrasing that is remembered by so many would only typically appear in the KJV version.  For this reason, the unified misremembering of a KJV only rendering could not be caused by version confusion because it would have never appeared in any other version.

Example: You would never see “The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away” in the NIV or NAS or any modern version.

Chapter and verse references that do not have the KJV indication indicates that the rendering provided as “Actual” appears that way in the KJV and all modern versions either identically or with only minor variations. We call these universal passages. (See description below) Because the renderings of universal passages are the same across all versions, they could not be sighted as the source of the confusion. In other words, how could the pastors be confused by versions if all the survey questions are the same in every version?

I also did not include any passages that are changed in one gospel but still as everyone remembers it in a different gospel. An example of this would be Luke 6:49. Luke’s version now contains the unfamiliar wording of earth and stream instead of sand and wind that you find in Matthew 7:26. 

Understanding the five (6) different types of universal changes

Each survey answer below will be labeled with a “Universal Type” (UT) of either 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6.  Example: The rendering for Genesis 8:11 is (UT#1) because the KJV and all modern versions are essentially identical.

1.  Universal – Key words have changed and the change is identical in the KJV and across all versions with virtually no exception.

2.  KJV Only – Key words have changed in the KJV but there is virtually no change in the other versions

3.  Universal Varied – Key words have changed in the KJV and modern versions. The modern versions have variations but all are still different than the KJV

4.  Universal Mixed – Key words have changed in the KJV and modern versions. Some of the modern version are the same as the KJV while others are not

5.  Universal Unique – Key words have changed in the KJV and modern versions and they are all different from each other

6. Inter-book variation – A familiar version still exists in one book of the Bible while a new, unfamiliar version of the same thing appears in a different part of the Bible. 

CLICK HERE to see examples and images of the five (5) different types of changes

 

Pastor Survey Results Summary

Job 1:21 (KJV) — UT#1

• 96.7% chose the same wrong answer: “giveth / taketh”
• 3.3% chose the correct KJV answer: “The LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away”
• 0% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “The LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away;”

Note: The remembered wording, “giveth / taketh,” has never existed in the KJV. This example is unique because the remembered wording appears to represent a universal memory issue across Bible versions, not merely a KJV-specific issue.

Genesis 3:19 (KJV) — UT#4

• 90.0% chose the same wrong answer: “By the sweat of thy brow”
• 10.0% chose the correct KJV answer: “In the sweat of thy face”
• 0% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread,”

 

Mark 5:28 — UT#4

• 90.0% chose the same wrong answer: “touch the hem of His garment”
• 6.7% chose the correct KJV answer: “touch but his clothes”
• 3.3% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “If I may touch but his clothes.”

 

Luke 5:24 (KJV) — UT#4

• 83.3% chose the same wrong answer: “bed / walk”
• 13.3% chose the correct KJV answer: “take up thy couch”
• 3.3% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “take up thy couch, and go into thine house.”

 

Genesis 7:9 (KJV) — UT#4

• 80.0% chose the same wrong answer: “two by two”
• 20.0% chose the correct KJV answer: “two and two”
• 0% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “there went in two and two unto Noah into the ark,”

 

Isaiah 11:6 — UT#1

• 76.7% chose the same wrong answer: “The lion laid down with the lamb”
• 23.3% chose the correct KJV answer: “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb”
• 0% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,”

 

John 1:41 (KJV) — UT#2

• 73.3% chose the same wrong answer: “Messiah”
• 20.0% chose the correct KJV answer: “Messias”
• 6.7% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.”

 

Matthew 7:1 (KJV) — UT#5

• 73.3% chose the same wrong answer: “lest ye be judged”
• 26.7% chose the correct KJV answer: “that ye be not judged”
• 0% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “Judge not, that ye be not judged.”

 

Hebrews 6:1 (KJV) — UT#2

• 70.0% chose the same wrong answer: “elementary principles”
• 26.7% chose the correct KJV answer: “the principles of the doctrine of Christ”
• 3.3% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “the principles of the doctrine of Christ,”

 

John 12:24 (KJV) — UT#4

• 66.7% chose the same wrong answer: “grain of wheat”
• 16.7% chose the correct KJV answer: “corn of wheat”
• 16.7% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die,”

 

Genesis 8:11 — UT#1

• 63.3% chose the same wrong answer: “an olive branch”
• 36.7% chose the correct KJV answer: “an olive leaf pluckt off”
• 0% chose the remaining/third option
• Actual KJV: “in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off:”

 

In order to validate the authenticity of our survey we offer the following corroborating data

1)  We will provide receipts and screenshots showing the survey instrument and raw export data to support the survey’s authenticity. There was no need to go to the added expense of using a third-party survey firm with an audit trail because anyone can easily duplicate our results using our free online 20-question Bible quiz at alteredbible.com. You can run a similar quiz yourself with your own respondents and compare your results to ours.

 
2)  We have a 3^rd party, peer reviewed study that produced almost identical results to our National Pastor Survey. The existence of this peer reviewed study makes it much harder for the unconvinced to attempt to claim that our data is fraudulent or inaccurate. The peer reviewed study’s final averaged probability was approximately 10^14. This means the magnitude and coherency of the misremembering in their study is almost identical to ours. 

CLICK HERE to see peer reviewed study findings.

 
3)  There are two studies that indicate that the average amount of misremembering is approximately 25% while our studies show misremembering rates as high as 96.7%  

CLICK HERE to see two studies

 
4)  In addition to our National Pastor’s survey, we conducted a 2^nd international survey with different respondents and different demographics. This 2^nd survey also produced unified misremembering results that were almost identical to the National pastor survey. These findings also help to corroborate the National pastor survey results and show that this is happening worldwide across all demographics. And because the rates of misremembering are so similar between the two groups, it dispels the idea that our testimony can be explained by confusion because of biblical illiteracy. If that was true, the levels of misremembering would be much lower among content experts and it wasn’t.  

CLICK HERE to see both surveys

All we are requesting is that you answer the question, tell us why you won’t or admit that you can’t. 

The Questions

1) If the average rate of misremembering is approximately 25%, why did the pastors in our survey misremember at rates as high as 96%?

2) If they were simply misremembering, they would be misremembering differently, so what caused dozens of pastors to get multiple verses wrong the same way?

3) As an example, 29 out of 30 pastors all chose the same wrong answer for Job 1:21. How is that possible?

 

Response options  

1)  Answer the question – Provide a rational, alternate explanation for the unified misremembering. 

2)  Don’t answer the question or ignore the question by changing the subject

3)  Admit that you do not have a rational explanation

A summary of #2 non responses

1) “This survey is irrelevant or nonsense”

2) “I only base my beliefs on the Bible”

3) “You are a wolf in sheep’s clothing, a deceiver, a charlatan”

4) “You are attacking God’s word”

5) “You are in rebellion against God’s word”

All of these #2 responses are just an attempt to dodge the question and it demonstrates an egregious lack of integrity if you claim to be taking this seriously. If you are provided with this much detail, and you claim that this evidence is somehow irrelevant to this conversation, then you betray the ideal of being a truth bearer. If you refuse to go down into the weeds and properly support your own answers, you are either guilty of gross negligence or you are complicit in the cover up. If your doctrine convinces you that 1+1 = 5, then your doctrine is wrong. I am not basing my position on the human memory, I am basing it on the objective nature of math. Every time you try to explain away unified misremembering by suggesting they are just confused, you are making my case not yours. How many times do I have to tell you this? 

If what you are saying was true, they wouldn’t all be misremembering the same way. Get it? What you are saying isn’t possible, so stop making a fool of yourself and publically stating that it is possible. Do you believe that anyone could win the Powerball Jackpot 6 times in a row? What kind of man or woman of God are you, that you could allow yourself to gaslight yourself and everyone around you on this topic? I’m sorry, but your doctrine is wrong. The word is preserved but your Bible is not.

None of these #2 responses above explain how the verified misremembering is taking place. And as I keep doing this with one pastor after another, how long will it be until your followers start asking the same question that I am?

A summary of #1 type answers

Unreliable memory explains why people may get something wrong differently at rates of approximately 25%; it does not explain why content experts would get multiple familiar passage wrong the same way at levels of 96.7%. Would you agree with that? 

And are you willing to defend your explanation in detail, question by question, without changing the subject once the weakness of the explanation is challenged? What is causing pastors to repeatedly provide the same incorrect answer across multiple passages, at rates as high as 96.7%? 

Given that our findings have been corroborated by a third-party, peer-reviewed study, and given that anyone can replicate this themselves through our online Bible quiz, are you willing to accept our data as legitimate and proceed in good faith and answer our question.

Many will just keep repeating the same mantra, “the human memory is unreliable,” but that is not an answer. God created truth, order, and mathematics, and if the numbers expose the weakness of your argument, you do not get to change the subject and call that faithfulness. You have no biblical permission to dodge an honest question. If the evidence is false, refute it. If the math is wrong, correct it. If there is a better explanation, provide it. But if you can do none of those things, then stop calling the people who noticed it deceivers. A shepherd does not run from the facts; a shepherd deals with the truth directly. When you evade the question, everyone watching learns something important: not that the evidence is weak, but that you are unwilling to deal with it honestly. We are not asking you to agree with us. We are asking you to explain the data. If you cannot explain the convergence without changing the subject, then your objections to our testimony have collapsed. And guess what is confirmed in the mouth of two or more witnesses?

CLICK HERE to see probability calculation

Exploring possible rational explanations

It’s not version confusion…because all of the questions in our survey were carefully chosen to ensure that they were either KJV only or universal which means that they were the same in every version. So if every question in our survey is rendered the same way across every version, how could the pastors have been confused by different versions?  

CLICK HERE for supporting information

It’s not modernizations or variants… because we also confirmed that every single question in our survey is identical in every modern version to the source text from which it was derived. Example: Every Authorized KJV Bible renders Isaiah 11:6 “The wolf
will dwell with the lamb.” And if you go back and look at the 1611 Cambridge KJV, all 5 revisions and the 1769 Oxford edition they also say
“The wolf will dwell with the lamb.” That means that the pastors were not confused by modernizations, or variants. If that claim were correct, the current version would show changes compared to earlier versions, and it doesn’t. 

CLICK HERE for supporting information

It’s not misprints. The misprints hypothesis is a “Hail Mary” fantasy. I’ve never seen a Bible that has a misprinted Isaiah 11:6 where it says, “The lion will lay down with the Lamb.” If misprints were causing the confusion they’d have to be everywhere. This is not a discussion about misquotes from pop culture, we’re talking  about misprinted Bibles. And we’re not pointing to a Bible with a printing error of
one or two passages. We’re talking about Bibles that would have to be filled with printing errors from cover to cover. They don’t seem to exist at all, and they certainly don’t exist in any quantities that would have any significant impact on our long-term memory. I’ve been doing this for 9 years and I’ve never seen a misprinted version of the passages that appear in my survey.  

CLICK HERE for supporting information

• Job 1:21, Luke 6:49, Genesis 3:19, Mark 5:27, Luke 5:24, Genesis 7:9, Isaiah 11:6, John 1:41, Matthew 7:1, Hebrews 6:1, John 12:24, Genesis 8:11 

 

It’s not publisher variations…because we confirmed that the questions in our survey are rendered the say way across all publishers that we could find. 

CLICK HERE for supporting information

It’s not misquotes from pop culture… because this far-fetched fantasy is impossible to support if you just stop and think about it for two seconds.

• So what if you come across a misquote? Don’t you know your Bible?
• If you saw somebody on Facebook saying, “There is no God,” would you suddenly become an atheist? 
• If the source of unified misremembering was actually misquotes from pop culture, then everyone would be misremembering differently, not the same way.
• Can’t you recognize a misspelled word when you see it? Then why wouldn’t you recognize a misquote and reject it? The truth is, you could see and hear a misquote 1,000 times a day for 10 years, and it still wouldn’t change your memory of Scriptures you’ve memorized for decades. And if you are honest about this, you would have to admit that you can’t remember the last time you ever saw or heard a misquote. This argument is a lie. Explain why the occasional and infrequent exposure to misquotes would somehow have a greater influence than the pastor’s consistent and long-term exposure to the correct renderings. The average aggregate exposure of a pastor to the correct renderings is somewhere in the neighborhood of 3 hours a day, 7 days a week for decades.
• Ironically, anyone making this claim has to include themselves in the list of people that have been ruthlessly brainwashed by these alleged misquotes. If this is your answer for the observable repeatable measurable phenomenon of worldwide unified misremembering of the Bible, then you have to include yourselves in the list of people who are operating with what amounts to mid-level dementia. So the same people that claim that we’re just confused because we’re biblically illiterate, are the same people that are forced to admit that they themselves are biblically illiterate.
• Our survey didn’t show one pastor misremembering one passage. Our survey showed upwards of twenty eight pastors misremembering twelve passages. The pastors in our survey showed a very high rate of unified misremembering for all of the passages below not just one. Can you produce any evidence that misquotes exist for all of these passages on all of the major
  social media platforms and that they appear often enough and prominently enough and on an ongoing basis, to somehow justify the
  idea that they could be overcoming all of the pastor’s continual exposure to the correct renderings.
  
  • Job 1:21, Luke 6:49, Genesis 3:19, Mark 5:27, Luke 5:24, Genesis 7:9, Isaiah 11:6, John 1:41, Matthew 7:1, Hebrews 6:1, John 12:24, Genesis 8:11

CLICK HERE for supporting information

I think it’s becoming obvious that this can’t possibly be the explanation for what we are clearly documenting. The idea that the  entire world including content experts is bamboozled by misquotes on social media, songs, children’s books, tapestries, prayer journals and movies is a fantasy. If naturalistic explanations like confusion from versions, modernizations, variants, misprints or misquotes from pop culture are all eliminated, then our testimony deserves to be considered rather than dismissed. It is then that we can move on to discussing the theological basis of why the Bible can be changing.

CLICK HERE to view 25 reasons why the Bible can be changing