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BIBLICAL REFERENCES

Deuteronomy 30:19 (NIV)

“This day I call the heavens and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and course. Now choose life, and your children may live.”

· This verse offers a clear choice between 2 outcomes, just like Pascal presents belief vs. unbelief as a life defining decision.

· It encourages active choice (choose life), reflecting Pascal’s appeal to skeptics to take belief seriously as a commitment.

· Notes the consequences of belief, not just for the individual but also for future generations.

· Reinforces the Wager’s “nothing to lose, everything to gain” logic.

· It implies divine accountability, heaven and earth are witnesses, mirroring Pascal’s concern with eternal responsibility.

Hebrews 11:6 (NIV)

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

· Emphasizes faith as a prerequisite to pleasing God, emulating the necessity of belief in Pascal’s Wager.

· Highlights the foundation of faith, belief in God’s existence and His justice.

· Supports the positive outcome of belief (God’s reward”), aligning with the Wager’s assertion that belief leads to both present and eternal benefits.

· Encourages earnestness in seeking truth, not blind faith but reasoned pursuit, just like Pascal advocates.

Matthew 16:26 (NIV)

“What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?”

· This shows the incomparable value of the soul, a key foundation of Pascal’s claim that eternal loss outweighs any temporal gain.

· This brings up the question that exposes the foolishness of living without regard for eternal consequences.

· Affirms the limited value of earthly success when compared to eternal matters.

John 3:16 (NIV)

· Presents a clear outcome of perishing and eternal life, just like Pascal’s wager between heaven and hell.

· Shows that salvation is based on belief, reinforcing that making a faith decision is crucial.

· This passage also highlights god’s love. He provides the path, but we must choose to believe, which echoes the call to decision in the Wager.