Quote from Thunderdog:
With due respect, you may wish to revisit your own analytical skills.
1. As you agreed, many people would die for what they believe to be true. But it does not follow that what they believe is necessarily true.
... which is what I was saying.
2. As for how many people would die for what they know to be false, I would say relatively few if any.
... which is what I was saying.
However, I have no doubt that martyrs are true believers (refer to #1).
... which is not what I was saying. (sigh) The early martyrs were not believers, they were knowers because they were contemporaneous.
So what is the point of your post?
You missed it entirely. While my analytical skills may need to be revisited on some things, you've continued to miss the point. I concede it is somewhat complex, but you claim to be up to the challenge.
The early disciples knew that Jesus claimed to be God and offered as proof that he would die and rise again after 3 days. They knew that either he did this or he didn't; he either rose from the dead, or he stayed in the grave.
So, either he rose from the dead and proved he was God, or he didn't, and proved that he was a madman.
If he didn't rise from the dead, would they die for what they knew to be false? -- because die they did, willingly (hundreds of historically-recorded deaths).
You need to read the Simon Greenleaf treatise to understand it. You'll actually have to devote some thought to it, something I've found lacking in non-christians. And, it's obvious you've not read it, if you're as smart as you say.
It's sort of like the mensa-related question:
"A traveler comes to a fork in the road and does not know how to reach his destination. There are two men at the fork, one of whom always tells lies, while the other always tells the truth. The traveler doesn't know which one is which. He may ask one of the men only one question to find his way. What is his question and which man does he ask?"
My question: Why would they die -- not for what they believed -- but for what they
KNEW to be false?
If you claim they are fanatics, you're in another tautology.
In your own point # 2 you agree that these people wouldn't willingly die unless they knew that Jesus had risen from the dead, thus proving that he is God.
Without being aware of it, you have answered my question.