Photo of a “round” earth

@fmf said
If he believes they are absolute truths and he believes the indwelling Holy Spirit is guiding his testimony, why not?

I don’t presume to guess all the things he believes.

@ghost-of-a-duke said
I agree their interest was not in the shape of the Earth. Nevertheless, the language used indicates their preconceived (and unchallenged) understanding of the world they lived on.

And when people today speak of the “four winds” and the “four points of the compass”, do you think that commits them to a rectangular Earth? I think it’s nothing but a figure of speech, then as now. I think the biblical passages you cited are allegorical, never intended to be taken literally as proof of the shape of the planet, whatever shape they thought the planet was.

@moonbus said
And when people today speak of the “four winds” and the “four points of the compass”, do you think that commits them to a rectangular Earth? I think it’s nothing but a figure of speech, then as now. I think the biblical passages you cited are allegorical, never intended to be taken literally as proof of the shape of the planet, whatever shape they thought the planet was.

With our modern understanding of the world we live on, our language can indeed be figurative. This wasn't the case when the bible was written.