A bit underwhelmed by the "AI" features of the new Logos. . .
Title says it all. The results are, well, not very impressive IMO. I understand the design point of coming from your library with references. . .got it, known sources, etc - got it. But getting a few sentences back that are minimal at best seems not that helpful. The results are night and day. . one very expansive and helpful and the other. . .
As a an example I asked both Logos and ChatGPT the following question (note that I have all of Macarthur's sermons and books in my library and the search was on all his stuff):
"give me john macarthur's view of divorce and remarriage" -
this is the answer I got from Logos:
According to the articles provided, John MacArthur's view on divorce and remarriage is nuanced. He interprets the biblical standard of being a "one-woman man" not as a prohibition on remarriage after divorce or death of a spouse, but as a moral character requirement1. MacArthur acknowledges that the Bible permits remarriage under certain circumstances. He states that Jesus allowed remarriage when divorce was caused by adultery, and Paul permitted it when an unbelieving spouse initiates the divorce1. However, MacArthur emphasizes that God hates all divorce, though He is gracious to the innocent party in these specific situations1. MacArthur also notes that sexual sin can be a disqualification for spiritual leadership, even if it occurred before assuming a leadership role1. It's important to note that the articles do not provide a comprehensive overview of MacArthur's views on this topic, and additional sources might offer more detailed insights into his perspective.
Same question to ChatGPT:
John MacArthur, a well-known evangelical pastor and Bible teacher, holds a conservative view on divorce and remarriage, grounded in a literal interpretation of Scripture. His teaching on this topic emphasizes the sanctity of marriage as a lifelong covenant ordained by God, while acknowledging limited biblical grounds for divorce and remarriage. Here’s a summary of MacArthur’s perspective:
1. Marriage as a Permanent Covenant
MacArthur strongly emphasizes that marriage is designed by God to be a lifelong, unbreakable covenant between a man and a woman. He frequently cites passages like Matthew 19:4-6, where Jesus affirms the creation account of marriage: “What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” According to MacArthur, God’s original intent for marriage is a permanent union, and any breach of that covenant should be viewed as a serious matter.
2. Limited Grounds for Divorce
MacArthur teaches that divorce is never ideal and should be considered only in specific, biblically sanctioned situations. He identifies two main grounds for divorce:
• Sexual immorality (porneia): Based on Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 19:9, MacArthur acknowledges that divorce may be permissible when there is sexual immorality (adultery or other forms of sexual unfaithfulness). In such cases, divorce is allowed but not required. Forgiveness and reconciliation are always encouraged if possible.
• Abandonment by an unbeliever: MacArthur references 1 Corinthians 7:15, where the apostle Paul writes that if an unbelieving spouse leaves a believing partner, the believer is “not under bondage” in such cases, meaning they are free to let the unbeliever depart, and divorce may be permissible. This is often understood as abandonment by an unbeliever.
3. Remarriage
MacArthur holds that remarriage is permissible for the innocent party in a biblically justified divorce (i.e., when the divorce occurred due to sexual immorality or abandonment). However, if the divorce was not on biblical grounds, remarriage would be considered adulterous according to passages like Matthew 5:32 and Luke 16:18.
He warns against casual or non-biblical remarriage, noting that it can lead to ongoing sin if not repented of. However, for those who divorce and remarry under biblical grounds, he does not see the new marriage as sinful or invalid.
4. Divorce and Remarriage Among Christians
MacArthur emphasizes that Christians should strive to uphold the sanctity of marriage, seeking reconciliation whenever possible. He acknowledges that marriages, even among believers, can face significant challenges, but God’s grace and the power of the Holy Spirit enable believers to work through difficulties.
Divorce among Christians is never something to be taken lightly. MacArthur often encourages believers to pursue counseling, prayer, and forgiveness rather than divorce. But he does recognize that in cases of persistent unrepentant sin, such as adultery, or in cases of abandonment, divorce and remarriage may be biblically justifiable.
5. Grace and Forgiveness
While MacArthur teaches a strict adherence to biblical principles on divorce and remarriage, he also emphasizes God’s grace and forgiveness. He acknowledges that people sometimes make mistakes in their marriages and that divorce may happen outside of biblical guidelines. In these cases, MacArthur stresses the importance of repentance and turning to God for forgiveness.
He encourages those who have divorced or remarried in a way that may not align with biblical teaching to seek forgiveness and pursue a life of faithfulness to Christ moving forward.
Conclusion
John MacArthur’s view on divorce and remarriage is rooted in a high view of marriage as a lifelong covenant, with limited grounds for divorce—namely, sexual immorality and abandonment by an unbeliever. Remarriage is permitted for the innocent party in these cases, but otherwise, it may be viewed as adultery. Despite his strict stance, MacArthur emphasizes God’s grace and forgiveness for those who repent and seek to live in obedience to Christ.
This perspective aligns with a conservative evangelical interpretation of Scripture, prioritizing the sanctity of marriage while allowing for divorce and remarriage under specific, biblically warranted circumstances.
I then asked them both for sermons or book references.
Logos gave me this:
According to John MacArthur's teachings, divorce is generally not permitted except in cases of sexual immorality (unchastity)12. He interprets Jesus' words in Matthew 5:31-32 to mean that divorcing one's wife for any reason other than sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery23. MacArthur maintains that remarriage is not allowed unless the previous divorce was due to sexual immorality, as stated in Matthew 19:93. These views are primarily based on MacArthur's exegesis of biblical passages, particularly from the Gospel of Matthew, as discussed in his sermon series "Divorce and Remarriage"12.1John F. MacArthur Jr., John MacArthur Sermon Archive (Panorama City, CA: Grace to You, 2014).
2John F. MacArthur Jr., Matthew, vol. 1 of MacArthur New Testament Commentary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1985), 307.
3John MacArthur, The MacArthur Topical Bible: New King James Version (Nashville, TN: Word Publishing, 1999), 1238.
ChatGPT gave me this:
Certainly! John MacArthur has addressed the topic of divorce and remarriage in various sermons, articles, and books. Here are a few specific references:
1. Sermons
• “What Jesus Said About Divorce” (Matthew 19:1-12)
In this sermon, MacArthur explores Jesus’ teaching on divorce, focusing on Matthew 19:1-12. He emphasizes the permanence of marriage and discusses the exceptions for divorce.
• Available at Grace to You
• “Divorce and Remarriage” (Matthew 5:31-32)
This sermon dives into Jesus’ teaching from the Sermon on the Mount, where He clarifies the grounds for divorce and warns about the dangers of remarriage in cases of unbiblical divorce.
• Available at Grace to You
2. Books
• “The Divorce Dilemma: God’s Last Word on Lasting Commitment”
In this concise book, John MacArthur discusses biblical teaching on divorce and remarriage. He explains the gravity of divorce and highlights God’s design for marriage as a lifelong commitment. It also includes MacArthur’s answers to commonly asked questions on this topic.
• Published by Grace to You
• “The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Matthew 16-23”
This commentary includes MacArthur’s detailed exposition of the passages in Matthew 19 where Jesus addresses divorce and remarriage. MacArthur explains the context and meaning of the exceptions Jesus gave for divorce (sexual immorality).
• Available from Grace to You
• “The Family: God’s Pattern for Marriage”
In this book, MacArthur provides biblical principles for marriage, including a section on divorce and remarriage. He emphasizes the sacredness of the marriage covenant and explains the biblical grounds for dissolving it.
• Available through bookstores and Grace to You.
3. Articles and Q&A
• “What Does the Bible Say About Divorce and Remarriage?”
This article, available on the Grace to You website, summarizes MacArthur’s views and includes answers to common questions on the topic of divorce, remarriage, and what constitutes biblical grounds for divorce.
• Available at Grace to You
These resources provide comprehensive insights into John MacArthur’s biblical teaching on marriage, divorce, and remarriage, rooted in careful exegesis of Scripture.
Comments
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Assuming you are talking about the AI assisted search, you realize that it is NOT a chatbot, right? It is a search that better prioritizes the results so that you see the most useful results first. But it is still a search.
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."
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Your comparisons of the different AI outputs to the same question are a great example. I agree that the Logos AI implementation so for is fairly unimpressive and has a long way to go.
I love Logos, so I prepaid for 2 years of subscription to encourage them that they had an audience for what they're trying to do. I understand arguments could be made that NOT paying would have actually been the better path, because they would have had to work to earn my dollar, and that paying them ahead of time might make them think that they can afford to be static because people are already happy.
I think Logos could thrive with a creative implementation of AI. I would like to see some big things happen.
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celt said:
Your comparisons of the different AI outputs to the same question are a great example.
Unfortunately, the external bots also produce garbage results with non-existent references - just this past week I tried multiple times in multiple chat bots to get the aliyot associated with parashot - it kept mixing the 1 year and the 3 year cycle. ChatGPT insisted that Christadelphians had their own Old Testament canon. They do not. Logos is taking a thankfully conservative approach that minimizes the garbage responses.
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."
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I do understand it is not a chat bot.
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I too bought two years to support them. I love it just hoped for more.
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Got it but citing how bad some ChatGPT sessions can be doesn't change the fact Logos is pretty weak. One of the benefits that was touted was that it wouldn't create errors like the ones you reference because it would only use your library and books and provide references.
However, it doesn't take much to produce a few sentences.
Again, I bought two years to support and like (no, I love Logos software). But if I am honest the "AI" features are minimal at best and provide very little.
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Smart search is not intended to be ChatGPT. I find it helpful for reviewing search results more efficiently. A synopsis is intended to be a brief summary only.
Out of interest I ran your first question on resources written by MacArthur that I own, I get the following synopsis.
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To test the AI search's limits, I asked some stuff I would know how to do with a precise search. I asked, "What Greek words are rendered "forgiveness" in English Bibles?" The answer was reasonable:
In English Bibles, two main Greek words are rendered as "forgiveness" in the New Testament. The first is "aphiēmi" (or "aphesis"), which occurs frequently and means "to send away," "to dismiss," or "to release." It is translated as "forgive" about 58 times and "remit" 11 times....
I thought it was interesting that it gave numbers without specifying which English Bible(s). I was hoping it would collate the numbers.
Then I asked, "Which New Testament book uses the Greek word "aphiēmi" most often?" Again, the answer was reasonable:
The Greek word "aphiēmi" is used frequently in the New Testament, particularly in the Synoptic Gospels, to convey the concept of forgiveness. According to one of the articles, the verb "aphiēmi" occurs more than 100 times in the Synoptic Gospels alone, with Mark's Gospel containing about 25 occurrences.
I loved its ability to summarize the findings from the synoptics and the fact that it recognized how to section off those three books to give numbers relevant to them. What I didn't love so much is that "aphiēmi" is actually used more in Matthew than in Mark!
Then, just for kicks, I asked, "Which New Testament book uses the Greek word "ἀφίημι" most often?" Its answer was not great, but it actually understood that there was Greek in the question even if it didn't know what it meant:
Based on the information provided in the articles, it is not possible to determine which New Testament book uses the Greek word "ἀφίημι" most often. The articles do not contain a comprehensive count or comparison of the word's usage across New Testament books. They primarily provide grammatical information about the word "ἀφίημι" and some examples of its usage in various contexts, but do not offer the specific data needed to answer the user's query. To address this question, a different search focusing on statistical analysis of Greek word usage in the New Testament would be necessary.
Assuming that it needed to know that the Greek word was a lemma rather than looking specifically for "ἀφίημι", I phrased my question accordingly, and that did not help, either. I didn't expect it to handle the Greek. As I said, I'm trying to test the limits. At any rate, based on the first answers, I would never submit a paper based on the statistics it comes up with, but sometimes, it seems to be a way to test a search notion's feasibility.
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MJ. Smith said:celt said:
Your comparisons of the different AI outputs to the same question are a great example.
Unfortunately, the external bots also produce garbage results with non-existent references - just this past week I tried multiple times in multiple chat bots to get the aliyot associated with parashot - it kept mixing the 1 year and the 3 year cycle. ChatGPT insisted that Christadelphians had their own Old Testament canon. They do not. Logos is taking a thankfully conservative approach that minimizes the garbage responses.
I think it’s a great move by Logos to start conservatively with AI tools that provide answers directly from resources. They have informed us that they will continue working with AI to produce more comprehensive and nuanced responses. It’s important to me that they proceed with care in their implementation of artificial intelligence.
I can understand people being underwhelmed and disappointed by the AI in this first round of implementation by Logos. We’ve really been spoiled by the public availability of AI, with its ever-expanding features that seem to come online every week. I imagine that eventually, we will prefer asking Logos Bible-related questions, after a few more rounds of refinement in their AI offerings.
👁️ 👁️
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It's actually pretty cool. Well worth having. I expect it to improve even more, probably a lot more. Think how far we have come in 6 months.
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Lew Worthington said:
At any rate, based on the first answers, I would never submit a paper based on the statistics it comes up with, but sometimes, it seems to be a way to test a search notion's feasibility.
I think that’s a very wise move. There’s the infamous story of the lawyer who used ChatGPT to write his submissions to the court for a trial he was working on. It turns out he didn’t verify anything GPT said. His documents mentioned precedents from cases that didn’t exist and referred to statutes that never existed.
I prefer to verify and compare even the information I find in resources in my Logos library. AI just helps me find it more easily.
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