Does God know π?

π in Bible• The Biblical reference is from 1 Kings 7:23.

“He made the Sea of cast metal, circular in shape, measuring ten cubits from rim to rim and five cubits high. It took a line of thirty cubits to measure about it.” (NIV)

• The “Sea of cast metal" is a large metal bowl. • The ”circular in shape" suggests a circle. • The thirty cubits is the circumference. • The ten cubits is the diameter. • The formula we learned in school is

– Circumference = π times Diameter. • π = Circumference / Diameter = 30 / 10 = 3, which suggests

the Bible says pi equals 3.

But, π ≠ 3• We "know" that the the value of pi is an

infinite decimal, 3.1415926…. We usually round this to a value of 3.14, or in fractions, 3 and 1/7.

• Although we can probably agree that the Bible is not intended as a math textbook, is it possible the Bible got this one so wrong?

Explanation• Let’s consider 1 Kings 7:26“It was a handbreadth in thickness, and its rim was like the rim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held two thousand baths” (NIV)• This suggests that the bowl was not paper-

thin; it was a handbreadth thick. • Dictionary simply defines a "handbreadth" as

"the breadth of the hand - from 2 1/2 to 4 inches.”

1 cubit = 18 inchesOuter diameter = 10 cubits = 180 inchesOuter radius = 5 cubits = 90 inchesInner Circumference = 30 cubits = 540 inches.

Since the thickness of the bowl is given as one handbreadth ≈ 4 inches, then the inner radius must be: 90 – 4 = 86 inches.

The circumference formula is C=2πr.

540 = 2π86540 = 172ππ = 540/172 = 3.139534884…≈ 3.14